Naughty Elf: Mistletoe (Santa’s Naughty Elf Mates)

Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

MIZ

The next couple of weeks flew by. By the time I'd gotten used to Ryan's work schedule, he was off for the holidays, and then it was my birthday.

Ellie and Ryan went all out for the party. They even had a beautiful three-tiered white cake delivered. I'd never had a three-tiered anything before. It was so pretty. The only thing missing was a candle on top.

The doorbell rang, and Ryan waved me to the door. "It's your birthday!" He reasoned. He had just gotten home from work and excused himself, saying he wanted to change into something more comfortable.

"Sorry I'm late!" Dru hugged me so tight I couldn't breathe. "I had to pick up a few things for later."

She was the first to arrive, so I didn't see why she was so upset. Nervous. She was nervous, and that made zero sense. Ellie rushed her off to the kitchen with the bags she'd brought, and I sank onto the couch, alone.

This was more like the birthdays I remembered. My parents were usually traveling in the summer now that they'd retired from Christmas Village. My coworkers were too busy to do anything with me. Santa always stopped by to give me a birthday card and check on my progress for the year. I was always running slightly behind where I needed to be with five months to go, which was never a fun conversation to have on your birthday.

I swallowed hard. I didn't miss the North Pole, not really, but I wished I knew how Santa felt about everything that had happened. Had I finally made him proud by taking care of Ellie, finding happiness with Ryan, and growing our little family?

It didn't seem like much when I thought of it that way. What had I done, really? Entertained a child with an overactive imagination, fucked a gorgeous moose shifter, fallen in love with said shifter …

I did love him, but did he love me? Yes, we were fated mates, compatible in every way, but he'd loved John, and then he lost him. What if he could never love me? Would our growing fondness be enough?

I heard Ryan coming down the hallway and turned. What I saw took my breath away. My mate wore a full tuxedo like the ones the dashing leading man always wore in the movies.

"You need to get dressed," Ryan said.

"I am dressed." I'd worn these shorts and this polo for maximum comfort. I thought Ryan was changing into something similar, but …

"Come with me."

He held out his hand, and I turned toward him, almost tripping over the couch in my dreamlike state. This wasn't happening. Nothing like this ever happened to me. I was the elf on the sidelines, cheering for my friends to have their fairytale birthday parties.

It wasn't until I saw the beautiful white tux spread out on the bed that it hit me. This wasn't a birthday party. This was something more.

"Ryan, what's happening?"

"We're getting married."

Thank fuck he couldn't keep a secret to save his life, though he'd done a bang-up job of it until now. "Married?" My voice squeaked into a higher octave.

The doorbell rang, and Ryan grimaced. "Get dressed and meet us on the patio."

"Okay," I whispered as he rushed off.

The suit fit me perfectly. It was still early in my pregnancy. I'd noticed only minor changes in my body, such as sensitive nipples. They chafed against the expensive dress shirt, but I was too excited to notice. I was about to marry my fated mate on my birthday!

I almost missed the shoe box in the bottom of the bag. The shiny white Oxfords were the least comfortable part of the ensemble, but they made the outfit look like a million bucks.

Finally, I was ready to greet our guests, or so I thought. When I opened the patio door, everyone turned to me. Ryan already stood at the edge of the ornamental stone. Dru stood facing us. She looked regal in a flowing blue robe, which she had not been wearing when she first arrived.

She motioned me forward, and Ellie pressed a button on the universal remote. A classical melody lilted from the speakers inside.

I walked forward, almost tripping over the uneven stone. No one laughed, but Ryan grinned at me. When I finally reached him, he took my hand.

"Do you consent to be married today?" Dru asked.

"Yes." I gazed into Ryan's earnest brown eyes. "Definitely."

Dru led us through the ceremony, and the surrealness overwhelmed me. This couldn't be happening. Everything was moving so fast!

Instead of saying vows of love, Dru led us through the fated mates vows that said, "I promise to grow to love you to the best of my ability." The vows were originally meant for mates who had just met, so it made sense. I longed to hear those three words from Ryan, but it would take time.

When Dru said, "You may kiss your husbands," I almost fainted.

Then, I was in Ryan's arms, holding onto him for dear life while he kissed me in front of Ellie, our friends, and … a couple I didn't recognize. I closed my eyes and kissed him back, ignoring the rest of the world for a moment.

The applause and high-pitched cheers finally drew us back to reality. Ryan broke the kiss and held me close, turning our bodies slightly so we could wave to our friends and family.

"Who are those people standing by the door?" I asked.

"The fae invited them," Ryan whispered. "They're the people outbidding us on the house."

I still had questions, but now was not the time. I hugged Dru again, and then Ellie, and then our fae friends. By the time I reached the couple I didn't know, they were already deep in conversation with Ryan.

"Let me show you around the house!" He motioned for me to stay outside with Ellie.

That's when I spotted someone standing off to the side of the patio between the house and the cake table. The couple bidding on our friends' house had brought a little girl about Ellie's age with them. She stared up at the little couple on top of the cake, now standing where I thought candles should be. They looked like us in our white and black tuxes. Ryan's figurine was taller and broader, and mine had spiky hair.

