8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

At midnight I was officially off shift so I allowed myself a glass of red wine. Everyone had been stuffed with leftovers, pie and enough alcohol to sink a ship; it was definitely time for Stan to stagger home. Since Thomas hadn’t been drinking, he offered to give everyone a lift.

As they pulled on their coats, I hugged Sigrid tightly. ‘Thank you for doing so much to make my first Portlockian Christmas so special. It was perfect,’ I murmured.

She hugged me back. ‘Thank you , dear. It was great fun.’ She turned to Connor. ‘And thank you for the gift of your home. May it be blessed with many years of joy.’ She brushed her hands along the doors as she left and they glowed for a moment.

Connor wrapped his arms around me as we watched everyone leave. When we were alone, he said, ‘She blessed my house.’ He sounded bemused. ‘I don’t think a vampire has ever had a witch bless their house before.’

‘She doesn’t see you as a vampire,’ I said quietly. ‘She sees you as Connor. Thank you, for letting me do this here.’

‘I loved having a full house,’ he confessed. ‘I usually spend my Christmases alone with a glass of expensive Scotch and old Christmas movies on TV, so this was incredibly special. I should be thanking you.’ His eyes warmed. ‘And I will. Come on, I have another gift for you. Two, actually.’

I honestly expected him to strip off his clothes but, to my surprise, he sat me down on the sofa. ‘Wait here,’ he instructed.

He disappeared into his bedroom and came out with a small box. My heart thundered hard for once. Was he going to propose? I wasn’t ready for that and he knew that, right? But he didn’t get down on one knee; instead he opened the lid for me. It was jewellery all right – but instead of the feared engagement ring, it was a flawless emerald.

‘It seems we both had the same idea,’ he said with amusement.

‘It’s a daylight charm?’

‘Yes, but not a generic one like the council gave you. This is from me. That emerald has been in my family for centuries. My mother gave it to me when I came of age and told me to give it to the woman I wanted to spend my life with.’

My eyes filled with tears and my heart ached with happiness as I fumbled with the clasp of my necklace with shaking hands. ‘Help me.’ I turned around so he could unfasten it, then put the emerald on the chain next to Nana’s triskele charm and removed the other daylight charm; I’d return it to the council so they’d have it for the next vamp hire.

I stood up and admired the beautiful gemstone in the mirror as it hung on my chest; it was almost the same shade as my eyes. Connor stood behind me and snaked his arms around me. I turned and kissed him in thanks.

‘One more present,’ he breathed. ‘And this one is shit. I debated not giving it to you, but…’

‘Connor,’ I laughed, ‘I’ll love it whatever it is. I promise.’ I grinned at him mischievously, ‘Now gimme!’

He laughed and led me into the kitchen. Okay, I hadn’t been expecting that. He shot me a nervous glance. ‘I didn’t do that many in case they were awful. But… Well, you’ll see.’

He reached into a cupboard and pulled out a cake tin. He pulled off the tin lid with effort. ‘Ircenrraat proof,’ he explained. When the lid popped open, I saw several wonky and misshapen mince pies. ‘You made them for me?’ I gasped.

He shrugged awkwardly. ‘I wanted to do something for you, so Sigrid agreed to let me make them as a surprise. You’d said how much you like them so I—’

I threw myself into his arms and kissed him soundly. ‘That is the most brilliant gift ever!’ To show him my appreciation, I popped one of the wonky pies into my mouth and ate it. It tasted exactly as it should, maybe even a bit better because it had been made with love.

‘Thank you!’ I beamed.

‘I’m glad you like them.’ He looked quietly chuffed.

‘I love them. And I love that you made them for me.’ I paused a beat. ‘So when Sigrid said she couldn’t get the mincemeat in time…?’

He grinned. ‘She was lying through her teeth. She could have made them but she knew I wanted to bake them myself, so she made the gingerbread instead.’

My heart warmed even further. My favourite Christmas treat, my favourite people and Christmas magic. It really was everything I could have dreamed of. I smiled and held out a small pie, ‘Will you have one?’

He looked a bit dubious but he did bite into it. ‘Hey,’ he said after a few chews. ‘That’s really good!’

I grinned. ‘Told you! Now, let’s go to bed. Let’s ring in Christmas together.’

He shot a quick look at the back door, clearly debating something. ‘What?’ I asked. ‘What’s up? Do whatever you need to do, don’t mind me.’

He looked uncomfortable. ‘The ladies like their port. I normally take them a bottle at Christmas.’

Melt my heart. ‘You go right ahead,’ I said. ‘I don’t want to ruin your traditions!’

‘Never. But we can make new ones together. Come with me,’ he said impulsively.

I laced my fingers through his and we padded out into the dark, freezing night with a bottle of port. Really nice port. I watched as Connor uncorked the bottle and the dancing ladies ran over to him. They swarmed up him like he was a climbing frame and peppered his cheeks with chaste kisses as he held perfectly still.

Just as quickly they slid down and went for the bottle. They put some stones into it and, when it overflowed, they cheered and licked the dripping liquid. That answered the question of how they’d handle such a large bottle.

Connor took my hand and led me back inside to the warmth of his newly blessed home. ‘So,’ I said, amused, ‘I have competition for your affections.’

He turned to me, eyes serious. ‘Never.’

I fell into his arms and they tightened around me. Our kisses were hot and heavy, tinged with the taste of mince pies and red wine. I couldn’t be sure if it was the alcohol that was making my head spin or the man, because he was intoxicating all by himself. Yum.

I pulled back to look at my mate. ‘I love you, Connor McKenzie. Merry Christmas.’

His eyes darkened and he pressed me close. ‘I love you too, doe. Merry Christmas.’ Then he tugged me towards his bedroom.

Best. Christmas. Ever.

We hope you've loved reading The Vampire and the Case of the Cozy Christmas as much as we did writing it. It was an absolute balm for the soul and we hope it has put you in the holiday spirit! As an extra gift, we have included in this volume some links to bonus scenes from each Bunny book, and a sample chapter from each of our solo work! Enjoy!

Next up in this series is The Vampire and the Case of the Hellacious Hag , coming April 2025. We can't wait to share it with you! Don't forget to pre-order it!