c h a p t e r s i x t e e n .

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"Rise and shine, sleepyhead!"

It was Christmas Eve! Winter opened the door to Joe's bedroom, allowing the light from the hallway to filter in the dark space. His bedroom was on the opposite side of the sunrise so it stayed darker much longer than the rest of the penthouse. A groan sounded from the depths of the pillows somewhere on the bed. Rolling her eyes, Winter laughed under her breath. It wasn't even early, and she had been up for quite a while at this point and was eager to start the holiday. This time of year meant a lot to her and being apart from her family was harder on her than she wanted to admit. With a shrug, Winter dashed towards his bed, launching herself in the air to land beside a very cocooned Joe.

"Wake up! It's Christmas Eve!" She peeled back the layer of blankets to reveal his drowsy face.

Joe acknowledged her by squinting one eye open. "Still tired."

"Come on! Christmas only comes once a year, Joey."

"Don't call me that." His words were still slurred with sleep.

"Don't call you what? Joey? Fine, how about JJ?" She teased.

Joe rolled over onto his back and ran his hands over his face in an attempt to waken his senses. "Ugh, none of them. Joe is already short for Joseph. I don't need it shortened more."

"Jojo would be a cute nickname for you. Ooh! Or - "

"Fine, I'm up!" Joe grinned at her. "That was unfair."

Winter stretched out on her side, scrunching up her nose playfully in the process. "Hey, it woke you up, didn't it? All's fair in love and war. Thought to be fair, JJ isn't the worst nickname."

Joe raised his arms into a luxurious stretch while Winter ogled at his shirtless torso. Though they had been living in the same penthouse for several days, she still hadn't seen him without a shirt. Her heartbeat quickened as her eyes traced the outline of every muscle and as she admired the warm tanned tone to his skin. Sure, she had seen pictures online and in magazines, but experiencing it in person, especially as he laid in bed beside her, was a level of thirst that took her by surprise. Winter lost herself in her own personal fantasy before realizing that Joe was watching her with a brooding gaze.

"Like what you see?" A satisfied smirk played on his lips.

Embarrassed that she had been caught staring, she rolled over and buried her face into one of the pillows for a brief moment. "I'm like...wildly attracted to you. And not just in a 'omg he's a Jonas Brother' kind of way. I can't believe I actually said that out loud."

"Filling my mind with bad thoughts so early in the morning. I'm wildly attracted to you." Joe's hands groped her waist and pulled her on top of him.

Before either of them could give in to their hunger for the other, a knock at the door sounded and made them jump apart. Winter tucked her hair behind her ear and tried to  hide her flustered state that gave her flushed cheeks. "I'll get the door."

Nothing could have prepared Winter for the guest who waited outside of the suite door.

In front of her stood Gianna. But she was different. It took several moments for it to register exactly who it was because of how different she appeared. Just days ago, Gianna was a stunning redhead with natural curls that cascaded down to her waist. Winter remembered this very specific detail because, deep down, she had been a little jealous of that magnificent mane. Now, her hair was cut and fell around an inch beneath her shoulder blades. It was straightened and silky. And perhaps the most glaring change of all - it was an icy platinum blonde. Out of instinct, Winter fiddled with a lock of her own platinum toned hair while processing the brand new Gianna before her.

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