The Santas Who Stole Me (Stolen #1)

Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty-One

CALUM

We stand up to leave the diner after talking out a few more scenarios. Georgie hugs Marge as they talk about girl shit and how to add Christmas decorations to the diner. It’s adorable. She is adorable. I want to scoop her up and slam into her, but I let her have her time with her friend. Whatever is weighing on her has to do with her dick of an ex. I can’t wait to slide my knife into his flesh for hurting my girl. Every second he’s breathing my anger deepens. Despite how proud I am of her for fighting back, I want to keep her away from him, protect her even though she’s stronger than she thinks she is.

“On Tuesday we will decorate the tree near the to-go window.”

Georgie claps her hands at that, and I turn to Zeke, lowering my voice to a whisper. “We need to do the thing we said we would do for her,” I tell them.

“And what was that?” Keeper asks.

“Georgia likes Christmas, so we were going to get some stuff to put around the house.”

“Such as?” Keeper continues to question.

“Tree, lights, shit that has her bouncing around with Marge over there.” All our eyes are back on her, just like our devotion. She seems to be the center for us. I was going to fight the fuckers to win her, but I’m starting to come around to the idea that she’s all of ours. I look at my brothers. Keeper will never agree, but I might get Zeke to. He thinks he’s a loner, but he likes when we are all together. If this is going to be our first real date, I want it to be special. I make my way to the girls who are now making a list of things for B to get.

“Tinsel, the silver kind that is metal and vintage, not the foil,” Marge says.

B is making a list on his phone, and he nods after adding her request.

I might like the asshole. He didn’t cower or cry when we pointed guns at him. He seems like he could hang with us.

They continue working on the list, and I take Georgie’s hand to get her attention. “Want to go out with us?”

“Where?” Her eyebrow lifts, and she tilts her head in question.

“You’ll see when we get there. It will be fun, like a date.” I’m suddenly reminded I’ve never been on a date, and now I’m questioning if I asked her the right way.

“Yes.” She throws her arms around me, and I try to ignore the press of her tits on my chest. I can be a gentleman. Briefly.

“A date? Where to? When? What does she need to wear?” Marge questions. “I will help you get ready.”

Georgie mouths ‘sorry’ as she’s pulled by her friend. There is nothing to be sorry about. If she’s happy, I am too.

“Casual it is then, we need an hour,” Marge says.

“You have fifteen minutes,” Keeper announces from back at the booth.

No customers have come in and the sign on the door has said closed since we’ve arrived. They don’t seem overly concerned with making money if the doors can be closed now and again Wednesday.

I’ll talk with Zee and see what background they have. He might have already had Lee look into it. Eventually the girls come out, and Georgie looks like a fucking goddess. I let out a whistle taking in her cropped sweater showing her waist and tight jeans that come up to her bellybutton with high-heeled boots.

“Fuck me,” Keeper says.

Zee stays quiet, but I see in his eyes he wants her too. Every inch.

I walk over and link my fingers through hers. I almost skip out the door, dragging her to the truck while she waves goodbye to her friends. Keeper agreed to follow with Zee in the truck. I want her to myself for a minute before we get there.

Music fills the car and I try not to gawk at Georgie the entire drive. Is this how she is? When she isn’t worried or fighting, she looks sweet and free. She also looks like she is going to be mine. I turn down the stereo and remind myself to pay attention to the road.

“Did you celebrate the holidays when you were younger?” I ask and hope that question brings good memories instead of bad ones.

“Oh yea, my mom died when I was young, but I remember some things about her. She always baked around the holidays. When I came home from school around this time of year, she had a treat set out that she made for me each day. I wish I remembered what they were, so I could cook them, but I don’t. Still, sometimes I’ll smell something at the bakery, and it takes me back there. It’s one of those memories that you don’t know if you remember or if you created over time, you know what I mean?”

She doesn’t wait for my answer. I do know. Some memories stick with you but fade into only an image. It’s easy to make that image what you want most. The thought that I could one day be only a memory for her twists my gut. I don’t want my time with Georgie to be like that. I want her to stay. She said she would, but I can’t help but feel like she always has one foot out the door.

“We had a small house. We weren’t rich, but my dad was a hard worker. We had enough and my parents made the holidays special. I woke up to presents, and we had a big dinner on Christmas day. Even after we lost my mom, my dad tried to keep some things the same. He couldn’t bake though, so when I got older, I started filling in with the cooking.” She looks teary as she stares out the window.

“Is that why you like baking? Reminds you of her?”

“She always let me help.” She shrugs with that response.

“Sounds like a good mama. When did your dad pass?”

