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

Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

RYAN

I continued to chat with Lettie, Alicia's mom, until the lights in the auditorium went down. Teachers shushed us from the aisles, and the curtain rose.

The stage seemed too bright. I blinked a few times until I could see the risers clearly.

Soon after, the children filed in, taking to the risers two at a time. They walked in from opposite sides of the stage, meeting at the middle aisle, and then climbing to their mirrored positions on opposite sides of the aisle. The girls filed in first. I smiled when I saw Janey Taylor. She looked absolutely adorable in her angel costume.

I recognized the girl who walked in with her. Athena wore a shepherd's costume. Her blond hair spilled over the crown of her head in a messy bun, making her look even taller and more formidable. Her gaze flashed when she and Janey met on the first riser, and she shoved Janey, making her trip.

Alicia and Ellie raced onto the stage, Ellie from the left behind Athena, and Alicia behind Janey.

"She's fast," I whispered when Alicia caught Janey mid-fall before her hip hit the risers.

"Leopard," Lettie said. "She's gonna shift early, like me. It happens when we're stressed before puberty, and that little girl, Athena, is the cause of the stress."

"Leave her alone!" Ellie shouted.

"Why? She's weak, like you." Athena tried to shove Ellie once they reached their position on the fourth riser, but my girl stood her ground. She may have been human, but she had the strength of my moose. She and Athena were the same height, and nobody pushed Ellie around if she didn't want to move.

"I used to think you were so cool." Thanks to my moose's enhanced hearing, I could hear my daughter even when she whispered and the risers squeaked from the other children still filing in.

"I am cool, and you're not."

"You're nothing but a bully," Ellie said. "I wanted to be your friend, but now I know better. People like you don't have friends."

"Morgan's my friend." She nodded to the child below them on the risers, which were almost completely full.

Morgan swallowed hard and looked away, saying nothing.

"Everyone's tired of your bullying," Ellie continued. "I don't care what you get from your parents for Christmas this year. Alicia, Janey, and I don't need toys. We have our imaginations."

"Athena still plays with toys?" One of the boys snickered, and Athena shrank in on herself even more.

"People can play however they want," Ellie said, her face as red as mine when I got angry. "It's people who try to limit what we do, say, and think who need to stop."

The boy held up his hands. "Okay, okay. Sheesh."

Athena glanced sideways at Ellie, and her lip curled upward at the slightest possible angle, but it was still there, a little grin. Athena didn't like being bullied, either, and Ellie had stood up for her. I was so proud of my little girl.

The choral director banged his wand on his music stand to get their attention. "As we practiced, children."

Music filled the small auditorium, and the children sang on cue. My heart rose with their voices. I could feel John looking down at us and smiling.

Three years ago, I'd sat in this same auditorium fighting back tears. Today was no different, but it felt much better this time. Instead of sad tears for a stolen future, I cried happy ones. I'd found and married my fated mate, and we had twins on the way. My daughter was a smart, well-adjusted advocate for her classmates. We were doing all right, and we had Miz to thank for that.

I'd never really celebrated Christmas Eve before. It was a day off for me each year, but when I was so burned out from work, too often it became a day to laze in front of the television.

That was not an option today. Miz had us up and out of bed at the crack of dawn to make cinnamon roll dough from scratch. Granted, dawn was just after a quarter of seven, plenty of time to sleep in.

Once the dough was rising, Miz and Ellie decorated the tree.

"This is my first time," Miz admitted.

"First time decorating a tree?" Ellie asked, her eyes wide with surprise.

"A big one like this," he said. "My parents and I lived in a tiny apartment, and I moved into an efficiency when I started at the workshop." He shrugged. "I wasn't picked to decorate our workshop. Always behind."

The last part was almost too soft for us to hear, but both Ellie and I recognized his dejected head bob and swooped in for hugs. Ellie grabbed his waist, and I hugged him from behind.

"You can decorate our tree from now on," I said.

"Yay! Leave it up all year! Decorate it for different seasons!" The chunky sweater stretched over Miz's belly muffled Ellie's shouts.

He laughed. "I would love to decorate it for Valentine's Day, and little bunnies for spring, and flowers for May." He sighed. "Let's decorate it for Christmas first."

"Yes!" Ellie released him and started digging through boxes for the LED lights we'd purchased last year. They were the kind where each bulb changed to all the colors of the rainbow, but Ellie liked the white lights best.

I held Miz to me a moment longer, kissing down the back of his neck. "Everything all right?"

"I hope so." His voice sounded high and frantic.

I walked around him, my arms still loosely gripped around his shoulders, until I could gaze into his beautiful storm blue eyes. "Hey. What is it?"

"I'm worried about tonight. What if I've failed? What if Santa decides I'm still naughty and?—"

"Miz, you weren't naughty. You were doing your best in a job that didn't fit you."

"But I failed!" Tears streamed down his cheeks.

I hugged him close, not caring if his tears dotted my sweater. "You haven't failed me or Ellie. You fit perfectly into our lives since day one." I kissed his forehead, the tip of his nose, and both cheeks before diving in to claim his mouth.

He broke the kiss on a sob, and I held him. I didn't know what to say to make him feel better, so I told him the truth. "I love you, Miz. I love you so much. You're a fantastic partner and the best husband anyone could ask for."

"You're only saying that to be kind." He sniffled. "I'll never replace John."

"Who said you had to replace him?" I reached between us and tapped my chest. "I've got a big enough heart for both of you."

He giggle-snorted. "You're such a dork."

"A dork who loves you." I accentuated my words with a kiss. "I'm not the only one, either. Ellie loves you. You take such great care of her, and you'll be the coolest dad for our twins. You were meant to be a dad. Maybe that's why Santa sent you here, not because you were naughty, but because you had so much more to offer as a mate and a dad."

He slumped against me, his grip tight around my waist. We swayed together in a dance without music.

"Daddy, are you done being gross? I need help with the lights!"

"Gross?"

"You're all schmoopy with Miz. It's cringe."

Schmoopy and cringe were words I'd hoped my daughter wouldn't pick up for another couple of years, at least, but here we were. "Show me where you want them," I said.