18. Teddy

18

teddy

I vy looked so right sitting at the island in my parent’s kitchen, sipping a glass of wine as my mom finished dinner. Dad was up in his study, glasses on, and sketching some new toy idea. After a short conversation, I’d left him to it, figuring I would check on the girls instead.

It was strange how she fit into my life so well in such a short time. How much I wanted her here.

I almost could see it, year after year: Ivy wearing my ring. Children’s laughter filling the air. Happiness and love. But it was too soon for that. I couldn’t be thinking about her that way.

Not when she might not even want to stay.

“What do you think, Teddy?” My mother interrupted my train of thought.

“Huh?” I forced my gaze away from Ivy.

She had a knowing smile on her face. “About the theme park. Your proposal?”

“Oh.” I nodded. “Yeah. It’s going well.” Even though I’d barely thought about it in days .

She turned to my girl. “Teddy told me that you’ve worked at Christmasland for seven years?”

Ivy’s face lit up at the mention of her park. “It’s an amazing place. Have you been before, Carol?”

I didn’t care that it wasn’t actually hers because it was her spirit that filled the place.

“I have. Nick and I used to go every summer to check on the park. Teddy came along, too, ever since he was old enough to toddle around. It’s been a few years now, though. We’re getting older, so we don’t get down there quite as much.”

“Ah.” Her gaze swung to me, and she looked confused. “But… I thought you said you’d never been there before?”

“I never said that, sweetheart.”

“But, the tour… you experiencing everything the park had to offer, that was just… a lie?” Her voice was soft when she whispered, “Was it all a lie?”

“No.” My voice was full of conviction. She had to know I hadn’t misled her. That our meeting might have been by chance, but I’d never let her think that it was anything but.

My mom shot me a look. “I’m going to go check on your father.”

I nodded, watching her go, before turning back to the girl I couldn’t imagine my life without. Did she even know? How much she was in my thoughts, my mind, my heart? She was a deep itch I couldn’t possibly scratch, like poison ivy that had seeped under my skin.

She drummed her fingernails on the countertop as I took a deep breath.

“It had been a long time since I’d visited Christmasland, Ivy. Before I’d started college.” Before she’d worked there. I tilted up her chin so her eyes would meet mine. “I never lied to you. Not by choice. Maybe I couldn’t tell you who I was, but everything else was true. Working my way up through the company meant I made some sacrifices.” Twirling a piece of her hair around one of my fingers, I gave her another truth. “I never imagined that I’d find you there. If I had, maybe I wouldn’t have spent so long away.”

“Okay.” She nodded.

“Okay?”

“Yeah.” Ivy rested her forehead against my shoulder. “I don’t want to fight with you anymore.”

I chuckled. “I like it when you fight with me, Poison Ivy. Your claws are cute.”

She grumbled against my shirt before pulling her head back. “Teddy?”

“Mhm?”

“Thank you.” She leaned up, pressing her lips against my cheek. “I don’t feel like I say it enough.”

She didn’t need to thank me. I was just giving her everything she deserved. But maybe she didn’t see that. Maybe she didn’t see herself the way I saw her. I gave her a hesitant smile, shaking my head, but before I could clarify that, my mom came back into the kitchen, my dad in tow.

We all worked in tandem setting the table after dinner was done—even Ivy, despite my mom’s insistence that guests didn’t have to help—before finally sitting down to eat.

“This smells amazing. Thanks, Mom.”

“Of course. We’re happy to have you both.” She smiled at Ivy. “It’s nice to see Teddy so happy.”

“Mom…” I wasn’t usually prone to blushing, but I could feel the warmth in my cheeks.

Ivy reached over, squeezing my hand under the table. I looked over at her, and she raised an eyebrow in a silent question. Like she was asking, you good?

I nodded. Did she know how much she calmed me? How much her presence soothed mine? How much I wanted her here ?

“Let’s dig in.”

Squeezing Ivy’s hand back, I wove my fingers through hers, letting our combined hands rest on my thigh even as we ate.

I didn’t let her hand go all night.

8 days until christmas

I was quickly getting used to waking up with Ivy by my side, and I wasn’t sure I’d ever slept as well as I did knowing she was in my arms.

And it wasn’t just because we were trading orgasms or she fit perfectly nestled in front of me. It was dangerous how easily she fit into my life. Seeing her in my parent’s house last night had been too good.

Leaving Ivy sleeping, I pressed a kiss to the top of her head before I snuck out to check on Buddy and run some errands. Last night, I’d asked my mom for another favor, and she promised to have everything ready for me today. Luckily, she delivered.

I arrived back at my house with a to-go order from the cafe, two peppermint mochas, and all of the necessary ingredients to check another item off our list.

Ivy was awake but still snuggled under the covers as I came back into my bedroom. It had been snowing on my way back, so even though I’d taken my truck, I was still dusted with a light coating of snow.

