24. Cole
Chapter twenty-four
Cole
We only stay in Pehmolelu for a couple of days before we go on to Pyor?. The news of our visits travels fast, and it feels like each village tries to top the previous one.
We all kind of miss the calm of Puutyot, but we’re still on a mission to find the perfect idea for the Naughty List.
The paddle we made in Puutyot is purely for our own use and not a viable option as a gift for children. The teddies from Pehmolelu are cute keepsakes, three mini bear versions of us that will have a prime spot in our house, but they still don’t feel like they will resonate with all children.
Pyor? was fun, but only because Natalie and Jasper taught me how to ride a bike. Living in the snow means I don’t have much need for one, but when they heard I hadn’t learned before, they made it their mission to teach me. I may have wobbled a couple of times and fallen once, maybe twice, but I figured it out in the end.
The drawing Natalie made of me on the bike will definitely get framed. She’s mentioned buying some watercolors when we get back home— our home—to add to the nutcrackers, the cycling sketch, the sleigh, and the one of Jasper.
A strange calm settles over me as we near Kirja, the final village on our tour around the North Pole. I don’t know if we’ll find what we need to, but this entire adventure has been worth it. Not only has the bond between us strengthened, but the knowledge that we have the rest of our lives for… more, for… everything, has me looking forward to my future for the first time in ages. My heart fills with contentment and so much love for my mates, it feels like I’m glowing from the inside out.
“Um…” Natalie starts, and I turn my head slightly to give her my attention while also keeping my eyes trained on Merry and Jolly’s backs. “Cole, did you maybe just have some cutesy feelings? Like, did you think of something nice?”
My brow creases. “How do you…? The bond!” I answer my own question.
Jasper leans forward and looks at us, eyes the size of saucers with unconstrained excitement. “You felt that too? I thought it was only me.”
Natalie rubs at her chest with a gloved hand. “I’ve been feeling some emotions over the last couple of days, but I thought it was just all the warm and fuzzies you guys are giving me,” she explains, pretty much reflecting my own thoughts.
“The bond must be strengthening!” Jasper exclaims. Merry lets out a grunt at the sudden noise, flicking his head in agitation. I mentally apologize to the reindeer, but I’m too elated at the news to be overly concerned with him right now.
“Don’t go feeling bad for Merry. He’s just jealous,” Jasper teases.
“Fuck! Did you feel that too?” I ask, shocked how quickly he could pick that up.
“Now that I know where your emotions sit in my heart, it’s easy to find you,” Jasper explains. “Our bond is like a golden thread connecting us, your emotions bright at the other end.” Turning to Natalie, he continues, “And our bond is cherry red, just like your lips. Can you feel this?”
A breath shudders out of me and my blood goes straight to my cock with the emotions Jasper pumps down the bond, and I almost get images, but that can’t be right.
Natalie shifts in her seat like she got the exact same thing I did. “Are you sending us visuals too?” Her voice sounds just as breathy as mine feels, would I be able to talk now.
“Fuck! This is exciting! Oh, the games we can play sending suggestions to each other at inappropriate times,” Jasper babbles, dancing in his seat and making the sleigh swerve with the movement.
“You mean like this?” I can feel Natalie’s concentration as she pushes an image through our bond, and I have to blink hard to keep my focus on the road. It does the job of shutting Jasper up, though. I glance at him staring at her open-mouthed, his eyes calculating, most probably trying to think if it’s possible.
“Jasper.” There’s no real censure in my tone, but I need to put an end to their line of thinking before he convinces Natalie to actually try to straddle his face right here in the sleigh. That just sounds like an accident waiting to happen.
Thankfully, the first buildings of Kirja come into view at that time and we all fall quiet as we approach the village.
The snow here is the palest pink and covers less than what we’ve seen in other villages. It dusts the sloped roofs in a thin layer, and powders the low stone walls lining the narrow road. It’s almost like I have the desire to stop the sleigh and dig my hands into the snow, to breathe some kind of life into it to make it fluffy and bright like it’s meant to be.
Round windows filled with warm light, smoking chimneys made of stone, and doors with plain wreaths of pine make the houses feel like they’re more suited for a fairy tale than here.
Lanterns dotted along the stone wall light up in turn as we near them, leading us into the center of town. There are no elaborate garlands or choirs waiting to greet us, but the village’s quaint charm speaks louder than the brightest decorations.
Cole and Natalie must feel it too, because Natalie silently places a hand on my thigh and reaches for Jasper’s hand with her other as our sleigh whooshes down the street.
Piercing the peaceful quiet, the reindeer's grunts signal our arrival as we pull up to the guest cottage. The front door creaks open and an ancient elf steps out. A bushy mustache perches on his top lip, the corners twirled in a perfect handlebar. His pointed ears droop with age and delicate half-moon glasses balance on the tip of his nose.
As one, we get out of the sleigh and stand a few steps down from the four-foot-tall elf.
“Welcome to Kirja,” he says, his voice low and rich. “I’m Quill Evergreen. You three are a sight for my sore old eyes.”
There’s something instantly likable about him. Like I want to sit with him for hours and hear his stories from back in the day.
I hold a hand out, ready to shake his gently. “I’m Cole. These are my mates, Natalie and Jasper.”
“Hi, Quill,” Natalie says, giving him a small wave as he places a warm hand in mine.