The sun glinted off the girl's hearing aid, and I knew I'd seen her before.

Ellie approached, and they signed back and forth. I didn't know much more than rudimentary sign language, but Ellie was good at it to my untrained eye.

"Janey's in my class," Ellie explained when I came over and asked to be introduced.

Janey. This had to be my Janey, the one who wanted the special action figure Santa and I had dropped off a little late.

"Did you like the action figure you got for Christmas?" I asked aloud and Ellie signed for me.

"Yes!" she practically shouted it, but then went back to signing. "She was the best present ever! My parents say they don't know where it came from, either. I don't believe in Santa anymore, but?—"

"Oh, he's real," Ellie said and signed at the same time.

Janey stared at me expectantly as the adult in the room, or on the patio. Thankfully, my elf ears were still magicked away.

"There are many Santas," I said. "One of their elves made that action figure especially for you." I didn't want her to know I'd made it, especially since my action figure making days were over.

Dru called me over while Ellie and Janey continued to sign. "How did you feel today?"

"Not too bad." I was still sick first thing each morning, but now that I knew it wasn't an illness, the toast and ginger tea in the morning and a quick snack of saltines before bed were working.

"You look shocked about the wedding. There's still time to tell me you don't consent to this. I haven't signed the official paperwork."

"I want this," I assured her. "I'm surprised, that's all. And now Ryan's wheeling and dealing on our house?"

The fae with the red pixie hairdo, Cherry, overheard me and laughed. She and Juice approached us. "I'm so sorry to ruin your big day, Miz. We thought we were coming to a birthday party when we invited the Taylors to join us."

"We're all hoping they like your house better," Juice said. "The bidding war over our house has been outrageous."

Ellie looked up at me, but she didn't seem nearly as concerned about moving. She'd already recognized the possibility she'd be living closer to her friend.

"They seem nice," Dru said. "And it's always wonderful to have more children in the neighborhood."

Juice took my hand in both of hers. "I'm so sorry we're leaving before your due date. Ryan has my email address from the house negotiations. Please send us pictures and keep us updated on your family."

"We'll be back next summer for a week or two," Cherry said. "We'll meet up for dinner or a trip to the park."

"That sounds fun!"

She turned toward the sound of Ryan's voice as he approached and pulled the screen door open for him and our guests. "What did you think?" she asked Janey's parents, the Taylors.

"This is perfect for us. A little small, but the basement's got plenty of room. With a few egress windows, we can fix it up, and it's far less than we would pay for your house."

The fae both nodded. "It's as we thought."

Ryan beamed at them. "Thank you so much for introducing us."

"They wanted the neighborhood, not so much the house," Cherry said. "Now, you will all be happy, even Ellie and Janey."

After we ate the delicious white cake with buttercream frosting, Dru signed our marriage certificate and Ryan and Mr. Taylor made arrangements with their mortgage brokers to meet the next afternoon.

Then, we danced on the patio, careful of the uneven stones, until the sky turned purple. The Taylors were the first to leave, since they had the furthest to travel back to the other side of town. Fifteen minutes later, Dru had an emergency call, and the fae decided to take their leave at the same time.

Ellie looked asleep on her feet. I tucked her into bed while Ryan cleaned up the kitchen. She started snoring while I pulled up our bedtime story on my writing tablet. I grinned and kissed her forehead. It could wait until tomorrow night.

Downstairs, the kitchen gleamed. The patio was all picked up except for a few party favors on the picnic table. I found Ryan in the bedroom, still dressed in his tuxedo. He'd ditched the tie and opened the first few buttons of his shirt hours ago, but he still looked like a take-charge alpha on his wedding night.

My suit jacket was already back in the hanging bag, along with the uncomfortable shoes. I'd removed them shortly after our first dance. I kicked off my tennis shoes at the closet door.

Before I could turn around, Ryan was on me, kissing my nape and holding me close. He was so warm and solid at my back. For the first time in a long time, I felt safe, like Santa's decision didn't matter. Even if Santa turned me into a figurine forever, Ryan would find a way to help me escape.

The overwhelming feeling of security remained while Ryan fucked me breathless. He knotted and claimed me all over again, and I nipped at the bite mark I'd left on his chest.

That didn't change my dreams, though. I woke drenched in cold sweat and swallowed a scream when I sat up in bed of my own accord. I wasn't frozen inside the statue anymore.

I ran to the bathroom to spit up some bile, and then I trudged to the kitchen to make toast and ginger tea.

The longer I was awake, the more memories of our wedding night returned, and with it my happiness. I spun my wedding ring on my finger, letting the warm metal soothe me the way Ryan could with his gentle voice and demeanor.

The dread of letting Santa, Ryan, Ellie, and everyone down hung over my head, but I'd never felt so alive. I also had another life inside me. Surely, Santa wouldn't doom our baby and me to life in a statue. That seemed incredibly unfair behavior from Santa, the jolly old elf who reminded the world of its joy every year.

Joy had been missing from my life at the North Pole. Now that I had it, I would do whatever I could to keep it and my non-statuesque life.