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I was drunk on her and never wanted to be sober again.
I’d reached her waist when her eyes flew open. She gasped and crawled over me, legs and arms everywhere while I laughed at her exuberance. My bear could feel her excitement, I just didn’t know what for yet. We’d chosen not to buy any presents because the love we shared was gift enough.
“It’s Christmas!” she shouted.
Riggs shot up out of the bed and was standing in an instant, eyes wide, looking for the danger she was shouting about. “What is it?”
“Our mate is excited and I think she loves the snow,” I chuckled, pointing to Marney who stood shivering, naked, in front of the window, her face plastered to the glass, oohing and aahing over the winter. I hoped she never lost that awe for us or this place.
“It’s Christmas!” she shouted again and shook her hips. “And I’m freezing!” She ran for the bathroom and turned on the shower. It wasn’t long before steam billowed out. Our mate loved her hot showers, and usually we helped her make them even hotter.
I got dressed while Riggs joined Marney in the shower. I’d already been up early, shaping and rolling the cinnamon rolls and then putting them in the oven on low to let them rise. My parents had made cinnamon rolls every Christmas morning and more than anything, I wanted those traditions to continue with my new family.
Marney came out of the bedroom first, dressed in her pajamas and my robe that practically swallowed her. “You didn’t join us in the shower. I missed you.” She came up behind me and splayed her hands on my abdomen.
“I was making breakfast for all of us. Why don’t you go get warm by the fire. I’m making peppermint mochas.”
She began to kiss my back but eventually moved to the sofa in front of the fire, grabbed one of her many books, and settled in. Riggs came in and asked if he could help, but I had it all under control. He walked around the place, turning on all the Christmas lights and dimming the room ones so that our living room was Christmas incarnate—minus the presents.
I wasn’t bothered in the least. I was blessed beyond compare and not a strip of wrapping paper in sight.
“Christmas breakfast is served,” I said, bringing everything to the living room on a tray. I placed it on the table while sitting on the other side of our mate. She lay sideways on the couch, her feet in Riggs’ lap and her back leaned against me. I noticed she had abandoned her book for her phone. She read on her phone, but that didn’t require so many clicks. “What are you busy about, mate of mine?” I asked.
“I’m working on my Christmas present to you both.”
I stiffened next to her, and not in the good way. “We said no presents, mate. What are you talking about?”
She sat up. “See this?” Riggs came to sit closer to her. “All of these credits were refunded to me from what was supposed to be my honeymoon. It was an extravagant and overpriced trip with everything paid for.”
“How does that end up as presents for us? You lost me.” Riggs’ voice was still muddled with sleep.
“We said no presents,” I mentioned as she excitedly showed me the phone.
“You said no presents. I feel like you two have given me everything, and I’ve only been taking.” Growls came from both my and Riggs’ chests. “Okay, okay. I gave you me, and I’m amazing but I wanted to do this for us. I took the credits and booked us a trip. Let’s call it a mating moon.”
A mating moon. This woman.
Riggs and I both looked at what she had planned. It was an all-inclusive trip to Alaska. A place we had always wanted to visit but never found the time.
“I can still refund it if you two don’t like it…” Marney paled.
Ah, we were messing this up. “Mate, this is the most generous gift aside from your heart. We are very grateful and if you couldn’t tell…surprised to say the least.” I hugged her and placed a kiss on her temple.
“Riggs?” she asked.
“I’ve always wanted to go to Alaska. It will be even better with you.”
Chapter Twenty
Riggs
“There,” Marney said, stepping back from her masterpiece. She had insisted on setting up the tent herself, one that we went to buy once we’d decided where we would bring in the new year. We bought some sleeping bags, but they were only for her since we intended to spend the night in our fur, making sure we were all three warm through the night.
“You did well,” I said, placing a kiss on her neck while inhaling deeply. Her scent of pine and vanilla intoxicated me. “We’ll keep you warm.”
“Oh, I know you will. Are you sure this is the place? What if they don’t do fireworks this year?”
Holidays were important to my mate, we had discovered. We thought that it was only Christmas but, really, it was every holiday. She wanted to make a big deal of them and not in the expensive way, but in the way that made each of them meaningful. We already had plans for the spring equinox since those times centered around nature were the holidays we shifters valued more than the human ones. That only gave her more special days to enjoy.
