12. Teddy

12

teddy

13 days until christmas

W hen was the last time my bed had an actual woman in it? Never. The worst part was I wasn’t even in it. I groaned, massaging the back of my neck. My couch was comfortable, but nothing beat my bed. It was like sleeping in a pile of clouds.

“Ivy.” I shook her ankle lightly. “Rise and shine, sweetheart.”

She groaned, sitting up in bed and rubbing at her eyes. “What time is it?”

“Seven.”

“In the morning ?” Ivy flopped back down, covering her eyes with her pillow.

I walked over, taking it from her, looking down at her with amusement. “Yes. Now get up.”

“Why are you up so early? It’s barely even light outside.” She grumbled something into her pillow.

The corners of my lips tugged up in amusement. “We’re going to cut down a tree.”

There was a magic to cutting down your own tree. To finding the perfect one, carting it home, and then decorating it together. Some of my fondest memories with my parents had been from those days when I was younger. I wanted to share that with her.

Give her memories she would never forget, just like I’d promised her last night.

“What?” Ivy sat up quickly, the comforter falling down onto her lap. “Like, we’re cutting it down ourselves?”

“Well, I don’t exactly have a tree here to decorate, and you said you wanted to decorate one, so…”

I still couldn’t believe she’d agreed to stay. Whatever had gone through her mind, I’d half expected to end up taking her back to Florida after she found out the truth. But she’d stayed.

Whether it was for me or to find out more about herself, I didn’t care.

“Oh. Wow. Okay. Um. What do I need to wear?”

“Clothes, preferably.” I tried not to let my eyes trail down her body in a blatant perusal. It was hard, considering she was wearing a T-shirt she must have found in my closet. Did she have anything on underneath it?

She packed clothes, so why was she stealing mine? And why did I like it so much?

“Teddy.” Was she blushing?

“Ivy,” I retorted back. Her ears flashed the most adorable shade of pink when she blushed. I cleared my throat, looking away. “Warm clothes. It might be light outside, but it’s still freezing.”

She looked at the suitcase at the side of the bed, exactly where she’d left it yesterday, since she still hadn’t unpacked. “ I know you said to pack warm, but I didn’t exactly pack for this .”

“You can borrow one of my sweaters again and wear my mom’s coat.” I eyed her feet. She needed some warm boots. “This afternoon, we can go back into town and get you some warmer things.” I let my eyes trail down her body. “Because as much as I enjoy seeing you in my clothes, Ivy…” I swallowed roughly. It was driving me crazy.

Our faces were only a few inches apart. What would it be like if I brushed my lips against hers? If I took her mouth with mine, and…

“I’ll be fine,” she said, shaking her head and putting distance between us. “I don’t exactly have disposable income where I can purchase a whole new wardrobe. And I can’t expect you to buy me clothes…” Ivy trailed off.

“Let me take care of you,” I practically begged. “It’s the least I can do.”

“Okay.” Ivy let out a sigh. “I’m just… not used to all of this.”

“What?”

“Someone who cares enough to take care of me.” The words were a whispered admission. Fuck, no one had taken the time to cherish her. But I wouldn’t make that mistake.

“Well, you better get used to it, sweetheart. I promised to win you over, and I’m going to.” I winked. “Now, get dressed, and let’s go cut down a tree.”

Part of me still couldn’t believe she’d agreed to come with me today. That she’d followed behind me, freshly showered—I tried not to notice that she’d used my shower gel and smelled like me—wearing one of my old, too-small selburose sweaters and a pair of boots I’d borrowed for her. A strange sense of satisfaction had run through me as I looked back at Ivy, watching her trudge through the snow.

One that I was trying hard not to think too deeply about.

The distance between us wasn’t helping me get my head on straight. I’d been denying myself for weeks, and I knew one thing.

I wanted Ivy Winters more than I’d ever wanted anyone before.

Turning my head back, I focused straight ahead. It wasn’t actively snowing right now, but I couldn’t help but notice the way her eyes lit up as she took in the view. Even as we walked out of town, there were dozens of little cottages that dotted the landscape. My house was on the far outskirts of the North Pole, away from everyone else—the way I liked it.

I led her back into the woods where she’d gotten lost yesterday. I was pulling a sled behind us—so we could bring the tree back with us on it. It also held the other necessary supplies for cutting down a tree.

“What are we looking for, exactly?”

“The perfect tree. Come on, you’ll know when you see it.”

We trudged through the woods, and every so often, I had to slow down my pace so she could keep up with me. I kept forgetting how much shorter her legs were.

I wasn’t in a hurry, though. It was a beautiful day, and I had a beautiful girl at my side. We were going to work through each item on our Christmas list. Getting a tree was obviously the most important. Since I hadn’t been home lately, my house didn’t have one either. I’d expected her to tease me about that, but she hadn’t.

I liked it much better when we were bickering because then, at least, I knew that Ivy was okay. When she was quiet, I had no idea what was going on in her head.

“What about this one?” she asked, sounding quiet. I turned, finding her standing in front of a perfectly acceptable tree.

“Hm.” I rubbed at my chin. “Not quite.”

She groaned. “How long is this going to take?”

“Patience, sweetheart. Finding the right one is the most important part of the whole process.”

Ivy grumbled under her breath, and I couldn’t hide my amusement.

“Are we still doing this?” She glared at me.

I frowned. “What?”

“Fighting.”

“Is that what we’re doing?” I hummed.

