Of course they did. They were becoming as twisted as we were.
Down in the yard, Isla had discovered the beginnings of a snow fort. Her cheeks were bright pink from the cold, and her breath came in little puffs of vapor, but she looked absolutely radiant.
"Look at her," I murmured, not caring that I was being cheesy about my obsession. "She's like a girl on Christmas morning."
"They all are," Connor said, and there was something almost wondering in his voice. “Sierra’s gonna have her first real Christmas morning in a long time.”
Our girls had all been through their share of living before finding us. Seeing them completely relaxed, totally safe, and acting their age for once was rarer than it should be.
"It's the cabin," Jax said thoughtfully. "Being away from everything, just us. No outside world, no threats, no responsibilities except taking care of each other."
"We should do this more often," I decided, already mentally planning our next getaway. "Maybe somewhere with a hot spring next time. I'd love to see Isla naked in the steam.”
"Focus, Catalyst,” Connor scoffed. "You're drooling."
"I am not drooling. I'm appreciating. There's a difference."
"Minimal difference," Jax observed with a grin.
Before I could come up with a suitably insulting response, a shriek from the yard had all three of us snapping to attention.
In the space between one heartbeat and the next, we went from relaxed observers to coiled protectors ready for violence.
Sierra had apparently decided that Estelle's snow angel was too close to her territory and dumped an entire armload of snow directly on top of her.
The resulting squeal was what had set off our predator instincts, even though a split second later it became clear that it was a squeal of laughter, not distress.
“Fucking hell,” Jax breathed, his hand already halfway to where his gun would normally be. "They're going to give me a heart attack."
“Already got one,” Connor muttered, trying to relax as Estelle retaliated by tackling Sierra into the snow, both girls dissolving into giggles.
I felt my own muscles unclenching as the reality of the situation sank in. Not a threat. Just our girls being girls, playing in the snow without a care in the world.
Our reaction was as tame as it could get with us. That's whathappened when you loved someone the way we loved our girls—every unexpected sound, every cry of surprise, every moment that might indicate danger sent you into full combat mode.
"We're hopeless," I sighed with a shake of my head.
"Completely," Jax agreed. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."
Isla had noticed our momentary alert status and was now looking at us with that knowing expression that said she understood exactly what had happened.
She blew me a kiss, then deliberately threw herself backward into the snow with an exaggerated wail of distress, just to mess with me.
Devilish angel.
"She's doing that on purpose," Connor observed.
"Obviously. They all know exactly which buttons to push." I grinned, feeling that familiar surge of pride and arousal that came from being with someone who could match my energy. "God, I love her."
The snow fight that erupted next was epic in scope and wicked in execution. What started as Sierra's sneak attack on Estelle quickly escalated into full warfare, with Isla acting as arms dealer, providing ammunition to whoever needed it most.
"This is better than a movie,” Jax smirked as Estelle executed what could only be described as a tactical flanking maneuver to get behind Sierra's hastily constructed snow wall.
"Better than fighting,” I agreed, watching Isla belly-crawl through the snow like she was infiltrating enemy territory. "Look at that technique. She's been watching too many action movies."
"Or hanging around us too long," Connor added, and there was definite pride in his voice as Sierra popped up from behind cover to launch a perfectly aimed snowball that caught Isla in the shoulder.
The battle raged for a good twenty minutes, with the girls displaying surprising strategic thinking and absolutely zero mercy. By the end of it, all three were soaked, covered in snow, and laughing so hard they could barely stand.
