Since we weren't scheduled for any events until the first week of December. Hunter gave us a head start on our Thanksgiving vacation. I swear it was quite the experience to spend Thanksgiving with the Colace family in Scottsdale, Arizona. I packed relatively light just a couple of duffel bags that was it. When I told Sadie that I'd be spending Thanksgiving with Nikki and Brie's family. She geeked out. I didn't want to expose Nikki to my would-be sister-in-law at least until Christmas.
Anyway, the moment I set foot in the family home I felt the unmistakable feeling of being unwanted. John Laurenitis her stepdad was the first one to greet me.
"Daniel. Hey man. Sorry to hear about Katherine. I know you don't want to talk about it but we missed you in WWE." I neglected to mention that John and I were good friends when he was part of WWE a few years back.
"Thank you, John. Not that I don't have a pity party enough back in the WWE." Then Daniel Bryan and Brie came in with Birdie.
"What are you doing here?" Bryan asked.
"I was invited. Nikki. Invited me. But I can go somewhere else if it's going to bother you so much that I'm here." I picked up my bags and prepped to leave. When no one said anything I just headed out. "Well, been fun. Like pulling teeth." I had just reached the end of the driveway. John and Nikki ran up.
"Daniel. Where are you going?" He asked.
"Home." Was all I said.
"Dan." I looked to Nikki. "Regardless as to how Bryan feels. I'd love it if you stayed."
"As a clown, entertainer?"
"No. Just as yourself." She smiled.
"Then keep Bryan away from me. If he still blames me for having Hunter send Brie down to NXT. I'm going home and not going anywhere else. Not even WWE. I'm tired of cleaning everyone's messes and getting flack for trying to help." Nikki noticed that I wasn't remotely joking or kidding.
I looked at the front door and saw Kathy. Nikki and Brie's mother and JJ. Their brother. Kathy and JJ walked down the walkway and approached me, Nikki and John.
"I'd like to say that we're sorry for how Daniel is acting. I know that you have good reason to have Brie relegated to NXT. But for now. Me, John, JJ and Nikki would like you to join us for Thanksgiving." Kathy said to the elation of John and Nikki.
"Come on man. John told us about your..." I looked at JJ with a stare that spoke volumes as to where I stood on talking about what happened to Katherine. "Okay. But I'm with mom, John, and Nikki. Please stay. Besides, it's refreshing to have someone who is brutally honest when it's called for and doesn't skirt the truth. But if I may ask. The reason you're having Hunter send Brie down to NXT is that she's been botching spots lately?" JJ asked.
"Yes. But also I've noticed that since she's had Birdie and been home for almost a full year and a half. She has gotten into the habit of blaming others or anything else instead of taking responsibility for her own actions." I explained.
Kathy looked to Nikki. "Nicole. If you don't snag him you are a damn fool." I smiled a bit and giggled as Nikki turned a few shades of red.
"I agree. He's a lot better than Cena."
"Keep it to yourself will ya. I don't want the leader of the Ce-nothing nation to hear you." I snickered. Nikki approached me and wrapped her arms around my right arm. "Well, I guess I can try and stay." I smiled as Nikki jumped up and down. JJ, John, and Kathy led me inside the house. And John carried my other duffel since my other arm had Nikki on it. But when I got back into the house Bryan took a swing at me and I ducked and ferociously gripped his throat with my fingernails digging into his windpipe. "Move an inch. To either side. And you will be responsible for busting your windpipe." Bryan held up his hands and I let him go. "You would do well to remember that when you get it in your head to threaten me. Let's not forget Bryan. Brie has botched more spots than I have in my entire career. So I suggest you stay as far away from me as possible. Because next time. I will finish what we started." After Brie and Bryan walked away Nikki led me to her room.
"I know that you have rules when it comes to sleeping in the same room with women. But. I want to make sure you feel comfortable here. So, if you wouldn't mind. I'd like you to not only stay here with me. But..."
"Sleep with you as well. Just cuddling and all that."
"Yeah." I smiled at her.
"You know. I'd like that." I smiled. I put the duffel bag down and Nikki put my other bag on the bed. I got settled in and changed into some clean clothes as Nikki left the room and headed downstairs.
"John."
"Hmm?"
"Can I ask you something?" Nikki asked.
"Sure."
"Who is Katherine and what happened to her?"
John took a deep breath, "Katherine Martinez was Daniel's fiancée three to four years ago. And the only other thing I'm going to say is that she died. For everything else, your going to have to ask Daniel. But give him time. He's been grieving for the last two years Hunter tells me. He's back in WWE to keep his mind occupied. He's been trying to forget what happened to her for all this time. So if you want the full story. Your gonna have to ask him."
