“You should see this place, Natasha! It’s so pretty, like straight out of a Hallmark Christmas movie or something. And the owner said I can use the decorations that are in the attic. I’ll send you pictures when I’m done, I promise. But yeah, I’ll let you get back to Steve. Tell him I said hi!”
With a cheerful smile as she glanced around the spacious cabin, Darcy Lewis tucked her cell phone in her pocket and leaned over to give her cat, Luna, a couple generous rubs before heading out the door. Renting a cabin in a small town for the two weeks of the holidays was absolutely the best idea she’d had in a while. Especially with how peaceful everything felt and how welcoming the town had been so far. Tightening the belt of her coat, she made her way towards the general store she had seen when driving through the town. The vacation was exactly what she needed with her parents going on their own trip for the holidays and her best friend being a newlywed.
She wasn’t going to think of her ex, and how she had originally hoped this would be the holiday season he proposed to her before their explosive breakup at Halloween. She had already decided that this was going to be the clean slate that she needed to get over everything and move on with her life.
Humming along with the Christmas music playing, Darcy smiled to herself as she made her way into the shop, lighting up at the display of Christmas decor and homegoods she could already see.
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The snow was just starting to fall as Clint pulled his truck up into the drive of the cabin. He grinned to himself as he parked and leaned back in the seat for a moment with a happy sigh. Spending Christmas alone in this tiny town with just his dog for company was exactly what he needed right now. Climbing out of the truck, he stepped back to let Lucky jump down, chuckling when he immediately ran off to sniff at the trees on the other side of the driveway. He grabbed his bag from the backseat, and whistled once to catch Lucky’s attention, heading up onto the porch.
“That’s weird.” Clint frowned as he opened the door, a little caught off guard that it wasn’t locked, but figured it must be part of the small town charm.
The grin quickly returned to his face as he walked into the cabin, Lucky trailing behind him. Reaching down, he rubbed the dog’s ears before heading upstairs, tossing his bag onto the bed in the first bedroom he found. When he heard the door open, he figured it must be the owner with the welcome package they had mentioned on the website. Wiping his hands on his jeans, he made his way downstairs again as he pushed the sleeves of his flannel up.
Just as he hit the bottom step, an all-too familiar scent hit his nose, a citrus scent sending shockwaves through his body. Lucky gave an excited and happy bark and charged towards Darcy even as she stared at Clint, the look of disbelief on her face mirroring his own thoughts. Feeling something brush against his leg, he leaned down automatically to scoop up Luna, perching her on his shoulder.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Darcy finally broke the silence, shrugging out of her coat to hang it up.
“I rented the place for a couple weeks. What are you doing here?” Clint crossed his arms over his chest, cursing his inability to look away from her.
“No, I rented this place for a couple weeks. You must be at the wrong cabin. You should head down before the office closes, and get it straightened out.”
“Pretty sure I’m in the right place. I followed the directions they gave me, came to the right address. Maybe you’re in the wrong one, baby. I can help you get your things to the rental office.”
Clint deliberately emphasized the term of endearment, having no issues poking at his ex-girlfriend, and was rewarded by the way her chin lifted stubbornly. Although, he had to swallow when her arms crossed under her breasts, immediately drawing his gaze down.
“God, you really don’t change. I’m calling them. I’ll get this straightened out, like I always do.” Darcy stomped over to her bag, quickly digging out her cell phone.
Shooting another glare at Clint, she punched in the number for the rental agency, muttering about stubborn men under her breath, even as she reached down to pet Lucky again.
“Mrs. Saint! It’s Darcy Lewis. There’s a small problem. You see, I just got back to my cabin and there’s a man here claiming that he rented it as well. I’m sure that he’s just-” Her voice trailed off, face going pale as she listened. “I see. Well, I mean… I don’t know. I guess we’ll have to figure it out.”
“Something wrong, baby?” Clint smirked as he stepped off the final stair to make his way closer to her.
“I’m not your baby anymore, Barton, so stop calling me that. She said there was a screw up in their system, and it double booked this cabin. They don’t have any other empty ones, so you’re just gonna have to go find a hotel or something. You’re not staying here. I was here first.”
“I paid, just like you did, Darce. I’m not leaving. You can though. I’m comfortable right here.”
Darcy made a frustrated noise, pushing her hair back to eye him. “Fine. Fine, we’ll both stay. Just… you keep to one side of the cabin. And leave me alone. I’m not cooking for you and I’m not cleaning up after you.”
“Fine, fine. Calm down. Not gonna ask you to do that stuff. Why aren’t you home for Christmas, anyway?”
“My parents decided to do an anniversary trip, I told them it was fine. I thought you’d be with Natasha.”
“Really? Christmas with the newlyweds? Yeah, I’m skipping out on that. Besides, they don’t really want me hanging around when they’re trying to bang on every flat surface they can find.”
Darcy sighed, moving over to start making a pot of coffee. “We’re going to need some ground rules. So that we can… deal with this. I was not planning on spending Christmas with anyone, let alone my ex-boyfriend.”
“Not like we haven’t lived together before, Darce. I’m sure we can navigate this without an issue. Besides, it wasn’t so bad living with me before, was it?”
