Chapter 33
AVA
“Get up, get up! Santa came!” I rustle Valen from where he snoozes like Sleeping Beauty beside me. I bounce on the bed, my excitement bleeding out of me.
I don’t care if I’m a grown woman—Christmas will always be exciting to me.
Normally he’s awake in the mornings, sometimes even absent from the bed, but our escapades last night must’ve done a number on him.
I feel bad. It seems like every time we fuck lately, he has a harder time pulling himself back from the urge to seal the mating bond.
We haven’t had a conversation about it since last time, but it’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him to just do it.
I know he’s holding back for me, which is super sweet, but I think I’m ready for that next step. We’re inevitable, so why wait?
“Hmm?” Valen mumbles and shoves a pillow over his head, like a human male rudely awoken from his slumber.
I climb onto his lap, straddling him, and set my hands on his smooth, hard chest.
“Santa left presents under the tree! You have to get up.” I push him a little harder, but it’s like trying to move a boulder. Muscled abs flex underneath me, and I remember the sensation of running my fingers over the chiseled surface just last night.
One slitted brown eye peeks out at me from under the pillow, but he makes no move to get up.
“I seem to recall being in a similar position where you refused to get out of bed when I asked,” he rumbles and I roll my eyes.
“You wanted to watch the sunrise from the roof and it was early o’clock.
I’m all good with watching the stars at night, but your girl is not a morning person,” I reason while shifting my weight to straddle his lean hips.
His lips quirk up at my your girl comment and he tosses the pillow off his head. His brown hair is adorably rumpled.
Leaning down to pepper kisses on his bare chest, I preen at the way he shivers under my touch.
“If you get up, I’ll make it worth your while after presents.
One of them might even be something we’ll both enjoy,” I singsong and gasp as he stands more quickly than I can track and carries me out to the living room.
I laugh at his primal hold and the heat that now simmers in his eyes. Pom Pom yips at our entrance and zooms around the room like he too has been waiting to open gifts.
Last night, we cuddled on the couch in Christmas sweaters and had a classic movie marathon.
My parents and I always had the tradition of opening a gift the night before Christmas, so I gave Valen one from my hidden stash.
It was a small stack of books I thought he’d like to read, given his affinity for the library.
I thought about getting him a Kindle, but he’s mentioned loving the feel of holding a physical book.
One of the books may or may not have been a certain vampire book that shaped so many of us in the early 2000s because I wanted to see how he’d react.
I didn’t expect him to get me anything, but after I gave him the books, he disappeared for a second and returned with a pretty makeup bag with all of my favorites. He even included the perfume I was running low on. Knowing he paid such close attention to me made my heart happy.
“I still don’t understand this Santa Claus thing.
” He opens a cabinet and grabs my favorite mug.
He easily goes through the motions of making my favorite coffee, even adding the perfect amount of sugar and cream.
“You tell human children a strange bearded man breaks into their house to leave gifts? Does that not terrify them?”
“No.” I shrug, sliding onto the stool as he passes me the cup. “It’s tradition. He’s nice and brings presents.”
He shakes his head. “I still do not understand.” I eye him and he corrects himself. “I don’t understand.”
“Good job.” I lean over and kiss him. “We’ll watch The Santa Clause movies later and I’ll explain more, but come on, I want to open presents.”
Hopping off the stool, I scurry over to the tree. A small amount of coffee sloshes out of my mug and Pom Pom is quick to lap it up. Oops. The last thing we need is the energetic pup to be bouncing off the walls even more than he already does.
“There are more gifts here than there were last night,” Valen says accusingly, joining me on the floor.
“I went a little overboard,” I confess. “But it’s your first Christmas. You deserve to be spoiled.” He caught me sneaking out of the bedroom to place them last night but let me have my fun and didn’t try to ruin the surprise.
“You should not…” He shakes his head, rubbing absentmindedly at his jaw. “This is too much. I don’t deserve this.”
“Oh, Valen, baby.” I reach for his hand and squeeze. “You deserve this and so much more.”
He doesn’t look like he believes me. I’ll make it my mission to show this man—vampire—that he deserves the world. I find myself hugging him more often than not nowadays because I know he needs the reassurance.
“Here, open this one first.” I pass him a gift. I’ll save the best for last.
He eyes me skeptically before ripping the paper off. He holds the item up, inspecting it. “What is this?”
“It’s a dog carrier you wear. It’s sort of like a sling and you can put Pom Pom in it so you can take him places with you.”
He smiles and holds the carrier out. “I love it. Pom Pom, come here.”
The little dog scurries over. Valen drapes the carrier over his body, and I help him adjust it so it rests crossbody style. Scooping up the dog, he places him in the sling. Pom Pom gives an excited yip and his tongue lolls out the side of his mouth.
“This is perfect.” He leans over to kiss me, and Pom Pom licks my chin.
Clapping, I declare, “Another.”
I reach for another gift and hand it to him. He rips into this one with slightly more vigor. He pulls out the shirt and laughs, holding it up. “Big fang energy,” he reads off the words.
I shrug. I spotted the shirt on a clearance rack of Halloween goods and couldn’t pass it up. “It was a necessary purchase.” I reach for another gift, but his hand latches on to mine and halts my progress.
“My turn,” he says.
Grabbing a present that’s wrapped haphazardly, he gives a sheepish shrug. “Celine wrapped some of them for me, but I wanted to do a few, and apparently I’m not very good at it.”
“No, it’s perfect,” I insist, taking it from him.
The tape is barely holding on to the corners, but I don’t care. Tears prick my eyes. It really is the thought that counts. The fact that he took the time to wrap some presents for me—especially when he didn’t have any concept of the holiday at first—means more than he’ll ever know.
