Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Joy and woe are woven fine,

A clothing for the soul divine;

Under every grief and pine

Runs a joy with silken twine….

-x-

Lucas wasn’t quite sure what he had expected when he had walked into Kate’s flat, but he very nearly walked right back out. Kate had called him at work, frantically asking if Vyeta was off work for Christmas holidays and able to look after Michelle since the usual sitter had unexpectedly called to say they weren’t coming in. When he got a second call from Vyeta three hours later, asking — demanding, really — backup, Lucas left Section D in Tom’s mostly capable hands, lest Lucas get an earful from his wife.

It wasn’t the first time that Vyeta had babysat Michelle. It wasn’t even the first time that she had called him, in a panic, because she couldn’t get a hold of Kate and Michelle was doing something weird. Why Vyeta thought he knew what to do was beyond him, but, he tried anyway. At the very least, he quizzed Harry on what to do, since Harry had raised two of the little blighters. But, evidently, Michelle was up to something, because Vyeta had been insistent that Lucas come over right now to help her. And, if there was one thing Lucas had learned since getting married, it was that when the wife called, he damn well better pick up. Whether he actually listened or not was optional, or at least in his books. He supposed Vyeta might beg to differ.

It was chaos in the Acker home. Vyeta was sitting on the floor, hair mussed from running her hands through it so many times. Michelle was running around, screaming, and was throwing toys everywhere, but in particular in Vyeta’s general direction. Vyeta was trying to ward off the toys and kept making aborted attempts to try to catch Michelle every time Michelle streaked by. She’s fucking three, how bloody hard can she be to catch? Lucas thought as he watched the mayhem. When he watched Vyeta grab Michelle’s arm, who let out an ear-splitting shriek, prompting Vyeta to let her go, Lucas suddenly understood the need for backup. Miraculously, the Christmas tree was left unmolested and was still upright in the corner of the living room.

Vyeta gave him a desperate look. “She stole my coffee,” she said weakly and swatted a toy brick away before it could hit her in the head.

“You wanted one of these,” Lucas pointed out as he crossed his arms. Shit. Vyeta took her coffee sweet, a lot sweeter than he took his, which meant that Michelle was enjoying a sugar high. By the look of utter despair on Vyeta’s face, he was willing to wager that Vyeta was not enjoying the sugar high.

“Not anymore!”

“I’ll remind you of that,” Lucas said. “Hey, Squirt,” he said. Michelle, hearing him, froze on the spot. Vyeta held her breath, not moving, as she watched Michelle look between her and Lucas. The teddy bear that Michelle had in a death grip dangled from one hand.

In true, three year old, hyped-up-on-sugar fashion, Michelle threw the bear at Lucas.

Lucas ducked, letting the stuffed animal bounce off the door and fall to the floor. Michelle threw another toy and, as Lucas was dodging that one too, she took the opportunity to streak across the room. Lucas flashed a grin at Vyeta, who gave him a hopeless look, and, in two steps, had caught up to Michelle. Scooping her up and throwing her over his shoulder, Lucas patted her on the back. Michelle screamed again and started laughing as she flailed against his hold.

“I hate you,” Vyeta groaned and ran a hand over her face.

“The secret is to not give a shit if she screams,” Lucas said and handed the squirming toddler to Vyeta. As soon as Vyeta took her, Michelle started shrieking. Vyeta gave him a poisonous look. Lucas grinned at Vyeta again and took Michelle back. Lifting her up so that they were at eye level, Lucas said, “If you get me in trouble with my wife, we’re going to have to have a discussion.”

“Play! Play! Play!” Michelle squealed, legs kicking out as she giggled. She slapped her hands against his wrists.

“No play,” Lucas said. “Very serious. Not gonna be happy if I have to sleep on the couch because you’re behaving for me but not Liz.” It still felt weird calling Vyeta ‘Liz,’ but Michelle had a hard time saying Vyeta’s name, full or otherwise, and Vyeta had been the one to suggest simply calling her ‘Liz’ instead.

“Liz hates everything right now,” Vyeta said and tried to comb her fingers through her hair in an attempt to bring it under control. He thought his mum would be proud with the fact that he managed to resist the urge to tell Vyeta she looked rather adorable right now.

“See?” Lucas said. He turned Michelle around to look at Vyeta. “Stop terrorizing my wife.”

“Play?” Michelle said, pointing at Vyeta.

Vyeta sighed. “Why did I agree to look after Michelle again?” she asked as she picked up one of Michelle’s stuffed toys and stood up.

“Because you love kids,” Lucas said. Michelle stuck her small arms out towards the toy, straining against Lucas’ hold.

“Not this one,” Vyeta declared. She handed Michelle the toy. Michelle snatched it away and hugged it tightly. After a moment, she threw it at Vyeta and hit her square in the face. Vyeta gave Lucas a look of long suffering.

“Squirt!” Lucas admonished and turned her back to face him. “We’ve talked about this, Squirt. If you’re going to throw toys, make sure that your victim isn’t right beside you because then they have an easier time retaliating. But that throw was excellent and I’m glad to see that the hours we’ve spent practicing have paid off.”

Michelle giggled and kicked her legs out. Clapping her hands together, she said, “Play!”

“You taught her how to throw her toys properly?” Vyeta asked. He couldn’t decide if she sounded angry or despairing. In the end, Lucas thought it was a mixture of both. Probably sleeping on the couch tonight.

“Oh shit,” Lucas said. He looked at Michelle. “You got me in trouble.”

“Play?”

“Don’t swear in front of her,” Vyeta said wearily and took Michelle from him. Michelle started screaming again Vyeta sighed and put her down, which Lucas thought was her first mistake after all the effort the two of them had to go through to catch Michelle. As soon as her feet were on the floor, Michelle took off again, careening through the living room and crashing into the baby gate that blocked her access to the kitchen. She fell back with an audible thump and Vyeta inhaled sharply. Lucas flicked his eyes between Vyeta and Michelle.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry,” Vyeta whispered in Russian.

Michelle rubbed her forehead and, upon seeing Vyeta watching her in concern, threw her head back and wailed. Lucas had to stifle a laugh, lest Vyeta actually murder him. Vyeta, looking close to tears, took a step towards the crying toddler, and Lucas touched her arm. He nodded his head towards the hall. “I got this. Why don’t you take a break?”

