But it didn’t matter. She didn’t want him. She wanted the version of him his family saw, the cleaned up, respectable version. The holiday edition. She didn’t want his darkness. That, she cowered from. He couldn’t be with a woman who would cringe in fear from such a pervasive part of him. As attractive and nearly perfect as he found her, that single missing ingredient made the entire cake fall.

Leo glanced down to find Angelica crawling near his feet with Christmas paper in her mouth. “Someone has been unwrapping presents without us.” It had escaped most of the adults’ notice that the kids had disappeared from the kitchen.

“Angelica is a baby. She can’t open presents by herself,” Alba said.

Leo laughed. “I know that, Grammie, but if she’s got wrapping paper, someone had to give it to her.”

The adults migrated to the large family room with the Christmas tree and the mountain of presents. Michael and Nico had taken it upon themselves to divvy up the loot, creating a careful pile for each person, while the other kids tore into presents.

“So much for me playing Santa this year,” Leo’s cousin Dino grumbled.

The kids had made a pile for Leo and Faith next to a black leather couch along the back wall. He watched Faith’s eyes widen at the large pile of presents with her name on them. Most were from him, but several were from other family members who’d heard through the grapevine, a.k.a. Gina, that he had a lady friend.

“Leo, can I talk to you for a minute in private?” Caprice said.

He rolled his eyes. He wanted to watch Faith open her presents. Though he also didn’t want to contemplate why he cared so much to see her reactions to everything. “What about?”

“That would be the private part,” she said coyly. Her nipples were erect through her thick sweater.

Unbelievable. She was making a play for him with Faith standing right there. He wanted to kill Vinny for bringing her to the family holiday. While he thought of Vinny as family, that sentiment didn’t extend to his cousin.

“Faith, don’t open anything until I get back.”

“Okay.”

He could see the uncertainty in her eyes and could practically read the thoughts right out of her head. Suddenly, the protective instincts that had caused him to rescue her in the first place came flooding back. He squeezed her hand and caught her gaze. “I’ll be right back.”

She nodded and sat on the couch, staring at the pile in front of her.

Leo followed Caprice down the twisting hallways until they were clear on the other end of the house. She opened a door into an empty bedroom and slithered inside, her intention not subtle. She crooked a finger at him, and he followed. He may as well not berate her out in the hallway.

The door had barely shut and already she was pulling her bright Christmas-red sweater over her head. She hadn’t bothered with a bra, but then Leo had suspected as much.