“Easy,” I murmur to the box. “Almost there, little guy.”
The door swings open, and there’s Honey, already dressed in the red sweater and jeans she laid out last night. Her eyes sparkle with amusement as she takes in the full Santa getup.
“Well, hello, Santa,” she says, her voice carrying up the stairs. “What a surprise to see you here on Christmas morning!”
I hear the rumble of little feet above us, and I know the boys are on their way down.
“Ho, ho, ho!” I boom in my best Santa voice. “Merry Christmas!”
Tommy and Jackson appear at the top of the stairs, their eyes wide with disbelief. For a second, they just stare, and then Jackson lets out a shriek of excitement.
“SANTA!” he yells, taking the stairs two at a time. Tommy is right behind him, his usual caution thrown to the wind.
“Boys!” Honey says with a huge smile, though she’s trying not to laugh. “Look who came to see you!”
“Hi, Santa,” Tommy says, slightly out of breath.
“Hello there, Tommy and Jackson,” I say, deepening my voice. “Have you boys been good this year?”
They both nod like Bobbleheads.
“Good, good.” I look at Honey and wink. “Hi, bab—Honey.”
She narrows her eyes at my slip, but the smile never leaves her face. “Hello, Santa. What brings you by so early?”
I hold out the box. “I was on my way home when I realized I left one of your presents on my sleigh.”
Both boys are bouncing on their toes, eyes locked on the box in my hands.
“This is for both of you.” I carefully put the box down on the floor. “Go ahead and open it.”
They don’t need to be told twice. They drop to their knees beside the box, tearing at the wrapping paper like little savages. When they get the top off, twin gasps fill the air.
Inside, looking up at them with big brown eyes, is a chocolate Pitbull puppy with a red bow around its neck.
“A PUPPY!” Jackson screams, reaching into the box to scoop up the wiggling ball of fur. “MOM! SANTA BROUGHT US A PUPPY!”
Tommy is speechless, his eyes wide as saucers as he gently pets the puppy’s head. “He’s so soft,” he whispers.
I look over at Honey, who’s shaking her head, but the smile on her face tells me she’s not really upset. We’d talked about it a few days ago, and while she hadn’t said yes, she hadn’t said no either. And since she hadn’t made up her mind either way, I decided it was better to ask for forgiveness than permission.
“What do you say to Santa?” she prompts, stepping closer to get a better look at the puppy.
“THANK YOU, SANTA!” Jackson yells, still holding the squirming puppy against his chest.
“Thank you so much,” Tommy adds, his voice thick with emotion. “This is the best Christmas ever.”
My chest swells with pride. “You’re very welcome, boys. Now, I’d better get going. Mrs. Claus is a real ball buster when I’m late.”
Honey narrows her eyes at me again, but I can see the amusement dancing in them.
“Merry Christmas to all!” I boom, backing toward the door. “And to all a good—” I glance out the window at the sun coming up. “—day!”
Making my exit, I close the door behind me with a final “Ho, ho, ho!” before hauling ass back to the garage. Reign is still inside, leaning against his truck with a smirk on his face.
“How’d it go?” he asks as I strip off the Santa suit.
“Perfect,” I say, grinning like an idiot as I pull the beard off. “You should’ve seen their faces.”
