Page 22 of Santa's Knotty Workshop

“What are we going to do about the other presents?”

He raised a brow. “What other presents?”

“I should have mentioned it when you came home, but we were busy. I had Bertram put them in your office because I didn’t want our entire suite filled with them. I thought you and I couldgo through them one by one. But it seems that our good news traveled fast amongst the North Pole.”

It was an overwhelming number of gifts, but it wasn’t like I could send them back. People gave them with love, and it was only right that we accept them in kind.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. The presents started arriving one by one throughout the night. Each of the Santas delivered us a gift for our future child.”

Nick broke out into a wide grin. “Those old softies. We’ll go through them all.”

“Great.” I leaned in, brushing my lips against his. “But first, maybe we can go back to bed for a little while?”

“You aren’t hungry?”

“Oh, I’m hungry, Nick, and I know exactly what I want to feast on.”

Chapter 14

Nick

It never ceased to amaze me just how tired I could be after my big Christmas Eve run. I managed to make it to New Year’s, where the elves and I had one last hurrah before we all went into our slow time. Slow time. That sounded wonderful.

Cleaning and reorganizing filled the week between Christmas and New Year’s. We tried to keep things in order all year long, and we did a really good job of it… until the last few weeks. Once the rush was on, everything else fell apart. It was fine. We had the time set aside to deal with it.

New Year’s had always been a favorite of mine. The entire North Pole gathered for a gigantic party, for lack of a better word. It was so much more than a party; it was a celebration of the past and a welcoming of the future. And this year, I was attending with my future. I could think of nothing more fitting.

Percy stayed at my side the entire evening. We kissed under the fireworks that lit up the sky to ring in the new year while drinking our hot cocoa. It was a gorgeous evening and an even more gorgeous display. But it was late, and my mate was feeling the tiredness that came with pregnancy. After a few quick goodbyes, we retreated to our suite, where the two of us slept for what seemed like the entirety of January.

Since my mate was in his first trimester, his body was resting and preparing for all the changes it was going through. Meanwhile, I was trying to recover from my busy season. We spent an inordinate amount of time cuddled in bed together—reading baby books, organizing the gifts we had received so far, planning out the nursery and how it would look, and just getting to know even more about each other.

Also, the sleeping. So much sleeping.

Some days, it seemed like we never even got out of bed. Thankfully, my staff was used to the odd January schedule I’d been known for holding. They brought us food, handled our laundry, and truly spoiled us. It was the perfect way for us to settle into our new lives together as a mated couple.

“We’re going to be late,” Percy said. We had one appointment all month—one thing we absolutely had to attend—and we weregoing to be late. And even as I was pushing Nick to hurry up, I was ready to climb back into bed with him instead. I was ridiculous.

“Percy, you are the only pregnant elf I know of at this workshop,” I teased. “They can wait.” But also, I was actively getting ready to leave. So there was that.

“The only one at the moment that we know of.”

Sure, we had mated elves all around, but Percy was the only expecting. Santa’s Naughty Workshop wasn’t exactly the most family-friendly atmosphere. And even if it was, not all elves jumped right into parenthood the way we did. Having our mating when he was in heat, heat brought on by spending time with me, had a lot to do with that. Not that I would change a single thing about it. I was thrilled to become a parent, to grow a family with Percy.

“Pretty sure Dr. Jigglesnap won’t mind if we’re a tiny bit late.” Although now that I said it, I was thinking maybe he might. He was the one who sent a reminder of the time via cookie gram.

“It’s the principle of the matter,” Percy said, pulling on his red fluffy robe over his fuzzy pajama pants. We might’ve been heading to an appointment, but we would be comfortable for it.

“You’re right.”

He looked up and smiled. “Thank you for saying that. Not all alphas would.”

“I’m not all alphas.” I stepped into my boots.

“I am well aware.” I stood up, ready to go.

It was just a short walk across the town square, and the snow had finally let up. I loved the beauty of fresh fallen snow. Our walk was going to be stunning.

---