Chapter 4

4

With a shiver and a sigh, the naked lady woke,

But the true shock came when she spoke.

It’s an emergency, a calamity, she told us right then,

Santa’s been taken prisoner and Christmas isruined.

The bear didn’t care and wanted to toss her out,

But for once, he didn’t loudly shout.

He did, however, say, don’t you dare squeal,

Or Imight decide you’re tastier than a fat seal.

Nanook woke from a strange dream where a reindeer showed up to his cave claiming Santa’s Village had been invaded. Only it turned out to be real, seeing as how a woman lay splayed across him, sleeping.

It had been a while since he’d shared his bed, or cuddled, and to his surprise, he didn’t hate it. On the contrary, rather than dump Dancer on her rump, he allowed himself to enjoy having someone touching him, a tad too much as it turned out because, when she woke, squirming atop him, his dick roused as well.

And she noticed.

At least she didn’t ask if he had a pencil. A pogo stick was a respectable size. Still, the whole situation embarrassed, so he made it even worse.

“Move,” he grumbled. “Gotta pee.”

“Mmm, do you have to?” She burrowed against his chest. “You are deliciously cozy.”

Tempting, but no. “Get off.”

“If I must,” uttered melodramatically as she slid to the side.

He exited the bed, and she immediately nestled in the warm spot he left behind. By the time he returned from doing his business, the twins were in bed with Dancer, and before he could stop them, Sesi asked, “Are you our new mommy?”

Dancer blinked. “Uh, no.”

“But you’re in Dada’s bed,” Siku pointed out.

“Auntie Kira and Uncle Arnie sleep in the same bed because they’re a mommy and daddy.” Sesi wasn’t giving up.

“Sometimes grownups share to be kind. In this case, your Dada didn’t want me to sleep on the floor,” Dancer replied.

“You could have slept with us. I would have shared my pillow,” Siku offered.

Dancer kindly turned down the offer. “How sweet of you. But your Dada had more room in his bed. I wouldn’t want to squish you.”

Siku whispered to her sister, “She’s not a good bed sharer. I saw her on top of Dada, smushing him.”

It led to Sesi pursing her little mouth. “Maybe it is better you sleep with Dada.”

Nanook almost choked.

“I’m hungry. What about you?” Dancer asked, changing the subject.

“Yes! I like porridge for breakfast,” Sesi declared.

“Blech. Pancakes are better.” Siku made a face.

“Only when we have syrup.”

“Jam is yummy on them too,” Sesi insisted.

“I usually have granola and yoghurt,” Dancer commented.

“What’s that?”

“Granola is oats mixed with nuts and honey, sometimes a bit of coconut. Yoghurt is like a milk pudding. Peach-flavored is my favorite,” Dancer explained to her avid audience.

“What’s a peach?” Siku questioned. They didn’t have access to much fruit. Mostly canned stuff, which he rarely bought. Polar bears were mostly meat eaters.

“Stop pestering our guest,” he stated, finally interjecting.

“But, Dada, she’s interesting,” whined Sesi.

Indeed, she was, hence why she had to go. “Storm cleared up overnight.”

Dancer arched a brow. “Is that a hint to get trotting?”

Before he could stop himself, he said, “I’ll give you a ride. Girls, eat your breakfast and then get geared up while I prep the sled.”

Dancer popped out of bed. “Really? You’ll take me to FARTZ?”

He nodded. “I can trade for supplies as well as scout out where to build our new home when we move.”

“Thank you!” To his shock, she flung her arms around his neck and hugged him tight.

His cock—which he’d just beaten to death in the lavatory—sprang back to life.

Luckily, she didn’t stay plastered long enough to notice. “I’m going to have a little nibble with the girls. Then I’ll give you a hand readying to go.”

Before he could say Don’t need a hand , she’d flounced off and he stood there wondering what possessed him.

Kindness?

Nah.

More like an urgent need to get the woman far away from him. She had him feeling things he’d rather not deal with. Attraction, amusement, intrigue. All emotions that led to him being burned the last time.

Best he rid himself of her, but even he wasn’t so heartless as to send her out on her own on foot—or hoof. The northern part of Ellesmere Island could be treacherous to the unknowing.

When the time came to leave, he offered Dancer an old wolf fur cloak to wrap around her, as well as two more pairs of socks for her feet since he didn’t have anything that would fit her slender arch. The pull-along had enough room for her to ride with the girls, but then he couldn’t bring some of the whale and seal meat he’d been planning to use for trade.

A dilemma unless…

“You’ll ride on the sled behind me,” his gruff order.

“Okay.” She didn’t argue.

He loaded the trailer with bundles, and the girls tucked themselves in amongst them with their thick blanket. They’d have been warm enough as cubs, but every year, more and more humans chose to explore with their damnable cameras. The last one who’d seen him with a pair of polar cubs took issue and accused him of illegally trapping an endangered species. He couldn’t exactly tell the guy they were his kids, so he’d fabricated a story about their polar bear mother dying and him fostering them until they got big enough to head out on their own.

