Page 32 of A Daddy for Christmas 3: Nova
“Absolutely.”
“And a little gingerbread crutch to help it stand after I’ve eaten one of its legs?”
“We can absolutely do that too,” he replied. “And if we mess up and accidentally break them while decorating, we can always strew the pieces around in front of the houses to make it look like a gingerbread massacre took place.”
“Ohhh, yeah, let’s, and we can squirt that red gel icing stuff all over the place to really give it that holiday horror feel.”
“I wonder if they do holiday horror episodes of those bake-off shows,” Robbie mused. “They’re a guilty pleasure of mine.I’ve been known to binge whole seasons, but I’ve never come across a horror one.”
“Then we’ll have to look, because I love them too, and the Great British Bake Off.”
“See, that one just makes me hungry and jealous as hell that I don’t have the kind of skills in the kitchen to let me make anything like what they’re creating.”
“Right! Try watching it with scented candles burning.”
“No thanks, I don’t have that kind of willpower,” he replied. “I’d have to make a trip to the bakery or eat the bloody candle.” he said as he attempted a British accent, but it was so bad I caught a case of the giggles, and he had to pluck the soda can from my hand before I spilled it all over the bed.
“Man, now I’m thinking about cake, and it’s all your fault,” I declared, pouting once I’d gotten my giggles under control.
“Then it’s a good thing I came prepared,” he replied. “Which one would you like to dig into first?”
“Red velvet,” I said, enjoying the view of his ass as he got out of the bed to get it, not that I let him go alone.
Not when there was mistletoe over the refrigerator and more kisses to claim.Hashtag new favorite holiday tradition. I was going to make it my special mission to find a bunch of fun, interesting, and totally off-the-wall places to hang mistletoe for all our amazing Christmases to come.
Chapter 14
(Robbie)
“Bend your knees, yes, yes, just like that, and shift your hips…” Before I could finish my statement, Nova and the surfboard parted company.
Fortunately, the leash tethering them together kept one of us from having to chase it down. He’d come close to standing, though, and not for the first time. When he’d requested to have his first surf lesson on the day after Christmas, I knew it wasn’t just because he was eager to learn. His appointment was tomorrow, and learning something new would force him to focus on the activity and not the impending job interview. I could see his confidence building with each attempt. If I’d ever needed an example of Nova’s tenacity and grit, he was showing it to metoday. He popped up laughing, hauled the board close, wiped the water from his face, and peered over at me.
“What were you going to say about my hips before I went flying?” he asked.
“I was going to tell you to shift your hips back, so you weren’t leaning into the roll of the wave. When you do that, every little bounce runs the risk of pitching you off, which is what happened. Did you ever learn to skateboard?”
“Nope,” he remarked, popping the p. “I couldn’t even get the rents to get me one of those foot-propelled scooters with the handlebars even when I promised to wear a helmet and all the rest of the padding.”
“Okay, so we can’t draw from that,” I said.
“I do know how to ice skate,” he said. “And roller skate too,”
“Too bad I don’t, or I might be able to make a few comparisons,” I said, chuckling as we tread water. “We’ll figure it out. Half the fun is flying off into the water. Nothing gives you a better feel for when that’s about to happen than being sent hurtling through the air.”
“Now that sounds like my hockey coach,” he replied. “Only instead of flying, he was talking about falling. I think I get it though. Less thought and more feel.”
“Yes, exactly.”
“I’m ready to try again.”
And try again he did, and again, and again, until he managed to stand on the board for longer than a heartbeat or two and came up triumphantly grinning.
“That counts as a ride, right?” he asked.
“It certainly does.”
“Cool, I want to try again.”