by R. E. Butler
“I’d love to take you and our baby to NPC to live.”
“In the meantime, do you think Tom and Neve would mind if we moved into the cabin?”
His brows rose. “I don’t think they’d mind at all.”
“It was really perfect there, wasn’t it? I miss it.”
“Me, too.”
“Maybe we can move this summer. That’ll give Holly time to figure out the music for the bar once I’m gone.”
“What about opening a music studio?”
“Can I do that in NPC?”
“I’m sure you can. There isn’t one there, and there are plenty of kids and adults who I’m certain would love to learn how to play and sing.”
“Good. So it’s settled?”
“Yep. We’ll move to the cabin in the summer and plan to move to NPC on Christmas Eve.”
“Maybe Holly and Vaughn will be mated by then.”
“I certainly hope so. The way Holly is keeping him at arm’s length is driving Vaughn crazy.”
“I think she’ll come around. But if she doesn’t, I still want to move. You and our baby are my family now, and I have to put us first.”
He leaned forward and kissed her sweetly. “I will always put you first, sweetheart.”
* * *
Jack could feel how nervous Ivy was as she sat in a chair next to him at the desk while the video call program connected. After letting Holly know they’d be late to work, he’d video-called his parents with the good news of their baby and plans to move to NPC. They’d been thrilled and offered to help in any way they could. He’d promised to let them know, thinking they’d be able to help them pick out a home and get it furnished so it would be move-in ready on Christmas Eve.
“If for some reason Holly isn’t going to move to NPC this year, is there a way I can stay for most of the day with her? When do you have to be back for the sleigh ride?”
“Around 6:00 p.m. We’re usually back around 4:00 a.m. We could come to NPC to drop off our things, and then I could bring you and the baby back here for the day to be with Holly. Whenever you’re ready to come home, security officers can bring you both back, or you could wait for me to come get you.”
“Okay, that’s good to know. I already can’t wait for Christmas Eve. I want to see NPC.”
The screen went dark and then brightened, showing the Clauses’ family room. SC and Mrs. C smiled brightly and Ivy gasped.
“Hello, Jack,” Mrs. C said. “We heard you have some wonderful news.”
“The best news on the planet,” he promised. “This is Ivy, my fated mate, and she’s pregnant.”
“Wonderful!” SC exclaimed.
Ivy swallowed audibly and said with a breathy whisper, “I remember you.”
“Me or my husband?” Mrs. C asked with a chuckle.
“Well, both of you, I guess. You look so familiar. But I remember when you came into the bar. You didn’t look like you do now, though.”
“I used magic to change my appearance,” she explained.
“Jack said you knew he and Vaughn would find their fated mates in the bar.”
She hummed in agreement. “It’s part of my magical gifts.”
“That’s so cool.”
“Does this mean you’re going to come to NPC on Christmas Eve?” SC asked, his white brow arching.
“Absolutely,” Jack said. “Ivy wants to come to NPC to live. We’re going to ask my parents to help us pick out a cabin and get it furnished.”
“Of course. There are a few available,” SC said, stroking his beard. “What’s the news with Vaughn and his mate?”
“They’re still not together,” Ivy said. “My sister is very stubborn.”
“The best fated mates usually are,” Mrs. C said.
“We want to talk to Dreama to see if she knows anyone who could deliver our baby and keep things quiet,” Jack said.
“If she doesn’t know anyone, I’m certain Sandman will,” Mrs. C said.
Ivy elbowed him. “Music,” she whispered.
“Right.” Jack smiled. “Ivy’s a very accomplished musician. She’d like to set up a studio in NPC and give lessons. Is that something we can work on?”
“Oh, that would be wonderful!” Mrs. C exclaimed. “There’s also the tavern that’s in need of live music.”
“There is?”
Mrs. C nodded vigorously. “The male who ran the tavern and the band had a falling out and both sides quit. We assigned some elves to run the tavern, but the lead singer for the band found his mate and didn’t want to be in the band anymore. They’re in a holding pattern waiting to find someone to lead.”
Jack glanced at Ivy and saw the disbelief on her face.
