A man could hope once his kids reached the age of not believing in Santa, they’d sleep in a little on Christmas morning. A man would be wrong—especially if the kids in question were Zoe and Jade. The inseparable duo must have somehow recharged each other’s batteries during the nighttime hours, and, as if on a timer, they pounded on Ben and Kezia’s bedroom door at 6:30 a.m. At least, Ben thought the digit on his watch was a six and not an eight. It was hard to tell with only one eye cracked open.

“Are you two decent?” Zoe yelled through the door.

Ben rolled over to face his beautiful bride, or what he could see of her among the halo of dark curls spilling over her face. Under the covers, he skimmed a hand down her arm, over her hip, and rested it on her flannel-covered stomach. God knew the woman could make penguin-printed pajamas as sexy as a lacy negligee.

“Are we decent, honey?” he whispered, brushing the curls back from her face. “I guess we must be since we found the energy to cover our nakedness sometime in the wee hours.”

One feminine eye slitted open and moments later a hand snuck across the sheets to cup him through his pajama bottoms. She made a croaky sound that could have meant any number of witty comebacks, but he was kinda partial to the one she was making now.

“Hellooo?” Jade’s voice came from floor level and drifted under the door. “I know you’re awake in there. I heard Dad talking.”

Ben grinned at his sleepy wife and stilled her hand. She’d near exhausted him last night, but that wasn’t going to stop parts of his anatomy thinking all its Christmases had come at once.

“We’re awake,” he called. “You can come in.”

Whoops, barks, and Zoe, Jade, and Sparky burst into their room. Zoe and Jade tumbled onto the bed with their Santa sacks. Even though they were ‘too old’ for them, the girls had insisted on putting them out just in case. Sparky danced around barking and trying to find a spot clear of humans to launch her little body up onto the bed. With a heartfelt sigh, Ben draped an arm over the bed edge and scooped the little dog up into the center of the action. He set Sparky on the bed and got a paw to the groin for his trouble as she scampered up the covers to lick his chin.

Beside him, Kezia had sat up to receive her morning hugs from the girls.

“Aw,” she said, slanting him a glance. “We all know who Sparky’s favorite chew toy is, don’t we?”

Zoe crawled between Ben and Kezia, settling herself against the headboard. “She lurrrvs you, Dad.”

Jade giggled and joined her, squeezing between Zoe and Kezia. “Almost as much as Mama does.”

“Seriously ruining my tough-guy reputation, ladies,” Ben said, further blowing his image by allowing Sparky do her three times around before settling on his lap routine. “How about you open some presents?”

Ten minutes later their bed was covered in a ruin of wrapping paper, much to Sparky’s delight. Ben made the appropriate positive grunts over the girls’ Santa presents of what seemed to be six dozen pairs of socks and brightly colored hair ties, plus various other stuff which he’d end up stepping on in the middle of the night. He flicked back the covers and got up, reaching for his robe.

“Come on, we’ll start on breakfast while your mama makes herself beautiful.”

“Mama is already beautiful,” Jade said loyally.

“Can’t we open the presents under the tree and then make breakfast?” Zoe wheedled.

Like he was going to fall for that one. Once they got to the presents under the tree the girls would be too excited to eat.

“Nope,” he said. “Breakfast first, presents after we’ve eaten and loaded the dishwasher.” Listen to him, Mr. Domesticity.

The girls groaned but stuffed their presents back into their Santa sacks and lugged them out of the bedroom.

“Are you okay?” he asked once they were out of earshot.

Kezia slanted him a glance under her lashes, then her gaze flicked to her nightstand drawer. “I’m fine. Just distract the girls and give me a few minutes alone with my emergency supplies and I’ll be right with you.”

He crossed to the doorway, then turned back. “You are already beautiful.”

She smiled at him, even though, oh damn, she was looking a little pale. “Hoping to get lucky again, sailor?”

“I’m lucky already.” He said it in the same teasing tone, but he meant every word of it. Lucky didn’t begin to describe how amazing his life was now that Kez and the girls were in it. “I’ll go make you some toast.”

Breakfast over and done with, Ben and Kezia sat in their robes around the Christmas tree with the girls. Jade had switched the tree lights on and they flashed red and green over the piles of wrapped gifts—a not so flattering color palette for Kezia who, even after toast and tea for breakfast, still looked a little dodgy.

The girls tore through their presents until there was only one left each—the ones he’d instructed them to leave until last.

“You have to open them at exactly the same time,” said Kezia.

Zoe squeezed the small, soft package. “I already know what’s inside.” She rolled her eyes at Jade. “Dad’s got us matching outfits or something, like we’re little kids.”

“Dad.” Jade managed to stretch the word out to two eye-rolling syllables.

Ben mock glared at them. “Just open it already. I spent hours picking these out.”

With heartfelt sighs, Zoe and Jade ripped into the reindeer-printed paper and two items of clothing dropped onto the girls’ laps.

Jade held up a small yellow T-shirt. “It’s too small.”

“So is mine.” Zoe’s was in pale green.

“Turn it around and read what it says on the front,” Kezia said.

The girls did, with Jade, who was dyslexic like him, taking a beat longer than Zoe to make sense of the text.

“If you think I’m cute,” Jade read aloud, “you should see my big sisters.” Her nose scrunched up. “Huh?”

Next to her Zoe was still. Unnaturally still for a girl who didn’t stop bouncing, skipping, dancing, or fidgeting. Ben’s stomach plummeted and he’d a fair idea of what Kez had been going through these past few weeks.

“Zoe?” he asked. “Are you okay?”

Her eyes lifted from the pale green T-shirt clutched in her fists to him. “Does this mean we’re going to have a baby brother or sister?”

Jade’s gaze zipped to his face before he could draw in breath to answer. “A baby? We’re having a baby?”

Ben shrugged. “Technically your mama’s having the baby, but yeah, we’re having a baby.”

The girls forgot they were sophisticated tweens and squealed loud enough to send every bird in a mile radius into the cloudless blue sky that’d dawned this morning. Then they both launched themselves at Kezia, hugging her until she laughed and begged for mercy.

“You have to have a boy.” Jade tucked herself close to Kezia’s side. “It’s only fair that Dad doesn’t have another girl in the family.”

“Nothing wrong with girls,” Ben said. “But a boy would make us two to three.”

“Two to four,” said Zoe. “Sparky’s part of the family.”

Sparky woofed in agreement.

Kezia’s eyes sparkled in the fairy lights as she wrapped her arms around the girls sitting either side of her. She dipped her head. “You know, there is a chance that in five months’ time we girls could outnumber your dad six to one.”

This time both girls’ noses crinkled as they said, “Huh?”

Kez shrugged and angled her head toward him. Zoe and Jade’s slightly frowning faces turned in his direction and he couldn’t prevent the biggest, widest smile from bursting out on his face.

“Merry Christmas, girls. We’re having twins—you get a baby brother or sister each,” he said. Seconds later two girls and a dog launched themselves at him and covered him with kisses.