The Merry Moose’s Mates (Male-Order Mates #16)

Chapter Twelve

Austin

I opened my eyes and stretched, feeling warm and cozy and more relaxed than I had in an eternity. At first, I didn’t know where I was, then it all came back to me. The man I spooned and the one in front of him helped with that. The room was bright with the white of snowfall, illuminating the three of us bundled under a pile of quilts and blankets.

Considering I was supposed to have spent the night in the office sleeping on the air mattress, this plus king-sized bed was certainly an upgrade. And the company… But the idea of the air mattress made me want to check on Alice. She was in a strange place, too, and if she woke up alone she might be frightened.

I tried my best to untangle my legs and arms from the two without waking them and without success. Shay and Briar both woke up and there ensued a few minutes of kissing and cuddling before I sat up, laughing. “As much as I’m enjoying this, and I really am, I need to go check on a certain little girl who probably expected to find me sleeping on the air mattress next to her.”

They were still kissing, but immediately popped up. “We can’t have Alice upset.” Briar slid to his feet and grabbed a pair of undershorts. “You go get her ready for the day, and we’ll make breakfast.”

“Yes.” Shay picked up his clothes and started putting them on. “Does she like pancakes? They’re my specialty.”

“She loves them. Would eat them every day if I let her.”

“Great.” Briar disappeared into the bathroom, his voice trailing behind him. “Consider it done. I think I have all the stuff.”

I dressed and went to see Alice still sleeping like an angel, but she woke up when I came in. “Hi, sweetheart. Did you have sweet dreams?”

“Yes, Daddy.” She propped herself on her elbows. “Are we going to stay here long?”

I sat on the edge of the cot and lifted her onto my lap. “At least until it stops snowing.”

“Then where will we go?”’

“You don’t need to worry about that, baby. I’ll always watch out for you.”

She yawned. “That’s true. And we can make a snowman later.”

I glanced at the window where the snow was still coming down in almost white-out conditions. “Probably not today because it’s very cold and windy out there, but if it’s nicer tomorrow or the next day, we can, all right?”

“We will still be here then?” she asked.

“I think so. Do you want to be?”

“Yes. Shay and Briar are nice.” I helped her dress and took her into the hallway bathroom to wash up and brush her teeth before heading downstairs to eat. The scents of bacon frying and coffee brewing let me know that breakfast preparations were well under way. “Are you hungry?”

“I’m sooo hungry.” She patted her belly and darted into the kitchen. “Pancakes for real!”

I’d made them for her just the other day, but she truly would eat them as often as she could get them. I paused in the doorway to watch Shay whisking a bowl of batter while Briar turned over the sizzling bacon slices. They looked so at home there, as if they had been making breakfast together for years. And Alice right there, already seated on a stool at the counter and chatting away a mile a minute.

“You going to join us?” Shay grinned at me. “I’m about to make pancakes in fun animal shapes like Alice saw on one of her favorite shows.”

“What can I do to help?” I stepped inside and accepted a mug of coffee from Briar.

“Cream or sugar?” he asked.

“Both, but I can help myself.” I got a container of half and half from the refrigerator and added a good splash then a spoonful of sugar and stirred vigorously. Lifting the mug to my nose I took a good sniff. “It smells almost as good as —”I stopped because I didn’t want to say what I was really thinking in front of my daughter— “As good as the bacon. Yum.”

Shay spooned batter onto a hot griddle. “Okay, Alice. I’m ready to make animal shapes now.” He set an empty platter on the counter in front of her. “Here’s the first one.” He flipped the first hot cake and then lifted it onto the platter. “What do you think?”

“Is it a horse?” She tilted her head to the side. “Or maybe a turtle?”

“I take a lot of pride in my cooking, but my pancakes are usually round.”

A game of what animal does that look like launched with much laughter and general fun. Briar gave Alice a cup of hot chocolate and she sipped it while eating two bears and a moose drenched in butter and syrup. Even though she didn’t know all the details about her daddy’s other life and the mess he left us in, she did know he died and I’d ached to see her sadness. This morning, she was full-on Alice: adorable and happy.

And when Alice was happy, everyone was. It was impossible to avoid.