“You don’t have to make any decisions about that now,” SC said. “We’ll happily find a place for a music studio. Once word gets out about lessons, you’ll have clients out the door.”
“That would be wonderful,” Ivy said.
“Feel free to give me a call anytime to chat,” Mrs. C said. “I’m looking forward to getting to know you.”
“Me too.”
They said goodbye and ended the call. Jack turned to face his mate. “What do you think, sweetheart?”
“I can’t believe how easily that all went.”
“What did you think would happen?”
“I don’t know, but everyone is pretty wonderful there.”
“They sure are. A quad finding his fated mate is deserving of a celebration, but add in a baby and a very talented mate coming to live in NPC… well, there will be a party waiting for us for sure.”
“I don’t think Christmas will come fast enough.”
“I agree. We’ll just have to think of an activity to make the time pass faster.” He wiggled his brows and she giggled.
“Have I ever told you that you have the best ideas?”
“You’re my muse, sweetheart.”
“You’re mine, too.”
Chapter 14
*Christmas Eve Morning*
Ivy woke before dawn after hearing her little girl, Clarise, cry. She rolled to the side and stretched, smiling as Jack got out of bed and hurried to the bassinet. He lifted Clarise into his arms and she stopped fussing, which always made Ivy smile. Her daughter had her father wrapped around her little finger, and he didn’t mind a bit.
He returned to the bed and murmured, “Merry Christmas Eve, sweetheart.”
“Merry Christmas Eve to you, too,” she said as she propped herself against the headboard with pillows and held out her arms for her daughter. Settling Clarise to nurse, she looked at the clock. “It’s not even five yet.”
“Our little girl is an early bird.”
“That’s for sure. She didn’t get that from me.”
“Coffee?” he asked.
“I’d love some.”
He grabbed his pants from the floor and tugged them on. She glanced at the window and saw the darkness outside. Beyond the glass were the woods that surrounded the cabin they’d called home since July. Once they’d made the decision to move to NPC, she and Jack slowly backed off social media. She continued to play music at the bar until the end of spring, and Holly invested in a jukebox, which was a hit with the customers. She’d thought it might be strange to move to the cabin that was so far removed from the modern world, but it had been just as wonderful as she’d remembered. She spent her days creating workbooks to teach piano and guitar to the students in NPC, who were already waiting for her to start teaching.
Ivy had zero regrets about moving away from the city, especially when she’d had an opportunity to meet Sandman, who’d introduced them to a wiccan named Bea, who was also a midwife. When Clarise came into the world in September, Bea had delivered her in the cabin. Their perfect daughter had pointed ears and her father’s brown eyes.
“We’re going home today,” she said, brushing her fingers over her daughter’s cheek. “You get to meet your grandparents, SC, and Mrs. C. I get to meet them in person, too. I can’t wait. You’ll g
row up in a magical city, and someday Mrs. C will use her mate-magic to help you find your perfect mate.”
“Already thinking about her future?” Jack asked with an amused smile as he came into the bedroom carrying two cups of coffee.
“I want her to have a wonderful and happy life.”
“Me, too.”
She sipped the coffee, keeping an eye on the clock. At dawn, several quads were coming to help her and Jack bring their things to NPC. She’d seen their cabin in videos and pictures from his parents, but she was looking forward to seeing everything in person.
While Jack dressed, she gave Clarise a bath and put her in her red velvet dress complete with white tights and shoes. By the time they were ready, dawn had arrived, and so had a foursome of quads, who appeared like magic in the backyard.
Jack greeted his friends and introduced them as Sullivan, Rhys, Mire, and Arian.
“It’s nice to meet you in person,” Rhys said. “Congratulations on your little one. She’s an angel.”
“Thank you,” Ivy said.
“Ready to go?” Sullivan asked. “Our mates can’t wait to meet you and your daughter. Mrs. C is hosting a get-to-know-you breakfast at seven.”
“That gives us an hour to get as much unpacked as we can,” Jack said. “I think we can swing it.”
“Is this going to make me throw up or anything?” Ivy asked as she put a warm coat and hat on Clarise.
“Nah, it’s a breeze,” Mire assured her.
“Good. I’d hate to throw up on everyone.”