"Okay. Thank you for the information you could tell me though."
"No problem Nicole." He watched his stepdaughter walk away and he could sense that something was brewing between her and me. But kept his suspicions to himself.
When I came downstairs wearing a clean pair of light blue denim jeans, a Venom T-Shirt I saw Nikki sitting by herself on the sofa and decided to join her.
"Hey, you okay?" I asked her.
"Yeah. I just don't know if I should ask this question or not?" I could tell that she had been debating this for hours.
"Come upstairs." I led her up and I sat on her bed. "I'm guessing your curious about why I have a zero tolerance for dwelling on the past. That right?" She nodded. "But I'm guessing you really want to know about Katherine my fiancée who was killed in a car accident."
"Ohh, Daniel." She sighed.
"It's okay. But I am planning on going home for Christmas and my sister in law is a fan of yours and your sisters. So to see you would really make her day."
"Are you inviting me to your home for Christmas?" She asked. I nodded.
"Aside from the fact we already agreed on you coming to my place for Christmas, its the on the only way you'll be told everything about me."
"Fair enough. I look forward to it. By the way. I want to know something that doesn't involve your rules or your past."
"Fire away?"
"I know that you probably don't want to but I have to ask. What would you say if you and I became a pair?"
I wasn't surprised by the question considering that her mom and brother both gave their approval. "I'd like it. But let's just see how everything goes until Christmas. Okay?"
"Okay." She sat next to me and I wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "My mom is right. I'd be a fool to let the opportunity to have you as a boyfriend slip by me."
"So are you suggesting a trial period then?" I asked. She looked me in the eye and smiled. "Okay then." I leaned over and kissed her. Not long after John bellowed up the stair for us to come to dinner.
"Well, we better head down." She grinned. I kissed her once more before we got up and headed downstairs. When we walked into the dining room, different looks surrounded us. Mostly dirty ones form Bryan and Brie. John, Kathy, and JJ just grinned.
Needless to say at least in my view. I had fun at the Colace's for Thanksgiving. In fact, John and Kathy took me aside as Nikki and Brie went shopping with Birdie, Bryan, and JJ.

"Now that the kids are gone. Daniel. John and I would like to know what are your intentions with Nicole?" She asked as I sat down on the sofa.
"Purely great intentions. I'm not like John Cena who just took advantage of her popularity to make himself look better. I'd rather get run over by a train than do that to Nikki."
"Okay. How about plans for the future?" John asked. I actually saw that coming.
"It's up to her. I would love nothing more than to give her a man that not only actually loves her. But would support her in anything she wanted to do. And yes I'm well aware that she wants kids." I said before they asked.
"One last question, well a couple more." John pointed to Kathy.
"If and when you take your relationship with her to the next level. Where would you live?"
"I hope you don't take it the wrong way. I'd like for her to live with me in Idaho Falls. It does get cold during the winter, sometimes twenty below and the rarest occasions twenty five below zero. So whenever it's Christmas time. More often than not. It's a White Christmas."
"Sounds good." Kathy smiled. "As you may have guessed it rarely gets cold enough for a white Christmas down here."
"Yeah. But I'm sure she'd like the idea of a snow-covered Christmas."
"He's not wrong." John smiled.
"Now what is your question?" I asked John.
"Now this pertains to kids. How many would you like to have and which gender would be a dominant one?"
"Well that's two questions but it still counts as one. I'd like at least have four kids and if they were two girls and two boys. I'd be happy, although, truth be told. I wouldn't mind having a home full of little girls and at least one little boy." I answered honestly. Kathy and John smiled.
"Nicole tells me that you plan on taking her to your home for Christmas."
"Yeah. I mean. It's only fair. I come here for Thanksgiving and She comes home with me for Christmas. It's not like I'm actually interested in a title. Neither is she as I recall."
"Will Hunter allow it?"
"He knows that I always spend the Christmas Holiday's with my family or at least my sister-in-law. So I don't see why he would try and make it hard for me to keep up the tradition."
"Well, I'm happy that Nicole has you now." I didn't have the heart to tell her that it was a trial period until we saw how things developed up to Christmas. By the time we were going to continue talking the door opened and Nikki walked up to me.
"Hey, Danny." She grinned as she sat in my lap.
"Hey, baby." I kissed her as she leaned against me.
"You guys weren't grilling him were you?" She asked John and Kathy.
"Not in so many words." John giggled.
"We just wanted to know his intentions and a few other things," Kathy answered.
"Well, as long as the question wasn't too invasive."
"Yeah. That's her job." I joked as I pointed to her. She lightly slapped my chest and smiled.
Nikki and I had a lot of fun at her families home in Scottsdale. But as everything must. Soon fun time was over and it was time to go to work.