“When I was seventeen. Too old for foster care, too young to know what to do by myself. I stayed in our house for a while, finished school, then started working at a local bakery. You know the rest. I wonder what they would say if they could see me in this mess.” She twists her hands in her lap trying to sink down into herself.

I hate that and grab them apart, wrapping my fingers around hers and settling them on my leg.

“They would see how strong you are, how you didn’t give up, even though shitty things happened to you. It hasn’t made any part of you bitter or hard like it would most.”

She pauses, considering my words, before slightly lifting her chin. Her lips are the softest pink color, and I trace their outline with my eyes. “You’re sweet, Calum,” she whispers, and that is exactly what I was trying to explain to her.

“You are the only person in this entire world who feels that way about me. I’m a killer, my mom was a junkie, and if it wasn’t for Keep, I would probably be on the street like my mother was. But that’s what I love about you, you see the best in people.”

She bristles at the fact I admitted to how I feel about her. It’s too soon to say that word, but it doesn’t make it any less true. We pull up to the shop and park before she can respond to my words.

“Where are we?” she asks when Keeper walks up to her door and opens it for her.

They arrived first to case the place and disarm any cameras. Zee always does that shit. I prefer to make a scene, meanwhile he wants to slip out unnoticed. I’ve seen him charm his way through all types of situations, but he would never admit it.

“We wanted to take you Christmas shopping, then to dinner unless you are hungry now?”

I hold in my laugh. This may be the first time in my entire life that I’ve seen Keeper look unsure. What is this perfect woman doing to us?

“Christmas shopping? This is a decorator store. But you don’t have a tree?”

“Go pick one, and whatever you want to put on it. The house could use it,” Keeper answers, and Georgie beams at him, then at me.

She gives him a soft kiss when he helps her down from the truck. We meet Zee at the door, and she runs and hops up to squeeze him around the neck. He catches her with both arms around her back and spins her in a circle. I still don’t know what to make of Zeke showing affection.

“This will be so much fun. Come on, what colors should we go with?”

“Uh, red and green? Are there other colors?” Zee responds.

I shake my head, having no clue. Keeper had the house decorated by someone before we moved in. It looks fine to me. White and gray tones work. I don’t give a shit about much in the house other than the gym.

“I’m going to check the perimeter; the camera feeds are on your phones. That reminds me, Georgie needs a new phone,” he tells me and Keep before walking to the side of the building.

“I have a phone at home for you kitten, so let’s go get some Christmas shit. They have a lot in the back if you want a real tree. Or you can pick artificial. Point to what you want, and we will load it.”

When we walk in, an older woman greets us. Keeper explains what we’re here for, and she gives Georgie a run-down of the store. A few minutes later Zee is back and walks over to a section with snowflakes and candy canes. Ornaments and garlands line the walls. Wicker baskets full of sticks with everything from snowmen to miniature candy canes line the edges of pre-decorated trees.

“Look at this, so cute.” Georgie holds up a green furry hat. The word Grinch sits on the front in red sequin lettering. She bends down, and her jeans tighten around her ass, making me hard. When she stands up she is wearing a red crown, the tips lined in candy canes, and pushing a button so the words Christmas Queen flash across the front, making me laugh out loud. “Oh, and here is an elf and a trucker Santa.” Grabbing the other two hats she goes to Zee.

He bends down so she can reach his head and slips on the elf. I’m next and she puts on the trucker hat.

“Cookie, please tell me this leads to some type of role play where I can tie you up with tinsel and lick peppermint candies off your body.”

She blushes and, to my surprise, gets Keeper to put on the Grinch hat.

“Nope, if we’re role playing, find me a Santa one. I know what you like, kitten.” He licks his lips, and I can feel Georgie’s body warm up from over here.

My girl has a thing for Santa dick. Wonder how Santa would choke Mrs. Clause in this fantasy? I’m absolutely going to use tinsel. I throw an extra garland in the basket for good measure.

“Here, this one.” She switches Keeper’s hat and Zee chuckles.

The Santa hat is embroidered with, “I do it for the Ho’s.” He grins at Georgie, and she laughs. The sound does something to my chest, and I decide no matter what it takes, I will give Georgie every opportunity to be happy for the rest of her life.

We snap a picture of the four of us in hats at her insistence.

Georgie inspects things and moves to another section, and this one is green with holly berries. Keeper pushes a basket and Georgie fills it up, laughing, and asking our opinions about what we like. When the basket is overflowing with gingerbread men and red sparkly things, Keeper and I head to the front to get another. Georgie said it was too much, but fuck if I care, the house is big enough for all this, and she’s having fun.

We make our way to the tree lot in the back all while I soak up the sunshine she radiates holding Zeke’s hand and giving shy smiles to Keeper.

