“I’m glad you like egg nog.” She handed me a refilled glass.

“Why is that?” I accepted the glass before using my free hand to pull her close.

“Because I love it, yet no one else ever does so I can’t generally rationalize buying any.” She lightly tugged on the sleeve of my t-shirt. I was woefully underdressed compared to the little black dress she was wearing, but she didn’t seem to care.

“And you couldn’t just buy it for yourself?” I lifted her delicate gold necklace with a small candy cane charm with a diamond. Maybe it would be corny for some people, but it had seemed like the perfect gift when we were at Mrs. Nellow’s shop. I was glad we’d always have a memory from our first date.

“I could, but then I’d have to drink the whole thing myself.” She put a hand on her stomach. “And then I’d get sick.”

“No getting sick.” I captured her hand in mine. It appeared to be such a delicate hand, but I knew better. I knew the power it could unleash.

“I won’t since I have you.”

I set my glass down on a side table. “You do have me.”

“The tree really does look perfect there.” She examined a red and blue stripped candy cane hanging from a branch. “I’m going to miss it when we take it down.”

“You have an eye for spaces, and we don’t have to rush and take it down.” She could keep it up all year if she wanted.

“If I have an eye for it, does that mean if I decide to move in you’ll trust me to make non-holiday decorating decisions?” She pressed the palm of her hand on my chest.

“Nancy, if you decide to move it you can bulldoze the house and build a new one.” I looked deep into her eyes so she would realize I was being completely serious.

“But we’d have no house then.”

“But you’d have still agreed to move in it, so I could wait.” I ran my hand over the back of her neck.

She laughed. “I don’t want to bulldoze it. I like it here. It could use some lightening up though.”

“Lighten it up all you want.” I put my arms around her waist and pulled her close. “It’s getting close to midnight.”

“It is. I wonder if I’m going to get a midnight kiss this year.” She ran her fingers over my lips.

“You are.” I captured her finger, along with her hand and backed her up to the stairs. “I can promise you that.”

“At exactly midnight?” She licked her lower lip.

“That requires me to wait twenty minutes to kiss you.” I stared at her full red lips. There was little chance of my waiting that long.

“Or you could kiss me now and later.” She slipped her finger through my belt loop and pulled me toward her.

Everything about her pulled me in. We were close enough I could feel the heat from her body, and her scent was intoxicating. “Or I could kiss you from now until midnight.”

Her eyes lit up. “I like that third option.”

“Oh yeah?” I brushed my lips against hers. “I like it too.”

As much as I wanted to claim her lips right then and there, I waited. I picked her up and carried her upstairs to my bedroom. I carefully set her down on her feet at the foot of the bed before pulling off my t-shirt.

“Thanks for the access.” She left tiny kisses across my chest.

I closed my eyes to enjoy the sensation of her touch before needing more. “Mind if I get some access?” I reached behind her and hesitated with my hand on the zipper of her dress.

“Please do.” Her teeth grazed her lip.

I slowly unzipped her dress, letting it pool on the floor by her feet. She undid my belt and unbuttoned my pants, bringing back memories of the last time her hands had released me. So much had changed since that night, yet it had only been a week and a half.

I unclasped her bra, immediately claiming a breast with my mouth while I slid her underwear down her legs. I released her breast and took a step back, admiring every inch of her unbelievable body. Mine. My wolf howled inside, knowing what it had known since the night of the ball. No amount of magic could have hidden the truth from me forever.

“Are you really going to stand there and make me wait?”

I didn’t waste time answering with words. I pulled back the covers and laid her down on the cool sheets. “I’ve been waiting a long time to get you in my bed.”

“Probably about as long as I’ve been waiting to get in it.”

I grinned, laying down beside her. I ran my lips over her neck while my hand slid between her legs.

She closed her eyes, and I watched, loving every moan, every sound of contentment she made. She was so open with me, so ready, and I was grateful I’d somehow managed to break through her walls and get close.

She opened her eyes and reached out for me. “Norm.”

She didn’t need to explain more. I was as ready as she was. I positioned myself over her and looked deep into her eyes. “I love you, Nancy.”

“I love you too.” She smiled. “And I want to be yours forever.”

I stilled, struggling to hold myself back but needing to make sure she was saying what I thought she was.

“I’m meant to be your mate.” It was her turn to look deep into my eyes. “You’ve said it yourself. I feel it too. Make me your mate.”

“There is nothing hotter you could have said right now.” I thrust into her, starting off slow and following her cues as I picked up the pace.

She held onto me, calling out my name, so I moved harder, faster, until all of me was inside of her. Being inside her was euphoric, and I ran my lips over the sensitive skin of her neck. She wanted this. I needed this.

I bit down. She whimpered, but quickly the whimper turned into a moan. I continued to move inside her, holding on as long as I could while I ran my tongue over the wound, sealing it up. Mine. There was no question about it. Nancy was mine, and I was hers.

* * *

“One of these days we’re going to have to get out of bed.” She curled up in my arms, pulling the sheet higher up. The days had blurred together, and I had no interest in changing that even though eventually I knew we’d have to get out of the house.

“We’ve been out of bed a few times.”

“We both have work—.”

“Have you decided what you’re going to do now?” There were many other things on my mind rather than work, but this was important to Nancy, so it was important to me.

“They’re going to let me work remotely.” She slipped her hand under the sheet, and I waited with bated breath to see where it was going. She rested it on my stomach.

“Perfect.” I ran my lips down her arm.

“It is. It means we can go move my stuff…”

I grinned. “Yes, it does. I’m ready for you to move in.”

“Because my staying here for nearly a week isn’t tantamount to the same thing?” Her hand slid down a little lower.

“No. That could still be temporary.”

She inclined her neck to give me a better view of the mark that was barely visible now. “I don’t think we need to worry about temporary.”

“No, we don’t.” I rolled her over so she was on top of me.

She laughed. “So I was thinking…”

“About?” I trailed my fingers down her back.

“Maybe next year we can put a Christmas tree in our room too.”

“We can have as many trees as you want.” I wrapped my arms around her.

“Be careful, or you’ll end up with ten.”

I laughed. “Is that so? Is that the number of kids you were thinking about too?”

“Kids?” She froze. “Let’s do this one step at a time.”

“Hey, you aren’t the only impatient one.”

“No, I’m not.” She pressed her lips against mine, and any thoughts of getting out of bed were gone.