“Thank you,” Vyeta said with no small amount of relief. She ran a finger under her eyes, and hurried down the hall. Lucas listened as she closed a door behind her, and he folded his arms in disapproval at the wailing toddler.

As soon as Vyeta was gone, Michelle stopped crying and gave Lucas a sly grin, confirming that it had all been a pretence. That child is going to be trouble for Kate later, he thought as he watched Michelle silently. Michelle, either oblivious or willfully ignoring the fact that she was in trouble, pulled herself to her feet and waddled to Lucas, hugging his leg tightly.

“Don’t try to suck up to me,” Lucas said sternly. “I know exactly what you did there.”

Michelle giggled and looked up at him, chin resting against his leg. “But was fun!”

“Not for Liz, it wasn’t,” Lucas said. He reached down and picked Michelle up, lifting her so that they were at eye level again. “We’ve talked about this.”

Michelle pouted. “No fun,” she declared.

“Mum’s not gonna be happy if I tell her you stole Liz’s coffee and then spent the next few hours throwing things,” Lucas said. He pointedly glanced down towards the closed bathroom door.

“Noooooo,” Michelle said, waving her hands at Lucas. “No telling Mummy!”

“Then you need to apologize to Liz.”

Michelle cocked her head to the side, almost as though she were considering. “Biscuits, and then I say sorry.”

“Say sorry, settle down for a nap, and when your mum gets home, you can have biscuits,” Lucas countered.

She inhaled deeply and, for a moment, Lucas thought she was going to resume shrieking. He hadn’t entirely been joking when he told Vyeta to ignore Michelle’s screams. He’d been around the brat enough to know the difference between an actual scream and her being deliberately annoying for attention. As she opened her mouth, Lucas said warningly, “If you start screaming, I’m going to put you in time out. You know better.”

Michelle closed her mouth and sulked. “Fine. I say sorry, then biscuits?”

“Sorry, then nap, then biscuits,” Lucas said firmly. He was not going to be the one that inadvertently rewarded bad behaviour. If Vyeta didn’t throttle him first, Kate might actually kill him for it. Besides, Michelle was hyper enough. The last thing she needed right now was more sugar. But he’d let Kate deal with that one when she got home. Who knows, maybe Michelle’ll forget she was promised biscuits. He also thought that there was more chance of him and his dad having a nice chat on Christmas than Michelle forgetting biscuits.

The toddler huffed, but nodded. “Down!” she said, pointing at the ground.

“Manners,” Lucas reminded.

“Down, please.”

Lucas put her on the floor. “That’s better,” he said. Michelle clung to his hand and dragged him along behind her. First, she took him to the front door where the teddy bear was laying, abandoned, and bent over to pick it up in her other hand. Teddy bear in hand, she led him towards where Vyeta was still calming down in the bathroom. She came to a stop outside the door and, shyly looking up at Lucas, reached out and tapped on the door.

Vyeta sighed, loud enough that Lucas could hear her outside the bathroom. “I’ll be right out,” she said. He pursed his lips as he heard the faucet run. I’m going to have to make this up to her, he thought. Normally, Michelle wasn’t too bad to babysit. God knew he watched over Michelle often enough that she didn’t try half the shit with him that he imagined she got up to today with Vyeta. But, then again, when Michelle had finished off one of Vyeta’s coffees, Lucas supposed all bets were off. The chaos in the living room reaffirmed Lucas’ suspicion that it would be a long time before Michelle was allowed even near coffee. At least she didn’t find the gift wrap. Lucas could still remember, as a kid, when he and Kate had found it. Needless to say, there was gift wrap everywhere and they had spent the day racing around the house, trying to hit each other over the head with the cardboard rolls. Neither his parents nor Kate’s parents had been thrilled.

Finally, Vyeta opened the door. Her face was damp and splotchy, and Lucas mouthed ‘sorry’ to her. She gave him a sad, tired smile. When Michelle didn’t do anything, Lucas gently pushed her forward with one finger. Taking the hint, Michelle wrapped her small arms around Vyeta’s legs.

“I sorry,” Michelle said. She looked up at Vyeta and then shyly offered her teddy bear.

Vyeta warily picked Michelle up. When the little girl didn’t start screaming and, instead, hugged her tightly, Vyeta gave him a thankful look over Michelle’s shoulder. “It’s okay,” she said and rubbed Michelle’s back. “Why don’t we watch some Christmas movies until your mum gets home?”

“And have biscuits?” Michelle said hopefully.

“Not until your mum gets home,” Lucas reminded her before Vyeta could agree to the demand. Little blighter.

Chapter Text

Despite being deliciously cocooned in the warmth of the comforter, Vyeta still found herself waking up, shivering. She didn’t know how Lucas did it, managing to sleep with nothing more than a sheet or a light blanket. She needed at least another two blankets, she thought. At least he doesn’t hog the blankets, Vyeta thought as she rolled over to look at Lucas, who was still asleep beside her. He’d moved around in his sleep and the sheet he claimed for himself was slung low around his hips. One arm was under his pillow, cushioning his head and his chest rose and fell in even, rhythmic breaths.

Vyeta smiled and propped her head up on her hand. It wasn’t often that she woke before him. Usually, the only time she was awake before him was when he accidentally woke her while mumbling in his sleep at night, or when he left the bed to get ready for work in the morning. On those occasions, Vyeta considered herself lucky if she managed to catch him long enough to say goodbye before he had to run out the door. But, after yesterday’s… less than great babysitting experience, Lucas had promised he’d stay home with her today to make it up to her. She wondered how long that particular promise would last.

She banished the thought. The fact that Lucas was still sprawled in bed, sleeping, showed at least his intention of staying home with her. Vyeta knew that it was wrong to hold it against him — he’d told her when they first started dating that his work was demanding and that there’d be times that he’d have to cancel on short notice — but she still felt annoyed whenever work came first. She sighed. They’d fought over it a few times, and she’d give him credit, at least he was trying to be home more often. Vyeta had even gotten him to agree to answer his damned phone if she called, even if he had insisted on the caveat that he would answer if he wasn’t in the middle of something urgent.

Vyeta sighed again. It didn’t matter. Lucas was here, now. That was what mattered. She’d let the doubts and the worries plague her later. Right now, she fully intended to enjoy her husband’s company. Even if he is still sleeping, she thought with a smile. She debated sidling up to him and leeching body warmth from him, but decided against it. It wasn’t often that Lucas was home and able to sleep in. She didn’t want to wake him, not yet anyway.

