Pieces I owed to him to put in place.
"You are," I said softly, fighting back the urge to look away.
His face contorted as he processed what I'd said. "How...." then, he went quiet, his eyes going wide. He winced, and I thought for a moment he might pull away, but he didn't. "The party. The one at Halloween. The woman in the mask and the sexy black dress.... That was you, wasn't it?"
All I could do was nod. I waited for an outburst to come, but none did. Instead, he just leaned forward and kissed me.
"I've thought about that night so many times since then," he admitted. "I can't believe I didn't realize it was you."
Then, his eyes went wide again. Moments later, his mouth curved up into a wide smile. "I guess that means I'm going to be a father, huh?"
Again, I nodded.
Before I knew it, Christian had kissed me again, then practically dragged me out of bed toward the bathroom. "Let's get cleaned up. I can't wait to share the good news with everyone!"
Talk about an awkward conversation to have a breakfast. But Christian was too excited for me to be too shy as he proudly told everyone we were having a baby. Everyone seemed to be just as excited as him too, especially all the women who all took to fawning all over me. Being the center of attention wasn't my favorite thing, but I couldn't deny how infectious the excitement was.
And as awkward as that conversation was, the phone call we'd had to make two weeks later was even worse. Christian had insisted on going to every single doctor's appointment with me, standing there by my side, grinning as only an expectant father could. But when the doctor had announced that I wasn't just pregnant but having triplets, I'd thought Christian might pass out right there in the office.
Of course, the moment we got back to his place, he insisted on conference calling everyone in his family to tell them the good news.
I'd grown up in a large, close family, but something told me that wasn't going to be anything compared to being part of Christian's. And you know what, that was just fine with me.
17
Christian
"Shhhh," I said softly, trying to get little Alexander to drift off to sleep. The other two were already passed out in their cribs. He was the last to go down, the stubborn one of the bunch. But eventually he too drifted off, and I was able to tuck him in for the night.
Carefully, I slipped back out of the bedroom, closing the door behind me. It wasn't until it was completely closed that I finally let out the breath I'd been holding. Taking care of three infants at the same time had been crazy, but it was the good kind of crazy, the kind I wouldn't have traded for anything.
Tip-toeing down the hall, I found Jade sitting at the dining room table, laptop open in front of her. She'd stayed with the company as long as she could, but once the babies were born, she'd left to take care of them. She wanted to spend at least the first year or two being the one who looked after them all the time, she'd explained, rather than using nannies.
Now though, with the little ones over half a year old, she was starting to get a little stir crazy and had started helping with the company again. This time though, she worked from home, only a couple hours a week, trying to dip her feet back into the pool. That was Jade though, never one to take it easy. Even though it was Christmas eve, she was determined to get some work done.
"There's nothing on there that can't wait until after New Year's," I whispered into her ear as I wrapped my arms around her from behind. I kissed her on the side of the head, and she let out a little giggle.
"I know it can wait. But just because it can wait doesn't mean I can't work on it. I want Markus to see that I can actually do this, that I'm not just helping him because you pulled some strings."
Jade had shifted from being my secretary to working directly for Markus, my CFO. And she had gotten the position directly under him because I'd pulled some strings, but I knew she was more than capable of handling the work. And what she didn't know was Markus planned to retire in a few month. He wanted to take his wife somewhere warm where they could live in peace.
And, if Jade was ready to come back full-time, I was planning on offering her his job. There was no one else I would've rather have right by my side, helping me run the company.
But all of that could wait. It was Christmas eve, and I wanted to spend some time with my wife without thinking about work. So I gently closed the lid of her laptop, and when she glared up at me, I silenced her with a kiss.
"Come on, Mrs. Claus," I teased, pulling her up out of her chair. I waggled my eyebrows at her, which made her giggle. "Mr. Claus has a few last minute things he needs to take care of."
Jade giggled. The presents for the little ones were all already under the tree, wrapped and waiting, though none of them would ever remember their first Christmas. That meant, for the next couple hours, until the kids woke up screaming at dawn, I had Jade all to myself. And I knew just how to celebrate the holiday with the woman I loved.
The best way to stay in touch with me is to join my newsletter. And I’m always in the Christmas spirit :)
freebook.simonerivers.com
*
Looking for another Christmas romance?
Try Mall Santa’s Christmas Family
She thinks I’m an impoverished Mall Santa, but I’m really a billionaire playboy who’s trying to work his way off the
