by Lynn Hagen
“What’s that thing doing?” Johnny whispered.
“I think we should take our chances in the snowstorm,” Blair said. “That’s better than waiting around to get gobbled up.”
“Wait.” Johnny held up a hand. “Do you hear that noise?”
They all strained to listen. It sounded like Hawk was on the other side, but his voice was so faint that Johnny wasn’t sure. If only they could get past Krampus and the spider, Johnny prayed the warriors were on the other side.
He squeezed North in his arms when a loud explosion blew the library doors open. Johnny screamed like a girl, smashing his face against North’s hair.
She patted his hand. “You can look now.”
Johnny’s head shot up, and he stared wide-eyed at the warriors who had come to save them. And leading them was… “Santa!” Johnny cried out.
“Does Santa have a bazooka?” Cecil asked. “He looks all militant and shit.”
Cecil was right. Santa’s muscles were bulging as he dropped the weapon and went after Krampus. Santa landed one powerful blow after another, knocking Krampus backward.
The spider made a strange, squeaking sound as the elves attacked it. Johnny was glad he didn’t have to fight that disgusting thing.
Krampus lifted its arms and every single book came flying off the shelves. They aimed straight toward Santa, who lifted his arms and then swung them to the right. The books flew right and crash into the wall.
“You’re not sending me back!” Krampus shrieked. “They’re all mine. Every last elf is mine!”
“Mother should’ve smothered you at birth,” Santa snarled. Johnny never knew the jolly man could be so mean. But he was glad, because Santa whooped Krampus’s butt. Then he curled his hand around Krampus’s throat and the two vanished, along with the elves.
Johnny ran across the room and threw himself into Hawk’s arms. “I wanna go home,” he cried. “Not this home, either.”
“I got you, pretty baby.” Hawk hugged him tightly and kissed his hair. Then he bent and scooped North up into his strong arms as the other warriors reunited with their mates.
Johnny was gonna have nightmares about bad Santas and spiders for weeks. It would require a lot of pineapple and black olive pizzas and cases and cases of orange soda to get over it.
“Is it over?” Johnny asked. “Can we go home now?”
A short, muscle-bound guy winked at Johnny. “I’ll take all of you home.”
Johnny snickered. “He’s adorable, Hawk. Can we keep him?”
“No, pretty baby.” Hawk grinned as he set Johnny and North down. “He works for Santa, and besides, we have our hands full with North.”
“She needs a bunch of cookies to calm her down,” Johnny said as he followed them out of the library.
“I’m okay,” North said.
Johnny gave her a look. “No, you’re not. You need all those cookies, okay?”
“We’ll see what George can whip up.” Hawk chuckled.
The room started doing that shaky thing again. Johnny gripped Hawk’s hand, hanging on for dear life as he squished his eyes closed. When he opened them, they were in the right Den.
“I wasn’t worried one bit.” Johnny waved his hand. “Piece of cake.”
“But you cried,” North reminded him.
Johnny gave a little growl. “You’re not supposed to tell anyone about that. What happens in the Krampus house stays in the Krampus house.”
North giggled as she slid her hand into Hawk’s. “I really like you, Johnny. You’re funny.”
Aw. Johnny’s heart melted. “I like you, too.”
Hawk stopped walking and looked down at Johnny. “Pretty baby, you know we have to try her parents’ house again. The snowstorm is over, and a lot of the snow is melting.”
Tears filled Johnny’s eyes. He glanced at North, and now his heart was breaking. She held a special place in his heart. North was just like him when Johnny had first come to the Den. He felt fiercely protective toward her and didn’t want to let North go.
His shoulders sagged. “I know.”
Life truly sucked rocks.
They put their coats on, and Johnny begrudgingly followed his mate out the door, holding North’s hand as they walked. No. Johnny wasn’t going to cry. He had to be a grownup about this. North wasn’t his to keep, no matter how badly he wanted her as his daughter.
Their ride was quiet. Johnny still held North’s hand, but he was looking out the window, wishing the truck would break down or that time would stop passing.
She still had the candy bar in her hand that Cecil had given her, and Johnny wanted to bawl his eyes out that she wasn’t going to be a part of their family.
When they arrived at her house, Johnny sat up as his jaw dropped.
