Page 60 of Steers and Stowaways
“Whatever you want, darling.” He grinned indulgently at her. “They’re your Christmas gifts.”
“Jellybean.” She gave a happy chuckle as she raised thefuzzy black-and-white kitten to get a better look at her. “That’s exactly what her black spots look like.”
“Now that you mention it.” He held out the ginger kitten so she could give him a closer inspection. “My vote is for something a little manlier for this fella.”
Braveheart placed his front paws on Tucker’s knee and rose to his hind feet to sniff at the kitten.
The ball of ginger fluff hissed and batted his tiny paws at Braveheart.
“Fierce!” Mallory cocked her head at his adorably pointy ears and flailing paws. “How about Fox?”
“I like it. I think he approves, too.” Tucker set the feisty kitten on his chest and let him climb up his shirt to put more distance between him and Braveheart.
“Your turn.” She couldn’t wait for Tucker to open her gift to him. “I really, really, really hope what I got for you wasn’t a bad idea.”
His eyebrows rose. “I’m intrigued.”
She wrinkled her nose at him. “It’s not a vacuum. I promise. And it’s not in any way a hint for you to work harder than you already do. It just felt like the right gift when I saw it, but now I’m second-guessing myself.” She knew she was babbling, but she was too nervous to stop.
Humor filled his gaze. “Whatever it is, I promise we’ll still be married after I open it.”
“I’m holding you to it.” She walked behind the sofa and nudged the enormous box forward with the toe of her fuzzy sock. It was nearly big enough for her to climb inside and heavy enough to make a scraping sound along the floor.
Tucker cocked his head at the box. “Any reason my gift isn’t under the tree? I kept mine in the other room because of the noise it was making, but this one isn’t rocking or rattling.”
“Yes,” she snickered. “I wasn’t sure if you were a box shaker. Didn’t want any peeking to take place.”
“I’m not a box shaker.” He handed her the other kitten before bending to pick up his gift, pretending to stagger beneath its weight. “You sure it’s not a vacuum?”
“One way to find out,” she taunted.Please like it! Please like it!She held her breath as he tore off a penny-sized piece of the candy-apple paper she’d wrapped it in. “Hurry up,” she urged. “I’m literally dying inside.”
“Oh, hug your cats and zip it, Zippie!” He winked at her before tearing into the paper.
A Ninja skillet set appeared—the biggest one she could find with the most pieces.
“You’re right.” Approval glinted in his gaze as he whistled over the gift. “It’s not a vacuum.” He carried it to the kitchen and set it on the bar. Then he returned to her, startling the kittens as he planted a very thorough kiss of gratitude on her. “It’s the nicest gift anyone has ever given me.”
“I’m glad you like it.” She set Jellybean and Fox back in their box. They lightly bopped noses and curled up together. To her delight, Braveheart settled himself down beside the box, sniffing at the corner of it.
“It’s the nicest giftandprobably the most self-serving.” Tucker waggled his eyebrows at her.
“Maybe a teensy bit,” she admitted, squeezing her thumb and forefinger together to emphasize how little the self-service element amounted to. “In my defense, I did disclose my lack of cooking skills before the wedding.”
“You did.” He reached for her hand and spun her in a circle before cuddling her closer.
“And since you said you enjoy cooking, I didn’t want you to have to suffer through the hodgepodge of pots and pans currently rusticating in my kitchen drawers.” Sherarely pulled them out. Up to this point, she’d survived on takeout and stuff she could warm on a paper plate in the microwave.
“I love your gift.” He swayed with her from side to side in a deliciously slow dance. “I love the giver even more.”
“I love you, too.” She reached up to touch his cheek. “Merry first Christmas together!”
He caught her hand against his cheek. “Oh, we’re just getting started, darling.”
“I know,” she said dreamily. “Our first of many Christmases together.”
He brought her hand to his mouth to kiss her fingers. “I meantthisChristmas is just getting started.”
She watched, open-mouthed, as he held up a finger and backed away from her. This time, he didn’t leave the room. He walked to the front door and opened it.
