Page 24 of Delivered to My Elves

But, as I measured the dry ingredients for my special waffles, I recalled the past attempts and recognized that the rejections had been as much on our part as the females’. There just hadn’t been any chemistry, and we sure as heck neverglowed. I set the waffle iron on the stovetop to heat. I always used buckwheat and regular flour, sifting them carefully along with baking powder, cinnamon, and salt to get any lumps out before adding melted butter and milk and a good splash of vanilla.

While the waffle iron heated, I fried bacon and cut up some fruit to serve on the side. Our mate had burned a lot of calories last night, and I was taking my duty to help her stay healthy seriously.

“It smells amazing in here.”

I pivoted on a heel to see Misty standing in the doorway of the kitchen wearing only a long T-shirt—one of mine. Was there anything sexier than that? She hadn’t combed her hair yet, but on her, bedhead looked amazing. I set down the fork I’d been using to turn the bacon and held out my arms. “Good morning, mate.” She came closer, and I enfolded her in a warm hug. “I wanted to surprise you with breakfast in bed.”

“Really? Nobody’s ever done that for me before.”

“It’s a special morning.” And nobody had ever done a lot of things for her. We’d have felt the same way about her even if we hadn’t been her first, but the fact that we were made me very happy. I’d never thought of myself as possessive, but turned out that where a mate was concerned, I was one jealous elf. I’d seen it among our friends and laughed at them. “Coffee is about done. Would you like a cup?”

“Yes. You’re a saint. But I’ll get it myself. You’ve got your hands full with the bacon and…is that a waffle thingy?”

“A waffle iron, yes. You’ve never seen one?”

“No. I knew they existed, but never encountered one in the wild. Want to know a secret?”

I nuzzled her throat, inhaling her changed scent. Mating did that, I’d been told, and the complex fragrance confirmed it. “Tell me, please.”

“I always order waffles when I go out for breakfast.” She tipped her face up and kissed me, slowly and thoroughly, before stepping back. “I didn’t even know they could be made at home.”

“Oh, in that case, would you like a lesson? Waffles are my specialty, and this iron was my grandmother’s.”

“No guarantees on my skills, but I’m willing to try.”

I wrapped Misty in an apron we kept for messy cooking and guided her over to the stove. Standing behind her, I showed her how to open the iron and ladle in the correct amount of batter. I helped her flip it over halfway through cooking and when it stopped steaming, it was done.

Misty clapped her hands and gave me a big kiss. “That was so cool. How long has this been going on? Is it like the secret menu at fast-food places—nobody knows how easy it really is? A single waffle at brunch costs so much.”

“I don’t think it’s a secret exactly, but maybe people don’t know how it’s done. I think most who do it use an electric iron.”

“Oh no. I like this one.” She proceeded to make a few more with only a little help from me, and only stopped when she’d scraped up the last of the batter.

Aerin appeared, yawning and stretching, just as we’d set the food on the table. He sniffed appreciatively and headed for the coffeepot. We all sat around the table as if we’d been mates our whole lives, laughing and talking and eating.

And I had never been happier. Ever. We were mated and ready to start a life together. Misty wasn’t here to be a breeder. She was our mate, a gift from Fate, and although I hoped we’d have many babies together, even if we didn’t have one, I had no doubt our life together would be wonderful.

Epilogue

Misty

The snow decorated the village like frosting on a cake as my elves fitted the tall pine tree into the stand. If not for the remodeling they’d done since Carrie’s arrival, it would never have fit in the house at all. But adding a second story and leaving the front living area open to the rafters allowed for a sixteen-foot pine.

“I still think it’s too big,” I fussed, cuddling our daughter on my lap while enjoying the show. Her daddies considered nothing too big or two wonderful for their little girl. And their mate. To think I’d come here a year ago to be a breeder, to give them children and nothing more. But I should have known that two elves who yearned for family would also be the best mates in the whole world. I’d been ready to settle for…what was his name again? Seriously, I remembered it, but he didn’t deserve that kind of space in my mind. Imagine if I’d ended up with him. According to the few coworkers I’d stayed in touch with, his mating had completely fallen apart once his “fated” had realized he was more than willing to screw anything that moved on any piece of furniture that would bear their weight, and a few that would not.

I shuddered at the thought.

He hadn’t even been that good-looking, in comparison to my elves, but that was the least of the characteristics at which he fell short and they excelled. Right now, as they tightened the screws on the tree stand and stepped back to admire their work, they were the most outstanding examples of males I had ever had the pleasure to meet. They dragged in a ladder and strung lights from the top to the bottom of the fragrant tree then draped garland over the branches. Setting the sleeping baby in thecradle next to my chair, I joined them in decorating the tree with the ornaments they’d already owned when I met them. Most had been on the tree last year, but there was one special one I wanted to have pride of place. Well, two.

Each of the decorations we had hung were antique and beautiful, and I had a feeling we might have to put them away for a few years after this one when little fingers might be a danger to their delicate beauty. Or maybe we would use them but only high up and place more kid-friendly types on the lower branches. Plastic or wood, something like that. The tree was covered with blown glass and hand-painted tin, crystal and delicate woven fans. Had there ever been a prettier Christmas tree?

I opened the box holding the Baby’s First Christmas globe. It glowed from within, just like my loves had, so brightly I saw them across the train platform, even if I didn’t understand it at the time. “Will you hang this right up under the star, Callon?” I pointed to the spot where I wanted it.

“Of course, mate,” he said, climbing the ladder. “Here?” He held it in place.

“Perfect.”

He fastened it to the branch and climbed down. “We’re all done, then. Shall we put Carrie to bed and come sit by the tree for a while?”

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