“Morning,” my girl said, yawning as she stretched her arms. She’d pulled on another one of my t-shirts, and I wasn’t sure I was going to get any of them back at this point. I also wasn’t sure I cared. Ivy looked better in them, anyway.

“I brought breakfast,” I said, holding up the bag as I set the coffee carrier on my nightstand.

She inhaled deeply. “Oooh. Smells delicious.”

I bent down to put the bag in front of her, and she reached up, running her fingers through my hair. A satisfied hum went through my body from her touching me, and she blushed.

“Sorry, you just had some snow…”

Grabbing her hand, I kissed her knuckles. “I like it when you touch me, Ivy.”

She blushed harder, the tips of her ears turning pink, and I traced them with my finger. She shuddered, and I had to pull myself away. Feeding her was my first priority. I pulled out two croissant sandwiches and then handed her the hot cup.

Ivy groaned as she inhaled the scent. “You’re not real. I swear. I’m going to wake up one day, and this will all be a dream. It’s much too good to be true.”

“Better get used to it, baby.”

She looked down at her lap, taking a bite of her sandwich before looking at me again. “What are we doing today?”

“Gingerbread houses. Thought we’d mark it off the list.”

“Oh, do we have to bake all the pieces of the house, too?”

“Why, because you liked baking cookies so much?” I waggled my eyebrows, thinking about what had happened the last time we were in the kitchen, covered in flour.

Ivy gave me a coy expression. “Well…”

I laughed. “Unfortunately, not today. Mom did that for us.”

“Really? Oh. That was nice of her.”

Bumping my shoulder into Ivy’s, I gave her a smile. “She liked you.” They’d talked all through dinner, and it had been like prying them apart at the end of the night .

“I liked her too.” She looked at me, so much vulnerability showing through her eyes. “I always imagined what it would be like to have a mom, but I… never imagined someone like her.”

“She’s the best,” I said, meaning every word. “Sure, she’s a little overbearing sometimes, but I know how much she loves me.”

Ivy sighed, and I wrapped my arms around her, kissing the top of her head. I could almost feel her retreating, withdrawing in on herself.

“It’s okay, you know,” I whispered.

She twisted her head, looking up at me. “What’s okay?”

“To grieve what you never had. To be sad that you missed out on all of this.”

“I am,” she admitted. “I hate that I didn’t get to experience all of this growing up. But you know something?”

“What?”

“I’m glad I get to do all of this with you.” A warm smile filled her face. “I think that maybe Christmas means something more with the right person by your side.”

“And I’m the right person?”

She blushed again. “I don’t know.” She paused. “Maybe. Is that crazy?”

I slid my hand around to the back of her neck, kissing her deeply without warning. “I don’t know, sweetheart. Does that feel crazy to you?”

“N-no.”

Running my tongue over my bottom lip, I went back to eating my food, willing my body not to react. “Exactly.”

Hours later, after we had finished breakfast and showered, the sun was high in the sky, making the world a glittering white. It had stopped snowing, leaving an undisturbed layer of powder on top of the several feet of snow that was already there .

Ivy came up behind me, wrapping her arms around my chest and resting her chin against my shoulder. “Whatcha looking at, Theodore?”

“Perfect snowman weather,” I said, enjoying the feel of her body pressed against my back.

She hummed, nuzzling into the back of my red flannel. “But it’s so warm and cozy inside.”

“Well, we’ll have to save it for another day then, won’t we? We have to check it off the list, sweetheart.”

“Teddy.”

“Mhm?”

Ivy’s voice was soft. “What happens when we check everything off the list?”

I blinked in surprise, turning around to pull her into my arms. “Then I’ve given you the perfect Christmas, right?”

“Well…” She looked hesitant. “I suppose.”

“Okay.” I tilted her chin up with my thumb. “Then let’s go make that gingerbread house so you can have the best Christmas, hm?”

“Okay,” Ivy nodded, and I slipped my hand into hers as I guided her into the kitchen.

I’d already set up all of our supplies—freshly made gingerbread shaped into walls, roofs, and all manner of things we needed for our house, icing made to the perfect consistency to stick it all together, and varying candies to decorate with. There were peppermints, tiny candy canes, gumdrops, red and green M&Ms, and gummy bears.

“What are the bears for?” Ivy asked, raising an eyebrow.

I picked one up, popping it into my mouth. “To eat. Mom always said it was better not to eat the decorations, and she was right. But maybe it’s just because I had a bottomless stomach when I was younger. Still, it’s always good to have snacks.”

“Should we open a bottle of wine, too? ”

“Good idea.” I kissed her cheek, heading into the fridge to grab one. Thankfully, I’d spent enough time with her now to know what she liked and grabbed one out and poured us both a glass before returning to the table.

Ivy was sitting on one of the chairs, with her legs crossed as she studied the gingerbread pieces in front of her.

“Need help?”

“Nope.” She popped the p, taking the wineglass from my hand and taking a sip. “I think I can assemble a gingerbread house, babe.”

