Page 34 of Santa Daddies

It was a dizzying kiss, or maybe it was his words that were so potent they made my head spin. Either way I felt myself falling for this man.

“You’re glowing,” he said as he set me back upright. “And so beautiful.”

“I am standing underneath a lit-up Christmas wreath, Kristoffer,” I replied. “It would be odd if I weren’t glowing.”

He chuckled, took my hand again and we started walking back toward the market. “Don’t get saucy, Little Red. You know how much your Santa Daddy likes to tame your sass.”

The comment made me grin and instantly feel sexy flutters low in my abdomen.

“And you know how much I love when Santa Daddy spanks my a?—”

David and Charlotte came around the corner, grinning ear to ear at each other and almost collided right into us. “Oh!”

“We were ducking down here for some privacy,” David said, his eyes still on his bride and full of love. Then his gaze zeroed in on Kristoffer. “What are you two doing down here?” He looked down at our hands, but they were hanging loosely at our sides because Kristoffer dropped my hand while the bride and groom were giving each other goo-goo eyes.

“Taking a shortcut from the bakery to the ornament shop,” Kristoffer offered without a beat.

“You don’t have to hang out with this old guy,” David said with a laugh. “You can hang out with us.”

“Sorry, but no one wants to be a third wheel with the bride and groom,” I replied. “Besides Kristoffer’s nice and a perfect gentleman.”

“He better be being a perfect gentleman,” David warned.

Charlotte scolded him. “Stop with your caveman baloney and leave them alone.” She looked at me. “You’d never be a third wheel, Em.”

“What about Madeline and Blake?” David suggested, looking around. “We saw them a few minutes ago.”

“Stop worrying about me, David. Kristoffer is showing me all the best things here.” I looked at Charlotte. “And we’re totally going to win the tree-decorating contest. Ours is for sure the best tree.”

“Thanks to you,” Kristoffer added, looking proudly down at me.

“We’re heading over to watch as they announce the winner. We already looked at them all,” Charlotte said as she leaned closer to me. “I bet I know which one’s yours.”

“I was hoping I’d have one sister on my side once you and David got married. David and Madeline tease me enough.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. But am I right? Is it the Santa?”

I bite my lip, refusing to answer but she laughs.

“I knew it!”

Searching for a reason to change the subject, I noticed the small bag in Charlotte’s hand. “Did you get an ornament?”

“Yes! Look at what I found.” She pulled out a cupcake box. Opening it carefully and unwrapping, she held up a beautiful glass ball. Inside was a miniature 3D scene of a couple skating on the glassy lake, while snowflakes fell. Written on the bottom was the date and the words, Our First Christmas as Mr. & Mrs.

“Ooh, I love it!” I looked closer at the couple who both had the appropriate hair color. “Do they have one for the twenty-fifth Christmas together? I could get one for Madeline and Blake for next year.”

“The artist is there, she blows the glass herself in the weeks before the market, but she assembles them right in front of you in the shop.”

Charlotte whisked me away into the shop which was just around the corner. She showed me exactly where to find the artist and I described exactly what I wanted. When the guys hadn’t shown up after I paid for my purchase, Charlotte and I went back to the alleyway. Kristoffer and David were in what was an obviously heated discussion that stopped the instant we were in earshot.

“What was that about?” I asked as soon as Charlotte dragged David off to get boozy hot chocolate before heading to the post office for the announcement. But I was afraid I already knew.David was probably giving Kristoffer shit for hanging out with me. I could hear it in my head as if I’d been standing with them.

She’s twenty-nine. Too young to be one of your conquests. And she’s my damn sister!

“Nothing,” Kristoffer replied in a tone that warned me he didn’t want to talk about it.

“I’m getting kind of tired; would you mind if I headed back after the tree-contest announcement?”