Page 101 of The Thug And His Doll

When my eyes land on the object inside I chuckle. “This is the most ridiculous present ever,” I say, holding up the box to show Lia and Toby the contents. “But I love it. Thank you, Daise. Every year I’ll be reminded of what a handsome man I am.”

Daisy bursts out laughing as Lia and Toby stare at the Christmas tree bauble inside. My face has been printed onto the surface but disguised as the Grinch, and because it’s spherical, my features are even more distorted. It’s hysterical.

Lia’s hand comes up to cover her smile as she giggles, and Toby’s mouth drops open as he takes the box from me.

“You make a terrible elf,” he says, frowning.

“That, my friend is The Drinch,” I say, smirking.

Lia can no longer hold onto her laughter any longer, and Daisy loses it, cackling as she falls back on the sofa, tears streaming from her eyes. Pretty soon I’m joining in too.

Toby wrinkles his nose. “What’s a Drinch?”

“He means a Drix the Grinch, so a Drinch” Daisy explains, pushing upright.

“I don’t know what that is,” Toby says, pulling a face.

“You’ve never seen The Grinch movie?” I ask.

Toby shakes his head. “No.”

“Well then, after we’ve stuffed ourselves full of turkey and Christmas pudding, we’re going to watch it together!”

“Yay!” Toby claps his hands, the box of Legos on his lap sliding to the floor. He jumps off Lia’s lap and grabs it. “Can we build this now?”

“Give me a minute, kid. I’ve got some presents to hand out first,” I say, getting up as I head to the cabinet on the other side of the room to grab the hessian sack I’d stored inside of it. Pulling it free, I grab the Santa's hat I left next to it, and put it on. “Ho, ho, ho.”

“You’re such a dork,” Daisy remarks with a snort.

“I thought it matched my outfit,” I shrug, looking down at my red flannelette pyjamas as I settle back on the sofa. Dipping my hand into the sack, I reach for Toby’s present first. “Here you go, buddy,” I say, handing it to him.

“Drix, that’s so kind,” Lia says softly.

“There was no way I wasn’t getting my little pal a present.”

“We got you one too!” Toby exclaims taking his gift from me and plonking on the floor.

“You did?” I ask Lia.

“Of course,” she replies, biting on her lips as her cheeks flush pink.

Our eyes meet and I hold her gaze, desperately wanting to drag her in my arms and give her more than a chaste Christmas kiss. Heat flickers in her eyes, and I clear my throat, internally begging my twitching cock not to embarrass me.

“So, what do you think?” I ask Toby as he pulls the last of the wrapping paper off to reveal a pair of rollerskates.

He gasps. “I’ve always wanted these, but Mama always said it was too dangerous!”

I pull a face. “I’m sorry, I should’ve checked with you first.”

Lia shakes her head. “No, don’t apologise. They’re perfect. I’m sure with practice, he’ll be just fine.”

“I was planning on helping you to learn how to skate,” I say to Toby. “I thought you could use the hallway to practise before we head outside. When the snow finally clears, of course.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” Toby exclaims, jumping up, and throwing himself into my arms. A breath whooshes out of my chest, partly from his exuberance, and partly from being so overwhelmed by his affection. I wrap my arms around him, hugging him close.

“You’re so welcome,” I mutter.

Eventually he untangles himself, peering at the sack as I reach for Daisy’s present next. Grabbing the tiny box, I pass it to her. “Merry Christmas, Daise,” I say.

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