“Now that’s a story I would love to hear.” The smile that follows transforms Quill’s face. It’s like the thought of a good story melts the years off him, his hooded eyes twinkling with a new light.
“I volunteer as storyteller,” Jasper says, raising his hand. “And Natalie has drawings to match. Though, she might have to be selective of which ones to show you,” he adds with a wink.
A full belly laugh rumbles out of Quill, his shoulders shaking with mirth. “I can only imagine. Let’s get you inside. It hasn’t snowed in ages, but you never know, tonight might be the night.”
“You guys go in. I’ll join you once I get the reindeer settled in the stables.” I head back to Merry and Jolly, giving them lots of pets and praise for their good work. I unhook their harnesses from the sleigh and grab their bridles, leading them toward the back of the cottage where the reindeer stables usually are.
Thanks to us accepting our fated bond, we no longer have the distance restriction in place. If one of us wants to go somewhere alone, we are now free to do so. However, stepping away from my mates to settle the reindeer is as far as I want to go.
After I get them tucked in, I take a moment to look up at the clear sky, finding the North Star directly above me. Breathing in deeply, I search for my mate bonds and find Jasper’s and Natalie’s without much effort. Their humor and joy courses through me as traces of their laughter float from the house.
The focus on them must be why I don’t hear someone approaching.
“Um, hi, Cole.”
I turn around abruptly, gasping as my heart pounds wildly at the sight before me. “Father?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”
My father looks years older than the last time I saw him. His hair is all white, and the full beard he used to be proud of is shorter than I’ve ever seen it, only a little longer than stubble. Melancholy seeps from him, and something uncomfortable twists in my chest.
“Are you okay?” I ask him, really concerned for his well-being now that my heart rate is stabilizing.
Ignoring the question, he says, “You look well. Happy.” For the first time, a hint of a smile pulls at his mouth, and the light twinkle that all Santas have threatens to make an appearance in his eyes.
“I’m mated. I’m very happy,” I state honestly, my satisfied grin impossible to keep off my face.
“Congratulations. That’s wonderful.” My father looks like he really means that too. His hands flex at his sides like he wants to reach out and pat my shoulder or something.
“Thank you.” I’m grateful for his kind words, but unsure about why I’m having this conversation outside the stables right now. “What are you doing here? Do you live in Kirja?” I ask, needing some kind of indication of why he orchestrated this meeting.
My father swallows hard, his Adam’s bobbing with the movement. “Close by. I heard you were heading this way and I wanted to take the opportunity to talk to you. To apologize.”
I tilt my head, confused by this whole interaction. “To apologize for what?” My tone is curious, all the hurt from when I was young replaced by worry for him.
“Everything. I—”
“Cole! Where are you?” Jasper calls from the cottage.
“Cole! Are you okay?” Natalie’s voice follows, a flicker of anxiety spiking our bond.
Jasper comes barreling around the corner, Natalie following close behind, squinting her eyes to find us.
Heaving in heavy breaths, Jasper pats my body down, muttering, “You’re okay. You’re okay.” I grip his hands to comfort him. My shock at seeing my father must’ve echoed through the bond.
Natalie comes to a stop in front of me, her back to mine, as she stares down my father with her hands fisted in her hips.
“What do you want with him?” she hisses, puffing out her chest like she’s readying for a fight.
“Hi, Natalie,” my father says calmly. “I’m glad you still have all that spunk you had as a kid.” The shock that courses through Natalie has me laying a steadying hand on her shoulder. Jasper joins her other side, lacing their fingers together.
“What the fuck?” she asks, most likely thrown by him mentioning her childhood. Santas have great memories, and judging by that line, my father remembers her well.
A pleased expression pulls my father’s lips into a smile that resembles mine, and for the first time, I can see parts of me in him. I wonder if we have any other similarities that I’ve missed.
“I don’t think you’d remember me, but we met once when you were supposed to be sleeping and I placed a certain princess-themed coloring book under your tree. You must have been about five years old at the time,” he says fondly.
Natalie gasps and takes a step back into my chest. “That was real?” she whispers.
“I’m afraid so.” He winks at her before shifting his kind gaze to Jasper. “Hi, Jasper. Nice to see you again. How are your parents?” With every sentence out of his mouth, he becomes more alive, his expressions warming up as he relaxes around us.
Jasper bows his head slightly, his bells jingling with the movement. “It’s good to see you too, sir. My parents are great. Loved up and living in the Alps, still.”
“Good.” He clasps his hand together, wringing them slightly as nerves return. “I’m sorry to barge in on your visit. I heard you were coming and I couldn’t resist seeing Cole again. It’s been so long. Too long.”
I swallow, feeling sad for a male who has clearly been hurting for a long time. “Have you had dinner?” I ask.
My father shakes his head. “Don’t worry about me. You kids have fun.” He cups his hand around his mouth like he wants to tell us a secret, whispering, “And don’t tell anyone, but Kirja is my favorite village.”
“None of us have eaten yet. Join us.” My invitation comes out as a demand, but I need to know why he came to find me. Why now?
“Damn it, Nick. Don’t make this more awkward. The children are hungry and so are you,” Quill calls from somewhere behind me. It’s so weird to hear someone call my father Nick, but it seems to do the trick.
My father huffs a laugh that sounds so much like mine that Natalie and Jasper both turn to give me a curious look. I give them a one-shouldered shrug, because I don’t know what else to say.
My father nods. “All right. Dinner sounds lovely.”