“Trust me, we’d hate that, too,” Arian said with a laugh.
She looked around the cabin. “I really loved living here.”
“I loved it, too,” Jack agreed. “But now we get to go to our real home in NPC.”
“I’m so excited. Did I ever tell you that the night you walked into the bar was the best night of my life?”
He smiled and a low growl rumbled in his chest. “It was the best night of my life, too, a tie with the night you and I became mates and the night our little princess was born.”
“We have a lot more wonderful days and nights ahead of us,” she said.
They gathered together in a circle with the quads. Ivy held Clarise close and closed her eyes as they transported to NPC. She was thankful she didn’t feel nauseous, and the short trip hadn’t seemed to affect Clarise at all.
They transported directly into the family room of their new home, a three-bedroom cabin with a quaint kitchen and a huge fireplace for keeping warm during the cold winter months.
“Thanks for your help,” Jack said.
“No problem. See you at six,” Rhys said.
The four disappeared, leaving Ivy, Jack, and Clarise alone. Ivy removed Clarise’s coat and hat and Jack took her as Ivy pulled off her own coat and set it on the couch. Someone had lit lamps throughout so the rooms were illuminated. She suspected his parents had come earlier that morning to set it up for their first visit.
They toured the cabin, stopping at the nursery that had been decorated in pink.
“Welcome home, sweetheart,” Jack said.
“It’s perfect.”
“I have a surprise for you.”
“Oh?”
Taking her hand, he led her down the hall to a door. He twisted the knob and pushed it open, stepping inside. She followed and paused, gasping at the room.
“It’s a studio!”
He chuckled. “Of course. I was talking to SC about building a studio in NPC, and he suggested adding to the cabin. Since you can’t transport on your own, you’d have to walk if I wasn’t able to transport you myself, and it gets really, really cold here. The room is soundproofed, and there’s plenty of space for our equipment. We have chairs for your students, and some of the elves are going down to the human world to pick up extra guitars and keyboards for those who want to learn and have their own instruments.”
“This is just too much.”
“Are you happy?”
“Yes!”
Jack hugged her and Clarise, giving each of them kisses. “Good, I’m glad. I wanted to make your dream come true. How’d I do?”
“You did amazing.”
They turned to leave the room, and she laughed as she saw the wooden sign next to the door that read “Ivy’s Awesome Music Studio.”
“It’s a great name, don’t you think?” he asked.
“I absolutely do.”
“Ready for breakfast? Everyone’s very excited to meet you and Clarise.”
She looked down at her sleeping daughter with her perfectly pointed ears and smiled. “Not yet.”
Jack raised his brows.
She only had to think about how sexy her mate was and he seemed to be able to sense exactly what was on her mind.
“We don’t have a lot of time, but we should celebrate our first morning here.”
She laid Clarise in the crib in her bedroom and tiptoed out. “My thoughts exactly. It is the first morning of the next chapter of our lives together, and I have some very good ideas for how this should go.”
“Do tell, sweetheart,” he said with a growl.
“Clarise needs a sister or a brother. Don’t you agree?”
He nodded gruffly. “Make it your Christmas wish. That way we know for sure it’ll come true.”
She laughed as he swung her into his arms. “I already got my Christmas wish, you know. I have the most amazing mate in the world, and we’re finally home in NPC.”
“Then I’ll make a Christmas wish this year, that our home will always be filled with love and laughter, and lots of kids.”
“Define lots.”
He laid her gently on the bed and smiled. “As many as we want.”
“I love how you think, Jack.”
“Merry Christmas, Ivy. You’re my dream come true.”
“You’re mine, too.”
Coming Next from R. E. Butler
Comet’s Fated Mate (Arctic Shifters Book Eight)
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Coming December 3, 2018
Comet’s Fated Mate (Arctic Shifters Book Eight)
Quad shifter Vaughn didn’t know what it would be like to meet his fated mate, but he never expected a workaholic bar owner to be so immune to his charms. His beasts are going crazy now that he’s finally found Holly, but she’s not interested in anything he has to offer. He’ll have to figure out a way to get her to see him as more than a bartender and employee.
