Page 8 of Merry Elfing Xmas

My eyes pop open as the unfamiliar throbbing in my lady parts reminds me how I spent last night. “Good morning, little elf.” Grey pulls me close and runs his nose across my cheek. “How did you sleep?”

“Like the dead.” I snuggle against his side, attempting to fall back asleep.

“I already know you’re not a morning person.” He laughs and rolls me onto my back.

“Who told you that?” I grumble, realizing I’m not going back to sleep.

“The same little birdy who’s been giving me such great advice all along,” Grey tells me.

I sit up and push my wild hair out of my face and stare into his eyes. “My dad told you about my sleeping patterns?” That really doesn’t sound like my overprotective father. At all.

“Inadvertently.” Grey rolls his eyes and crawls out of bed. “While I helped him fix the porch steps, we somehow got on the subject of your stubbornness. That conversation led to him explaining how hard it was to get you up on school mornings.”

“Should I be aware of anything else my traitorous dad told you?” I cringe, waiting for his answer.

“He didn’t mention much.” Relief flows through me until Grey adds, “Except,” he pauses, “he did tell me about the time you watched the Olympics on television and then dressed up in one of your mother’s swimsuits before trying to sled down the basement stairs in a plastic storage container.”

Oh my God. I feel my cheeks heat while I pray for the floor to open up and swallow me. I can’t believe my dad told Grey that embarrassing story.

“At least you didn’t hurt more than your pride when the container went through the wall at the bottom of the stairs.” He shrugs as my cheeks heat. “Don’t worry, little elf.” Grey kisses the side of my neck. “It will be our little secret. Now, get your lazy bones up so we can go Christmas shopping before the stores are too crowded.”

Chapter7

Grey

My little elf is a champion shopper. In the last two hours, we’ve hit nearly every store in the mall. I juggle all the bags, attempting to keep up with her exuberance. “Oh.” Noelle pulls on my hand, leading me toward the pet store. “I need to look at doggie sweaters.” Make that every store in the mall.

While Noelle debates which ugly Christmas sweater to buy for Snoopy, I pick out several dog toys for my little furry friend. “What is all this?” My little elf walks over and points at the toys I’m throwing in the cart.

“Instruments of bribery.” I wink at her. “A man needs all the help he can get.”

Noelle laughs and adds a few more toys to my pile. “You’re already becoming his favorite human. I need to remind him that I came first.” A funny little sensation flows through my heart when she wraps her arm around my waist and hugs me tight.

“You’ll always come first.” I kiss the top of her head as we make our way through the crowded store.

“Can we stop at the coffee shop on the way home?” Noelle practically vibrates with excitement.

“How in the world can you drink so much caffeine and still sleep?” If my girl isn’t drinking coffee, she’s downing diet soda. I would worry about her health, except she also drinks enough water to float a ship.

“It’s a gift.” She winks adorably. In that moment, Noelle would’ve stolen my heart if it didn’t already belong to her.

When we get back to her place, we unload all our purchases before hurrying to wrap Snoopy’s gifts. “I told my parents we would pick Snoopy up in an hour, and I want to have all of these wrapped before he gets home so he’s surprised on Christmas,” my little elf tells me. What’s downright terrifying is that I totally understand. I don’t recognize myself as the cold-as-ice businessman anymore, and I couldn’t be happier. The family-oriented caveman that replaced him is a huge improvement.

We spend the rest of the weekend wrapping all the presents Noelle bought. By the time we finish, it looks like her living room puked presents, but my little elf couldn’t be happier.

I end up staring at the ceiling all night Sunday night, too wound up to sleep while my little elf snores softly at my side.

“Wake up, sleepyhead.” I’ve been up since before the sun rose. I showered, dressed, and ran down to the coffee shop to grab my girl’s favorite drink while she slept in.

“It’s vacation,” she grumbles adorably. “I get to sleep until noon.” My little elf pulls the pink frilly comforter over her head and snuggles back in.

“I’ll let you sleep until noon every other day.” I’d do just about anything to make her happy. “But not today. I have plans for today.”

Noelle’s head pops out from under the covers, and she pushes her hair off of her adorable face before glaring at me. “What plans?” I almost laugh at the slightly perturbed but intensely curious expression on her beautiful face.

“You’ll see.” I hold out my hand and pull her sweet body up against mine. “Get your lazy bones up and shower.” When leans up and kisses me, I almost change my mind and hop back in the warm bed with her. “You’re not going to distract me with your gorgeous body,” I grumble as my cock urges me to forget about the announcement and instead show Noelle how much she means to me. “I got you an extra-large white chocolate mocha.” Ah-ha. I just found the magic words.

“Coffee?” Her eyes light up. “Why didn’t you say that first?” While my little elf showers, I check my emails, making sure everything is set.

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