Chapter 1

Hello everyone …

*** This is my Christmas gift from me to all of my readers. There will be Lots and lots of lemons:);)

*** Christmas is my very favorite holiday. I love the carols, trees, lights, snow … anything to do with this particular holiday. Mostly, I love the way people seem to change with the season … I love the hustle and bustle … the shopping … Everything that is Christmas, so thanks for being apart of this story in advance.

This story will be updated DAILY until Christmas Day …

*** Also, I decided to do something different with this particular story. It is meant for fun and lots of fun lol. That means a whole different type of Edward and a very different Bella than you all are used to from me.

*** This particular story is set in my own hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana. So big huge shout out for Fort Wayne … Just thought I would share that lol.

Thanks for reading and coming to enjoy a whole different story.

Please review …

Updated Daily until December 25th

Bella smiled when she pulled into the driveway. Finally, after a stressful week at work, she was home, and twinkling through the window was a beautiful blue spruce Christmas tree.

Yeah, okay, so she was a nut for Christmas.

The lights, carols, snow, movies, and the whole nine yards—hell, for her, it was like a hundred yards. She was one of those crazies that started Christmas shopping on October 31 … Was she sorry about being in a jolly mood? Oh, no, she happened to love anything to do with the holiday and was unapologetic about it.

On Thanksgiving Day, she'd put up the tree with the help of her roomies, and right now, after such a horrid week at work, it was the most welcome sight. Hopping out of the driver's seat, she popped her trunk. Okay, so she'd splurged this Friday afternoon … The trunk was littered with shopping bags—Christmas presents for her roomies and her best friend in the entire world. Shoving the straps up her arms, Bella lifted the Macy's bags from the compartment and turned towards the walk.

She made her way towards the historic victorian house. The place was beyond beautiful and cost her a whole week's worth of pay for rent every month. That's precisely why she'd put an ad in the paper a year ago for responsible, hard-working roommates.

Yes, the place was old and withered, but its beauty could not be questioned.

Tipping her nose to the frosty air, she breathed in the smell of fresh, clean snow sprinkling from the sky. Today was November 30, and she had precisely twenty-five days until Christmas. The thought sent a thrill shooting through. Honestly, she had a wonderful life she determined, mounting the stairs to the massive oak door.

Pushing the thick door open into a spacious foyer, she shuffled inside, carefully setting her bags on the gleaming hardwood floor. Bella shed her coat and placed it on the coatrack flipping the light on in the entry; she glanced into the darkened living room for any sign of life. Apparently, Alice and Rose were still at work. The house that normally teamed with excitement remained eerily quiet right at the moment.

This is just what she needed—a quiet, relaxing time to drink a glass of wine and bake some Christmas cookies. Even now, she could almost smell the sugar cookie aroma wafting from the kitchen. She just had to deliver these packages to her room and make it to the kitchen to start her weekend. With a smile pulling at her cheeks, she kicked off her snow boots and collected her bags.

Once Bella reached her room, she slid the bags in the back of the closet and shucked her blouse and slacks. Tossing the confining bra, she wore aside; she grabbed a tank from the dresser and a pair of booty shorts. While it was only twenty degrees today in Indiana, the hundred-year-old house was quite toasty, yet the hardwood floors could hold a chill. With that thought, she slipped a pair of her Christmas booties onto her feet. Quickly, she ran a brush through her waist-length hair and whipped it up into a messy bun.

Feeling the pressure of the week melt from her shoulder, she left her room with a smile; jogging downstairs, where she collected the bag of treats, she'd deposited next to the front door. Bella looked inside, sorting through the rolls of cookie dough and sprinkles she'd purchased. Dancing around her kitchen, Bella grabbed a cookie sheet from the cabinet. Setting the dough on top of the baking sheet, she slipped a wine glass from the rack hanging under the cabinet and poured a few swallows of red wine into the goblet. After taking a sip of the fruity brew, she set the glass aside and began preparing.

