Chapter 5
Nick pulled the blinking bulbs from the wall and unbound her wrists with reverent care.
Dropping the lights to the floor, he lifted Eira’s hands to his mouth, kissing one wrist and then the other as his darkened gaze watched his release drip down her thighs.
He gently lowered her arms, and without a word, he stepped back to adjust his pants.
The red suit was too big now that he stood in his true form, and Eira stifled a laugh.
He rolled his eyes, knowing her all too well, and peeled the shirt from his body to reveal a physique carved by the gods themselves.
Eira’s fingers ached to touch his abs, to run over his pecks and trace the veins on his biceps.
She wanted to lick a path from his chest down to the impressive cock that hung between his thighs, but she noticed the sorrow had returned to his eyes, and she remembered why she was there. To kill the only man she’d ever loved.
Suddenly unable to face him, she stormed down the wrecked hall to the bathroom.
She hid inside for ten minutes as she cleaned up, wondering if Nick would be gone when she reemerged, but to her surprise and relief, he sat shirtless and patient before a now-lit fire.
The cozy flames dancing in the destroyed room made her laugh, and Nick’s perfect lips smiled as he extended a hand to her.
She didn’t take it, though. She simply stepped before him, knives hanging loose in her fingers.
“Where do we go from here?” she asked, and realizing she wouldn’t accept the offer, he lowered his hand.
“Where do you want to go?”
“I still hate you for leaving me.” Her grip on the knives tightened. “And I’ll always despise the Santas for what they did to my people.”
Nick shifted, breaking their gaze to stare at the mangled tree.
She read defeat in the hunch of his broad shoulders, in the firm line of his full lips, and she hated that he looked like carved marble.
She hated that he never showed her his pointed ears before, but she understood why.
It was the same reason she never revealed her horns.
But perhaps what she hated most was that under his new title of Santa, under his abs that made her core clench and her rational thoughts disappear, he was a good man, and she could never truly hate him.
Before he left, he’d been the kindest, most respectful person she knew.
Their relationship was strong, and the sex?
It was so mind-blowing she sometimes forgot her own name, her body no longer bound to this earth but destined for the stars.
They were perfect together, but then he disappeared.
Only it seemed that in leaving, he still loved her, protecting her despite knowing she was a Krampus and he would become a Santa.
History dictated he should’ve driven a blade through her heart when he learned the truth, but instead, he’d spent years shielding her.
She didn’t know how she hadn’t noticed before this moment.
She lived in the shadows, always on the run, but there had been no real brushes with danger since their relationship ended. Only before Nick.
“I will always love you,” he whispered, as if he was afraid she would hear. “And I’ll always protect you.”
“I hate the name Santa, yet when I see you, I want to step into your shadow and live like our races in the first days.” Eira knelt before him, studying his strong profile. “Santa and Krampus. Good and evil. Naughty and nice.”
“You do naughty so well,” he chuckled, and she blushed, still feeling him inside her.
“Says the man who just tied me up with Christmas lights.”
He laughed harder at that and finally met her gaze. “What if we could change things? What if you and I could join forces and end the war between our races? I would love nothing more for you to become my shadow on Christmas, to punish the wicked so that we might bring peace to the world.”
“Is that even possible?”
“I’m Santa now and a fae. You’re a Krampus who can certainly fight her way through almost anything.” He smirked. “Don’t think I didn’t hear those men you have hog-tied downstairs.”
“They're fine,” Eira said, waving her hand dismissively. “Just waiting for the anonymous tip to arrive at the local police station.”
“We would make a great team. Some Krampuses took their punishment too far, but I know you, Eira.” He cupped her jaw lovingly. “I can tell by their breathing that they aren’t fatally hurt. I think you saved that rage for me.”
“I did, and I’m not one bit sorry.”
“I don’t doubt it. You’re the best of your kind, and I strive to be the best of mine.
I want us to work together, to stop this senseless bloodshed.
” He gripped her chin and drew her close until their lip brushed with the faintest touch.
“But there’s more to that wish than peace and an end to the war.
I want you, my little shadow. In my life and in my bed.
I regret walking out on you even if it saved your life, but now that I found you, I can’t leave again.
I still love you, and I promise to make up for my mistakes, to atone for my sins… on my knees, if that’s what it takes.”
Eira exhaled, the breath all she needed to seal their lips together. She kissed him deeply, tasting him, claiming him, loving him. Nick's broad hand slipped under her dark hair and he gripped her neck, pulling her closer.
“Do you think it would work?” Eira breathed into his mouth. “Could we change things?”
“If you forgive me and give me a second chance, I would make it work. I would fight every day to fix our history because I can’t live without you, not after tonight. We no longer have secrets between us. We could start over, making Christmas what it used to be.”
“I want to give you a second chance.” Eira climbed into his lap, straddling his powerful thighs to feel his hard length push against her. “To give us a second chance, and even knowing you’re the Santa, I don’t think I could kill you. I would rather fight with you than against you.”
“Then we have a deal.” Nick grabbed her hips and ground her down on his cock until her eyes glazed over with lust. “Tomorrow, we fight for a new future, but before we do that, will you grant me one thing?”
“I want to say anything, to trust you, but I’m scared.”
“That’s all right. I’ll earn your trust, my little shadow.” He nipped at her breast; her pebbled nipple peaked and perfect, even through her top.
“Then, yes, I’ll grant you one favor. It’s Christmas, after all.”
Nick stared at her mouth as if it was the only thing that mattered in this world. His thumb lifted, tracing her bottom lip and drawing it toward him with a soft pull, and Eira knew she would do anything for this man.
“Let me fuck you with your horns showing.”