As if hearing her thinking, Lucas started to stir. She imagined it was because he likely noticed that she had shifted position. All the same, she waited for him to blink his eyes open and get his bearings before leaning over to kiss his shoulder. “Morning,” she murmured as she gave in to her previous urge and pressed herself against Lucas’ side. When she was disappointed to realize that she couldn’t really enjoy his body warmth through the comforter, she tossed it over the both of them and snuggled against him.

He rolled over so that he was facing her, one hand falling to her hip. “Hey,” he said, voice still thick with sleep.

“Sleep well?” she asked.

“Mmm,” Lucas hummed eloquently. She giggled. Vyeta was reasonably certain the only reason Lucas got up as early as he did for work was because he was absolutely not a morning person until he had his first cup of coffee. She thought it adorable, most mornings.

She also thought it was the best time to spring news that he didn’t want to hear on him. “Kate’s work’s Christmas party is tonight,” she said. Kate, after apologizing profusely for Michelle’s behaviour yesterday, had asked Vyeta to remind Lucas about it and to strongly encourage him to attend. The two of them really ought to be siblings, she thought wryly. Neither Kate nor Lucas particularly wanted to go to the firm’s Christmas party, but Kate was expected to go, and if Kate had to go, Lucas had to go too, and if Lucas had to go, then, despite her discomfort at going to parties, Vyeta was going to go, if only to watch the disaster that would be Lucas at a law firm’s Christmas party. She had priorities. They involved watching her husband have to be nice to people he’d rather not be nice to.

Lucas grumbled something under his breath that Vyeta didn’t quite catch, but felt was probably an uncouth word. “Is that today?” he asked, as if he had actually forgotten. If Vyeta didn’t know him better, she might have even believed him.

Vyeta gave him a stern look. “That was cute when we first met,” she said. “But you don’t forget anything unless it’s a grocery list.”

“Worth a shot,” he said and rolled onto his back. Lucas draped an arm over his forehead. When he tried to half-heartedly push the comforter off with his other hand, Vyeta made an almost growling noise and jerked it back up. He lifted his hand in mock surrender. “Think Kate’d believe me if I called in dead?”

“Seeing as you’re calling her, probably not,” Vyeta said and laid down beside Lucas, head on his chest. She slipped a hand around his waist as she listened to the steady thrum of his heartbeat. “It won’t be that bad.”

“I’m going to have to not tell solicitors to go fuck themselves,” Lucas said. He stretched his arm over her head, toying with her hair. “It’s going to be terrible.”

“Grinch,” Vyeta chuckled.

“That’s me.”

“We’ll stay for an hour, and then we can go home and see if we can get you into the Christmas spirit,” Vyeta said, turning her head slightly so that her chin was against his chest.

Lucas lifted an eyebrow. “Why does that sound somehow dirty?”

“Because you think everything sounds dirty.”

“Untrue,” Lucas said. He rolled them both over and kissed the tip of her nose. “I think of other things too.”

“Like what?” Vyeta said, grinning as she ran her hands up his arms.

“Like,” he said and then paused, cocking his head to the side. “I am the luckiest bloke because I have this really beautiful wife who won’t let me tell solicitors that I hate them and they should fuck a cactus but, even if she won’t let me express myself, I love her anyway and will one day convince her the truth of my words.”

“That’s a big thought, don’t hurt yourself,” Vyeta teased. “And you still have to be nice to Kate’s colleagues.”

Lucas laughed and leaned down, kissing her. “Hold that thought and see how you feel about it in forty minutes,” Lucas said mischievously.

-X-

After a rather… heated shower that, in retrospect, Vyeta shouldn’t have let Lucas join in for because the damned bastard was distracting when he really didn’t want to do something, Vyeta did her best to dry off her hair. Beside her, Lucas was shaving. She had insisted on it while they were in the shower, particularly after his rather rough stubble scratched rather sensitive parts of her body.

“Did you pick up something for Kate?” Vyeta asked over the sound of the blowdryer. When Kate had first told them about the party, she had mentioned that she would have to find a gift for her secret Santa, Alice Foster. Surprisingly, Lucas had suggested that he and Vyeta bring a Christmas present for Kate to the party. Even more surprisingly, Kate had agreed.

Lucas shrugged as he finished shaving and ran his fingers through his damp hair. Vyeta hated him just a bit for the fact that, while his hair was thick like hers, it’d still dry faster than hers. “Dunno if she’ll like it, but I got her something, at least,” he said as he tossed his razor into the drawer.

“Good. Can we say it’s from both of us? Because I don’t think I’ll have time to go out and get something.”

Lucas gave her a mischievous smile that had Vyeta’s heart simultaneously fluttering and plummeting. It wasn’t fair how sexy he looked when giving her a smirk that guaranteed he’d done something that he’d probably get in trouble for. Really, how was she supposed to stay mad at him when he flashed her that grin? About as well as when he gives me that damned puppy-eyed look. “Sure,” he said.

Vyeta narrowed her eyes and turned the blowdryer off. She turned to look at him. “Lucas, what did you get her?”

“A surprise.”

“What kind of surprise?’

“The surprising kind of surprise,” Lucas said.

“Lucas,” Vyeta said. “Am I going to want to hit you for it?”

He cocked his head to the side. “I dunno, Vyeta. Are you going to want to hit me for it?”

“I won’t know until you tell me what you got her.”

“It’ll blow her mind,” Lucas said with a wink. He fled the bathroom before she could continue to probe. Vyeta groaned. He definitely got her something that I’m going to regret asking to be from both of us. She wondered if she could convince him to say it was just from him and that Vyeta would get Kate her gift closer to Christmas. On the one hand, Lucas liked to own his mischief. On the other hand, Lucas thrived on creating chaos and, whatever he’d come up with, dragging her into it would definitely amplify his mischief. Maybe I’ll tell him that we’ll be even for yesterday if he says it’s just from her.

Mind made up, Vyeta turned the blowdryer back on.

-X-

Lucas held the door to the restaurant open for her and, as soon as she had crossed the threshold, stepped in behind her. Vyeta faltered, feeling the nerves that had threatened to overtake her when they’d been getting ready start to flare up again. She always felt hesitant when meeting people for the first time. English wasn’t her first language, and her accent was… hardly unnoticeable. Kate had assured her that it’d be fine, that everyone would love her and probably express their sympathies that she had to put up with Lucas’ mayhem, but she’d faced too many instances of people learning she was an immigrant and shunning her to feel totally comfortable. If they didn’t talk down to her, as if she didn’t understand what they were saying if they didn’t speak slowly, loudly, and in simple words, then they would treat her as… an other. She didn’t want to think that Kate’s colleagues would do either of those things, but she also didn’t want to pretend that that discrimination didn’t exist.