“What’s going on?” Hawk asked as he pulled onto the soft shoulder of the road. “Where’s the house?”
The only thing sitting there was a shed. “Are you sure we’re where we’re supposed to be?”
“I’m positive,” Hawk said.
Johnny squinted, as though that would help him see her missing house. This felt like a mystery to solve, but then again, it had felt like that from the beginning.
“What’s that?” Johnny pointed toward the shed. “There’s something red and shiny by the side.”
“Stay right here.” Hawk got out and walked over to the shed, picking up the red and shiny thing. It looked like a big square envelope. Hawk pulled a piece of paper from it and read as Johnny and North watched.
“Do you think he won the Publishers Clearing House?” Johnny asked. “But why would they put his prize all the way out here?”
North shrugged. “Maybe it’s a party invitation.”
“Oh, that’s a good one.” Johnny tapped his chin. “Some gift certificates to a fancy restaurant.”
“Coupons for free cookies.” She giggled.
“Or a free pet. I wanna koala bear since we already have cats and dogs at home. Not that wolves are dogs, but…” Johnny watched as Hawk came back to the truck and got in.
“Koala bear,” Johnny said. “That’s the free pet I want.”
Hawk dipped his brows. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“What was in the envelope?” Johnny asked. “A bank robbery note that got blown away?”
Hawk grinned then looked down at North. “How would you like to live with me and Johnny?”
Johnny’s heart thundered as he waited for North to answer. Why would Hawk ask that question? He knew how much Johnny wanted to keep North. If he was kidding around, it was a cruel joke. But Hawk had never been cruel to Johnny before. Was his mate serious?
“I’d like that,” North said in a small voice.
Hawk pulled out the paper and showed it to Johnny. It looked like an official form, but Johnny was still clueless. “I don’t get it.”
“It’s a birth certificate, pretty baby. It says that we’re North’s parents.”
Johnny screamed and bounced in his seat, hugging North to him. She was smiling, too. Besides meeting Hawk and joining the Brac pack, Johnny had never been happier in his life.
Hawk chuckled as he pulled away, heading home.
* * * *
As Johnny ran around the Den, North’s hand in his, telling anyone who would listen that he was a godfather and a father, Hawk went to Maverick’s office. He placed the red envelope on the alpha’s desk.
“What’s this?” Maverick sat forward and picked it up.
Hawk sat in one of the chairs across from the desk. “A gift from Nick.”
He’d shown Johnny the birth certificate but hadn’t shown him the note that had been in there, too. Maverick pulled both papers out and read them. His brows rose. “He just gave you a kid?”
“He wiped North’s memories clean and sent her to our town,” Hawk said. “North doesn’t even remember it happening. From what Nick says, she’ll grow up with no recollection of the North Pole whatsoever. As far as everyone else is concerned, she’s a normal f
ive-year-old, and Johnny and I are her legal parents.”
Why Nick had to play games to give the warriors gifts was beyond him. He could’ve just come to the Den and explained things to them. “I think that short shit I found in North’s house was an elf making sure we took her with us.”
Maverick chuckled. “Johnny’s finally gotten the kid he’s wanted. I would leave it at that. North agreed to this, knew her memory would be wiped, and now the two are happy.” He looked at Hawk. “Ready to be a parent?”
Johnny brought so much joy to Hawk’s life. His mate also kept Hawk on his toes. He had a feeling things were going to get even more interesting now that North was there.
“I’ve been ready.” Hawk grinned. “Just don’t let anyone know about the note. I don’t want Johnny to see her as anything other than an innocent little girl who needs two loving fathers and a house full of uncles.”
“And an aunt,” Maverick said. “Melonee is gonna flip that there’s a little girl to spoil rotten.”
Hawk took the envelope and walked out, a big shit-eating grin on his face. He was a papa. Besides Johnny, it was the best gift he could’ve possibly received.
* * * *
Later that night, as North slept, Snowball appeared in her bedroom. He was gonna miss her. North had been his best friend at the workshop. But he knew how much she’d wanted to be a part of a family, and he didn’t begrudge her leaving. All he’d ever wanted was for her to be happy.
“Take care, North.” Snowball kissed her forehead. “You couldn’t ask for better parents.”
He gave her one last look before he flashed from her room and returned to the North Pole.
THE END
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