Page 104 of Breeding Clinic

Bailey gets wiggly, so I set her down, then stand up to stretch. Margaret gives them each a cookie, then asks if they want to help her decorate the rest and make them pretty.

Gabriel and Matthew take over the task of wrapping the lights around the tree while the others start putting hooks on ornaments.

Liam comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around me and tucking his chin on my shoulder. “You look real good with a baby on your lap,” he whispers into my ear.

I hold onto his arms and lean against him. “In a month we won’t have to borrow Jen’s kids for practice.”

He makes a satisfied rumbling sound in his chest.

“Cookie, dear?” Margaret asks. She holds up a cookie shaped like a bell. It’s messily slathered in yellow tinted icing with a chaotic sprinkle of silver sugar crystals. It’s ridiculous and perfect. “Bailey wanted you to eat the one she made for you.”

I take the cookie and hold it up. “Bailey! It’s so pretty. You made this? Wow.”

Bailey beams with pride over at the kitchen table, then gets back to it. She sticks her tongue out as she concentrates on decorating cookies.

Margaret walks back to the kitchen with a smile on her face.I take a bite of the cookie and let out a moan. “Oh my God. That’s so good. Want a bite?” I ask, lifting it up for Liam.

He nips my earlobe between his teeth. “Oh, I’m gonna eat my fill of cookies,” he promises.

I don’t think he means the actual Christmas cookies. A blush heats my face. I turn around in the circle of his arms so the others won’t see and pat his chest. “You’ll have to wait till after dinner too. You don’t want to spoil your appetite.”

He laughs and lets me go. Just in time for us to help my parents start hanging ornaments on the tree.

Chapter Twenty-Three

MATTHEW

“Bye!”we say in unison, waving as the last car starts down the gravel driveway. It’s been a fun but exhausting couple of days.

“I wish we didn’t have to leave,” Kat says, pouting. “It’d be nice to have the place to ourselves for a night.”

She’s right. It’s been hard to find time for ourselves with so many people around. With this many people, someone’s always around. The only time we’ve had for each other is when we make an excuse to sneak out. My ass is wind chapped. I’m tired of fucking outside.

“It’s booked through tomorrow, isn’t it?” Gabriel asks.

“Yeah,” Liam says. “They had a five-night minimum.”

“Can we stay?” Kat asks, her eyes wide and pleading.

“How’s the weather look?” Liam asks.

I pull up the weather app on my phone. “Snowy. It says three to four inches.”

“Oh!” Kat says, even more excited now. “It’ll be the white Christmas we didn’t get because it all melted in the sun.”

Liam glances at the clear blue sky and his truck. I can see the wheels turning in his head. He had winter tires put on it lastmonth. His truck is tall. It’ll be able to clear four inches of snow easily, even up here on this mountain where it won’t be plowed often. “Okay. We can stay.”

“Yay!” Kat throws her hands up and pulls him in for a kiss. “I want to fuck on that bearskin rug in front of the fire.”

“You heard the lady,” Liam says, grinning. “Let’s build a fucking fire.”

I snort with laughter, not sure if he meant it to sound that way on purpose.

Gabriel and I follow them in, locking the door behind us in case someone turns around because they forgot their phone charger or something.

“I’ll build it,” Gabriel says, heading to the massive stone fireplace. He takes his time building a fire, angling small splits of wood and a larger log just so. He stuffs twists of newspaper between them, then grabs the extra long matches from the mantle. A flame bursts to life, and the fire catches the dry wood quickly.

“Christmas music,” Kat demands.

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