CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Mariska
All day Monday I was floating on air. I went into work to complete the paperwork for my remaining case studies, and while I worried my heat hit me faster now, no urgent pains plagued me.
Could I have been a little drunk and really horny?
Maybe since I wasn’t used to being around compatible Alphas, my normal Omega attraction to them was just more powerful than to other hot guys.
It wasn’t like I’d ever done anything like that before. The image of Jasper between my legs, hungrily eating me out, sent sinful tingles through me. Yet no slick nor a feverish loss of control.
I kept my fingers crossed, and it seemed to be true when Lucian took me out to dinner.
Lyla searched my closet for the best outfit for me to wear.
With it being an extra cold day, she chose a high waist plaid A-line skirt that fell below my knees and a white knit sweater that hugged my chest in a way she swore was flattering.
Yet all Lucian talked about was my work, what I studied, and environmental issues.
While I loved to discuss those things, it was a very different night than what I’d experienced with Jasper.
We stayed long after our meal and sipped coffee as we chatted until Miss Eloise told us she was feeling tired.
Though I assumed our eco-nerd talk bored her!
The next night, Balthazar offered to take all of us in Primrose House out to a casual dinner at a family restaurant with its own arcade. It was a strange choice of place to take three adult women who had no children, but it did turn out to be fun.
As Lucian had focused on me and work the night before, Balthazar chatted with Miss Eloise and Lyla as much as me. They shared with him stories that had him laughing, and he wowed us all with three bulls-eyes in a row in an axe throwing game.
Two normal dates. I didn’t know why that disappointed me. My attraction to them hadn’t lessened, but were they no longer interested in me? Did I need to be more assertive or even plan out a date myself?
At the end of Balthazar’s date, he dropped us all off at Primrose House and walked us to the door.
He handed a clothing box to Lyla but grinned at me.
“This is what you’re going to wear tomorrow.
Jasper, Lucian, and I are taking you to a charity event in the afternoon.
It’s one that Silver Tree Farms sponsors, and we do it every year.
But,” he gave me a stern yet playful look.
“I don’t want you looking in the box until you’re getting dressed tomorrow. ”
Ooo-kay. This was the weirdest thing ever. “All right.”
“Oh! I know the one. It will be so much fun.” Miss Eloise chuckled. “Thank you for dinner and the games, Balthazar. Have a good night!”
She disappeared into the house, and Lyla hugged the box as she bounced on her toes. “This is so exciting. Thanks for the fun night. Mari can’t look in the box, but can I?”
“Sure. Just don’t tell her what’s inside.” Balthazar waved at her as she ran into the house and shut the door. From within, Lyla squealed with delight having looked immediately in the box.
I raised my brows. “It’s not lingerie, is it?”
“No.” He stepped closer to me, his scent wrapping around me like a cozy blanket. “But if that’s something you’re willing to wear for me, I can head to a shop right now.”
My face went hot, and even in the shadows of the porch, he probably could see how red I was.
A twin to that flush echoed between my legs with a wanton pang.
All through our date, he hadn’t flirted.
He’d been on his best behavior, and now we went from zero to sixty in a matter of a second.
“Sooo… you’re really not going to tell me what’s in the box? ”
“Nope.” His grin was wicked, but how naughty could the outfit be if Miss Eloise knew which charity event we were going to? “What did you think of the things I bought from the market? Are they good?”
Shit. I’d stashed away the bags in my closet and hadn’t even looked at them. “I didn’t check yet, but I’ll do that when I go in.”
“You didn’t open them right when you got home?
” Balthazar shook his head. Saturday night had not gone well.
I’d been in no mood for it. “I was the brat that always woke up extra early on Christmas morning and ran downstairs to tear open my gifts. I could never wait. Please don’t tell me you’re not one of those people that carefully unwrap presents and try to save the pretty paper and ribbons? ”
I giggled. That was exactly how I imagined him as a kid, and that was totally me. “And what if I am?”
“Damn.” He tried to look shocked, but he couldn’t hide his smirk. “Well, tomorrow you’ll be getting a lesson on the proper way to open gifts. I’m going to leave you with that thought. Have a good night, Mariska.”
