Page 11 of The Thief That Stole Christmas (Indulgence)

Zanya

After my solo time in the shower I’m ready to face whatever torture Cameron has planned for me. The drive to his place is quiet, both Johannes and I opting to keep our thoughts to ourselves. Every so often, I notice him looking over at me, and each time I can’t help my smile.

Johannes heads into North Finchley, the rows upon rows of well-kept houses don’t surprise me. It’s exactly the kind of place I’d imagine the put-together Cameron staying.

“Okay, Little Mouse. I’m fairly certain I don’t have a tail but I can’t risk driving up to Cameron’s house, so he’s meeting you at the coffee shop over there,”

he says as he pulls up to the curb. He’s looking a little nervous again and it takes me a second to realize what the problem might be.

“Uh, big guy?”

I ask, waiting for him to look at me.

“Can I have a kiss?”

The face behind the beard reddens again and he leans closer to me, offering me his mouth. My lips touch his, and the hair of his beard tickles my face. I sigh and lean into the kiss.

With my heart racing all over again, I hop out of the car, and with a wave, head into the cute coffee shop. It takes me only a few seconds to spot Cameron and the moment he sees me, he gets up and walks toward me with a cup in each hand.

“Johannes said you like hot chocolate,”

he says, offering me one cup. I eagerly grab it before taking a hearty sip. It’s the perfect combination of chocolate, cream, and melted marshmallowy goodness.

“Hmmm, thank you!”

“My house is just a few streets away. You warm enough to walk?”

I respond with a nod, and thanks to the hot chocolate I’m halfway to Little headspace, so I grab his hand and pull him out of the shop.

“Lead the way!”

He chuckles as he does just that. We stroll down the street, drinking our beverages and swinging our intertwined hands between us. The entire way he entertains me with stories of growing up in Andre’s world. Andre himself was very young when he took in Cameron’s mum, but he’d always made time for the younger boy, which quite clearly led to the hero worship I hear in Cameron’s voice.

“I know he’s a criminal and what I’m doing isn’t legal, but he has really strict rules. And as he says, someone has to keep the underbelly of London under control.”

I admire his resolve and confidence, and even though I don’t understand completely, he’s not wrong. The police can’t keep a handle on crime no matter how hard they try. Having someone, well… police them from the inside… is probably the best solution.

“What are we gonna do today?”

I ask when there is a lull in conversation.

“I’m gonna talk you through some rudimentary hacking of security systems, and we’ll start running through the guys Mr. Parker has earmarked for you to hit.”

“A snooze fest, then?”

I snark, and giggle when he growls and starts tickling me in retribution.

“Oh, you little minx! I’m gonna teach you to tease me!”

My laughter rings out as I pull away and start running down the pavement. The people around us smile as he catches me and throws me over his shoulder.

“I’ll show you a snooze fest, Kitty Cat.”

His arm is wrapped around the back of my thighs, keeping me in place as I squeal in protest. Before I can start struggling in earnest, he jogs up a couple of steps. When he opens the door, he puts me down gently before indicating I should precede him into the house.

This place is remarkably less decorated for the season, but there is a token plastic tree in the corner opposite the fireplace. It has a few sparse decorations on it, and it makes my heart sad that Cameron doesn’t have the same love for Christmas as my other… oh shucks, I was just gonna say boyfriend, wasn’t I?

“Kitty Cat, you’re doing it again. What’s that frown about?”

“Where are your Christmas decorations?”

Realization lights up his face as he smiles at me.

“I don’t spend Christmas here, precious. If I’m not on a shift, I normally try to sneak in the day before Christmas Eve and stay there with Mum for the duration.”

His explanation makes sense, but he needs to liven up the place. I make a mental note to ask Johannes if he has any spare decorations that I can use here.

“We have some work to do, Kitty Cat, but before we do that, would you like a snack?”

“Nope,”

I say, popping the ‘p’.

“I ate some of your mum’s dragon croissants before coming here.”

“Ah, perfect Little food, hey?”

