Jacob was sulking as he helped me decorate the tree we brought in half an hour ago. He behaved like a little kid trying hard to show their parents just how much he disliked the situation. I pretended not to see it though. We were a family and we'd decorate the freaking together. Mrs. Quake was hiding her smile. As we shared a look I could tell she was trying very hard not to laugh.

"I don't understand why you need me for this." Jacob muttered as he handed me another red bauble, eying the many boxes which were spread out on the rug by the couches, "And how many baubles and other Christmas crap are you going to put in this tree exactly?"

I glared at him, "Christmas crap?" I repeated very quietly and very slowly.

He looked away, having the decency to feel guilty, "We could hire someone to do this." He trailed off.

I had enough.

Not taking the next bauble he was holding out, I grabbed the front of his light grey button-up instead and pulled him forward, "Christmas is important to me so it's going to be important to you, understand?" I asked him.

His eyebrows shot up to his hairline, he probably didn't expect this kind of behavior out of me. I didn't expect me to react like this either. I couldn't listen to his whining anymore though. It was driving me insane.

"You're going to help me decorate this tree, we're going to make it a rainbow freaking tree which will be fucking fabulous and look great in this room and we're going to do this without complaining every damn second about it." I narrowed my eyes on him as I pulled him down a little, "If not, you can use your hand from now." I threatened him.

He wrapped his hand around my wrist and loosened my grip on his shirt, he brushed his hand over the creases I made with my firm grip and sighed.

"So demanding." He muttered.

He placed the bauble down on the coffee table and shrugged off his jacket. I eyed him suspiciously as he rolled up his sleeves, his designer watch shining brightly in the lighting of our overly decorated living room. He grabbed the remote control to dim the lighting in the room and then grabbed his phone to connect it to the speakers. He found a Christmas playlist and settled on it, lowering the volume so soft music was playing in the background. He flickered his eyes to Mrs. Quake who sat on the couch, knitting a scarf of some sort. I assumed it was a scarf, it could also be a sweater.

"Can you light some candles?" He asked her.

"Of course, Mister Blackwood."

She flashed me a small smile and quickly did as told. Jacob snapped his fingers at me, catching my attention again and pointed at the tree.

"If we're going to do this than lets at least set the right kind of mood."

"When you set your mind to something you always do it with a lot of passion." I strolled up to him and wrapped my arms around his waist, "That's what I love about you."

He settled his hand on the back of my head, "What else do you love about me?"

He wanted to lean in and kiss me, but I pressed my hands against his firm chest and slightly pushed him back. I didn't use much force but he did get the hint.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

I smirked at him, "Well, I've told you what I love about you so now it's your turn."

He let his hand drop and stepped to the many boxes which were scattered across the rug. He picked up the box containing the red baubles and focused on the tree. The smug look on his face told me he did this on purpose.

"I love that I always give my fiancée what she wants despite her being a pain in my ass."

I rolled my eyes at him, "Never mind, there is only so much I can ask of you."

The one pouting now was me and Jacob noticed. He sighed and moved closer to me, kissing my temple which surprised me, "I love that you always think about me." He whispered. He pulled away and focused on decorating the tree again, "I know you're doing this to make us feel more like a family and I made a fuss about it but I do appreciate it." He met my gaze, "I love that about you."

We decorated the tree together, I hummed to the songs playing in the background. Occasionally Jacob would sing along, joining in on the laughter. I had no idea Mrs. Quake filmed us like that until she messaged me a video of us laughing and singing and decorating the tree. It was so wholesome I felt like crying.

"So cute," Jacob whispered, kissing my hair as he stood behind me to watch the video as well.

"Shut up." I muttered, I turned to face him, "Shall we upload this?"

"Always thinking of me." He smiled, "Do what you want with that." He brushed it off as if it was nothing but the warmth in his eyes told me he loved the idea so I did upload it on my Social Media.

It was another step to let people know that the two of us were okay. Hopefully, the scandal would slowly die down and people would find something more interesting to discuss.

After dinner, Jacob and I settled on the living room couch with a warm drink in hand. The living room was decorated, it screamed Christmas but I liked it. The rainbow tree looked beautiful too. Jacob had his arm casually thrown over my shoulders and kept me close to him. I was snuggling into his side, his warmth and his fresh scent making me feel more at ease.

"So for Christmas, I want to do a family dinner." I felt anxious bringing this up but I had to, "You never mention your family but if you want you can invite them over as well."