“You mean besides your inability to commit?” Her voice was almost sickly sweet.
“Look-”
Clint was honestly glad when someone knocked at the door, and sighed as she stomped off. Moving over to pour himself a mug of coffee, he glanced down at Lucky sitting near his feet.
“Don’t look at me like that. I can commit. I committed to you.” He muttered some.
Darcy reminded herself that murder was still a capital offense as she made her way to the front door, glad for the break away from Clint for at least a few minutes. Tugging the door open, she paused at the sight of the older woman on the other side.
“Can I help you?” She tilted her head curiously.
“Oh, I saw the truck outside and you return, and thought I just had to bring some Christmas cookies over for you and your husband! I’m Mrs. Danielson, dear, and I live just down the block. We love having visitors in this cabin over the holidays.” The woman beamed at Darcy, holding a platter of Christmas cookies out.
“My hus- Oh, no, he’s not-” Darcy sputtered some even at the thought, automatically reaching out to take the cookies on reflex.
“Not her husband yet, she means.” Darcy nearly choked on her own tongue when she heard Clint’s voice behind her, and could only imagine the smug look on his face. “Hey, there, I’m Clint, she’s Darcy. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Oh, and he’s a polite and good looking young man. You are a fortunate one, Darcy.” Mrs. Danielson gave her a quick wink, and she couldn’t even stop Clint from taking the platter from her hands.
“Yeah, that’s what I tell myself every day.” Darcy tried to hide the sarcasm in her voice to keep from offending the woman. “Thank you, for the cookies. We really appreciate it.”
“Oh, you’re so welcome. And remember, we do a decoration contest! I know they leave boxes of decorations for the renters to do their own thing. And caroling! Oh, this is the most wonderful time of the year.”
Clint grinned as the woman spun to head off the deck, and shut the door before turning to face Darcy again.
“What the hell was that?” He wasn’t surprised at the anger in her voice.
“Darcy, you would have scandalized that woman if you told her we weren’t together. Besides, we were good once, weren’t we?”
“I-we, that’s not the point.” Darcy turned on her heel and stomped back towards the kitchen.
Clint followed, carrying the tray of cookies and set them down on the counter. He couldn’t resist nudging open the container and snagging one of the frosted treats.
“Maybe that is the point. You fuckin’ blindsided me, Darcy. And I never had a chance to respond before you blew out of my life.” He kept his voice level. “So here’s what I’m gonna suggest. We try this. We pretend we’re happy, let everyone here think we’re together. If it doesn’t work and we drive each other crazy, then fine. We’re through. You can go back to hating me.”
“But what if it does? I don’t want to be stuck in the cycle, Clint.” Her voice was quiet.
“Then we figure out how to not be stuck. And we make it work.”
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Darcy honestly didn’t want to admit it, but she was enjoying herself as she pulled the cookie sheet out of the oven. She hadn’t known what to think of Clint’s proposal, but she had also forgotten how much fun he could be when he really wanted to try.
“Got the next batch done. Any of them cool enough to decorate?” She glanced over at him where he was wrangling their Christmas tree into the stand.
“Not sure. Ask Lucky. Saw him sniffing at the rack a few minutes ago.” He shot her a grin as he straightened, tugging down his t-shirt where it had ridden up on his back.
“Lucky! You’re not supposed to eat our cookies!” She couldn’t resist leaning over to give the dog’s nose a quick kiss. “Silly boy.”
Clint chuckled as he brushed his hands off on his jeans. Making his way over to the kitchen area, he brushed his hand down her hair, hoping she wouldn’t pull away from his touch.
“So what’s next on the agenda?” Darcy tried to hide the faint shiver from his touch.
“You mentioned decorating the tree, and we’ve got the cookies to decorate. Then I figured we could build up a fire and just relax tonight. Maybe watch a couple movies or something.”
There was warmth in her stomach as she listened to him, realizing just how much she really had missed this. Especially since this was the perfect Christmas she had always built in her mind. But a quick glance at her bare hands reminded her that this was fake, and that unless things changed a lot, they were going to go right back to the way they were before.
“Yeah, that sounds good. We have that list of movies to try and get through before the holidays are over.” She managed a faint smile.
“Hey, you don’t have to fake it, Darce. I’m trying here, okay? I’m trying to show you that I want this.”
Clint’s voice was low as he took a step closer to her, his hands clamping down on her hips. Lifting her up, he set her down on the countertop, leaning in to press his forehead to hers.
“I’m just afraid that this is the honeymoon phase all over again, Clint. That we’ll go back to how we were before. And I don’t want that.” She brought a hand up to cup the back of his head. “I won’t go back to it. The drifting, not knowing where we’re going.”
“We won’t. I promise. I fucked up, Darcy. I do it so damn well. But I won’t again.” He took a slow breath. “Let’s just finish this out and see how we feel once the holidays are over.”
“Right, right. Okay. Let’s decorate the tree while the cookies cool.”
