Page 19 of Witch's Bells and Mistletoe

ADEON

I stretch out, basking in my mate’s presence as she quietly reads. Elis is in a snit because, other than sharing a meal with him, we haven’t ventured much from her rooms today or the day before. Part of it is because I’m quite content to keep my mate safely sequestered away from potential danger outside the hotel—too much so to suggest the small entertainments that I might have earlier. But I am also genuinely enjoying this quite time with Katherine. That said, there are some small festivities going on in the hotel these next few days leading into solstice and then their Christmas celebrations that my mate wishes to see which shall pry us out of our comfortable little nest.

Temporary nest though it is, it is suitable and comfortable enough that I’m enjoying every minute in it with her. There are some locals performing carols tonight on the main floor with baked goods and a choice of cocoa or coffee being made available to guests. It sounds charming but not enough to make me actually want to emerge. It’s only Katherine’s pleasure at the idea that makes me reluctantly agree when I would rather be face down in her cunt again this evening. I therefore groan when my mate nudges me with her toe.

“We should start to get ready soon.”

I cast her a disgruntled look in reply, but she merely grins over me as she marks her spot in her book and sets it aside.

“Don’t grumble. This will be fun. You always seemed to enjoy the carol contests among members of the coven.”

“That was them,” I mutter surlily. “I would rather enjoy our private time together rather than be amid a crowd of strangers with their strange scents and bodies pressing too close to me.”

My female gives me a flirtatious smile, and my cocks twitch with interest when she leans in close. “Perhaps I will have to corner you to make sure I’m the only one pressing up against you then.”

“Wouldn’t be a bad idea,” I growl appreciatively as I catch a glimpse of her pretty cleavage from within the parted material of her buttoned blouse.

A little golden chain draws my attention unerringly to them by the way it nestles between her breasts, making them plusher and more inviting to my very dragonish way of thinking. Perhaps I should bring her all manner of gold jewelry just so I can dress her in it and admire my treasure against her lush softness. I wonder if she would object to being draped with gold and jewels so that they hang every part on her body as I mount her. I purr a little at that, my eyes half closing with pleasure at the mental image until that toe jabs me a little more forcibly.

“Come on,” Katherine laughs and she scoots off the couch and out of my reach, correctly anticipating my sudden desire to grab her and lock her against me.

I hiss in a playful show of displeasure and am rewarded with a pillow tossed casually in my face as my mate chuckles and leaves me on the suite’s couch by myself. Laughing at her antics, I push myself to my feet, my eyes following her as she makes her way to the wardrobe to pull out a cheerful red dress the color of a cranberry. I cross my arms over my chest and enjoy the picture she makes as she strips and pulls it on.

“You do realize that I don’t own anything anywhere near dressy, correct?” I point out as she ties a black sash around her waist, emphasizing the curve of her hips. “Jeans are about as fancy as I bother with considering that they are harder to destroy compared to other human clothes.”

She glances up at me. “Seriously? I could’ve sworn that I’ve seen you dressed up. What of the ball?”

I let out an embarrassed cough. “I’m afraid those clothes didn’t make it through that night my love, after the blood splatters and the way they tore when I assumed my true form.”

A grimace tugs at her lips and I swallow back my laughter. “Last solstice? New Years?”

I shrug. “I got two wears, but somehow managed to tear the slacks pretty badly on New Years.” Trying to impress her, I don’t add. After all, it been my idea to climb to the top of the coven house in a half-drunk state with an idea of impressing her with my strength and agility… and then fell off the damn roof.

She purses her lips a little and shrugs as well. “Show we what we’re working with here.”

I pull out three clean pairs of jeans out of my duffle bag, a dark green sweater, a dark blue button-up shirt, and lastly a worn black T-shirt with a red dragon on it. I have no idea what the logo of Advanced Dungeons and Dragons emblazoned across the bottom of the shirt refers to and never cared enough to find out, but the design caught my fancy some decades ago in the eighties.

“The black jeans with the green sweater is workable,” she points out. “Black jeans can pass as dressy casual, and the sweater is perfect for the holiday spirit and of quite excellent quality and taste if I do say so myself.”

“You should know since you got it for me,” I tease.

She smiles as she runs a hand down the soft wool. I don’t often wear sweaters because I don’t feel the chill the way humans do unless it’s raining, or the snow is coming down heavily. Still, I had brought it because I prefer to always keep it with me among my things since it was a gift from my female last year when she prodded me relentlessly to find out my birthday only for me to shrug and say that dragons didn’t keep calendars at that time but that it was spring when the valleys were green and blooming and the lambs among the human farms were ripe for the plucking.

I was therefore surprised when this April came around and the humans held a birthday celebration for me on the tenth day of the month, during which she gifted me with this lovely sweater and more of my delicious meats that she treats me to during the holidays. I haven’t yet worn the sweater, but I have curled around it possessively tucked under my cheek at night more than once. That she wants me to wear it now as I accompany her to this human celebration fills me with a considerable amount of unexpected pleasure.

My pleasure is joined by amusement, however, as I watch her eyebrows fly up in surprise as she lifts my jeans and notices the ragged slice in the seat.

“Since you prefer me this way, I needed to do a bit of alterations with my pants,” I quickly explain. “Human clothes aren’t exactly made for convenience for those with a tail.”

She chuckles at that and nods as she sets them down and turns toward her nightstand. “Well, you’re in luck. I happen to have a bit of thread and some sewing scissors with me. I always keep a little sewing kit if I must go anywhere. You never know when you have to do a little emergency repair on something.”

She sets the small plastic kit on the bed and immediately selects the black thread and a needle before picking up the jeans and heading back to the couch. “This will only take me a few minutes to clean up the edges.”

Not knowing what to say other than the murmured thank you that I offer, I sit on the other end of the couch, my body angling toward her instinctively. It’s not surprising that I do so. After all, she is my flame, and I will always seek her and be pulled irresistibly to her warmth in some small way. I’m admittedly fascinated by all the little things my female does, too, and that applies no less here. The quick movement of her delicate, graceful hand as she whisks the needle back and forth skillfully is an admirable sight. It is almost hypnotic to watch, and she accomplishes the task so quickly that I’m a little startled when she suddenly knots and cuts the thread and then hands my jeans back to me.

I immediately stand and pull off the comfortable black sleep pants that I’ve been lounging in. As I can’t stand the human custom of wearing underwear and having all that excess material stuffed into my pants with me, all of my assets are on full display as I kick the pants off. I allow myself to enjoy the admiring gaze of my mate upon me for a moment or two before I pull on the jeans and work my tail through their seat before fastening them around my hips. Surprisingly, the hemmed edge around my tail does feel better than the casual tears I’ve always been in habit of making and I rumble with approval.

Katherine raises an eyebrow as her lips twitch briefly. “Comfortable?”

---