“Eek, I’ve never had a real tree. The smell though, it’s amazing,” she squeals, pulling Zeke to the trees on display.

“We haven’t had a real tree either. Grams had a small artificial one she decorated with us every year,” I tell her.

“What kind of decorations did you use? Ours were always a mix of random things my parents had picked up and different glass balls. A few I made at school. I have a small storage space back home, I put some things in when my dad died. I paid for it with cash when I had to move, so that it will be there for the next four months. I saved all the decorations.”

“I’m glad you have things to remember them by. What few things we have are with Grams. She lives close by, maybe—” Keeper stops his sentence, but I finish it.

“You can meet her soon.”

“I would love that. I bet she has great stories about you. Oh, please let there be a naked baby picture somewhere.” Georgie’s train of thought must stop because she’s staring at the tree in front of her like it’s made of golden magic.

“Do you like this one?” Zee asks.

“It’s so perfect, but is it too big? Too expensive?”

“If you think it’s perfect then it is. The guys and I will figure out how to load it.” I notice movement to the right as a guy with a plaid shirt and ripped jeans walks up eyeing Georgie, and his gaze stops on that sliver of skin peeking out from her sweater. She notices and glances at her feet, not liking his attention, and I don’t like it when my girl feels uncomfortable.

“We want that one. We’re bringing the truck around to the loading lot.” He looks at me, and I wrap my hand around her, leaving my thumb on the skin his eyes don’t need to be focusing on. I notice the goosebumps that break out on her stomach at the contact. I give him a scathing glare that says fuck you and have a great day before he turns to get what he needs to load the massive tree.

“You good?” My words are whispered in her ear, and then I nip at it with my teeth.

She scrunches her shoulder and laughs at my antics. “So good. I can’t wait to decorate it.” She lets out a little sigh. She is sexy as fuck and sweet as candy at the same time.

Keep hollers at me to come help load up.

“Oh, I’m going to look at those tree toppers while you help the guys.”

I lower my hand down her hip and whip her around to face me. She stops breathing and fuck the electricity that pulses through me at the thought of taking her air. I lean in and let my tongue swipe across her lips. Her mouth opens for me just like I like it. She tastes like candy canes and sex, and I want to swallow her whole.

Keeper hollers again, and I let her go. It’s easy since I know as soon as we get home I’m going to put her under me.

“Pick out a topper, we will be right back.” I glance at the feed on my phone before walking away. No one else is on this side of the warehouse. The guys have the SUV surrounded with bags and boxes to be loaded.

“Did Georgie pick all of this? She’s inside picking out a topper for the tree.” We have more than enough to decorate every inch of the house.

“We had the store manager add to her basket with coordinating items. I hired them to also decorate the outside with lights and those candy canes she liked. They will be out in the morning.” Typical Zee. He probably had a formula for the items per square feet in our house that needed to be covered in order to make Georgie happy.

I appreciate it, and she deserves it. Once loaded Zee asks if there is anything else.

“Let me check on the tree topper.”

“They have delivery for the tree, but it won’t be there until tomorrow. Toss me the keys and we will load it in your truck and take it now.”

I hand Keeper the keys, and he walks around the building to get it. Heading back in to get my girl, I see that dick from earlier has her pressed up against a rack in the corner of the store. Arms are pinned on either side of her head and his hips press into her from behind. I don’t have a moment to feel the rage seeping through my body while my feet move in trained silence. My blood is ice, and I press a little button on my knife. The blade retracts without so much as a click, and I’m on them in seconds.

“Back up,” Georgie tells him.

“Come on, I saw how you were all over those other guys. What’s one more dick for someone like you?”

I reach out to grab the dead fuck by the back of his neck, but before I get the chance, Georgie throws an elbow straight to the gut and stomps on his foot with the heel of her boot.

He hisses in pain and takes a step back, giving her enough space to turn and face him.

The palm of her hand connects with his nose.

“That’s my girl.” I grab him away from her and shove a knife into his kidney. He crumples to the ground when I release him. I step over the fucker, leaving my knife in his worthless skin.

Georgie gasps but has a faint smirk. She did good and she knows it.

“I knew you were close, and I wouldn’t get hurt.”

“No. You did that; you didn’t need me. Georgie, you are such a badass. Please tell me you aren’t hurt. I should have stayed with you instead of loading shit. I was being selfish and wanted to hurry to get you home with me.”

“I’m okay, though, maybe I’ll have a nightmare later but for now. I’m …” She pauses, unsure how to finish her thought.

So I do it for her. “Proud of what you did?”

“Yes. I should feel bad hurting someone.”

“You defended yourself when someone put hands on you that you didn’t want. You amaze me more every day that I’m with you.”