Clint took her hand to help her slide off the counter before reluctantly letting go to head into the living room where he’d set up the tree. Grabbing a box of decorations they’d found in the attic, he set to stringing the lights on the tree, before climbing up on a step ladder that he’d found. He finished stringing the lights on the highest part of the tree when he wobbled, his hand slapping into the wall to keep his balance
“Dammit, Clint. Get your ass off that ladder. I am not spending this vacation in the hospital or you hobbling around with a cast or crutches.” Darcy called out from the kitchen.
“Yeah, yeah, I hear you.” He couldn’t help but grin a bit as he climbed down the ladder slowly.
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“Alright, what movie did you pick? And please don’t say Die Hard because we are not going to get into that debate.” Darcy grabbed the popcorn as she made her way towards the living room.
Their Christmas tree lit up the front window, piled with decorations and already had a couple packages beneath it. Clint simply grinned at her as he grabbed a couple throw blankets before switching off the light in the living room.
“Nah, I figured Christmas Vacation was a classic and something we should start with.” He sprawled on the couch, closer to the middle rather than one end.
“Ooh, okay, yeah. I can get behind some Griswolds.”
Darcy curled up on the cushion next to him, trying not to think about how good he smelled or the warmth she could feel from his body with his arm stretched along the back of the couch. The living room was dim with the only light coming from the Christmas tree and the fireplace they’d lit earlier. Combined with the noise from the television, she found herself lulled into a state of relaxation.
“Getting lost in your thoughts?” His voice was a murmur as he moved closer to her, his arm falling to wrap around her shoulders.
“Nah, just thinking about how nice this is. I’ve missed this.” It was easy to make the admission in the dark.
“I have too, Darcy. That’s why I’m glad this happened. I think this was the second chance we needed.”
Darcy glanced up at him, not surprised that his gaze was actually on the television, since she knew that it wasn’t easy for him to discuss his feelings. Curling more into his side, she tipped her head onto his shoulder.
“Maybe. But we still have time to figure this out.” She hoped he wouldn’t take the words the wrong way.
They settled into a comfortable silence to watch the movie, Darcy cuddling into his side and Clint pulling a blanket over them to make it more comfortable. His hand rubbed over her shoulder as the movie ended, and they broke apart slightly to stretch.
“Hey, look, it’s snowing again.” Darcy glanced out the window, a faint smile on her face.
“Yeah, they said we could get a good storm tonight. Might even dump enough to snow us in here.” Clint chuckled quietly. “Or at least enough to build a couple decent snowmen tomorrow.”
“Oh, is that what’s next on this magic list of yours?” Her voice was teasing as she turned back to face him.
“Maybe. Although… you forgetting something, Darce?” A playful grin spread across Clint’s lips even as he nodded up above them.
“What… Clint, is that mistletoe?”
When he didn’t answer, Darcy glanced over at him, her breathing hitching at the intense look in his eyes. Her hand came up to cup his jaw, fingers stroking over the faint stubble. Clint leaned in, claiming her mouth in a slow, soft kiss as his hand came up to tangle in her hair. His other arm wound around her waist, pulling her over onto his lap. She gave a quiet moan, leaning more into him, the familiar warmth spreading from his touch on her back.
He nipped her lower lip gently before pulling back to press his forehead to hers, hand rubbing up and down her back slowly. His fingers stayed twisted in her hair, just holding her close to him.
“Okay. Yeah, I missed that.” Her voice was quiet, her fingers still rubbing over his jaw.
“I have too. I’ve honestly just missed you, Darcy. I know I screwed up before.” He kept his voice low. “I know we said we’d wait to talk about this until the holiday was over but I can’t wait any longer.”
“Clint-”
“No, let me get this out, okay? Our fight… it made me realize that I was being unfair. I didn’t give you any indication that this was it for me. That I wanted this to go somewhere. But you’re my entire world, Darcy. There’s no one else that I can see myself with. No one else I can see me having kids with, spending holiday after holiday with, year after year. No one but you.” His gaze was intense on her face. “I’m hoping that you still feel the same way, and that maybe you’ll take a little closer look at that mistletoe.”
“Oh, Clint…” Her voice trailed off as she looked up, frowning slightly when she saw something glint in the light of the fireplace. “Clint.”
“We’re gonna do this right, Darcy. Starting with taking that step.” He turned her head gently back to face him. “Marry me.”
“You’re serious. Oh, my God, Clint.” She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes.
He let go of her only to stand up and pull down the decoration he’d hung earlier. Taking the ring from the string, he sat back down on the couch, picking up her left hand.
“Dead serious. I love you, Darcy. I fucked up, and I might fuck up again, but I’m always going to love you. I’ve been holding onto this since before our fight, and I didn’t think I’d get the chance to say these things. I’m just hoping like hell you still feel the same way.” He kept his gaze locked onto hers.
“Of course I do, you idiot. God, this is all I wanted, Clint. Yes. A thousand times yes.” The tears spilled over onto her cheeks as Clint slid the ring into place on her finger.
“So… no more pretending? This is us?” His voice was hopeful.
“No more pretending. We’re getting married. God, I love you so much.”
Clint could only grin as he pulled her in, claiming her mouth in a harder, deeper kiss this time and didn’t resist when she pulled him down to the couch.