Chapter 15

Liselotte

“Thank you for walking me down the aisle. I want our wedding to blend Gerhard’s Earth customs and our Krampus ritual,” I say, patting the Chancellor’s arm. When I discovered human weddings start with the bride entering on her father's arm, I sobbed. My parents died before Gerhard was born. Who could stand in for my father?

“You mean, his excellency, the ruler of Christmas Island, Santa Claus. You can’t forget who he is, Liselotte—”

“To me, he will always be my Gerhard,” I giggle. Surrounded by the opulence of Christmas Palace, my new home, how can I forget Gerhard is the most powerful male on Christmas Island? He’s not used to others calling him Santa yet. So what if I am slow to adjust, too? “Well, today unites everything—elves, Krampuses, and Gerhard.”

“There are some concerns about him introducing grey areas into the code—”

“Concerns already? From who?”

“Just rumors of…insecurities…due to some of the things he said about the nice list…”

“There were four people who heard those things, and we’re two of them,” I say, growling in frustration at the Chancellor and my veil. Damn thing looped around my horn. Horns and veils don’t mix. If I could get the restrictive net off my head, I’d ditch it for the ceremony. “If these concerns are yours, go to Gerhard and clear the air. He’s reasonable—that’s why he’s uncomfortable with ruling us.”

“Or I’ll bring them to you,” he says, with a nod of his chin my way. “After today, you will be Mrs. Claus…our queen.”

“Now you are too much!” I give up on the veil and drag the Chancellor from the study. Dalia hands me a bouquet of sugar flowers and takes my other side. I couldn’t have picked a better elf to be my personal guard. After two days on Earth, she’s ten times more street-smart than before she left. I just wish she would tell someone where she last saw Star Anise, so I could bring him back.

The music from the ritual chamber roars from behind the metal doors. Even though I coordinated every detail of the pageantry on the other side, I can’t ignore the panic crawling in my belly. What if he’s fuming at the fountain because I got something wrong, and it’s offending him? Until I brought him here, the pressure to be perfect almost crushed me. If I disappoint him with a lackluster wedding, I’ll crumble.

What if he regrets everything after seeing Dirk’s life without him in the scrying bowls?

“It’s not too late to run,” The Chancellor says with his hand on the handle.

“I’ve got your back,” Dalia chimes in. “I don’t know how long I can hold off Santa, but I’d lay down my life for you, Ms. Liselotte.”

“There’s no need,” I say, wiping my eyes with the cursed veil. “I love him with all my heart. I’m just scared of showing the crowd how much I want to please him. A Krampus lady is brought up to bottle her emotions and manipulate others. I’d like to say Gerhard changed me, but he just brought to the surface what was already there. What if I break down with tears of joy in front of everyone on Christmas Island? Will other Krampuses torment me for the displays of love and devotion I can’t help when I’m next to him?”

“Then I will kick their asses,” Eugene growls from the door. He’s a disembodied head poking through the opening. “The longer you prevaricate out here, the more nervous your groom gets at the fountain. Must I remind you that elves blow electric sparks when they’re nervous, and what happens when sparks meet water? Move it!”

He yanks me over the threshold by my free arm. Anxiety dumps onto my chest in giant boulders. Krampuses stand on one side, elves on the other, but they all gasp in alarm. I’m sure their faces are pulled in comical expressions of shock and dismay, but my gaze locks on the man at the fountain. They remade Gerhard’s tux in red velvet. His hair is the same style, but the waves are taller, with lush thickness. Tears of joy cascade down his cheeks when he sees me. His relief is palpable.

Sugar flowers of all shapes and sizes sparkle on the metal pews. Strange mushroom greenery is braided into garlands that crisscross overhead. Gerhard is excited to try their savory fruits, but I’m skeptical. The little red toadstools are pretty, though. The elves’ fountain is more ornate than its Krampus twin. Glittering gemstones, metal embellishments, and sparkles of gold from the elves’ mines remind me of how many luxuries the Krampuses missed when the trading over the Sea of Faith stopped.