She blushes at my compliment, but I can tell she likes that she made me proud.

“Calum, what the fuck? We try to go out for one nice evening and now I have to call for a cleanup.”

I turn to meet my brother, but before I can give him a warning. His steps falter when he sees Georgie clinging to me and glances at the scene on the ground again.

“He was pushing me, and I hit back. Sorry about the mess, Keeper,” she mumbles into my neck, not looking at him.

He steps over to the guy and turns the knife a little to the right before speaking in his ear. His body rigid with anger, the guy recoils at his voice as much as he did the knife twist. “You don’t touch things that don’t belong to you.” Keep steps over him the same way I did and rubs a hand along her back.

She stays attached to me but lifts her head up enough for him to run his thumb along her face.

I should be feeling weird about the closeness of my brother to us, since this is more intimate than when we all slept with her, but seeing him made her feel better, so I say fuck it.

In a blink Zeke is next to us scanning Georgie’s face and body for marks.

“She hit the fucker; the blood is from his nose. I’m so proud of you.” I nuzzle into her neck. I’ll say it a thousand times if it makes her feel better.

The guys add their agreements about how well she did. Zeke holds out his arms to take her from me like he would a baby.

She crawls over to him, and I laugh. Can you die from someone’s cuteness? I might.

“I’m okay, Zeke. He held me against the wall and tried to … I don’t even know what his plan was. Hitting him felt good though.”

“You did amazing Georgie. Let’s get you loaded in the car and back home. We can order takeout and get some rest,” Keeper says.

I know he wants her away from the fucker who is trying to crawl away. He’s not moving very quickly and hasn’t even tried to remove the knife. Pathetic really.

“No way, I want our tree, and I remembered something else we used to do at my house.” She pauses, then says, “Popcorn garland.” I am sure if she unwound herself from Zeke she would have used jazz hands when she said it. I won’t let this little prick ruin her fun.

“No idea what that is, cookie, but we can do it. Load up with Zeke and I’ll follow with the tree.”

She shrinks into Zeke trying to hide. Hair hangs from her face, but she doesn’t move to push it out of the way, shielding herself.

“I’ll deal with him too. Don’t give him a second thought.”

Zee nods in understanding that I’m going to kill him, so he carries her away.

She blows me a kiss over his shoulder on the way out. Keeper stayed back with me. As fucking pissed as I am that he thought he could touch my girl, this guy is seriously fucked with my brother here. Keeper is much more cruel than me.

I grin like crazy when he slams his boot to the back of the guy’s neck and pulls out the knife only to quickly place it in his other kidney again. This is the corner of the store, and it seems pretty slow this time of day, or maybe Zee closed the building down except for the guy in the back to help us load, but either way no one else is here. Not that Keeper would care. This is going to awaken her fears and play in her nightmares again. He drags the man over to the lighting section and wraps a cord around his neck. Sobs rack from his chest, and tears fall down his face.

“Keeper, enough with the theatrics; she is waiting for popcorn garland.”

“You’re lucky my brother lacks patience when it comes to our woman, or I would cut every inch of your skin off before hanging you.” Keeper is speaking the truth.

I’ve seen him do that before, and it’s as gross as you can imagine and takes forever. I’m not making my girl wait for that shit. He frays the end of the electrical cord before hoisting it up over a rafter at the top of the warehouse. I’m one second from starting to impatiently tap my foot. Fuck this for taking from my time with her. My balls have been aching for her all day. I shove my hand in my hair, pushing it back from my face, before I add the flame to the cord.

“No, please it was just some pussy, no need to do this.” He sniffles.

“Should have cared when she said no, then we could consider this request.”

“Someone will know you did this. You won’t get away with it.”

“Oh, the manager at the front? She took off for the night.”

My heart warms as hope fades from his face. Like I said, he’s really fucked, and he knows it.

“Will anyone care? You want to tell me she’s the first girl you touched without permission?”

Another tear falls and the fucker doesn’t even try to deny it.

“Lots of depression surrounding the holidays,” Keeper says, his voice mock sympathy as he pulls on the cord suspending him in the air, puts a bucket under him, and lightly kicks it over. The sizzle from the frayed wire starts to smoke and creep. The burns should cover the knife wounds, but if not who fucking cares?

I text Lee a photo of the guy’s face and his cause of death as suicide. She will monitor the coroner and whatever the fuck else her and Zee nerd out about over the computer. She replies with a middle finger emoji which is her loving way of saying she will take care of it. We wait a few minutes until his feet go slack.

“Look at us, brother, supporting world peace by removing awful fuckers from the planet all the while spreading cheer during the holiday season,” I tell Keep with a clap on the back on our way out laughing together.