“How did it go?” Jonathan asked as he returned from his walk with the dogs.

Lola, despite her age, had enjoyed the opportunity to explore the castle and make friends among the children playing in the snow. Diego, on the other hand, looked as if he’d seen enough of snow for a lifetime.

“The Mitchells are traveling, apparently. But their PA assured me that they don’t blame me for anything.”

“See?” he said. “I told you. You’re hardly responsible for a blizzard. That’s a force of nature.”

She snorted, although her eyes were warm with relief. “Not if the blizzard is caused by a dire wolf who may or may not have been targeting me. And of course, I can’t tell them about the wolf. It just feels dishonest, that’s all. Even though I know no one would believe me anyway.”

Jonathan pulled her close. “Whether you tell them the truth or not, the results are the same. The house got destroyed in a storm, and the insurance will pay. That’s what matters. It’s not like you’re lying about setting the curtains on fire by accident.”

Angel sighed, then relaxed in his arms. “I guess you’re right.”

“So. Want to go out and explore the castle once more? I met Henrik outside, and he said we’re in for a treat.”

“Oh?” Angel immediately perked up. “What’s going on?”

“There’s an auction this evening in the neighboring town. Apparently the children of Christmas Valley craft little dragon decorations every year that get auctioned off for charity.”

Angel beamed. “That sounds adorable. I’d love to see that. Do you think it will be safe?”

“The town is on dragon territory. And Henrik and Dara will be there as well. I don’t think the dire wolf would dare to come close.”

“In that case I’d love to go.” Angel’s eyes gleamed at him.

Jonathan felt something inside him expand again with helpless longing. This was what he wanted for the both of them. A home like the one Henrik and Dara had managed to build together.

They worked hard for it, of course—but Snow Castle was beautiful. Every single detail showed the care and love they’d put into it.

And while he didn’t think that he and Angel would run a large winter resort together, he found himself longing for the home they could build.

A home with holiday traditions of their own. With handcrafted decorations on the tree. With evenings in front of the fireplace while snow fell outside.

And maybe, one day soon, with a child to experience the magic of Christmas with wide eyes...

Jonathan tore himself away from that line of thought when Angel gave him an amused look.

“What are you thinking of? You looked like you went somewhere else for a moment.”

“Just daydreaming,” he said. “Well...daydreaming about how nice it would be to have a Christmas tree of our own.”

“Who says we can’t have that? You’ve slept in your cave for long enough. It’s time to live again.” She nudged his shoulder. “And I think buying our first little dragon decoration together is a great start.”

Warmth welled up again inside him. He gave her a grateful look. For some reason, whenever he got lost in his memories of the past, she found a way to pull him out of himself.

“It is,” he murmured. “I couldn’t think of a better way.”

***

The little town of Christmas Valley was gorgeous. It nestled against the mountain, as perfect as a Christmas postcard with its small houses, their roofs all white with snow, decorated with lights.

As they walked past gardens, they admired the snow sculptures—there were ordinary snowmen and snow women, some of them obviously built by children. But there were also snow dogs and cats, snow houses, and one family had built a life-sized snow Santa with a sleigh.

“That’s incredible. I don’t want to do know how much work went into this,” Angel said in awe.

“An entire weekend, pretty much.” A teenaged girl with a bright pink coat and skin a shade darker than Angel’s peeked up from behind the wall. “We won best snow sculpture of our street. Last year, we barely missed the first prize. This year, Mom and Dad pulled out all the stops.”

Then there was a sudden burst of music coming from somewhere around the corner.

“Oops! I’m late! If you guys are coming for the auction, better hurry up! It’s about to start!” the girl said, then raced back to the house. “Mom! Mom, we’re going to be late!”

Jonathan grinned. “Henrik said there’ll be a choir singing first. We’re not that late.”

Angel eagerly pulled him forward regardless.

Jonathan could smell the tell-tale scent of spices and sugar now. The music was interrupted by a sudden, loud cheer—and then they’d at last made it to the end of the street.

When they turned the corner, they found themselves facing a beautiful town square. It was filled with people, who were all eagerly watching a small platform where a group of children were arranging themselves.

All around the square, there were little stalls selling hot chocolate, mulled cider, eggnog and all sorts of decorated cookies.

“Back in a second,” Jonathan said. “Save me a good spot?”

Most people had abandoned the food stalls to watch the choir, and so it only took him two minutes to return to Angel’s side.

He handed her a cup of hot chocolate, and she beamed. The stall down here didn’t have any weird or inventive flavors on offer, but instead they’d topped their mugs with marshmallows, a giant heap of whipped cream, and lots of chocolate syrup.

“Mmm.” Angel sighed in delight when she took a sip. “This tastes like childhood.”

Jonathan closed his eyes, tasting the richness of the chocolate on his tongue, the cool sweetness of the cream melting in his mouth.

It was a comforting taste. The taste of childhood and home.

Only his home was gone. He’d never be able to return, and it was all his own fault.

As the hot chocolate warmed his chest, he thought of his sister.

Once, long ago, when they’d been children together, they’d waited for Santa to come and leave them presents with such excitement.

I wonder what Maya’s doing now. Is she happy?

She had to be. By Jonathan’s sacrifice, she’d been able to keep her mate. And whatever had happened after Jonathan had left, he knew that she and Vincent loved each other. By now, they’d probably built a family of their own among Vincent’s rich and influential clan.

Then the choir began to sing, pulling him away from his thoughts.

With the first few notes of Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Jonathan felt his melancholy fade away.

So what if he’d missed out on ten years of Christmas mornings?

He had an eternity of holidays with Angel by his side waiting for him. And with the kids in their adorable tiny parkas and hats in front of him, it was impossible to feel even the smallest amount of sadness.

Angel leaned against him. He wrapped his arm around her, holding his mug with his other hand.

“Look at that bunny ear hat. Isn’t that the cutest thing ever?” she whispered. “I want one like that.”

One of the tiniest children, a girl who’d probably only just started school this year, wore a fluffy white hat with floppy bunny ears. She was grinning from ear to ear, barely able to keep from bouncing as she sang with the other children. In the break between songs, she waved eagerly to where her mom and dad were watching.

“What a cutie!”

“And so energetic.” Jonathan chuckled softly, tightening his arm around Angel.

“That’s my favorite sort of kid.” She turned around to grin at him.

In return Jonathan pressed a kiss to Angel’s nose. “I wonder why.”

“I’ll have you know that I was a very cute kid. And well-behaved. Just...energetic.” She laughed, her eyes sparkling, looking entirely unapologetic for whatever mischief she’d gotten up to as a child.

“My grandma always used to say that the punishment for the trouble Maya and I used to get into was that one day, we’d be running after our own kids.” Jonathan laughed. “And you know what? I hope they’ll be just as terrible as I used to be.”

“So do I,” Angel said softly, her eyes full of love.

As if she genuinely believed that he was a good person, even though she knew the truth about him.

And maybe she was right. Maybe, even after the terrible mistake he’d made, he deserved a second chance. After all, why else would fate have sent his mate to him?

This time, he wouldn’t mess up. She was more precious than any diamond. He’d give his own life to protect hers.

And he wanted that future he could see now, after the long years of loneliness in the ice.

He wanted the future where they had a home, where there’d be shared meals, holidays spent together, kids to tuck in at night. Even if he had to stay away from his own kind forever to protect the deal he’d made with Vincent’s father.

As long as he had Angel, he knew that he’d never be lonely again.