Chuckling, I sat down next to her, drinking my own wine as I watched her start to assemble the walls. I helped here and there—mostly to hold things up with her instruction—but let her run the show. This was for her, after all. How many gingerbread houses had I built in my life? Dozens. It had been one of my favorite memories when I was younger.

Ivy shrieked as the roof slid down. “Noooo!”

I couldn’t stop laughing. “You gotta use more icing, sweetheart.”

She furrowed her brows, huffing. “This isn’t supposed to be that hard.”

“Come on, let me show you how the master does it.” I took the icing from her hands, spreading it over the sides of the roof panel before holding it to the top.

“Oh, a master, huh?” There was a hint of a smile on her face.

Smirking, I crossed my arms over my chest. “I’ll have you know I got first place in the annual North Pole Gingerbread House contest for five years in a row.”

“Only five?” She poked me in the arm. “You’re slacking, Theodore Claus.”

“That was before I was put in the adult age category,” I said with a shrug. “After that, the stakes were even higher. And after I got to college, I didn’t enter as much anyway. I had a lot more going on.”

The roof was now fully attached, and I handed her back the bag so she could start to decorate it.

Ivy bit her lip in concentration as she drew details onto the gingerbread, stopping every few seconds to add an M&M in a pattern on the roof.

“Looks good.”

“Yeah? Because I was kinda winging it.” She wrinkled her nose.

I pulled her into my lap, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “I couldn’t even tell.”

She laughed harder, the sound filling my heart, and there was no way I’d trade this moment. Not for the world.

Two hours later, our gingerbread house sat on the counter, dusted in a coat of powdered sugar to make it look like it had just snowed. I’d added shredded coconut to the bottom, and thought it looked pretty amazing.

“Look at that. Another item to check off the list.”

“Mhm.” She leaned back against my chest. We’d finished off the entire bottle of wine between the two of us, and Ivy hadn’t moved from my lap.

She wiggled her hips backward, rubbing over my already half-hard cock, and then giggled.

“Ivy,” I warned. I’d been doing my best the entire time she’d been sitting on my lap to control myself, but that resistance was slowly slipping away.

She hummed, rolling the icing bag between her hands, her tongue swiping over her lips. “What?”

“Give that to me.”

“What, this?” She fluttered her eyelashes, squeezing a dollop of icing onto her finger and then licking it off. “It’s sweet.”

A groan slipped from my lips. Her lips were pink, begging for mine, but I had plans for her. “Take off your top. Show me those pretty tits, baby.”

“Naughty.” Ivy wiggled her eyebrows, her tongue running over her lower lip as she toyed with the bottom of her sweater. “You’re a little naughty, aren’t you, Theodore?”

“Only for you,” I grumbled. “Now, off.”

Ivy complied, pulling it off and dropping the garment onto the kitchen floor. Flicking open her bra, I let her breasts spring free, baring those pink nipples to me.

“Beautiful.” My mouth watered, but I wanted to punish her for torturing me.

She whimpered when I didn’t touch her, rocking against me.

“Patience.” I flicked my tongue over her ear, standing up and holding her against me, grabbing the icing bag from the table before carrying her into my room.

The place that was starting to feel like our room. If she left, if this was all the time we had together, could I be in here without thinking of her? Sleep in my bed without wishing she was next to me? Her sweet, cookie scent was everywhere like it somehow permeated every wall of my house without me even realizing it.

“What are you doing?” Ivy asked as I set her on the bed before picking up the icing.

Smirking, I squeezed a drop of icing out of the bag. “Tasting you.”

Her strawberry blonde hair was spread out around her, and she was looking up at me with those beautiful blue eyes as I covered her nipples in icing, coating her skin with the sweet, sticky substance .

Dipping my head down, I captured one of them with my mouth, dragging my tongue over her nipple.

“ Teddy .” Ivy moaned as I swirled my tongue around, licking the icing off her skin.

I groaned at the taste. “You’re a dream, sweetheart.”

A dream I never could have imagined. Dragging my teeth across her skin, I sucked her other nipple into my mouth, lavishing her with attention as I licked the icing off of her body.

Her little sounds only succeeded in spurring me on, and she writhed against the sheets, my body on top of hers as I licked each drop of sweetness off her body, swirling my tongue over each hardened bud.

When they were finally clean, I could tell Ivy was close, and I placed kisses up her chest and on her collarbone. Finding her lips, I kissed her deeply, letting her taste the icing on my tongue.

“I need you,” she pleaded when we broke apart. “Please.”

“Baby,” I responded, tugging her leggings down her legs. “I’m all yours.” I’d give her anything she wanted. Whatever she needed.

Freeing myself, I positioned myself over her entrance. With one last swipe of my tongue against her nipple, I pushed in, burying myself in her body in one thrust.

A surge of rightness spread through my body.

Mine . She was mine. Ivy was mine.

And there was no way I was letting her go. Not a chance. I’d do whatever it took to convince her to stay.

Whatever it took to keep her.