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“I love you, too, beautiful.” The heat at my apex vanished. “Sweet dreams, baby girl.”

I felt his lips touch my forehead right before I succumbed to sleep. I didn’t need to dream about my perfect man anymore, though. I had him, just in time for Christmas, too.

Chapter Sixteen

December 25th

Stone

There was no better feeling than sleeping with her in my arms all night and waking up to her natural beauty in the morning.

My gaze instantly went to her mark. Pride pumped through me at the sight of it. She was mine.

My bear roared, scratching at my insides.

I chuckled softly, rectifying my thoughts. She was all ours.

Thinking about my bear as an individual, her remark did make sense. I should give him a name. I didn’t know why I hadn’t before now. It seemed like common sense.

Damn, she was something else. I looked forward to all of her pieces of wisdom. I looked forward to all the memories we would make together. I looked forward. That was the amazing.

She gave me something to look forward to every day, even if it was just spending every minute I could with her. She was the best damned present I’d ever received, one that I planned to cherish always.

When you waited thirty-five years for your prayers to be answered, it meant more. I was always told that the right person, the right woman, would be worth the wait.

I never believed them. I didn’t believe that one woman, one person, could erase a lifetime of longing, a lifetime of loneliness, of knowing the pain of loneliness.

But she did. One look at her and I couldn’t remember what it felt like to not have her, to not know her sweet curves, kind heart and beautiful spirit. It’s not that I forgot the pang my chest once felt; it’s that her presence ensured I would never know it again, therefore allowing me to move past it.

She shifted in my arms, stretching. The way she peered at me through hooded lashes with sleep filled eyes had my heart skipping a beat. Her hair was a sexy mess. Her lips were still swollen from my kisses the night before. Her make-up had worn off, revealing the beauty beneath it. She was breathtaking; I could stare at her, just like this, all day.

She curled around me, wrapping an arm around my waist, planting a kiss on my chest.

I couldn’t contain my smile. “Good morning, beautiful.” Brushing her hair back, I kissed the top of her head. “Merry Christmas.”

Angling to stare up at me, the sweetest smile curled her lips.

My breath caught, my heart skipping a beat. I could just imagine the sunlight radiating off of her as she walked down the aisle towards me, towards our formal forever. Now that was definitely a day I looked forward to.

“Merry Christmas, handsome.”

Merry Christmas indeed. I hugged her to me, savoring the feel of every plush inch of her flesh against my own. I was content to lay like this forever with her.

Or at least until Nate and Sharon arrived.

—

The End