Shutting the door behind us, I asked, “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Nik shook his head, a little grin on his face, and he walked the rest of the way down and deposited the baby in my arms. Kieran babbled happily, patting my face. I smacked a kiss on his chubby cheek.
“I’ve never seen you in color before,” Nik told me, catching Kacey as she ran in, hurtling towards Kendrick. He swung her in arms, murmuring in her ear.
“You sick, Uncle K?” Kacey demanded, looking him over with a discerning eye. “Daddy said you were sick and that’s why I couldn’t open all my prezzies.”
Kendrick held his arms out to her. “I’m fine, Kacey, all better. Come here.”
Nik handed his daughter over. “Everyone is in the living room. I think Pops and Diana made finger food to nibble on. Sorry you missed the big dinner.”
“It’s fine,” I told him, one hand on Kendrick’s lower back, as we followed Nik into his living room.
The fire in the fireplace warmed the room nicely. Kris and Oliver sat on one sofa, while Diana and Merv filled another. Keegan was fussing with the platters of food on the coffee table between them. Kacey wiggled to be let down.
The Christmas tree in the corner was lit with brightly colored lights, a smattering of unopened presents waiting under the tree. Kacey danced around it, impatient to open the rest of her presents. I could tell by the wrapping the ones I had bought the kids were under there, as well as ones from Kendrick.
Merv stood, motioning for his wife to move over. “Sit, sit. I’ll get your stocking, Kendrick.”
Kendrick sat next to his mom, while I squeezed in next to him, sitting Kieran on my knee. Wrapping one arm around Kendrick's shoulder, I tried to act casual and relaxed, fully aware of our thighs touching.
Keegan finally finished fussing, turning to greet us, his eyes going comically wide when he saw the sweater I was wearing.
“You're wearing blue!” he exclaimed loudly.
Giving him a bland look, like nothing out of the ordinary was happening, I reached around him for a sausage ball. Popping itinto my mouth, I chewed slowly, not responding to him until I swallowed the tasty morsel down. “Your brother got it for me.”
Keegan beamed his bright smile at us. “It looks good on you.”
“I have good taste,” Kendrick grinned at his brother, digging into the stocking from his parents. More candy, some cologne, body wash, and an Amazon gift card. He thanked them both, then said we should let the kids open their presents.
Kacey didn’t need to be told twice, and ripped into her presents, much like her uncle had done with his earlier. Keegan had taken Kieran, to help him open his presents, while Nik tried to corral Kacey.
Leaning towards the table, I picked up one of the paper plates there, filling it with all kinds of nibbles. Handing it to Kendrick, I whispered in his ear, “Eat. You haven’t eaten enough the last few days.”
He gave me a soft smile, then held the plate out to me. “Share with me?”
“Thanks, sweetheart.”
I was fully aware we had both sets of parents’ eyes on us, watching. While Kris and Oliver might be Nik’s biological parents, they were practically like my adoptive ones. I was closer to them than I was my own mom and dad, and in the years Nik had disappeared–run away–to the human realm, we had grown even closer.
Kacey was playing with her new doll I had gotten her, while Nik put together a dollhouse from Kendrick, under her watchful eyes. Every few seconds instructing him on what he was doing wrong, and maybe he should look at the ‘structions. Nik would grumble that he was The Santa and he didn’t need any instructions. Keegan sat in the rocker recliner, rocking Kieran who sipped from his new sippy cup, while he blinked at us with sleepy eyes.
Diana turned to Kendrick. “Your dad and I wanted to talk to you boys together, before you go home tomorrow, Kendrick.”
“That sounds ominous,” Kendrick joked, but I heard the tightness of his words.
Keegan leaned forward, frowning. “Is everything okay?”
Diana glanced at Pops, who nodded his head, grinning. “Everything is fine. As you know, your dad and I have been thinking of retiring. And we’ve decided to take the plunge.”
“That’s great,” Kendrick told them, trying his best to sound sincerely happy and to not let on that he knew about their plans.
“You’ll have more time to visit now,” Keegan grinned.
“Well…about that,” Merv hedged, sitting on the arm of the sofa, since there wasn’t much room left for him. He’d been trying to help Nik with the dollhouse, but since neither of them seemed inclined to actually follow the directions, it was slow going. “We’ve been talking to Kris and Oliver, working some things out, and we’ve decided to move to Santa’s Village. Afraid you’re going to be stuck with us all the time, Keegan.”
I felt Kendrick tense next to me, but when I looked at him, his face was smiling, showing nothing of the tension he was radiating. “But…how?”