I’d run down the aisle, dragging the Chancellor with me, if Eugene weren’t stomping in front. What was supposed to be a demure processional of graceful ladies and the Chancellor is ruined. I giggle at the absurdity of Eugene in the position of flower girl. Where’s his basket of petals?

“I’d ask what’s so funny, but I don’t want to break the spell. If you’re relaxed enough to giggle, then all is right in my world,” Gerhard says when I take his hands.

“All my life, I wanted to be seen as perfect to the beings in this room. I hid or changed myself to fit their expectations. Now I only care about yours. What have you done to me?”

He leans over me to whisper, “Not one-tenth of what I plan to do to you.”

“Who gives this Krampus to Santa Claus to be his Mrs. Claus?” The Vice-Chancellor starts the ceremony before I can answer Gerhard.

“I don’t know. Santa gives her to himself?” The Chancellor flubs his line, and snickers resonate from both sides of the crowd. “Well, he’s the groom, and he’s in charge. Don’t you know that?”

The music stops with the abruptness of a door slam. Every eyeball in the ritual chamber burns into me. Maybe a bride wears a veil to protect her from the audience? Legend says it protects her from evil spirits, but I’m more afraid of ridicule and criticism.

“I think we should skip ahead to the exchange of vows and the formal ritual—”

Dalia scares the air from my lungs when she takes my bouquet. Sugar flowers will melt in the fountain’s mist, but this is too soon in the ceremony. I shriek and bounce at the sudden contact. My dress crinkles as loud as my outburst. Sigh, I’m as graceful as Eugene.

“In a hurry to formalize your power base, Santa?” The Vice-Chancellor fires a knowing look of greed and cunning at him.

“Nope,” Gerhard answers with a beaming smile, “I’m in a hurry to unwrap my bride. I missed her terribly when she rescued Dalia from Earth while I settled into Christmas Palace. The only formalizing I have in mind is formalizing my family line …if you catch my drift.”

I have a newfound appreciation for the veil that hides the fiery flush on my face. The crowd loves Gerhard’s antics, wry smirks, and witty delivery. They laugh and murmur comments I’m glad I can’t understand through the noise. My knees shake with the urge to run. I can’t stand here to be judged when this ceremony is headed toward disaster. Dizziness builds a halo at the edges of my vision.

“For me, you will do this for me.” Gerhard doesn’t say to please your master , but it’s implied in his tone. His whisper breaks through the bonds my anxiety used to restrain me. His warm hand envelops mine as he leads me to the ritual fountain. The pressure on my lower back, from where he leads me, anchors my swirling thoughts. We kneel as a unit on the padded edge. “Settled?”

“Yes,” I reply, because his presence has settled me in more ways than balancing on my knees. The background noise fades behind the rushing water from the metal spout shaped like an elven face.

“I found the spout odd too,” Gerhard whispers as the Vice Chancellor drones on about the creation of a Christmas Nation. “It’s like a vomiting elf, and we’re worshiping his upchucked bile.”

“The water does have a green tint to it,” I reply, grateful for the distraction.

We giggle like schoolchildren as the Vice Chancellor steps into the water to signify purifying him in preparation for the blessings.

“Please submerge your hands into the water.”

“If I may, Vice Chancellor,” Gerhard whispers loud enough for everyone to overhear. “You might want to vacate the pool before two elven members submerge their electrified hands into it. I’m not in charge of the ceremony but I certainly contain enough charge to fry you.”

“Oh, that’s the way it’s always been done…but okay,” The Vice Chancellor fumbles as he climbs out of the ritual pool. “First time for everything…”

“It feels right to have our hands joined in a joining ceremony, doesn’t it, my sweet?”

“Please don’t let go of me,” I whisper, hoping the crowd doesn’t hear my request for support. If Gerhard lets go, I may faint. But with his hand tethering me to the present, I can do anything.