When the guy kept harping, he suffered an unfortunate accident. Happened quite a bit to the tourists around here and yet they kept coming.

When the time came to leave, Dancer straddled the sliver of seat left at his back and wrapped herself around him, a reminder not to fart. He’d held one in that morning in bed as well. Maybe if he’d let it rip, she wouldn’t have been so keen on cuddling.

They set off, moving fast, his snowmobile powerful enough to pull all their weight and still maintain a decent speed on the flat spots, of which there weren’t many. He’d chosen to live in the mountainous area as opposed to the plains where the FARTZ encampment sprang up.

The chill wind had Dancer tucking her face into his back. A good idea since he didn’t have a spare set of goggles for her.

The encampment was an hour away technically, but he only made it that fast when he had daylight. This time of year, in the pitch-black, he had to drive carefully, lest a new hazard catch him by surprise. Technically, Dancer could have trotted to FARTZ. After all, reindeer could run up to fifty miles per hour and handle the cold. However, navigating the ruts would have been challenging. She could have easily twisted or broken a leg. Not to mention, a reindeer alone might prove tempting for any roaming predators, hence the offer to escort her.

Look at him thinking of someone other than his girls for once. Was he softening in his old age? No, but he also wasn’t a complete dick. While he hated Santa’s Village, more specifically the elves, he felt somewhat chagrinned at the idea of kids having their Christmas ruined. He might not celebrate, but he still recalled that wide-eyed wonder of booking it downstairs to see what Santa placed under the tree.

Had it been wrong of him to deprive his girls of that pleasure? Then again, Santa, that sneaky bastard, had found ways to leave them stuff. Unwrapped boxes left outside his cave. The girls always assumed their father had gotten them a surprise. Never mind the fact the encampment didn’t sell toys or the stuffies his girls adored. Santa made sure his good girls got rewarded, and this despite the fact he didn’t get credit for it. Maybe he’d been too harsh banning the big man completely.

The ride from the mountain to the camp proved uneventful. Not a single living thing spotted, which was kind of odd. Probably still hunkering down from the storm.

Nanook parked his sled by a premade capsule house, the newest gimmick in building innovation. There were several in the camp now, practical designs that could be preassembled, transported, and dropped into place. At a cost, of course. His sister had told him the price, and he’d calculated how many whales he’d have to harvest to pay for it.

A lot.

Doable, but did he really need a fancy place with stone counters, hidden storage, heated floors, and a fake fireplace? His sister did, and had upgraded to add a second pod to expand her living space so each kid had their own room. Except when Nanook visited. Then Peter had to bunk with Roger, which led to some screaming matches and wrestling. His daughters liked to watch and mutter, “Boys.” Sounded just like their Aunt Kira.

His nephews emerged from their home in a blur of excited voices and limbs. “Uncle Nook, Sesi, and Siku are here!” they yelled, converging on the girls. While a few years older, they’d taken on the role of older brothers—which meant they taught his daughters how to misbehave.

Kira, Nanook’s older sister, emerged and waved. “I’m surprised to see you here before the New Year.”

“I had an unexpected visitor who needed a ride to town.” As he spoke, Dancer peeled herself from his back and peeked out of the fur to smile and wave. “Hi.”

“Welcome.” His sister smiled, and right away, Nanook knew she got the wrong idea. “Come in. Come in. The more, the merrier.”

“Yeah, Merry Christmas,” screamed the boys.

Which was when it hit Nanook. He usually didn’t visit in December for a very good reason.

And that reason was plastered all over his sister’s home when they walked in.

Tinsel. Fluff. A fake tree hung in garland, shiny, colorful balls, and lights. On a shelf, a figurine of a fat man in a red suit holding a large sack.

The girls’ faces lit up. “What’s this?” they exclaimed, taking in all the gaudy decorations.

To her credit, his sister tried to respect his wishes. “It’s for Christmas, a holiday we celebrate.”

At the curious glances from his daughters, which screamed why don’t we , he shrugged. “Not everyone partakes.”

But that wasn’t enough for his girls, and as they pestered asking questions, which his nephews happily answered, he scowled, deeper and deeper until Dancer murmured, “You wouldn’t have been able to hide Christmas forever. Once they started school, they would have found out.”

Something he now realized. Guess it might be time to give up his grudge on the holiday, but he still reserved the right to eat elves.

Kira wrangled the twins out of their outer clothes and gave them snacks before planting herself in front of Nanook and Dancer with a curious expression. “My brother forgot to introduce us. I’m Kira, and you are…”

“Dancer Lightfoot, of Santa’s Village. Second lead for his team of reindeer.”

“I’m surprised to see you here this close to the big day.”

“I had no choice. There was an emergency. I need help,” Dancer stated.

“How can we aid you?” Kira didn’t hesitate.

The delicate reindeer glanced at the children admiring the tree and leaned close to Kira to whisper, “Santa and all his workers have been taken hostage. I need every volunteer we can muster to set them free and save Christmas.”