Naughty & Nice (Merry Elf-Mas 2)

Chapter 4

Rolly

I t looked like Lady Luck hadn’t abandoned me. Who would have thought doing a favor for my great nephew, Holli, would bring me to my missing boys? Okay, so they weren’t actually mine. Yet. I was going to change that. Now that I knew they were in Frostdale, it would make things easier to woo them.

Now, though, I needed to focus on my new job. When Holli had brought up me playing Santa, I swore I could hear Nick cackling. Holli’s fiance, Jack, was in a bind, finding someone to fill the role. I’d been reluctant at first, but I knew that Santa’s village had been how those two sickeningly sweet love birds had met. It was special to them and Holli was important to me.

He reminded me of my younger self. We’d both been rejected by our birth parents but had found refuge with Aunt Dolly. She and Uncle Solly had saved my life during my teens and Lolly was like my sister. Colly could go fuck herself. The uppity bitch.

Family matters aside, when Jack showed me the custom Santa suit he’d had made for me, I got excited. I looked like a plusher Kurt Russell from those Christmas Chronicles movies. My beard had grown out and was dyed along with my hair. It was funny how once I put on the costume, I could get into character.

My eyes bugged out of my head as Jack led me to the gigantic throne. I could have lain on that thing and still had room for someone to sit comfortably. An image of Angel and Damon curled up with me on the chair popped into my head. I had to dash that thought away faster before it went over a PG rating. Not a good look for Santa to pop a boner.

“So what do you think of our upgraded Santa’s village?” Jack’s face was full of pride and excitement. I loved his enthusiasm and was happy he was about to join my family. The fact he was my best customer didn’t hurt either. I’d painted more murals and portraits for him than any other client.

“It’s amazing, Jack. I’m sure the kids are going to love it.” I clapped him on the shoulder as I took my seat on the throne. “My elves are going to love that break room, too.”

Jack snickered, and there was a funny look in his eyes. “Yes, your elves are sure to be thrilled.”

The emphasis he put on the word yours made me recall how Damon had pounced on me as soon as I’d arrived. No one had missed that display, and I’m sure we were going to be the hot topic around the water cooler. That didn’t bother me in the slightest, but I’d need to check on the boys.

“I can tell you that the gang already loves it.” Speaking of the devil, Damon strolled up and leaned his hip on the arm of the chair. “They’ve already gotten into the supply of coffee and snacks.”

My eyes were glued to the green tights he was sporting for his costume. It bordered on obscene how tight they were and showcased his long, sexy legs. A vision of those gorgeous limbs wrapped around my waist as I rammed my cock into his slim body came unbidden to my mind. I tore my eyes away before I embarrassed myself or got arrested.

Jack gave a hearty laugh and clapped Damon on the shoulder. “Happy elves means cheerful kids, which leads to big profits. Keep up the good work, Damon. I’m counting on you to make this our best year yet.” He glanced at his smart watch and a goofy grin split his face. “Got to go. The hubby says I need to get my ass to the tux place for my final fitting. Later.” He waved and was off.

I shook my head with a chuckle. That man was so whipped but seemed happy that way. My eyes traveled back to Damon, and he looked like he was about to burst like a firecracker. “You okay there, pup. Uh, I mean Damon?” I was going to have to watch myself. Last thing I needed was to feed more fuel to the rumor fire.

Damon nodded, but the way he now danced from foot to foot spoke of his nervousness. “Yeah, just struggling a little with my anxiety and excitement. I want to do a good job and make the kids happy.”

My Dom instincts kicked in, and I knew what would calm my boy. I patted the space next to me. “Take a seat.” He gave me a quizzical look but plopped his cute ass beside me. “There’s a good boy.” I couldn’t stroke his head since his hat was in the way, so I gave a light scratch behind his ear.

He relaxed under my touch, and a sense of satisfaction washed over me. We sat like that for several minutes, happy to be in our own little bliss bubble. Then a chime went off, breaking the moment.

He pulled away from my touch, leaving me feeling bereft. He pulled his phone out of his costume jacket and gave me an apologetic smile. “Thanks for that Mas-Rolly. We’ve got ten minutes until the mall opens. I have to check the troops to make sure they know their roles.” He pocketed the device and rose to his feet. “We’ll chat later.”

I watched him walk over to the gift shop, where I spied Angel behind a register with a sour look on his face. Looks like I’d need to give the kitten some pets, too, so he didn’t think I was favoring Damon. Something told me that had been a problem in their past and that shit needed to be nipped in the bud. Maybe I’d catch him during lunch break if our times lined up. At the moment, I needed to prepare myself mentally for the onslaught of kids that were due to arrive soon.

