1. Jayne

We were about done with our meal of cheeseburgers and french fries, courtesy of a cute little mom-and-pop burger joint next to the gas station where we'd stopped to fill up our RV. I'd had cheese on my fries as well. So good .

The red vinyl seat in our booth squeaked as I shifted to get closer to my milkshake. Sadly, it was nearly gone.

"You're sure you're all right with this?" Sinclair asked a second time, wiping his mouth with a paper napkin.

The genuine concern on Sinclair's face was nothing new. Everything elicited that kind of emotion from him these days. All because I was seven months pregnant, which, okay, was a big deal. Big being the operative word. But he was still treating me like I was made of glass.

I picked up my last french fry and swiped it through the ketchup. "Sin, my darling husband, I think a side trip to New Orleans sounds fantastic." I ate the fry, then put my hand on my belly. Jack Jr. seemed to be enjoying the meal, too. Technically, our son wasn't a junior because, obviously, Sinclair's first name wasn't Jack. But my dad's was. So to stave off any confusion, we'd added the junior part. "You'll get to see your friend Matt, and I can introduce Jack Jr. to the bounty of delicious eats that the Big Easy has to offer. I'm a hundred and ten percent all right with this."

"Okay," Sin said, smiling. "Looks like we're off to New Orleans."

"I can't wait. I'm already craving beignets. And bread pudding. And shrimp and grits. Oh, and doesn't a po'boy sound good? And?—"

Sin laughed. "We've barely finished this meal."

"And I'm already thinking about that last piece of Dr Pepper fudge." I glanced down at my growing stomach. "I can't help it. Your son is half winter elf, and he's proving it already. My appetite—or maybe I should say our appetite—is out of control."

Sin's hand reached across the table to grab my hand. "I can't wait to meet him."

"Me, either." He moved just then, making me wonder if he'd heard us talking about him. Anything was possible with the kind of magical bloodlines he had.

"We should get back on the road. We're only about six hours away from New Orleans. If you don't mind us driving a little late, we can be at Matt's tonight."

"I'm good with that. We should definitely do that. But maybe I could get one of these chocolate shakes first? For the road."

With an amused shake of his head, he got up. "I'll be right back."

He returned with my second shake, gathered up our trash and threw it away, then came back and gave me a hand getting out of the booth. I wasn't incapable of getting up by myself yet, but letting him help me was good for both of us.

We went back to the RV. The shake was just as good as the first. Nice and chocolatey. Jack Jr. did a little somersault of approval.

As soon as Sin opened the door, we were greeted by meowing in stereo. Spider and Sugar, our two cats, were sitting by the door, making their needs known.

I went inside and glanced at their bowls, which were almost empty. "Okay, okay. Dinner is coming. So needy."

Sin nodded. "I think they've gotten worse since you've been pregnant."

"You might be right." I took two clean bowls out of the cabinet and split half a can of Spider's favorite between them. I had to kind of bend and squat, then reach sideways to accommodate the belly. "Here you go."

Spider rubbed against my legs. "Spider loves Chicken Party."

"I know you do, you spoiled little monster." I picked him up and kissed his head.

He squirmed. "Spider loves Mama, but Spider needs to eat."

"My apologies," I said with a roll of my eyes. "Wouldn't want to get between you and your food."

"Now you know how I feel," Sin said, chuckling.

"Hey!" But I laughed. I was very aware of my hangriness at times. I toed off my flats in the bedroom, then came back. "You okay to drive?" I already knew the answer to that question. Sin was always okay to drive. He pretty much loved it.

"You bet." Sin got behind the wheel. "Just waiting on my navigator."

I made sure I had my phone, grabbed my half-empty shake, and joined him in the cockpit of the RV. I settled into my seat. "I'm going to let my dad and my uncle know we're going to New Orleans. If we're going to be there, we might as well make a visit to the Santa's Workshop there."

Sin nodded as he started the engine. "Absolutely."

I sent them a quick text, taking full advantage of the upgraded tech recently installed on their end that made texting more reliable. I told them we were doing well but making a quick side trip before starting our trek back to the North Pole. I gave them the details I knew: We'd be staying with a friend of Sin's in the Garden District, and we could do a shop visit if they wanted us to.

With that done, I put my phone aside and returned to my shake. Sad how fast it was disappearing. "So tell me more about Matt. What's his last name?"

"Galloway." Sin got us back on the highway. "He's a good guy. He did some top-secret special clearance stuff in the military that he can't talk about, and now he's a private security consultant with his own business. He travels all over the world for his job, which was why he couldn't come to our wedding. He's newly single, something he's not super happy about, and I think our visit could be just the thing to cheer him up."

"Um … you don't think seeing us all happy and in love with a baby on the way is going to remind him of what he doesn't have?"

"I…" Sin's brow furrowed. "I didn't think about that. I hope not. But he knows all of that and he invited us, so he should be fine."

"Why is he newly single?"

"I don't know all the details, but his girlfriend got tired of him traveling. She wanted him to stop, and he just can't."

"Couldn't he take her with him?"

Sin shook his head. "From what I understand, her job didn't have that kind of leeway."

"Makes sense. I can't think of a lot of jobs that would." I took a last sip of my milkshake, doing my best to get every drop out. "And you've known each other a long time?"

"We went to high school together. We were both on the chess team."

I stared aghast at my skull-belt-buckle-wearing, muscle-car-driving, bad-boy necromancer husband. I felt like I was seeing him in a whole new light. " You were on the chess team?"

"Yes. What's wrong with that?"

"It's so … so … nerdy! And I married you!"

