Page 13 of A Trident Christmas Baby

“Yes!” Alejandra and Sienna squealed in unison, bouncing with excitement.

“Though,” Alex said with a playful squint, “I have a sneaking suspicion you two are more interested in taste-testing than baking.”

Sienna gasped dramatically, placing her tiny hands on her hips. “Someone has to make sure they taste good, Aunt Alex.”

“Uh-huh,” Alex replied, arching a brow. Alejandra giggled, already eyeing all the bowls of sprinkles, chocolate chips, M&Ms, and other items for the cookies.

Once aprons were tied and hands were washed, the group got to work. The kitchen buzzed with activity as flour dusted the countertops, and the rhythmic sound of cookie cutters pressing into dough joined the chatter.

“Hey, Bailey. Do you want to hear a funny story?” Tenley began, smirking at Alex as she rolled out some dough.

“Sure,” Bailey replied as she poured some chocolate chips into cookie dough and started mixing it.

“Alex, here,” Tenley said, hooking her thumb in Alex’s direction. “She decided to play hide and seek in the bushes out back last night.”

Bailey froze, her hand hovering over the mixing bowl, and her eyebrows shot up. “What?”

“Oh, yeah.” Tenley grinned wickedly. “She also thought it would be a good idea to test the structural integrity of the hedge by falling right into it.”

Alex groaned, tossing a pinch of flour at Tenley, who dodged expertly. “I didn’t fallon purpose! The dog knocked into my legs, and I lost my balance!”

Bailey’s eyes widened. “You fell into the bushes?”

“She didn’t just fall. She got stuck,” Tenley said and started telling Bailey the story.

Bailey laughed so hard she had to set the bowl down. “Please tell me there’s security footage.”

“Don’t worry,” Tenley said with a wink, “I’ve got a copy of the play-by-play right here.” She said, tapping the phone that was sitting on the counter.

Bailey looked at Alex. “You’re okay, right?”

Alex snorted. “Yeah, physically, I’m fine, but my pride took a little beating.

Both Bailey and Tenley chuckled.

Shaking her head, Alex turned toward Alejandra and Sienna. “Okay, enough about me embarrassing myself. Let’s talk about Santa. What did you two ask him for this year?”

Alejandra’s face lit up as she launched into her list. “I asked Santa for a friendship bracelet-making kit, some Nancy Drew books, and a sewing machine so I can make clothes for my dolls!”

Alex smiled warmly. “That’s a great list, Alejandra. You’re going to be so creative with all of that.”

She looked at Sienna next. The blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl was so stinking cute as she sat there at the island, swinging her legs with a juice box in her hand.

“And you, Princess Sienna?” Alex asked, glancing down at the tiara with a grin. “What did you ask Santa for?”

Sienna adjusted her tiara and put the juice down. She leaned forward, her expression deadly serious. “Well,” she began as she crossed her arms like a tiny CEO about to close a deal, “I asked Santa for another kitty because Mr. Whiskers needs a friend. But Daddy said Santa told him there aren’t any kittens or cats at the North Pole this year.”

Alex bit her lip to keep from laughing. “Oh, he did, did he?”

“Yeah!” Sienna nodded earnestly. “Daddy said the elves were really sorry but that they’re focusing on making toys this year, not pets.”

“Oh! I didn’t realize that the North Pole had a shortage of pets this year,” Alex said, trying to keep a straight face. Tenley snorted a laugh and had to walk away.

Sienna, oblivious, continued. “So, I told Daddy that if I can’t have a kitten, I want a princess castle for the backyard. A real one. Abigone!” She spread her arms wide. “With towers and a slide and a throne!”

“Wow! A real princess castle. That is a pretty tall order for Santa,” Alex said.

Sienna nodded and grinned. “I even wrote my letter to Santa in glitter pen. Santalovesglitter.”

---