While she worked on separating the dough, her thoughts drifted to her career. She was a freaking wedding planner and dealing with overanxious brides was a headache on the best of days. This last week, she'd dealt with three different women that couldn't be more bride-zilla-ish if they tried. It was beyond her how they'd ever convinced men to actually marry them, let alone spend the rest of their lives together.

In-fucking-sane. 'Lilies, daffodils—I want roses …' 'They better be fresh cut, and the tablecloths needed to be baby-blue, or powder white, or freaking canary yellow' … The list of demands never ceased, and quite frankly, she was thinking of making a career change. She would—she really would if weddings weren't so freaking beautiful. At the end of the day, she loved the finished product—it almost—almost made the whole mess worth it.

So, her life was right on the verge of perfect. Slipping the cookie sheet into the oven, she leaned into the counter with her hands on her hips.

Yep … Perfect.

With one exception…

Nibbling on her bottom lip, she turned to the living room—an empty living room. She sat on the couch and turned on the television, yet her gaze slipped to the elegantly decorated Christmas tree.

… Just one small defect in her flawless life.

She'd been single for the last five years.

Why?

Because one, she didn't need a man to be happy. Bella listed all of the things in her life that gave her a sense of completion; friends, family, a beautiful home, a mostly dazzling job …

Second, she refused to settle. Bella didn't want just any old Joe; she wanted the right freaking Joe. She wanted that spark that made her feel warm inside. She wanted someone who made her smile when he came into the room. She wanted the fucking butterflies and tingles … Anything less just wasn't worth the trouble.

Nope, she didn't need a man to find meaning in her life, but sometimes … sometimes it would be nice to have a special person to share tiny moments with. Like those sweet kisses in the morning when she first woke up or having someone to ask her how her day had gone.

Ugh—she was being ridiculous. There was absolutely no reason for the direction of her thoughts. Just—just sometimes …

Luckily, she was snapped out of this sudden funk as the back door was pushed open, and Jake's voice cut through the silence in the house.

"I smell cookies."

Perfect timing … Jake, her roomate, had been her best friend since she was five. They'd made mudpies together since they'd been old enough to sit upright. Leaping from the plush couch, she darted into the kitchen with a huge smile on her face. "I was starting to wonder where everyone had gone."

Yeah, so she'd lied. There was no reason to trouble Jake with the direction of her thoughts. But she did need a big fat hug from the one person she loved almost more than herself. Catapulting across the kitchen, she pushed into his muscular arms and burrowed deep into his barreled chest. Instantly, she was encircled with warmth as he returned her embrace.

"What's up, Bells?" Jake wanted to know, pushing the wayward strands of hair from her face. "You act like I've been gone for years."

"No, just been a hard week," she murmured against his chest. "You have no idea how eccentric women can get when they are planning their big day."

Jake kept one arm around Bella's waist as he dropped a kiss to the crown of her head. "Yeah, well, it's time to put that away, at least for the weekend. Let's think about going ice skating at the park."

To any ordinary person looking in, Jake and her relationship looked … well, it looked as if they were a couple. That couldn't have been the furthest thing from what their relationship was in actuality. Last year—one year ago, Jake had come out to his father—to all of them. While Billy hadn't been exactly supportive about Jake's choice in romantic relationships, Bella couldn't have been prouder of him.

Yep—Jake was gay and beautiful. Kissing his cheek, she let her fingers sneak beneath his shirt, brushing warm skin. Murmuring against his chest, she whispered, "Jake, you know I cannot skate. I'll spend more time on my ass than upright."

Jake chuckled, whispering against her hair, "I will make sure that does not happen. If we have to stay there all day … We will teach you how to skate."

Finally feeling peace flow through her, she slipped from his embrace and headed for the oven with a laugh. "I'll believe that when I see it. You haven't been able to teach me to skate—ever … my balance is for shit."

"True," he returned with a chuckle. Kicking off his shoes, he turned to the basement door. "I'll be back up in a sec … Just going to slip into something more comfortable."

"Will it be sexy?" Bella teased, taking the cookies from the oven.

Jake let out a surprised laugh. "You can bet your bruised ass …"

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