"Yes, you did." He grinned. "Too late to back out now."

"You could have at least warned me." I winked at him when he looked over.

"You'll like Matt. And he's going to love you. Although you won't be the first princess he's met."

"Is he a supernatural, too?"

"Nope, not even a tiny bit. But he knows all about our world and he's cool with it."

"What other princess has he met?"

"One from the Middle East. I can't remember the country. Not as impressive as you, though, I'm sure."

I grinned. Spider hopped up into my lap, as much as that was possible these days. He leaned up to rub his face against mine and I could smell the Chicken Party on his breath. I kissed the top of his head anyway. "What about cats? Is he cool with them?"

"He is. He has one of his own, a big old street cat named Slim."

Spider pawed at me. "What's a street cat, Mama?"

"A street cat is a cat that didn't start life in a nice home like you and Sugar did."

Spider stared at me. "Spider feel bad for street cats."

"Don't feel bad for Slim," Sin said. "My friend Matt found Slim as a skinny, flea-infested kitten not long after he bought his house. Matt took him in, got him healthy, and has had him ever since. He must be ten or eleven by now. But Matt says he's a big loaf and won't be bothered by our two. Besides, they'll be in the RV with us. It's not like we're staying in his house. Unless you want to? He has enough rooms."

Spider moved to the edge of the seat next to me and looked out the window, our conversation no longer interesting, apparently.

"I'm fine staying in the RV. I'm sure his house is great, and if he's offered for us to stay there, that's very nice of him, but the thought of trying to figure out what I'd need to pack while all of our stuff is already here and perfectly useable?" I shook my head. "I don't have that kind of energy in me."

Sin smiled. "It's okay. I figured as much. And he won't care if we don't stay at his place. The good thing is he has a very long driveway that will easily accommodate this beast."

"Good." I exhaled. I didn't like using the pregnancy as an excuse, but it really did impact just about everything these days. "Are you excited to be going back to New Orleans?"

"I am. Very much."

I yawned. Spider lay across my arm now, immobilizing it while also taking up a quarter of the seat.

"If you want to nap, go ahead. I have the cats to keep me company."

I glanced back to look for Sugar. She was on the couch, eyes closed. I yawned again. "I'm not much of a navigator if I nap." Not that he really needed me. He had a natural sense of direction that I envied.

"I have the GPS on, and I mostly know where I'm going anyway. I'd rather you take care of yourself. If you need to rest, do it."

I really didn't want to leave him alone while he drove. I reclined the seat as far as it would go, which was pretty far, then settled back. "How about I just nap here? Then if something happens, you can wake me up."

Clearly amused, he asked, "What do you think might happen?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Rainstorm? Bad traffic from an accident? An ice cream truck might overturn and need us to help eat all the ice cream before it melts?"

His brows lifted. "You really do have pregnancy brain. Go to sleep."

Smiling, I closed my eyes, still thinking about ice cream. I couldn't help it. But with the hum of the road and Spider's warm little body against mine, sleep didn't take long to come.

"Jayne, honey, we're here."

I opened my eyes. It felt like only seconds ago I'd closed them. Spider was no longer on my lap, we were no longer moving, and it was dark outside. "Where are we?"

"At Matt's. My friend in New Orleans. Remember?"

"Oh, right." I rubbed my face and looked out the window. The house alongside the RV glinted in the darkness like a Christmas present. With its welcoming wraparound porches, stately Southern columns, and leaded glass double doors sparkling in the exterior light, the place reflected the charm and luxury of a bygone era. "That is some house."

Sin nodded. "Matt said it won some awards before he bought it."

The front doors opened, and a man came out, smiling and waving. He had short-cropped hair and a warm smile.

"And there he is." Sin shut the engine off. "Come on. I can't wait for you to meet him."

We climbed out and met Matt on the cobblestone walkway that led to his front porch. He stuck his hand out. "Sinclair Crowe. It's been too long."

"Yeah," Sin said. "It has been." He shook Matt's hand, but it turned into a hug, both men clapping each other on the back.

When they parted, Matt's attention turned to me. "You can only be Jayne."

"That's me."

Matt glanced at Sin. "Wow. You married up."

Sin laughed and slipped his arm around me. "Yes, I did."

Matt took my hand between both of his. "It's a real honor to meet you, Princess."

I smiled. He was charming and handsome and a cat lover. It was nice to know my husband had good taste in friends. "It's an honor to meet you, too. Thank you for the invite. And please, just call me Jayne."

"Jayne it is. Would you like to come in? I know it's late, but once I knew you were coming, I laid in some provisions. If you're hungry."

Sin made a little noise. "Jayne is always hungry."

"It's not me," I said, one hand on my belly. "It's the baby."

Matt nodded with great seriousness. "She's eating for two, Sinclair." He looked at me. "I didn't know if you liked sweet or savory, so I got a selection of both."

"Sweet," Sin answered.

I rolled my eyes as I nodded. "I do tend to lean toward sugar."

"A woman after my own heart. Do you like king cake?" Matt asked, staying by my side as we walked toward the house. "It's a local thing, for sure, but very good. I also got some pralines, made fresh today, and an assortment of pastries from the Vietnamese bakery nearby, plus a couple pints of ice cream, also locally made. I picked Roasted Strawberry with White Chocolate Ganache and Espresso Brownie. Do either of those sound like flavors you'd like?"

I was salivating. "They both do. It all sounds amazing."

"It sounds," Sin said from behind us, "like you're trying to steal my wife away."

I laughed and glanced back at him. "You know my heart belongs to you." I winked at him. "But my stomach might be Matt's for the next hour or so."