She inhaled slowly. As if sensing her sudden unease, Lucas pressed his hand against the small of her back. “In case I didn’t mention it earlier, you look beautiful,” he murmured in Russian in her ear. Vyeta flushed and ran her hands self-consciously down the dark blue skirt of her dress.

“Thank you,” she said and gave him a small smile. “You don’t clean up half bad yourself.”

He snorted. “Still not wearing the tie,” he said without missing a beat. Vyeta rolled her eyes, having long since given up on seeing Lucas in a tie again. The last time he willingly wore a tie was at their wedding. After that, he loudly protested every time he had to wear one and it was for that reason alone that Vyeta continued to try to convince him to wear one whenever the occasion called for it. She smiled in memory. Lucas once claimed that no one ever saw Vyeta coming because they were too busy focusing on his trouble to pay her mischief any mind. He’s not wrong. “Shall we go save my cousin from her erstwhile coworkers?” Lucas asked, gesturing.

“Remember, you have to be nice,” Vyeta teased, pressing a hand against his chest as she leaned into Lucas, grinning.

“I’m always nice,” Lucas said. Vyeta was impressed that he managed to say it with a straight face. If she didn’t know Lucas as well as she did, she might have even believed him.

Never taking his hand off her back, a silent reassurance that he was there and would rebuke anyone who made her feel unwelcome, Lucas led them towards the room the firm had reserved. A Christmas tree had been set up in the corner and gifts were stacked underneath it. People milled about, socializing with one another. All in all, if Vyeta didn’t know it was a room filled with solicitors, she would have thought it was just another Christmas party. Across the room, Kate and a blonde woman were chatting. When Kate spotted Lucas and Vyeta, she waved at them. Lucas nodded at Kate and lifted his gift for her before adding it to the stack and coming back to where Vyeta was trying to meld into the wall.

As soon as Lucas was back by her side, Vyeta resumed her position, pressed against his side with one hand against his chest. She slipped the other around his waist, trying to look like she was a woman in love and not at all that was clinging to him because she was nervous. Lucas, smiling faintly, put his arm around her shoulders.

“You’ll be fine,” he murmured. “Don’t worry about them. If they say anything, I’ll tell them to fuck themselves.”

“We talked about this. No telling people to fuck themselves,” Vyeta said, looking up at Lucas. His words had the desired effect, though, and she felt her nerves start to ease.

Lucas grinned at her and kissed her. “No promises,” he said. He brushed some loose hair out of her face, fingers grazing against her skin. For a moment, the room ceased to exist, and all that mattered was her and her best friend, the man she loved and married.

“Lucas, right?” a tall man, almost as tall as Lucas, said, coming up to the pair and breaking the moment. Vyeta blinked and looked at the man. “Kate’s cousin?”

“Unfortunately,” Lucas said and gave the man a charming smile.

The man chuckled and extended a hand. “Vince Easton.”

“Seems you already know my name,” Lucas said and shook her hand. He gestured to Vyeta. “My wife, Elizabeta.”

The man looked Vyeta over and smiled. Vyeta couldn’t explain why, but the smile set her on edge. “That’s a pretty name.”

“Thank you,” Vyeta said neutrally. Lucas rested his hand on her shoulder, thumb silently rubbing the back of her neck. “Kate’s mentioned you a few times.” While Vyeta’s memory wasn’t quite as good as Lucas’, she remembered Vince’s name, largely because Kate describing him was the first time she’d heard Kate swear.

“She’s mentioned Lucas a couple times, too,” Vince said. He gave him a sly look. “Usually because he’s done something to annoy her.”

Lucas chuckled. “My reputation precedes me.”

“Can’t wait to see what you have planned for tonight,” Vince said conspiratorially.

Vyeta lifted an eyebrow and gave Lucas a stern look. She knew he had something in mind, if only because that was who he was. She loved it about him, that he was simultaneously one of the sweetest, yet troublesome people she’d ever known. It still didn’t mean that she didn’t at least try to keep his chaos in check.

“Who says I have anything in mind?” Lucas asked innocently. His eyes were mischievous, though, and Vyeta very nearly groaned.

Vince laughed. At the same time, Kate materialized out of the crowd, scowling. “Lucas, if you do anything, I’m going to murder you,” she said.

“That’s illegal,” Lucas pointed out, “and we’re in a room filled with solicitors.”

“Vyeta, why did I invite him, again?” Kate asked.

“Why did you invite me?” Lucas asked and Vyeta sighed in relief. While she appreciated Kate’s efforts to draw her into the conversation, she was more content to watch and listen. She didn’t know Vince very well and didn’t… exactly feel comfortable around him. In any case, Vyeta didn’t really know anyone but Kate and Lucas at this party, truthfully, and she felt more comfortable keeping her interactions with strangers to a minimum. Kids were easy. They might giggle a bit at her accent, but they never once told her to go back home or thought of her as dirty or any of the other harmful stereotypes about either of her lineages. But adults? If there was one thing that Vyeta had learned in London, it was that, for all the kind people, there were just as many bigots. She didn’t feel like finding them tonight. And she had a feeling that, for all of Vince’s smiles and friendly airs, it was a front. She didn’t like duplicity.

She snapped back to the conversation. Lucas was still deflecting questions away from her, to Vyeta’s gratitude. He might not like socializing, but he was exceptionally perceptive when it came to her and how comfortable she was in any conversation. If he got the slightest hint that she was uncomfortable, suddenly he was the most charming man in the room and everyone wanted to talk to him instead of her. It worked for them, where she’d join into the conversation when she was comfortable and ready to, and he would give her the time to get comfortable.

“I’m glad you guys could come,” Kate said, smiling. Evidently, Lucas had managed to distract Kate from his impending chaos.

“Wouldn’t miss this for the world,” Lucas deadpanned.

“Yes, you would,” Kate and Vyeta said at the same time.

Lucas and Vince laughed. “Yes, I would,” Lucas agreed, grinning.

“But then you wouldn’t get to meet all of Kate’s coworkers,” Vince said.

