****
Boone woke up Christmas morning and peered towards the window on the opposite wall. He wanted to see how much snow had fallen during the night. It had been snowing nonstop for a week. Boone sat up confused. He rubbed his eyes and looked again. The window seemed further away. “What the hell,” he murmured. He slid out of bed, grabbed a t-shirt to cover his muscular chest.
“Leave it off,” Delilah moaned hopefully. “You have a beautiful chest.”
“Does this room look bigger to you?” Boone asked ignoring Delilah’s plea and lowering the tight white t-shirt over the top of his pajama pants.
Delilah looked around curiously. “Did Santa answer my wish?” She jumped up but did not follow Boone to the window. Instead, she headed for the closet and the bathroom.
“Boone, come look!” Delilah screamed. “Separate walk-in closets and a giant soaking tub.”
Boone spat out question after question looking around. “What the hell? How did this happen? Who did this?”
Delilah looked at the wall above the twelve-foot long mirror above the long double vanity. Seeing three triangles she fought back her tears of joy. “Daddy,” she cried. “He approves.”
Boone stood there not knowing what to do or say next. Did Daddy approve of him? Did he approve of their relationship? Was it okay for Delilah to divulge all her secrets? So many questions ran through Boone’s head. There was so much he wanted to know. He did not know where to start. But was Delilah ready? Was she willing to tell the whole story? Was he ready to ask the questions? Was he ready to hear the answers?
Boone remained silent. He could not, would not, cause Delilah any pain or stress. Boone could not, would not, do anything to lose her. He had come to rely on her always being there. He had come to count on her companionship and friendship. The thought of losing her was incomprehensible. He looked at Delilah’s reflection in the mirror and saw her smile. She was happy. He would not take away her joy.
“It is beautiful, Angel,” Boone smiled looking around. “I can see you love it.”
“I do. It is perfect.”
“Let’s get dressed and take a look from the outside. I have a feeling the size of the house just doubled,” Boone smirked. “Daddy is a bit over the top.”
“He still loves me,” Delilah cried bittersweet. “He rarely gives me gifts. But when he does, it is a bit over the top.”
Delilah ran into one of the two closets. “Our things have been put away. OMG. It is perfect.” Delilah quickly grabbed some clothes and got dressed. “Let’s go outside.”
Boone and Delilah walked into the living area of Boone’s home and saw no other changes. Grabbing their jackets, they ran outside. “Delilah?” Boone asked suspiciously. “What did you do?”
"Me? I have not done anything,” Delilah stated, confused. Then she looked at the far end of the house and towards the garage. “OMG, new SUVs. Matching SUVs.”
“Daddy?” Boone asked.
“It is the best Christmas ever!” Delilah jumped up and down. Boone shook his head in disbelief. “This is too much,” he sighed running his long sexy fingers through his equally sexy hair.
“I dare you to try to give it back,” Delilah laughed. “Good luck. Let me know how it works out.”
Boone did not reply. He despised the fact Daddy had bestowed such elaborate and extravagant gifts on both of them. But he was not going to upset Delilah, not for all the sweet red wine in the world.
“Look,” Delilah started. “He camouflaged the addition with trees. No one but us will know. Daddy can be so tricky sometimes.”
“All we need is a decent wine cellar, and all your dreams will have come true,” Boone chuckled.
“Do you think?” Delilah looked up hopefully. She took off running back into the house and towards the kitchen. She saw a door which had not been there before. It appeared as if it was a back door to the new addition to the house. “Please, please, please,” she implored. Slowly she opened the door and a small light illuminated a set of stairs. “Come on,” Delilah squealed reaching for Boone’s hand. Boone extended his hand and together they descended the steps.
Both stood and gaped at what they saw. Not just bottles of Delilah’s favorite sweet red wine but several tapped barrels. “Daddy’s minions have been very busy,” Delilah exclaimed as she shook her head in disbelief.
“Minions?” Boone gasped while inhaling.
“Not today,” Delilah sighed trying to remain happy. “Today is about having fun and celebrating. I am going to try out that giant tub. And did you see the humongous shower? It is big enough for at least ten people.”
Boone had seen the shower equipped with a dozen shower heads. He smiled a guilty grin. “I would like to give it a whirl.”
“Breakfast first?” Delilah asked.
“Us first,” Boone whispered.
“Us?”
“I want to give you your gift,” Boone revealed.
“But you said...,” Delilah started and then paused with a guilty smirk. “I got you something too.”
Both ran up the stairs and to their secret hiding places. Returning to the living room, they sat in front of the Christmas tree and exchanged gifts. “You first, Hooxei,” Delilah smiled.
Boone took the large and perfectly wrapped package and placed it on the floor in front of him. He started removing the gold colored wrapping paper from the gift slowly and carefully. Then he looked up and smiled like a little boy. His bright green eyes twinkled. Without warning, he ripped open the paper and lifted the lid to the box. It was a black leather jacket. It was soft, supple and custom made. “It is like mine; bulletproof,” Delilah announced. “I could not bear the thought of you ever getting hurt.”
“It is perfect,” Boone whispered as he slid it on. For a moment, he felt a twinge of guilt. He had cut the bottom of Delilah’s coat off back in Wyoming, and she was shot in the leg. He had inadvertently and unknowingly put her in danger. He forced himself to smile. “And it fits perfectly. I love it.” He leaned forward and kissed Delilah chastely on her perfectly red lips. “Your turn.”
The box in Delilah’s hand was much smaller. It was square. For a moment, she hesitated. Only one thing came in a box this size. Boone could see her hand start to shake. She tried to speak, but nothing would escape her now quivering lips.
“Delilah,” Boone started. “You are my best friend. You get me. You understand me better than anyone ever has.”
Boone paused to take another deep breath before continuing. But before he could speak another word, Delilah removed the ribbon from the box and stared. Neither could speak. Speaking would have involved breathing, and both were holding their breaths.
“You will understand when you see it,” Boone finally whispered exhaling. “It is not what you think.”
Delilah looked into Boone’s eyes again looking for the truth. But she could only see his apprehensions. She opened the box and smiled. “Best friends,” Delilah whispered and then smiled again.
“It is a friendship ring; an Irish Claddagh. With emeralds in the crown,” Boone explained. Boone took the ring out of the box and slipped it onto Delilah’s right hand with the point of the heart pointing towards Delilah’s wrist. Boone pointed to the bottom of the heart and slowly moved his hand towards her wrist. “You have captured my heart, Delilah. My friendship, my heart, and my loyalty are yours.”
“The emeralds match your eyes,” Delilah smiled. “It is the best gift ever.” Delilah moved slowly and sat in Boone’s lap and laid her head on his shoulder. “You have captured my heart too.”