“Of course he needs help. That’s a lot of man for a sweet little virgin.”
Colton and Clara exchanged glances.
“How do you know Merry’s a virgin?” Colton asked quietly.
“Oh, honey.” Fitz patted Colton’s shoulder. “It’s okay. I’m here now.” He removed his scarf, earmuffs, gloves, and winter coat, revealing a fluffy white cashmere sweater underneath. “First, I’m going to get something to eat since your heathen of a husband promised me breakfast, only to get distracted by something shiny like the magpie he is and drag me across all of snowy creation on an empty stomach. I’ll help with the tree once I’m no longer famished. Excuse me.”
That was Colton’s cue to get moving. He stood and promised Clara he would keep her updated. He’d check up on the guys, then head back to the cabin to review the invoices and make some phone calls. Even if he could get in all the supplies needed for the Ice Castle and the Christmas haul for the town, it would take some time. First things first. They needed to get the Ice Castle up and running, which meant electricity, wiring, and all that other stuff, and that meant talking to Jack first.
Colton strolled down the cobblestone street, his gloved hands in his pockets. Everyone he walked by greeted him cheerfully. It was such a nice change. And the scenery was breathtaking. All the quaint little shops reminded him of the European villages he’d traveled to when he was younger. The price of living in such a small town was that everyone knew everyone else’s business. Judging by how many people greeted him, the entire town knew what Colton and his family were up to.
Then again, everyone in his family knew what everyone else was up to. Ace was as bad of a gossip as Fitz. And Jack and Joker? They were almost as bad as the Cuban Mom Mafia. Which reminded him, he needed to get Ace to video call his mother on Christmas Eve.
He’d just reached the Ice Castle when his phone pinged. Checking his messages, he opened a text from Laz and groaned. He tapped Laz’s number, and Laz picked up on the first ring.
“Why is my husband halfway up what looks to be a far larger tree than what I asked him for?”
“Because your husband is Ace.”
Colton sighed and opened the door, stepping inside the Ice Castle. “What is he doing, and are there any injuries I should know about? Do I need to have a medic and a snowmobile on standby?”
“It’s too early to tell. He said he wanted to make sure there were no furry creatures before he chopped it down.”
Colton stopped in his tracks. “I’m sorry, did you say ‘beforehechopped it down?’ No. Oh no. He is not to do any chopping. Do you hear me, Lazarus? What happened to the tree farm?”
“They only have smaller trees. Jovie, the tree lot manager, said we could chop down any of the trees behind the lot if we planted one in its place, so she gave us a tree to plant, and a few minutes later, Ace found ‘the one.’”
“Who has the ax now?” Colton asked, afraid to know.
“Um….”
“Laz? Let me speak to Gio.”
“He’s not here.”
The most authoritative and levelheaded of the bunch wasn’t there with Colton’s ax-wielding husband? It was fine. Colton was fine. He certainly wasn’t worried. “Where is Gio?”
“He had to take Cookie back to the tree farm to warm up. We weren’t expecting to have to go into the woods.”
So, that left Laz to keep an eye on both Ace and Leo. “I’ll get back to you.” Colton hung up and hurried through the Ice Castle. “King!”
King poked his head out from one of the rooms. “Yeah? Everything okay?”
“My husband is in the woods halfway up a twenty-foot tree he intends to chop downwith an ax,and Laz is the only one there to keep an eye on himandLeo.”
King’s blue eyes went wide. “Son of a nutcracker.” He took off, and Colton let out a sigh of relief. As long as King was there, it would be fine. Though he wished Gio had been there too, he understood that the cold and snow could be too much for the dogs. It was why Duchess and Chip had stayed at the Ice Castle with Jack and Joker. Speaking of Joker, Colton hadn’t seen him all day.
“Jack?” Colton called out, heading for the room where he remembered the electrical panel had been.
“In here,” Jack called out.
Colton followed Jack’s voice and found him sitting at a large wooden table with a bunch of wires and what looked to be some metal box. He knew nothing of wiring and electrical things.
“I got the invoices from Clara on all the supplies. I need you to email me exactly what you need so I can start getting that stuff in first. Also, where’s Joker?”
“Since there isn’t much we can do until the supplies come in, he’s on the hunt for the perfect Christmas present for Gio.” Jack snorted. “What do you get a billionaire for Christmas? He struggles with it every year.”
Colton sat opposite Jack. “As if Gio wouldn’t love whatever Joker gives him.”