“Exactly,” Lucas said. Vyeta chuckled. Yes, she loved her anti-social husband, and that he was willing to override his desire to not talk to people to give her a chance to become comfortable enough to speak in the conversation.

“So, Elizabeta, what do you do?” Vince asked, attempting - and utterly failing - to say her name correctly.

Vyeta touched Lucas’ hand on her shoulder, signalling that she was okay before he could answer. “I’m a teacher,” she said.

“That must be fun,” Vince said, smiling patronizingly. Vyeta narrowed her eyes. “Do the kids give you any trouble with… y’know….”

“Her accent?” Lucas suggested coolly.

To his credit, Vince didn’t flush. He didn’t even stammer. Instead, he smiled and said, “Yeah, that.”

“No, they don’t,” Vyeta said, matching Lucas’ tone. She felt Lucas’ hand still on her shoulder as he tensed beside her.

“You speak really good English,” Vince said. Kate flashed Lucas a warning glance.

“Go fuck yourself,” Lucas said in Russian, giving Vince that fake smirk he gave anyone that really annoyed him, the one that suggested he was mentally throttling Vince in his mind. Vyeta almost choked and had to cover her mouth to stop herself from laughing. She couldn’t even be angry with Lucas for going against their earlier conversation and telling someone to go fuck themselves. Instead, she coughed, but she didn’t think Vince bought it for a second. “I like to keep up on my Russian,” Lucas added. “Just telling Vyeta what a lovely party your firm is throwing.”

“Thought she spoke English?” Vince asked.

“When she wants to,” Vyeta said, not appreciating being spoken about as if she wasn’t even there. Or like I can’t understand a damned word he’s saying. “But Lucas learned Russian so that we could converse in either language. He likes to practice it when he can.”

“Ah,” Vince said. He smiled warmly at Kate, and Vyeta thought that was exactly what made her so uncomfortable around him. He had the oily air of a man that wanted something, or someone in this case, that wasn’t interested and was trying to play nice with her family to get what he wanted. “So, you’re a teacher, then,” he said, nodding at Vyeta, “and you’re… private security, Kate said?”

“Guilty as charged,” Lucas said, still speaking in that falsely warm tone he used whenever he was annoyed with someone. Vyeta wondered if Vince saw through it, or if he genuinely thought Lucas actually was being friendly towards him. The smirk was still in place, but his eyes were hard and unfriendly. Vyeta couldn’t blame him. She wanted to throttle Vince too.

“Those are dangerous words to say around here,” Vince said, swatting at Lucas’ shoulder.

Lucas narrowed his eyes imperceptibly. Vyeta could feel him tense up more beside her and she could feel the way his body coiled, as if he was just waiting for one more wrong move before he struck. In the years that she’d known him, Lucas had never been particularly fond of being touched by strangers. Once he’d warmed up to the person, he was more okay with it, but otherwise, Vyeta couldn’t remember a time that he’d been anything more than barely tolerant towards a stranger touching him. The fact that it had been Vince, who had just insulted Vyeta, that had touched Lucas made it infinitely more worse, Vyeta thought. “I’ll take my chances. I hear there’s a really good solicitor here that might take my case,” Lucas said smoothly, not letting any hint of his displeasure show.

“Besides, Lucas isn’t going to do anything, right, Lucas?” Kate said, giving Lucas a firm look.

“Right,” Lucas said. Vyeta met Kate’s eyes and gave an imperceptible shrug. Despite her best efforts, Vyeta still didn’t know what Lucas’ plans were beyond that they probably involved the gift, otherwise he wouldn’t have been so dodgy about what he got Kate.

“Good. I’m going to hold you to that,” Kate said, pointing a finger in warning at Lucas. “Now, let’s go grab a spot so we can all sit together.”

“I’ll catch up with you lot again later,” Vince said.

Lucas took Vince’s hand again and clasped his shoulder with his other arm. As he dropped his arms by his side again, Vyeta flicked her dark eyes between Lucas and Vince. Did he just…? Surely not. While Vyeta knew of Lucas’ past, he assured her that he didn’t do that anymore. And, yet, as Vince gave them a quick wave and disappeared back into the throng of people, as Lucas slipped his hands into his pockets and watched Vince leave, Vyeta couldn’t shake the feeling that Lucas had stolen something from Vince.

Vyeta exhaled. “God, I hate him,” Kate said as soon as Vince was out of earshot.

“He always like that?” Lucas asked, eyes losing all hint of mischief, only to be filled with cold anger.

“Sadly,” Kate said. She turned back to Lucas and Vyeta. Kate reached out and gently squeezed Vyeta’s hand. “I’m so sorry about him. He thinks he’s the front runner to become senior associate and that he can talk to women however he wants.”

“It’s fine,” Vyeta lied. Lucas was still watching Vince the way a predator would watch its prey and Vyeta felt a shiver run down her spine at the look. It was a look that she hadn’t seen on Lucas often, and it was one that always simultaneously made her feel safe and worried. He only ever used that look when someone had insulted her and, while she was flattered to know that he’d get into a fight for her, she also worried that he might find a fight he couldn’t win. And, in any case, Vyeta didn’t want anyone fighting because of her.

“No, it’s not,” Kate said. “He thinks if he insults enough people, I might sleep with him. His words were cruel and I’m sorry that he put you through that. Everyone else here is pretty nice, but Vince is… Vince.”

Lucas was still watching Vince in the crowd. Vyeta poked Lucas’ side and he blinked, looking down at her finally. “Yeah,” Lucas said distractedly. “Vince is a dick.”

Kate snorted. If she noticed Lucas’ lapse in attention, she didn’t say anything. Vyeta sighed. She was starting to think that maybe Lucas had been right, maybe they should have called in dead.

-X-

The rest of the party went by largely without incident. Lucas had disappeared only once, to go to the toilet he had said, shortly after they had found a spot at a table with Kate and some of her colleagues, Alice Foster, and Karen Johnson. Vyeta had got on well enough with Alice and Karen, particularly with Alice, who was also married. Her husband hadn’t been able to come, so, while Lucas was in the toilet, Vyeta and Alice had swapped stories about things their respective husbands did that annoyed them. When Lucas had finally got back, Alice gave him an appraising look before bursting into laughter. Vyeta giggled and Lucas just looked confused before sitting beside her.