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he whispers as he submerges our hands.

“I’ll say the bonding verse first,” the Vice Chancellor announces our instructions to the crowd. Let him have his ten minutes of fame. After this, he will babysit Percival’s brood, take orders from Gerhard, and measure his lifespan to see if he will outlive the Chancellor. “Then Santa, if you please, repeat after me. Liselotte will repeat you.”

“In this life, realm, and all others, I choose you…”

“In this life, realm, and all others, I choose you…” Gerhard’s silver eyes glow with his new magical status, but the core of the man I fell for on Earth remains. They are a symbol of the steady rock he is for me and will be for Christmas Island. I repeat the words in a voice boosted by his strength.

“For together, we create a third heart that beats louder than the sum of our two.”

I’m lulled into a quasi-subspace by the silky quality of Gerhard’s voice, the brush of swirling water, and the clasp of his hands. The words release from me in a reflex that doesn’t involve my brain. I’m too focused on Gerhard’s sweet promise. Even the Vice Chancellor’s pompous shouting of the vows reduces to background noise.

“—a fifth hand who can help more than our four, a fifth lung who can breathe compassion into our world, and a third brain who imagines a better place when we are together. I vow to choose you every day when I wake, every moment of my day, and every evening when I retire. I understand our bond is destined and necessary for the advancement of the realms, and I will honor the universe by loving you.”

The spell is broken when the Vice Chancellor dumps the ceremonial ladle of water over our heads. Gerhard sputters and shakes it from his hair, much to the crowd’s delight. The more I endure, the less I hate this veil. Droplets catch in the sugar weave and sparkle as brightly as my diamond ring. I marvel at the beauty until the sugar melts—fusing into clumps of my hair. Removing this veil will take hours of hair-pulling!

“I now pronounce you Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Santa, you may now kiss your bride,” the Vice Chancellor announces with a closing snap of his ritual book.

Gerhard releases my hand to lift my veil. The veil’s hem fell into the pond and disintegrated. The bottom hangs above my waist. His fingers caress the underside of my breasts over my dress in a non-accident. His crafty smile gives him away. The material catches on my chin, neck, and ears. I whimper as it’s torn from my horns. Is it bad luck to curse your veil at the ritual fountain? Could I accidentally curse my wedding?

“Look out, I’m coming in!” Gerhard’s announcement is met with cheers and laughter. He pulls the veil toward his body and dives under the hem. His wet hands lift me onto his lap. My feet swing over the side of the fountain, submerging the bottom half of my dress. “Where are you?” He whispers against my lips.

“Shh, if we’re quiet, maybe the crowd will forget about us and leave.”

“I know a way to keep you from talking.” He captures my jaw in his large hands.

His lips crush mine in a claiming kiss. Applause erupts around us, but I’m lost in our little cocoon. He tastes of mint, salt, and the masculine essence of him. Hunger fills the cracks and cavities within me as my anxiety drips into the fountain alongside my dissolving veil. I clutch the labels of his jacket to drag his body as close as I can. His sexy purr when I nip his tongue fuels the fire building between my legs. If we could fuse into one being, I’d consent to being swallowed by him forever. As our vows implied, we are better as a unit than the sum of our parts…and I never want to be apart from him again.

The Vice-Chancellor clears his throat a few times before using the ceremonial ladle to throw water upon us with obnoxious splashes. I don’t care if my feet are blue and pruning; I’m not releasing my master until he commands. The need to curl up and ask Gerhard to carry me to our new bedroom sits in my throat. A whimper escapes as I press my thighs together to contain the arousal threatening to drip into sacred waters.

“Want to get out of here?” He whispers between pants. His pupils are blown with lust.

“And miss our own reception party? Dalia could stand in a hostess, and there’s enough entertainment to keep the realm busy all night…we could have hours of privacy…”

“They can gorge themselves on cake while I gorge myself on you.”