Every breath in the crowd was held. And then we heard bells as it rounded the building and drew up alongside us.
“Merry Christmas!” Santa yelled in his deep, bellowing voice.
“Merry Christmas!” We all shouted back. There were shouts of merriment and hurrahs. The caretakers of the sleigh and the reindeer ran forward immediately.
Santa disembarked, waving to all of us, then went immediately to his reindeer and gave them treats. It was tradition. For a long night's work, everyone got compensated, even the shifted beasts themselves.
The reindeer were led, still towing the sleigh, back into the shelter and warmth of the hangar. Santa followed, waving and thanking us over and over again.
Fallon turned toward me. “That was amazing!”
“Like I said, it never gets old.”
Through the storm, we followed the crowd back to control to warm up and celebrate more. Finally, people could get food and sleep now.
“Do you really mean it when you said you weren't doing me a favor?”
“I did. I do.” It pained me that he would question me about that again. That he was the least bit worried.
“But you needed my numbers and I needed you so I could concentrate and get the work done. Work comes first, doesn't it?”
“Usually. But not this time, Fallon. When I saw you… When I knew what you were going through, your well-being became my priority.”
“Because you're my boss, though, right?”
“No, honey. Not because I'm your boss. Because I want to be your mate. If you'll have me. I want you to be my Christmas reindeer. Forever.”
His eyes sparked with tears. “Your Christmas reindeer?”
“Make no mistake about it. You already are.”
He threw his arms around me and buried his face in my chest. Then he looked up at me and said, “Does that make you my Christmas elf?”
“Yes. I’d like that.”
He hugged me harder and I put my arms around him never wanting to let go.
EPILOGUE
Fallon
“Can I get you to check these figures over?” I stood in the doorway of Fallon's office, my big pregnant stomach already over the threshold.
“Sure, honey. But after that we're leaving early. You need your rest. You're due any day now.”
I'd stopped taking birth control around February after I’d moved into Keir’s house. By March he'd gotten me pregnant. We were having a December baby.
The pregnancy had been smooth. It had only been in the last week or two that my energy flagged. True to his alpha instincts, Keir was there for me every step of the way. He took care of everything, including cooking when we didn’t resort to takeout. But we were both busy enough that we left the cleaning to a crew that came in once a week on Fridays.
In our most private moments in bed, Keir still called me his Christmas reindeer. And he still called me honey. I loved both terms of endearment.
The team at Santa's Sleigh we're all happy for us. Even Clea came to the wedding and wished us well. I still didn't know if she had been jealous of my ability with numbers or my relationship with Keir. I never asked. None of that mattered anymore. I had the best job in the world. And the best husband.
Along with counting down the days until Christmas Eve, Keir and I were counting the days until my delivery date. We weren't exactly sure, but the doctor told us it would be sometime during the second week of December.
It was already the tenth.
Once we got home, Keir quickly whipped up a big pot of chicken and dumpling stew. With faux chicken, of course. No one in Santa’s Village ate meat. It was fantastic.
