Page 76 of Santa Daddies

I’ll definitely owe him one for that. A problem for later. Right now, I’m more excited to see my boy’s reaction to his gifts.

There’s a gasp behind me when I open the door. I don’t have to look to know my boy is surprised at the reveal. My smile is wide when I turn with the large canvas bag in hand. It’s got the words “For Cookie” printed on the side.

“Oh, Daddy! I love it. That’s for me? It looks big!”

I close the door before making my way to him. “There’s more than one in here. It’s not just one giant present.”

He hums, his gaze never moving from the bag itself.Don’t be jealous of a bag. Don’t be jealous of a bag.

As if he can hear my thoughts, my boy’s eyes move over to me when I reach his side. There’s a smile, then he’s making a grabbing motion toward the items.

“Eager, are we?”

“Yes, Daddy. Everything about you makes me that way.”

I shiver at the double meaning of those words. He’s not purposefully teasing me. It’s still not the most convenient thing to get a boner when we’re supposed to be sharing a nice Christmas moment together.

“Start from smallest to largest,” I instruct as I situate the bag between his spread legs.

He gives me a quick nod, then he dives in. The gifts are stacked together to make it easy on him. The second he has the first in hand, I settle back to watch him. I’m pretty confident I got everything right. If not, then we’ll just have to go to the store to exchange it all. I’m not too prideful to return it all if I need to.

My boy’s happiness is the most important thing.

“Ohmygosh!”

The spluttered words draw me back to the moment. Eyes wide, chest heaving, my sweet cookie stares at the object in his hands with awe. I grin, happy to know I hit the mark.

“I guess that means you like it?”

“Like it?” He shakes his head. “Daddy, I love it.”

As he speaks, he lifts the small necklace up to look at it. It’s then he notes the engraving on the back. When his gaze whips my way, I shrug. There’s no explaining to him how right I knew this would be from the start. No explaining away the gut feeling that told me he’d be mine.

“Will you put it on me? I want to wear it right now.”

Easing into a kneeling position, I take the necklace from his trembling hands. The cookie-shaped sterling silver pendant is a cute, modest thing if you glance at it quickly. It’s the tinyJ&Jin the center that truly personalized it.

Add in where I had them putDaddy’s Sweet Cookieon the back, and well, it’s very much a symbol of ownership. It’s a symbol of submission. My boy can wear the cute necklace without anyone knowing it’s his way of broadcasting to the world he has a Daddy who would tear the world apart to make him happy.

The second I latch the clasp, he sighs. “Thank you, Daddy. I love it.”

I kiss his temple. “I’m glad you do. Now open the rest.”

He doesn’t hesitate to do as asked. Each new gift brings about more elated reactions. The candy-cane-printed knee-high socks are a big hit, as are the matching pajama sets I got us—his with the wordcookieprinted all over and mine withDaddy. After that, he opens a bundle of coloring books and art supplies. Those seem to please him as much as everything before it.

Then we’re at the big gift. The one I’m most nervous for.

It’s not because I worry he won’t like it. More like I’m worried it’ll be too much too soon.

The second he opens the large box, I know I shouldn’t have worried. My cookie lights up, eyes and mouth wide as he takes in the present.

“Daddy…”

“Is it too much? I don’t want to overwhelm you. It’s just that when I asked around, there was one thing people made abundantly clear about you.”

I don’t keep going. He can infer what I mean from the gift itself. I put in several baking cookbooks, a new apron with his name stitched to it, new baking supplies, and a printout of the itinerary of a night with world-renowned pastry chef, Pierre Balton.

“This is the best, most thoughtful gift ever. It’s like you reached in my brain and pulled out all the stuff I love. Daddy—” He chokes up, tears filling his eyes.