Vyeta didn’t see Vince for the rest of the evening, and that suited her just fine. When Kate had asked Lucas if he had seen Vince at all, Lucas had coolly suggested that, perhaps, Vince had decided to leave early. Vyeta frowned. Lucas had taken an abnormally long time in the toilet. Normally, he was, well, quick. And Vyeta couldn’t remember seeing Vince after Lucas had gone to the toilet. I’m being silly. Lucas was protective of her, of course he was, it was who he was, but he wouldn’t have had anything to do with Vince leaving, surely? He already stole… something from Vince, Vyeta was certain, but getting Vince to leave the party? That was just paranoia. Maybe Vince realized that Kate’s not interested, Vyeta thought snidely.

Vyeta sipped at some red wine and listened to Alice animatedly tell a story about her first court case. Lucas was leaning back in his chair, arm draped over the back of Vyeta’s chair casually, thumb stroking against her shoulder as the side of his leg brushed against hers. She laughed when Alice said that, when asked if the assailant was in the room, the defendant stood up to announce that he was right there. Despite Vince’s best efforts, the evening hadn’t been that bad. Lucas had been mostly tame, hadn’t told anyone other than Vince to go fuck themselves, and hadn’t caused any noticeable mayhem. Vince might come into work tomorrow, looking for something he’d misplaced at the party, but otherwise, Lucas was being good, which made Vyeta even more certain that there was something off with the gift he had gotten Kate.

“Do you two have kids?” Alice asked.

Lucas made a face and Vyeta internally sighed. She wanted kids, Lucas… was not as eager. He agreed to think about it, but expressed reluctance, citing his chaotic work schedule. Still, Vyeta… hoped to have kids with him, one day. She already knew that Lucas had days where he was very interested in sex, and days where he was very much not interested in sex, and she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe that was part of the reason why he was reluctant to try for a kid. He’d have to be interested around the same time that she was ovulating, for them to have the greatest chance, and, while it didn’t bother Vyeta when he wasn’t interested, she knew he was self-conscious about it. She was still trying to find a way to tell him that she didn’t mind if it took them awhile to conceive, she loved him just the way he was and if it took them a bit, that was fine.

“No,” Vyeta said. She smiled sadly. “We’re thinking about it.”

Alice nodded. “Kids are expensive. Just ask Kate.”

“It’s true,” Kate said. “They are.”

“Bill and I want to have one, but we’re thinking of waiting until after I make senior associate,” Alice said.

Before Vyeta could say anything else on the matter, Karen said, “Looks like people are gravitating towards the tree,” and pointed to where a number of people were starting to flock. Slowly, a group of about five or six people started to distribute the gifts to their recipients. Vyeta watched as some people were elated at their gifts. Others were… feigning elation, she thought. She noticed that, when the helpers couldn’t find Vince, they called his name a few times, and that he didn’t step forward or appear. She glanced at Lucas, who shrugged imperceptibly. She frowned. Maybe he did have something to do with it then. Vyeta wasn’t sure if she was angry or pleased.

Alice laughed when she opened her gift from Kate, holding up a mug that had what Vyeta guessed was an expensive brand of coffee. “Thanks, Kate,” she said and got up to hug her.

“No problem,” Kate said, grinning. “Enjoy your overpriced coffee.”

Kate, who had two gifts in front of her, one from her secret Santa and one from Lucas, picked up the smaller gift. She opened it and smiled, holding up a couple containers of play-doh and some kid-friendly cookie cutters. Vyeta smiled. Her kids at work loved playing with the play-doh, loved how hands-on it was. Vyeta didn’t love it quite as much, having had to clean up for them whenever they raced out for recess.

“Michelle’ll love those, I bet,” Alice said.

“Assuming she doesn’t get into the sugar and decide to throw them at the sitter, that is,” Kate said, giving Vyeta another apologetic look.

Before Kate could turn to Lucas’ gift, Lucas held up a hand. “I got you something else,” Lucas said and produced a wallet that Vyeta didn’t recognize. She groaned. He had stolen Vince’s wallet, then. “Vince might be looking for this tomorrow. I’ll leave it up to you when you want to give it back to him,” Lucas said and handed it to Kate. Kate closed her eyes and inhaled slowly as her fingers closed around the worn leather.

“Bastard,” Kate whispered. Alice laughed and Vyeta smiled. That was the Lucas she knew and loved.

“Oh, and these,” Lucas said and held up a set of jangling keys. “He might want those too.”

“Did you nick his prized houseplant, too?” Kate asked as she took the keys as well.

“No, but now that you suggest it, I might give it a go.”

“Don’t you dare,” Kate said, pointing a finger at Lucas sternly. “I swear, you are like a five year old.”

“A really tall five year old,” Lucas said, grinning.

Vyeta leaned into Lucas and murmured, “You did that for me, didn’t you.” She didn’t bother phrasing it as a question.

“Guilty as charged.”

She patted his thigh. “You know you don’t have to defend me like that.”

“But it’s a lot more fun doing it that way than punching the arse out,” Lucas said, straight-faced.

“Vyeta, you know I love you like a sister and you’re family to me, but I don’t trust Lucas when I can understand what he’s saying, much less when I can’t,” Kate said. “Lucas, you’re not planning to steal anything else from Vince, are you?”

“Nothing I’ll tell you about.”

“That’s not reassuring.”

“You gonna open that now or not?” Lucas asked, pointing at the gift box. Kate narrowed her eyes and Vyeta chuckled. Classic Lucas, she thought. She wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Lucas broke into the firm after the party to steal Vince’s apparent favourite houseplant. Or, knowing him, he’ll take something less noticeable. Vyeta couldn’t even promise Kate that she’d keep him in line because, really, after Vince’s comments earlier, Vyeta wasn’t entirely certain she wouldn’t help Lucas break into the firm.

With a final glower, Kate put the wallet and keys beside the play-doh and picked up Lucas’ gift. Giving Lucas a wary look, which he returned with a sly grin, Kate carefully unwrapped the box. Vyeta kept alternating between watching Lucas and Kate. If Lucas’ grin was anything to go by, Vyeta was correct, the gift was going to be the source of Lucas’ mayhem tonight. She just couldn’t figure out what he would have gotten Kate that would cause a sufficient amount of chaos to appease him. All the things Vyeta could think of, Lucas wouldn’t get Kate, simply because it crossed too many lines. Lucas could be a total asshole at times, but even he respected boundaries.

Kate opened up the plain, cardboard box and pursed her lips. She inhaled slowly, and then exhaled, before inhaling again. “Is this what I think it is?” she asked, finally.

