Page 93 of Another Christmas from Hell

“Because I’m kidnapping you,” Cayley said with a firm nod.

“And you’re doing a great job,” Bryce said dryly, wondering if Sean put her up to this.

“You’re a lot heavier than I thought,” Cayley said accusingly, looking fucking adorable.

“Mind telling me why you’re kidnapping me?” Bryce asked, reaching over and took the Christmas lights from her and tossed them aside before taking her hand in his and gently pulling her closer until she took the hint and climbed onto his lap.

“To make sure that you never doubt how much I love you and want you,” Cayley said with a firm nod as his hands found her thighs.

“And kidnapping’s the way to do this?” Bryce asked, admittedly debating a few things as he waited for an answer.

“According to your family, it is,” Cayley said, sighing heavily as she gestured for him to get moving.

“I’m only wearing boxers,” he pointed out.

“Because that’s all I could manage to get on you. I did mention that you were heavy, right?” she said, glaring accusingly down at him.

“I believe that you mentioned that,” Bryce said, beyond fucking amused by the turn of events.

“And the Christmas lights?” Bryce asked with a pointed look at the tangled mess on the bed.

“I wanted to make this festive,” Cayley said with a firm nod as she crossed her arms over her chest while she continued to glare at him, most likely hoping that the move would get him to move his ass.

“And it is,” Bryce murmured in agreement before adding, “Do you mind if I make a suggestion?”

“What’s that?” Cayley absently asked with a determined look on her face as she worried her bottom lip between her teeth, no doubt trying to come up with another way to pull this off.

“Run,” Bryce said, making her frown in confusion as he sat up and picked her up, placing her on the bed next to him. When she continued sitting there, frowning adorably, he explained, “I already found your birth certificate and packed a bag for you while you were sleeping.”

“But…this is my kidnapping,” Cayley mumbled sadly.

“It really would be better if you ran,” Bryce said with a pitying look as he climbed off the bed.

“Why?” Cayley asked, still sitting there for some reason.

“Tradition,” Bryce said, only to glance at the Christmas lights as he added, “And I’m afraid that I’m going to have to tie you up.”

“But…” Cayley mumbled sadly, only to curse, climb off the bed, and stumble before self-preservation finally kicked in and she did what generations of Bradford wives had done before her.

She ran.

With a satisfied sigh, Bryce grabbed the Christmas lights off the bed as he went after her, deciding that this was the best Christmas ever.

EPILOGUE

One Year Later…

“Why are you doing this to me?” Cayley mumbled weakly against her pillow.

“It’s Christmas,” the sick bastard that had made her life a living hell for the past month said.

“Go away,” Cayley muttered, curling more tightly into a ball and-

Quickly decided that now was a great time to get up when her stomach suddenly turned, leaving her with no other choice but to open her eyes and move her ass, praying that she made it to the bathroom in time. Within seconds, she was racing across their large bedroom and…slowly coming to a stop as she tried to make sense out of what she was seeing.

“Is…is he dressed like a reindeer?” Cayley found herself asking as she stared down at their baby boy, dressed in a brown onesie with antlers to match, only to wonder why their son was glaring at her.

“Rudolph,” Bryce said with a satisfied sigh as he stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her so that he could place his hands over the soft curve of her belly and did his best to calm her queasy stomach, something that they’d learned worked early on during her first pregnancy.

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