Maybe not. Maybe it had never been fighting at all. It felt like there was a different word for it entirely. While she was poking around the trees, I grabbed something out of the sled—a peace offering.

“Here,” I said, offering no further explanation.

“What’s this for?” she asked, looking down into the cup. Her ears were pink again, though at least now I knew it wasn’t from the cold.

She was affected by me as much as I was affected by her. I liked that.

“You looked cold,” I answered, not skipping a beat.

I should have given her gloves. My sweater and my mom’s coat might have been warm, but sometimes I forgot how chilly it was up here in the woods this time of the year. I was used to it, even with my travels.

“Oh.” Ivy took a sip, a small moan slipping free. I took a drink of my own, watching her intently.

Damn, it was delicious. I needed to remember to thank my mom. She’d packed us more cookies, too, which I fully intended on winning the girl at my side over with.

“You’re welcome, Poison Ivy.” A smirk curled over my lips. I found myself unable to look away from her cheeks and slightly pink nose.

She was feisty, but I liked fighting with her.

A month ago, I never would have imagined that I’d be here. Maybe part of me had grown used to the human realm, but it still wasn’t the home I loved. At least, that was how I felt until I saw Ivy Winters smile. Now, I couldn’t imagine being anywhere she wasn’t.

Maybe it was her little moan that had rewired my brain. I couldn’t think straight. Fuck, that sound. Or her tiny pink tongue, swiping a clump of whipped cream from her upper lip. Still, the hot cocoa had been a good choice.

“Teddy.” Ivy came to a stop. “That one. I found it.”

“Yes.” I had to agree. “It’s perfect.”

Her blinding smile was all the convincing I needed.

After we cut the tree down—though I’d mostly done all the work while Ivy supervised—and I’d loaded it onto the sled, we headed back to my house to get it set up.

By the time it was sitting in the base, ready to be decorated later today, the sun was high in the sky. We both collapsed on the couch, sweaty and starving.

“Should we go into town for breakfast, or do you want to eat something here?”

Ivy turned to face me. “You’d really cook for me again?”

“Of course.” I reached out and brushed a piece of hair off her forehead, tucking it behind her ear. “But I want to take you into town, too. And then I can get you the clothes I promised.”

“Mmm.” Ivy hummed. “Maybe I like wearing yours.”

I held back a groan. “You’re going to kill me, little Poison Ivy.”

She stood off the couch, swaying her hips as she walked towards my bedroom. When she reached the door frame, she turned back to look at me. Her eyes were full of heat. Fuck .

“Food first,” I announced. “Then we’ll go into town.”

She just nodded, and I left her to change as I made us a quick breakfast.

Ivy grabbed another ornament from the box and hung it on the tree. We’d spent the day exploring the village and all the shops. Her eyes had lit up like a kid in a candy store, which was hilarious considering how she’d been inside the actual candy store.

“This is really nice.”

“Yeah?” I turned to her, stepping back to inspect our tree. We’d wrapped it with lights together, and now that most of the ornaments were hung, it looked pretty great.

I’d made a lot of ornaments in the workshop as a kid, and I didn’t miss how she looked at each one, running her fingers over the smaller details. Some of them had been carved, while others had been sculpted or decoupaged. Not that I was as talented as my father.

“I wish I had some of mine,” Ivy said, her voice subdued.

“You can make more here.”

“I can?” She raised an eyebrow. “But all of my stuff is back at my apartment…”

“You know my dad has a giant workshop, right? Anything you could ever imagine, every supply you could ever need… you’ll find it all in there.”

“Oh.”

I stepped closer to her, enough that I could hear her breath catch as I towered over her tiny frame. My mouth dipped down towards her ear as I murmured out, “Anything you want, Ivy. It’s yours. ”

She rose on her tiptoes, wrapping her arms around my neck. “Teddy.”

“Yeah?”

Her lips curled up in a relaxed smile. “Thank you for today.”

“Ivy.” My eyes dipped to her lips. Soft. Begging to be kissed.

“Mhm?”

“Look up,” I said, tilting her chin up with my finger so she could see what was above us.

Mistletoe . Just like the last item she’d snuck onto the list.

“How…” Her jaw had dropped, like she couldn’t believe the sight.

“Christmas magic, I guess,” I said, shrugging my shoulders and hiding a little smile. “You know what that means.”

Our lips were only inches apart. All either of us had to do to close the distance was to move just a little closer, and we’d be kissing.

“Kiss me, Teddy,” she whispered.

I obliged. Pressing my lips against hers, I started softly. The gentle meeting of our mouths quickly turned into more as I poured all of my want from the last week into it. Every time I’d wanted to kiss her and hadn’t. Every time I’d thought about how beautiful she was.

She curled her fingers into the hair at the nape of my neck, tugging on it to deepen the angle, and I wrapped my arms around her hips, lifting her up against my body. Her little gasp at the sudden change gained me entrance into her mouth, and I used that opportunity to taste her. Fucking finally.

Ivy tasted like hot chocolate and the peppermint candies she’d been sucking on all night, sneaking them when she thought I wasn’t looking. So sweet .

Bringing us to the wall, I pinned her between it, keeping us at the perfect level to explore her mouth with my tongue.

When we broke apart, Ivy wriggled out of my arms and dropped to the floor before touching her fingers to her lips. They were swollen and puffy, and when she spoke, Ivy was practically breathless. “Good night, Teddy.”

“Night.”

There was one thing I knew for sure—Ivy was going to ruin me.

Maybe she already had.