I drop the shiny red paper to the floor and lift the lid off the box. A gasp flies out of me, tears stinging my eyes. Inside rests my favorite doll from my childhood. One I thought I lost on a family vacation when I was nine. It’s something I know I never even mentioned to Valen.
“How did … how did you know?” I pluck her gently from the box. She’s not the same one, but she’s close enough. I hold the doll to my chest, running my fingers through her golden curls.
“I asked your mom for some help.” He shrugs. “When she mentioned the doll, I really wanted to track it down for you. Zav helped me with The eBay.”
I smile and cup his cheek. “It’s just eBay, baby. Thank you so much. This is … you have no idea what this means to me.” He smiles in return.
“Before I start crying, here’s your next one.” I hand a bag over to him and wipe my eyes.
Valen pulls out the tissue paper before holding up the contents. Shaking it out from its folded state, he brings the scrap of lace up to his torso with a confused look.
“Um,” he wonders aloud and I can see the gears turning.
“It’s a gift for both of us,” I explain and waggle my eyebrows.
He glances between me and the lingerie he holds before understanding sparks in his eyes.
“There’s something else in the bag.” I nod toward it, and he pulls out the small bullet.
As he turns it this way and that, I turn on the vibrator so he can see.
“I thought it was time we gave toys a try.”
“I’m not sure I follow,” Valen replies.
I smirk devilishly at exposing my innocent, former virgin to ways to enhance sex. “I’ll tell you about it later. Shall we give Pom Pom his gifts?” I help Valen unstrap him from his chest, although the Pomeranian seems content to stay cuddled against his favorite human.
Bringing the little dog’s stocking over from under the tree, I let him snuffle through the contents.
He immediately pulls out a bag of his favorite treats and Valen makes sure to give him one.
I also got him a gingerbread man costume.
We put it on him and lose it at the adorable visual.
The sound of Valen’s laughter makes me unbelievably happy.
He was so closed off to begin with, and witnessing him experience true happiness is the best gift I could ask for.
Valen made dog-safe holiday cookies last night and gives them to Pom Pom as part of his gift.
“I have another gift for you, and I hope you like it,” Valen confesses and hands me a small square-shaped box wrapped in candy cane paper. I can tell Celine did this one by the crisp edges.
Tearing away the paper, I find a frame with a certificate inside. In the center is a circular snapshot of the sky. A small paragraph lies below it.
“The star at the detailed coordinates will hereby be named Ava. Just like stars, our loved ones are a constant presence in our lives. Even when we can’t see them, they’re always there.” I read aloud and tears well in my eyes again. “You named a star after me?”
Valen nods and grabs my hand, rubbing it with his thumb. “You are my Starlight, so it only made sense. Tonight, we’ll have to go out on the roof so we can look at it.”
“Fuck,” I curse. “You keep making me sappy. How dare you, you beautiful man.” I wrap a hand around his neck and pull him in for a long kiss.
Valen has the kindest heart of anyone I’ve ever met.
We open the rest of the gifts and are left with a pile of paper.
Once everything is cleaned up, I can no longer keep the giddiness in control. Dancing on my tiptoes, I say, “Okay, the big finale is something outside.” Rubbing my hands together, I grin at Valen, and he has the gall to look slightly terrified. “Oh, stop,” I swat him playfully. “It’s nothing bad.”
He feigns leaning away in fear when I go to hug him.
“Sometimes I do not know with you,” he retorts but smiles as he says it.
“You’re in for a treat,” I promise.
Still clad in my pajamas, I quickly change into jeans and a sweater, and Valen does the same. Hand in hand, we make our way downstairs where I lead him to his present. I make him crouch down in the lobby and slide my sleep mask over his eyes so there’s no risk of him peeking.
Taking his hand, I guide him outside.
“A few more steps,” I encourage, making sure he doesn’t fall, although I’m sure with his reflexes he’d be offended that I’m even worried about that. “You can open.”
Valen blinks slowly, and it’s comical how big his eyes get when he sees what’s in front of him.
“A motorcycle?” he asks, lips parted in shock.
“A horse with wheels,” I counter with a grin since I love his name for it. I plant my hands on my hips. “Since you’ve mastered driving and you got your license, I figured it was time.”
Valen indeed got a permit just in case. He talked about going somewhere to rent and ride motorcycles, but little did he know what I had up my sleeve.
“Ava, this is too much,” he repeats his earlier words, and I shake my head. “These are not cheap.”
“You deserve the world. Up until now you’ve had a pretty shitty go at life, and I want to make sure you feel loved and appreciated every day.
” I rub his arms, and he pulls me into a bear hug I melt under.
“Besides, I know I like clothes and stuff, but I’m smart with my money.
I have plenty put back, so I promise it wasn’t an issue. ”
“Thank you for this extraordinary gift,” Valen murmurs into my hair. “I thank the universe every day for you, Starlight.”
We stand there breathing each other in as the world continues to pass by. It’s like we’re frozen in our own moment in time and nothing can break it.
“Okay, go play with your new toy. I know you want to.” I wave him toward the bike.
He grins at me with a fang-filled smile and I resist the urge to take him back upstairs for a quick wham-bam, thank you, ma’am.
As he swings his leg over, I fight the drool that threatens to spill out at the visual of him astride the bike. He shakes out his dark brown hair before fitting the helmet over top and I swoon at the imagery of him with a mask.
New kink unlocked. Maybe I could convince him to leave it on later tonight?
“Looking hot, stud muffin!” I can’t help but shout. He looks around to make sure nobody overheard me. When he jumps off and strides back over to me, I take a step back, giggling.
“You’re trouble,” Valen growls in my ear. “If you’re not careful, I’m going to bend you over this bike and have you screaming for a different reason.” Before I can respond, he hops back on and jets off. He lets out a little whoop of joy, and I hug myself in contentment.
Best Christmas ever.