The air thickened and his scent turned muskier. Balthazar stepped closer as if he might suddenly yank me to him, but instead, he lifted his hand and caressed my cheek before brushing a kiss across my forehead. Then with a purr rumbling in his chest, he walked off the porch and headed to his truck.
My breaths came quickly as my heart pounded. I’d been sure he was about to pin me to the wall and have his way with me on the porch next to the stuffed Santa. Or maybe that was what I’d wanted to happen.
Two normal dates and a mystery box. I waved, watching him leave, and fought with the urge to tell him to come back. I’d see them all tomorrow. A charity event. What could it be? I could probably find out by searching online, but my life had so few good surprises. I could wait to find out.
Taking off my boots and coat in the house, I ignored the ache growing between my legs and went right to my suite. Artemis was lying on my bed and jumped down to greet me. “Hello, sweetie. You’re such a good girl for not barking when we all came home. Such a good girl.”
Giving her a bunch of love, I then opened my closet and removed the bags from the market.
In the top of one bag, there was a note scribbled on the back of a scrap of wrapping paper.
“Mariska, hope you don’t mind that I did your shopping for you.
I kept the receipts and taped them to each box, in case you wanted to return anything.
The one in the red box doesn’t have a receipt because it’s for you. ”
I raised my brows and shared a look with Artemis who cocked her head to one side. My shopping? Did he mean he did my Christmas shopping for me? I’d still not gotten anything for my family. The plan had been to do it tomorrow before the date, but if Balthazar…
Sitting on my bed with the bags, I unloaded them and laid out the boxes in front of me. Each of them did have their receipts taped to them and with names scrawled in his heavy handwriting at the bottom. “Okay. He really did do my Christmas shopping.”
The first one I picked up was labeled for my sister. I opened the box to find a hand-knitted arctic fox hat and matching gloves. It was super cute and immensely soft. I didn’t know my sister well, but this was a good choice for any teenage girl. “Nice.”
The box marked for my dad was heavy, and turned out to be a wooden charcuterie board with holly engraved on the edges. Our family name was charred into the center. I swallowed hard, unsure of how to feel about it.
Next was the gift for my mother. I carefully took it out of its box. It was a handmade candle arch with the lighthouse from Lake Winnebago, Christmas trees and carolers, and in the background, wind turbines. How? Did Balthazar have the artist make it right there at the market?
My throat was tight and my emotions tumbled around inside of me like a giant clothes dryer.
These were beautiful gifts. If I would have shopped for my family myself, I would have picked things with far less thought to them.
Far less personal. Artemis nudged me with her nose, and I leaned against her, scratching her head.
My family lived in Madison, not Fond du Lac. Though we did spend a lot of time at Lake Winnebago when I was young… before my grandmother died.
No one in my family cared what I did for a living either. The wind turbines… That was too much.
My vision blurred with threatening tears as I returned the gifts to their boxes and put them back into the bag. Artemis gave a little whimper and I kissed her head. “I’m okay, girl.”
I should return the presents, but Balthazar had put a lot of thought into this. Plus, they were personalized. You couldn’t return something like that or else they’d just get thrown out. It would be a waste.
Why was I letting this affect me? It wasn’t as if my family cared what I got for them. They likely wouldn’t put any thought in their gift for me.
I breathed out my hurt and turned to the remaining boxes. One was clearly a bottle. Balthazar had remembered to pick up the mulled wine his mom and Miss Eloise had been drinking. This was sweet, and my housemother would be thrilled to have a bottle to drink on Christmas Eve.
“This is the good stuff.” I showed Artemis. She sniffed and gave me a look that said I was crazy for thinking something that smelled like that was deserving of the word good.
The square box was light and marked for the Omegas of Primrose House. I opened it, removed the tissue packing, and gasped. It was a hand painted glass tree ornament with a winter rose in the center of a Christmas tree. Printed across the bottom were the words: Primrose House Christmas 2025.
This time my eyes misted over for a different reason. It was my last Christmas at Primrose House. I’d spent the last six years of my life here. Nowhere else had ever felt like a real home, but with Miss Eloise, Lyla, and Emberlee, I had found it.
Gently, I repacked the ornament in its box. “I’ll have Lyla and Miss Eloise open this together on Christmas Eve. Be prepared, we’ll probably have a group cry, but it’s only because we’ll miss one another so much. We’ll eat away our sorrows with all the snacks we’ll have.”