“Maybe,” Lucas said. His grin widened and Vyeta rubbed her forehead. Definitely the gift, then.

“Just so we’re clear, whatever is in there was his idea,” Vyeta said, not trusting that Lucas wouldn’t try to drag her into this.

“Oh, we’re clear,” Kate said. She reached into the box and held up a stapler. “Really, Lucas? Really? You stole my stapler and gave it to me as a Christmas gift?”

“Happy Christmas,” Lucas said, shit-eating grin still firmly in place.

Chaos broke out at the table. Alice and Karen were stifling laughs. Vyeta was trying to practice her deep breathing. Kate lunged for Lucas, stapler in hand, and Lucas jumped to his feet surprisingly fast for a man of his size. Vyeta didn’t look up as she heard the sounds of Lucas running and Kate giving chase. If Lucas ended up with a staple or twenty in his forehead, he damn well deserved it.

“I guess that solves the mystery of who took Kate’s stapler two days ago,” Karen said.

“I’m sorry,” Alice said, still laughing, as she reached out and squeezed Vyeta’s hand. “Is this normal for him?”

Vyeta gave Alice a look of long suffering, one that only someone who has had to live with Lucas for some time now could understand. “Unfortunately.”

“You put up with a lot. How do you manage?”

Vyeta finished her wine. “Lots and lots of wine.”

Chapter Text

Vyeta loosened her scarf as she unlocked the front door. While she was glad to be back at work, and the kids were still glowing from their Christmas break, this time of year had always been difficult for her since she had moved out. She had left her family in Russia to go to school in London and didn’t regret it, but she didn’t get to see her parents as much as she would have preferred. And, while she and Lucas had talked about if she wanted to go home for the holidays, in the end, she had decided against it. Their wedding had been in June and her parents had come to London for that, and she would rather save up to go next year and see them for more than a few days than go this year and not be able to stay for Christmas. In any case, both her and her family were East Orthodox, which meant that they celebrated Christmas in January instead of December. If she wanted to go home for the holidays, she’d have to take time off work to do it.

She sighed. Vyeta was trying hard to acclimatize to living in the United Kingdom. She celebrated Christmas in December with Lucas because she knew that’s when he celebrated, but it… wasn’t the same. She missed the traditions her family had, back in St. Petersburg. Every New Year’s, they’d go out together and get a fir tree that they’d then decorate. On January 6^th, they’d end Lent with a modest meal that had a variety of meats and, on January 7^th, they’d attend liturgies and exchange gifts. Certainly, she still observed Lent while living in the United Kingdom and Lucas was even supportive of it, being more than willing to make his own meals so that, while she was abstaining from eating meat, she wouldn’t have to cook meat products for him, but this time of year still brought up the nostalgia of life back home. It also made her thankful for everything she had, here.

Vyeta put her scarf and handbag on the kitchen island. She’d have to take out something for dinner tonight as she was fairly certain Lucas didn’t pull out the roast that she had asked him to pull out when he got up in the morning, as she had to go into work early and he had the day off. How he managed to get the day off, she wasn’t sure, but he did, and a glance at the sink confirmed he had, in fact, forgotten to pull out roast. How that man can remember every single bloody thing he hears and most things he sees, but can’t remember to pull out a damned roast is beyond me, Vyeta thought in exasperation.

As she was wrenching the freezer door open to fish out something to hopefully defrost quickly since her beloved husband decided to be absent-minded today, Lucas appeared and slid a hand along her waist. “Hey,” he said.

“You forgot to pull out the roast,” Vyeta said, not looking away from the freezer. She knew exactly what he was doing — he knew he had forgotten and he was trying to make her not be annoyed with him. Bastard.

“No,” Lucas said and pushed against the freezer door, gently applying more pressure until she finally caved and let him close it. “I thought we’d go out tonight.”

“Take away?” Vyeta asked.

“Nah, Kate’s. She invited us over for dinner,” Lucas said. “And I kind of owe her after the whole stapler incident.”

“She’s still mad at you for nicking her stapler,” Vyeta stated, smiling. Shockingly, Lucas hadn’t come home with twenty staples in his forehead that night, although Vyeta was sure it wasn’t for lack of trying on Kate’s part.

“Pretty sure she’ll be mad at me for it until I die.”

“As she should.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be on my side?” Lucas asked, pouting.

“Only when you’re not being an annoying git.”

Lucas cocked his head to the side and then shrugged. “Fair enough,” he said. “Do you need to do anything before we head over? Kate’s expecting us to be there soon.”

Vyeta rolled her eyes. “I only just got in the door, Lucas.”

“Sorry,” he said, holding his hands up in mock surrender. “I don’t make the rules. I just relay the terribly bad news that Kate is expecting us and has threatened to staple parts of my anatomy that should not have staples in them if we’re late.”

“There are parts of your anatomy that should have staples in them?”

“No, but I’m rather more attached to those other parts of my anatomy and I don’t want staples in them.”

Very much against her will, Vyeta found herself smiling. “Well, then I guess we better head out because you can’t make this up to me if you have staples in those parts of your anatomy.”

“Exactly,” Lucas said agreeably and reached back to grab her things from the counter, handing them to her.

She took her scarf and handbag from Lucas and reluctantly got ready to go back out. Vyeta loved Kate, thought of her as a dear friend, and appreciated the ways that Kate tried to make Vyeta feel a part of the family, but she was tired from work. And, in any case, she had really hoped to ring her mother tonight to wish her a happy Christmas. But, given that Kate had a rambunctious three year old that hopefully would not be throwing things at Vyeta today, she doubted they’d be out too late.

Right then. Survive dinner at Kate’s, don’t get pelted with every toy Michelle can get her hands on, and then ring my mother for Christmas, Vyeta thought as she headed out. Lucas locked the door behind them. No problem.

-X-

Kate and Michelle were waiting for them at the flat complex’s entryway. Vyeta waved at Michelle, who, as soon as she saw Vyeta, pulled away from her mum to race up to them and hug Vyeta’s legs. Vyeta laughed, cupping the back of Michelle’s head and grabbing onto Lucas’ arm for balance.

“Liz! Liz! Liz!” Michelle crowed, not letting go of Vyeta’s legs.

“Wow, Squirt, I see how it is,” Lucas complained with a wink at Vyeta. “Can’t blame you, though, because Liz is pretty awesome.”