Time flew by, and before I knew it, my shift was over. It had been a long, damn day. Being a mall Santa was no fucking joke. How Nick had done this for years, I had no clue. Making the kids smile was nice, and I’d enjoyed playing the jolly fat man.

What made the day rough was the hours of sitting. My bad hip was plenty aggravated by the lack of activity. I’d need to talk to Damon about some exercise breaks. Maybe we could get the kids in on the act?

That might help with some of the shy ones. It broke my heart whenever a kid got forced on my lap screaming their head off. I’d almost bitten my tongue in half as I restrained myself from cursing these pushy parents out.

Thank goodness for Damon and Seth. They had a magic touch for calming upset kids. Many pictures had been saved by their quick thinking. Overall, it hadn’t been a bad day. I was sad that I never had time to see Angel. Giving my kitten some attention would have been a highlight in my day.

I gave a tired sigh as I changed back into my street clothes and headed to my car. As I trudged down the corridor that led to the parking lot, I spied two familiar figures ahead of me. Today must have been my lucky day.

Picking up my pace, I hobble jogged to catch up to the other men. “Damon. Angel.”

They paused and turned to face me. Damon’s face lit up bright as a star, while Angel’s features pulled into an annoyed pout. So cute.

“Hi, Master. Are you heading home?” Damon dipped his head, begging for pets.

Angel smacked his arm with a sharp glare. “You can’t call him that in public. What did I tell you earlier?”

I chuckled, then ruffled Damon’s buttery soft curls. “He’s right. We need to be careful so it doesn’t interfere with work.” I gave Angel a pointed look. “But we could be nicer about reminding you.”

Angel turned up his nose, looking indignant. I bit back another snicker as I reached over and scratched behind his ear. He gave me some vicious side eye but moved into my touch. “He’s a dumb mutt. Sometimes you have to swipe at him to get him to learn.”

“Hey!” The affronted look on Damon’s face was too precious for words.

“All right, you two. Don’t make me separate you.” I ruffled Damon’s hair again as I felt a smile curl my lips. This was all I’d ever wanted and hoped we could find a way forward together. “While I have you both here. Can I get your numbers?”

“Of course.” I loved Damon’s quick response. He was such an exuberant boy.

“Why?” And there was the prickly kitten.

I bit back my laughter at the perfect duality of these two. “Well, my cover story is that I need it for work, but in truth.” I leaned in close as if sharing a deep, dark secret. “I want to pick up where we left off back on Halloween.”

Damon bounced on his heels, and I could just imagine him spinning in jubilant puppy circles. “Yes. This. All of this.”

Angel pulled his knit hat down over his ears and hid his face in the thick scarf around his neck. “Chill, Damon. We need to think about this.”

At first, I thought Angel was just playing coy, but when I looked into his storm gray eyes, I saw reluctance laced with pain. It was clear they had significant hurts from their pasts, and I had a good guess what they were. None of that deterred me, though. These were my boys. They just didn’t grasp that yet.

I tweaked his nose through the scarf. “I can wait, Pineapple. You’re worth it.” Those expressive eyes blew wide in surprise. “But I still want your numbers.”

Before Angel could protest again, Damon grabbed my phone and plugged in their information. He got a disgruntled hiss for his troubles. All I could do was laugh. Life with these two was going to be exciting.

While I was enjoying my time with the boys, my hip reminded me I was due for an Epsom salt soak at home. “How about we all head home? It’s been a long day.”

Together, we made our way to the parking deck and were surprised to find we’d parked next to each other. We bid each other farewell, and I climbed into my compact SUV. The streets were blessedly cleared of snow as I made my way home. I had to crank the heat all the way up, as the cold made me ache more.

Pushing aside my discomfort, my thoughts wandered to Damon and Angel. It was still hard to believe they’d just fallen in my lap like this after almost a month of searching. I’d need to ask them out on a date soon. It was best to strike while the iron was hot. I couldn’t allow them time to slip away from me again. There was no way I’d survive losing them again.

As I cruised into my neighborhood, I noticed a truck ahead of me. It looked just like Damon’s, but there was no way it could be. It would be too much of a coincidence for those two to live that close to me.

But as I followed behind the truck as it turned onto my street, I got a fluttery feeling in my chest. I knew that some new neighbors had moved in recently. I’d been busy with work and family, so I had paid no attention to who they were.

I pulled into my drive and watched as the truck pulled into the drive next door. My breath caught as I waited to see who was in the car. When the door opened and a familiar puff ball struggled out, I let my breath out in a whoosh.

How? What? This wasn’t real. There was no way that my boys were my new neighbors. I rushed out of my car and stumbled through my snowy yard toward them. “Angel? Damon?”

The pair turned and gave me a matching bewildered look.

“Master? What are you doing here?”