Jacob tensed when I mentioned his family, I expected that since he never once talked about them. They were never mentioned online either. Maybe they were really private people and I respected that. No one knew a thing about his family and that was okay when we were just employer and employee but we were getting married in three months. I think he should share a thing or two about his family.

"I didn't part on good terms with my family." He informed me, he was still tense but at least he didn't pull away from me, "My father died when I was eight, he was very sick and it was actually better for him to just you know, go." His voice broke, I could hear that he wasn't quite over it and it pained me to hear the hurt in his voice, "Mom was broken up over it for three months and then got remarried."

"Three months?" I whispered, not quite believing it.

He laughed, shaking his head at the thought, "Weird, right? I was upset then not being able to accept that she moved on so quickly and when I got older and really thought about it things just became weirder to me so I did a little research."

I didn't like where this was going because it was quite obvious. It was also obvious that he probably never wanted to speak to his family again and that was okay. My family loved him. Well, mom was crazy about him and dad respected him. Nick tolerated him. That was enough for now.

"Turned out that my mom was seeing the guy already when dad was in the hospital fighting for his life. Of course, she could move on so quickly. She was just waiting for her husband to die so she could marry the man she actually loved."

It hurt hearing him say that. I knew where his story was going but it still hurt. I hurt for the little boy who was broken up about losing his father at such a young age and not understanding why his mother wasn't sharing his pain. He probably never really talked about how he felt then. He couldn't because his mother didn't give him a chance.

"It's okay, you don't have to invite your family. We'll just have a casual Christmas dinner with my family. I was thinking about buying everyone Christmas gifts."

"I have a younger brother." He announced which made me tense up, "He's working on his thesis right now. We don't talk much but I do pay for the things he needs."

"He's in college," I concluded quietly.

"Almost done with college."

I turned to look at him, placing a hand on his chest, "Do you want to invite him?" I asked, risking the chance of upsetting Jacob.

I felt like there was a longing in his voice, I could be wrong about that. Jacob would let me know though, he wasn't one to keep his thoughts to himself.

Jacob looked away, clenching his jaw, "We're not close like that."

There was definitely longing in his voice. He didn't hate his younger brother. Jacob didn't tell me much about this younger brother but I assumed he was his half-brother. He might feel uncomfortable around his younger brother since he was the child of a man his mother cheated with while his dad was very sick. Jacob probably knew deep down that his younger brother had nothing to do with the actions of his mother, but knowing that and actually feeling sincere about the situation were two different things. Sometimes your heart just didn't listen.

"Well, if you do change your mind you can always invite him over. I'll make plenty of food."

He smirked, "And will probably go nuts with the presents too."

He was changing the subject, probably needing to lighten the mood a little. I didn't push him, instead, I played along so he could calm down after sharing something so personal with me. I appreciated it, I loved him for it. I wouldn't tell the smug man that though. We weren't quite at the stage of confession or love toward each other. We were getting there but maybe I was too prideful to say it first.

"Maybe," I muttered.

His look told me that he knew better, "Could you do some Christmas shopping for me too? I don't have the time to do it myself, you see, Miss Merigold."

I grinned at him, "You want to hire me, Mister Blackwood?"

He took my cup away from me, placing it on the coffee table in front of us. He grabbed my hips and without warning flipped me on my back. I giggled when he climbed on top of me and brushed my hair out of my face.

"You are the best." He told me, placing kisses over my neck.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, "I suppose I can help you out." I kissed the corner of his mouth, "I might even be persuaded to do it for free."

He chuckled, his grip on my hips tightening, "Yeah? What will it take to persuade you, Miss Merigold?"

I held his gaze, brushing my tongue over my lower lip. He got it and chuckled, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

"Oh, sweetheart you know I will deliver." He teased.

He pulled away from me and scooped me up in his arms, I giggled when I noticed he made his way to our bedroom. He dropped me on our bed and climbed on top of me, kissing me gently on the lips and slowly making his way down. He definitely knew what I wanted.

I brushed my hands through his hair as he went lower and lower, the heat boiling up in my lower stomach.

"Jake." I moaned when I felt his hands on my pants.

He looked up at me, "You are actually a needy girl, aren't you?"

I couldn't help myself, not when he more or less pleasured me six days in a row. I was used to having an intense orgasm a day. He made me like that. He probably intended for it to happen. I was addicted to his body and I couldn't deny that anymore.