I nod in response, smiling at him. He takes my hand and leads me into the kitchen where he has a laptop set up. I spend the next few hours proving I know how to break into basic security systems.

Cameron

Having Zanya in my house at my kitchen table is a lesson in restraint. Her long, dark hair flows down her back and her cute button nose is begging me to kiss it. She has this adorable little crinkle forming between her brows as she works on the steps to disable an alarm pad. I have a simulation set up on my laptop. Other than joining the police to serve Andre, I’ve always had a fascination with anything electronic, and at a young age set about learning everything I possibly could.

I’m not surprised to find that Zanya has no trouble with the tests I’ve set up for her. She’s already proven that she’s decent at what she does. But I need to get an idea of her abilities. And to her credit, not once does she get annoyed at doing things she already knows how to do.

“Well done, Kitty Cat!”

I praise her when she completes the last test I set up for her today.

“I think you deserve a reward.”

She sits up straight in her chair, her face alight at the promise of said reward.

“Tell me, little one. Do you think you’d like to play for the rest of the morning while I make you lunch?”

She nods at my question and I laugh, gently lifting her face with a finger under her chin.

After kissing the tip of her nose, I head to the cupboard where I’d hidden my surprise.

I don’t yet know what age her Little is, but I’ve yet to meet one that doesn’t like coloring.

I grab the box of crayons and the jumbo-sized coloring book and bring them to the table.

Zanya has shut down the laptop and is eagerly waiting to see what I bring.

When her eyes land on my loot she starts hopping up and down in her chair, her hands eagerly reaching to me.

“I take it you like your surprise then?”

“Oh yes! The only thing that could have made it better is a binkie.”

Her face reddens with the most beautiful blush at her words. I make a mental note to discuss this with her some more later before handing her the book and crayons.

“How about instead of that, you color a picture for my fridge?”

Her smile grows shy and it warms my heart.

She nods, and once again that cute furrow appears as she pages through the book, looking for the perfect picture to complete.

Once she settles on a bear riding a bicycle, I take my cue and head to the freezer to grab the nuggets I bought for lunch.

Mum would probably have a heart attack at the processed meat, but once again, it’s a tried and true love of every single Little I’ve ever known.

After adding some mixed veggies to a steamer and popping the nuggets–along with my own pre-made steak and kidney pie–into the oven I sit down with my girl and watch her.

Johannes had texted me after their morning workout to warn me that he’d talked to her about being shared.

I know she still needs to hear from me that I’m okay with it, too.

But I don’t want to interrupt her while she’s so obviously enjoying herself.

The oven’s buzzer goes off, so I get up and dish up our lunch.

Zanya grumbles when I tell her to pack up, but with the promise that she’ll be able to continue her picture after lunch she moves everything aside and digs in.

“Daddy?”

My heart skips a beat at that one word and I have to push myself to remain calm before answering.

“Yes, Kitty Cat?

“Daddy Jo said that he thinks you’re both my perfect match.”

“Uh-huh. And how do you feel about that, pretty girl?”

She’s looking at her nuggets, pushing them around with her fingers instead of looking at me. I want to force her eyes up, but decide against it, waiting to see what she does or says next.

“Like I’m a bratty girl that wants too much.”

Her being down on herself, though, is not something I can take.

“Zanya Standish!”

At my bark, she looks at me, her eyes large.

“Don’t you dare talk about yourself like that. We’re both grown men who know our own minds. If we weren’t interested in doing something like that, you and I wouldn’t even be having this conversation.”

Her lower lip wobbles and I can see the waterworks building up. I know my voice was harsh, but it’s important that she knows I’m serious.

“Now answer my question. How do you feel about having two Daddies?”

“Spoilt,”

she sobs before carrying on.

“and very happy.”

I finally give in to the urge and open my arms, inviting her into my embrace. She quickly hops off her chair and dives onto my lap. With her face buried in the hollow of my neck, I give her a cuddle.

“You should get used to being spoilt, Kitty Cat. I have a feeling that Daddy Jo is going to be wrapped around your little finger.”