Page 12 of Havoc's Fox

He smiled back and took the first easy breath he’d taken since he’d run into her at the coffee shop. Maybe he’d finally done something right, at least in her eyes. And truly, hers were the only ones that mattered.

Chapter 4

Later that night Tempest and Brandt very carefully set out a complete Christmas dinner on Kiernan and Abby’s front porch. They left gift after gift, each box wrapped in bright papers and ribbons. When they were done, they stood hand in hand while Brandt knocked softly on the door. When they heard the sound of someone on the other side of the door unlocking it, Tempest called her mists and transported them back to their own home.

Addie, Abby’s sister opened the door and was astounded by what she saw. “Abby! Come look,” she called out.

Abby tried to get up off the sofa, but it was just too much for her. She was heavily pregnant and found it hard to move. “Can’t you just tell me?” she asked.

“It’s food. Lots of food, and presents!” Addie exclaimed.

“What?” Kiernan asked, coming back into the living room, and handing Abby a cup of steaming chamomile and peppermint tea. “Here you go, honey.”

“It’s presents and food,” Addie repeated, squatting down to lift the lid of one of the covered dishes. “Oh, it’s a ham!” she said, practically drooling.

Kiernan walked over, followed closely by his brother, Shaun, who started picking up presents and carrying them inside.

“Hold on, now. We can’t accept all this,” Kiernan said.

“Of course, we can,” Shaun said. “Says right here, ‘From Santa, Enjoy’.” He put down the gifts he was carrying near the tree they’d already decorated with KJ earlier in the evening, then handed the note to Kiernan.

Kiernan read the note, then looked up at his mate.

“They want to make sure we have a good Christmas. To refuse it would be an insult,” Abby said with a slight shrug.

“You think so?” Kiernan asked.

Abby kind of shrugged again.

“We didn’t ask for any of it,” Addie said. “It’s of their own free will,” she reminded them.

“True, I just don’t want to accept charity. I’m more than willing to work for anything at all we need. That was our agreement,” Kiernan said.

“I don’t think it’s charity. I think it’s how they take care of their clan,” Abby said. As she said that, the Christmas lights on the house next door flipped on. The interior lights came on and she could see the Christmas tree through the window, too. “I think they all do Christmas big around here.”

“And like you said, we’ve already made an agreement to work for our keep. And I know you’ll give a thousand percent,” Abby said.

“Well, I’m bringing this food in,” Addie said. She carried the ham inside, then went back for what turned out to be macaroni and cheese. When she returned to get another large dish, she noticed the man who lived in the house next door standing on his porch looking around.

He noticed her and called over to her. “You get a bunch of Christmas stuff left for you, too?”

Addie laughed. “Sure did! Wasn’t sure if we should bring it in or not. Maybe whoever left it got the wrong house,” she called back.

“Naw, not at all. It’s Brandt and Tempest. They love to do this kind of thing. Makes them happy. They knew exactly where they left it.”

“You get food and presents, too?” Addie asked as she picked up another casserole dish covered in foil.

“Yep. They just left mine on the kitchen island. At least they didn’t let themselves into your house while you were gone.”

“With this kind of food, I’d be okay with it,” Addie said.

“You need some help getting that in?”

“No thank you. We got it,” she answered.

“Who you talking to?” Shaun asked as he came out to help her carry the food, having finished bringing in all the gifts.

“Neighbor,” she answered. “Well, goodnight!” she called out.

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