“No, thank you. And Merry Christmas.”
He smiled and nodded. “You, too.”
Broxen maneuvered through the crowded store—grabbing a couple more items for Ana on the way—to get in line for the register, barely stopping himself from fidgeting with impatience. He wanted to get back home, but there was still so much to do. He needed to check this Target for decorations; he’d told Gabriela that was the reason he was making the trip down into the Treasure Valley today, and even if it hadn’t been the only reason, it wasn’t a lie.
But there was one more stop he had to make in the mall before he left, perhaps the most important one of them all.
Whether it was instinct or something more, whenever he looked into Gabriela’s eyes, he knew she was the one.
He knew she was his.
And he couldn’t wait to claim her.
Seventeen
Gabriela sat cuddled beneath the blanket with Ana on the couch, watching Beauty and the Beast. She couldn’t help but smile at how the movie had taken on a new relevance to her.
Of course, the details were different; Broxen had saved them from a mountain lion instead of a pack of wolves, and though he was often reserved and had a tendency to be terse, he wasn’t grumpy and coarse like the Beast. Then there was the matter of him being a demon-like alien masquerading as a man rather than a man cursed to live as a beast.
And haven’t I always been disappointed, even as a child, over the fact that the Beast changed at the end of the movie?
Now Gabby had her very own beast who meant to take her as his mate.
But where was he?
Not for the first time, she glanced toward the front door. Broxen had left early this morning, right after breakfast, saying he was going to Boise in search of Christmas decorations. Over eight hours had passed since then, and he still wasn’t home. Snow was lightly falling outside, and the highways could be dangerous even in clear weather. Worry gnawed at her.
I don’t even have a phone to call him.
Broxen had ordered her a new cellphone, but it wouldn’t arrive until after Christmas.
Ana’s giggles drew Gabby’s attention away from the door. The movie was at the scene where the furniture had come to life to defend the castle. Gabriela smiled and smoothed her hand over her daughter’s hair.
Broxen is fine.
But no matter how many times she told herself that, she couldn’t stop fretting over all the things that could go wrong during his trip. So much had happened recently, and the thought of losing him…
Gabriela’s stomach knotted and cramped.
Nothing is going to happen to him. Nothing.
“Are we going to make cookies for Santa?” Ana asked, turning her head to look up at Gabriela.
“We’ll bake some chocolate chip cookies for him tomorrow so they’re fresh.”
“The best kind. Especially when the chocolate is all warm and gooey.”
“Mmm. I agree.”
“Are there carrots for the reindeer?” Ana turned her face back toward the TV.
“Yep. You know I wouldn’t forget them.”
The front door swung open, startling Gabby and Ana. Large, clumped snowflakes blew in on a gust of wind. Gabriela turned her head, and her heart leapt when she saw Broxen’s big, broad-shouldered, muscular body filling the doorway. Ducking his head, he stepped inside, carrying multiple shopping bags with red Target logos. He kicked the door shut behind him.
“Broxen!” Ana threw off the blanket, jumped off the couch, and raced toward him. He had to hurriedly shift the bags out of the way as she threw her arms around his waist and hugged him tight.
Gabriela’s relief was immense and immediate. She stood and followed her daughter’s suit, wrapping her arms around Broxen’s chest and pressing her face against his coat. The melting snow on his coat wet her cheek, but she didn’t care. He was safe. He was home. She breathed in his spicy pine scent, which was currently mixed with the crisp smell of winter, and sighed contentedly.
He chuckled, producing a rumble in his chest. “I missed both of you.”
“I missed you, too,” Gabriela said, rubbing her cheek against his chest.
“Me, three. Now what’d you get?” Ana asked, pulling away with a bright smile. She was nearly vibrating with excitement.
“Everything they had left,” he replied with a smirk.
Gabriela drew back, glancing at the bags hanging from his arms. She held her hands out. “Let me help with those.”
Broxen met Gabriela’s gaze, and that lustful gleam sparked in his eyes as he looked her over. “I’m fine, female.”
Gabriela’s breath hitched, and heat flooded her core. She never would have imagined being called female would be so sexy, but spoken in his rough, rumbling voice, that word was enough to wet her panties and make her weak in the knees.
“Are the blinds closed?” He didn’t look away from her. There was so much wicked promise within his eyes.
“I’ll get them,” Ana said, running to the front window.
As soon as the blinds were closed, that hex pattern shimmered over Broxen’s skin, and Gabriela’s prince became the beast again. It was still hard to believe that such alien technology—that aliens—really existed. It was a shock to see the changes overcome him so swiftly, but she was growing more and more accustomed to it. And she had no doubts now; he was more attractive in his natural form.
She was turned on by a beast with horns, claws, fangs, and a tail.
Broxen set the bags on the living room floor.
Ana plopped down and started pulling things out of the bags. There were giant and tiny red velvet bows, ribbon in a variety of colors, fake wreaths, garland, a golden tinsel star tree topper, ornaments of all kinds—colored bulbs, sculpted food, balls and players from different sports, cartoony people, animals, and more. One bag was filled with packages of tinsel, and two more were stuffed with boxes of Christmas lights, almost all of which were the warm white kind no one seemed to buy.
There were also metal reindeer that looked like polished gold, stuffed snowmen and Santas, some that sang and danced when Ana pressed their buttons, a white tree skirt with multi-colored polka dots and pom-poms around the edge, and three stockings—one in the traditional red and white, one with green stripes and the letter Z on the front, and a knitted Star Wars R2-D2 stocking.
Almost none of it matched. It was the kind of stuff you usually saw on the shelves after Christmas, the stuff that always ended up on clearance.
“Wow. There really is a little bit of everything,” Gabriela said with a laugh.
“Can we decorate now?” Ana asked, clutching a pickle ornament as she looked up at Gabby and Broxen.
“Yes,” Broxen said, removing his coat, “but only if you’re lead decorator.”
“You got it.” Ana rose to her feet. “This is going to be the most beautiful tree ever.”
Gabby grinned. Maybe not the most beautiful, but it would be the best tree they’d ever decorated.
“We should put the lights up first.” Ana plucked up two of the boxes of Christmas lights and held them out to Broxen and Gabriela.
As she accepted the lights, Gabriela exchanged a glance with Broxen, and he gave her one of those disarming, fanged smiles before he took the other box from Ana and stepped toward the tree.