“Not a big deal?” Nolan demanded, his voice growing higher in pitch. “If it stole our socks, that means it went upstairs. Possibly when we are sleeping.”
“Huh. That’s true.” The necromancer turned to the tree and got out his wagging finger again. “No more wandering through the house. You stay right there with your pan of water. If you keep it up, I’m putting you outside.”
“Oh my God,” Nolan muttered, scrubbing a hand over his face.
Sky moved to him and wrapped his arms around his waist. With a magic that was Sky’s alone, the panic and confusion that frazzled Nolan’s nerves dissipated like smoke. How could he stay angry with Sky grinning at him like that?
“It’ll be fine. I’m sure it was curious and wanted to explore. It’ll stay put now,” Sky reassured him.
“I hope you’re right. I think I’d have a heart attack if I stumbled across that thing in the middle of the night on my way to get a drink of water.”
The necromancer with the sweet smile leaned up and brushed a kiss across Nolan’s jaw. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you from the little tree.”
A reluctant smirk toyed with the corner of Nolan’s mouth as he leaned down to steal another kiss. “You better, or I’m going to feed you to that tree.”
Chapter 3
December 7
Nolan shuffled to the hall closet and grabbed his heavy winter coat. The temperature had plunged overnight, and the promise of snow was clear in the low-hanging gray clouds. He stuffed his arms into the sleeves and zipped up before snagging his knit hat with the pom-pom on top. Sky emerged from the kitchen, carrying Nolan’s extra-large travel mug filled with coffee.
“I topped you off,” Sky said with his usual early morning smile. Only a man who designed greeting cards for a living could be so chipper first thing in the morning. And that was after a night of raising the dead in a freezing cemetery.
“You’re my little skeletal angel,” Nolan whispered as he accepted the mug and stole a kiss. “What are you working on today?”
“Easter cards!” Sky bounced up on the balls of his feet. His enthusiasm was not contagious at that early hour of the morning, but Nolan was willing to admit that he was at least adorable.
“Ugh. I don’t know how you do it. We’re less than three weeks away from Christmas.”
“True, but didn’t you tell me you write your Christmas romances in June?”
“Okay, you’ve got me there. However, all I have to do to get in the spirit is jack up the air conditioning and play Christmas music on repeat. You’ve got Christmas decorations surrounding you in your office.”
Sky shrugged. “I turn the ornaments into colored eggs when I’m sketching. Do you need me to fetch you for lunch?”
Nolan shook his head. “Nope. Already have the alarm set on my phone. I think today is going to be a half day. I need to finish shopping for Jennifer and a certain necromancer who swears he doesn’t want anything for Christmas.”
The imp smirked at Nolan. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m easy to buy for.”
He grunted, stole one last kiss, and slipped out the front door. The roses didn’t give him so much as a second look as he walked by. But with the weather becoming so bitterly cold, they’d fallen into hibernation until the spring thaw.
He paused at the bottom of the driveway and waved at Mrs. Lawson as she drove by on her way to work. He had no doubt all the neighbors thought he was insane. Months ago, he’d moved in with his adorable golden boyfriend but had yet to sell his home. The truth was that he didn’t know what to do about it.
Sky’s house was a cute three-bedroom that had belonged to his Grammy and was filled to the brim with magical things and Sky’s quirky knickknacks. They shared the master bedroom while the other two bedrooms were a guest room and Sky’s office. They’d attempted to share Sky’s office once, but they had spent most of the day talking. By the end of the day, Nolan had gotten only fifty words written, so that option was a bust. The other option was to take over the guest room, but Nolan enjoyed having a spare room for Sky’s friends to crash in after a late night of watching BL shows.
Plus, Nolan found he did a much better job of separating work and life in his mind when he actually had to leave to go to his office.
He probably should think about selling his place, but there was currently no rush. He’d wait for spring. Most people didn’t think much about moving while buried under snow. Now, everyone was concerned with holiday shopping. Besides, winter was always a rough time to move. Mother Nature could dump three feet of snow on their city with little to no warning, grinding everything to a halt.
As he stepped into the street, an odd scraping noise reached his ears. He stopped and twisted to stare behind him, but he couldn’t spot what had made the noise. Maybe it was a squirrel out searching for some food to add to its winter store.
He shoved the thought from his mind and continued across the street. Yet, as soon as he made it to the middle of the street, he heard the noise again. He twisted in a flash. The creepy tree tried to dart away to hide, but it slammed into the side of Sky’s powder-blue car. Its ornaments and lights jingled, and the plug at the end of the cord dangling from its inner branches bounced along the concrete as it scrambled to hide behind Sky’s car.
“What the hell!” Nolan cried. “What are you doing out here? If the neighbors see you, they’re going to have heart attacks!”
Nolan jogged across the street and set his travel mug on the roof of the car with an angry thunk. He chased the tree around the car twice, attempting to shoo it toward the house. Every once in a while, he would glance over his shoulder at the other houses, praying none of the neighbors would choose that exact moment to peek out their windows.
“In the house now, or I swear I’m chopping you up for firewood.”