“Lucas!” Michelle giggled and released Vyeta’s leg only to grab onto Lucas’ hand. He grinned at Vyeta and picked Michelle up, hoisting her onto his shoulders. Vyeta smiled. Contrary to Lucas’ protests, being around kids suited him. He was good with them and they responded well to his mischievous streak. And, in Michelle’s case, she listened to him, even when he was telling her to do things she didn’t want to do.

“Hey,” Kate said, waving from the entryway.

“Liz, we made food!” Michelle announced.

“Wow, what’d you make?” Vyeta asked and reached a hand up to stroke Michelle’s cheek. She also took the opportunity to slide an arm around Lucas’ waist.

Lucas, holding onto Michelle’s legs to keep her on his shoulders, looked up at the little girl. “Remember, no blowing this,” he said. “It’s a surprise what you made.”

Michelle opened her mouth as if to tell her, exactly, what she had made, but then shook her head almost violently. “Not telling!”

“Lucas, you know I hate surprises,” Vyeta said, still smiling.

“All the more reason to keep it a secret, right, Squirt?”

“Secret!” Michelle repeated. She flailed her hands and Lucas laughed. “I very good at secrets!”

Vyeta exaggerated a sigh and gently pushed Lucas towards the entryway. Kate was smiling as she watched them and, as soon as they were close enough, gave Vyeta a hug. “Sorry for the short notice tonight,” Kate said, squeezing Vyeta’s arm. “Lucas wasn’t sure he’d get today off or not.”

“Work’s been busy,” Lucas said, shrugging. Michelle giggled as the gesture caused her to rise and fall, and gave Vyeta a sly grin that she was certain Michelle learned from Lucas. “We should go in before we freeze our arses off,” Lucas suggested.

“No swearing in front of Michelle,” Kate said wearily.

“Sorry, Squirt, no bad language for you,” Lucas said seriously.

“What’s an arse?” Michelle asked, frowning.

“A butt,” Lucas said without missing a beat as he followed Kate and Vyeta inside. Vyeta could almost hear Kate groan.

“Why not say butt then?”

“Because saying arse is more satisfying.”

“But why?”

“Because.”

“Why?”

“Because,” Lucas repeated. Vyeta smiled. This is what you get for swearing in front of a three year old.

“Why?” Michelle pressed.

“Kate, cover your ears, I’m going to swear in front of your brat again,” Lucas called.

“Don’t you dare,” Kate said, wagging a finger at Lucas.

Michelle giggled and clapped her hands together. Lucas looked up at her. “I think you got me in trouble with your mum,” he said conspiratorially as they waited for the lift.

“I think you got yourself in trouble with her mum,” Vyeta said.

“Wow, I’m being attacked from all sides,” Lucas said dramatically. Michelle cackled again.

The lift arrived and Vyeta followed Lucas and Kate inside. She tried to think of what Lucas had meant when he told Michelle whatever they made was supposed to be a surprise. It was awfully coincidental that Lucas managed to get today off and insisted that they go to Kate’s for dinner and shushed Michelle with a warning that what she made was a surprise, but Vyeta… couldn’t figure it out. No one had a birthday any time soon — Lucas was in August, Kate was in September, Michelle was in November, and Vyeta’s was in May — so it wasn’t a birthday dinner. It wasn’t a New Year’s get-together, because Lucas and Vyeta had agreed to stay in and celebrate with just the two of them last week. It wasn’t even an anniversary dinner, as they had gotten married in June, not January.

She was no closer to figuring it out when the lift came to a stop at Kate’s floor. She slipped out and let Kate take the lead, hanging back to fall into step beside Lucas. “What’s really going on here?” she murmured.

“It’s a surprise,” Lucas said and winked at her. Vyeta had to resist the urge to groan. The last time Lucas had a surprise for someone, it had been Kate's stapler at the Christmas party. She did a mental inventory of her desk at work and tried to think if anything was missing from it. Her concern must have been more visible than she thought, as Lucas added, “Don’t worry. If I thought you wouldn’t like it, I’d have warned you about it and come up with a really great excuse about why we couldn’t go.”

Vyeta rolled her eyes. She thought it was more accurate to say that if Lucas didn’t think he’d like it, then he’d find a way to wriggle out of it. Which meant that, whatever Lucas and Michelle had cooked up, it was probably for her. The corner of her mouth twitched up. Lucas was sentimental, surprisingly sweet when he wanted to be, she just couldn’t figure out what he had done for her today.

Kate let them into the flat. As soon as they were inside, Michelle was fidgeting on Lucas’ shoulders. “Down, please,” she said, pointing at the ground. “I wanna show Liz!”

Lucas laughed and lifted Michelle off his shoulders. “Alright,” he said and put her down.

Michelle immediately grabbed Vyeta’s hand as Vyeta gave Lucas a worried look. He winked at her just as Michelle started forward, dragging Vyeta after her. “Lookie lookie lookie!” Michelle said, pointing. Vyeta covered her mouth with her free hand. That sentimental arse, she thought. Kate had moved her kitchen table to be in the living room, rearranging the furniture to accommodate the extra panels to make the table longer. On it, twelve dishes sat. Vyeta even recognized some of them, like the bowl of kutia in the centre of the table, from home.

“We made sure everything’s vegan, too,” Lucas said, touching the small of Vyeta’s back. Pulling her hand from Michelle’s, she turned around and hugged him tightly.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“Happy Christmas,” he said.

“You didn’t have to do this.”

“I know. But I wanted to.” He kissed her forehead. Quietly, he murmured in English, “I love you.”

Michelle stuck her tongue out and made a face. “Ew!” she said and Vyeta pulled away from Lucas, laughing.

“Lucas said you celebrate Christmas later than we do, so we thought it might be nice to get together, do something special, for your Christmas, too,” Kate said.

“I supervise!” Michelle said. “That my big word.”

Vyeta laughed and picked Michelle up, who snuggled against her. “It smells delicious,” Vyeta said. She looked at Kate and Lucas. “Thank you,” she said again, in English this time. She didn’t have the words to describe just how much it meant to her that Lucas and Kate had organized all of this for her, that they had either researched or, more likely she thought, rang her parents to ask them what sorts of traditions they had around Christmas time, and then put everything together. All without me knowing. She didn’t particularly like surprises, but this one? This one was a good one.

She just hoped that Lucas hadn’t stolen anything of hers from work to give to her as a gift. I might have to borrow Kate’s stapler if he did.