Page 84 of Of Magic and Reindeer
“Trust me.”
Another violent shiver racked my body, deciding for me.
“Fine, but if this is some kind of trick to dump me in a snowbank, I’m turning your antlers into icicle chandeliers.” I laid the blanket across his back and awkwardly climbed onto him, clutching fistfuls of his thick fur.
This was going to be much faster to get back to the cabin since I didn’t exactly know how to control teleporting.
His muscles tensed beneath me, powerful and coiled, before he launched forward with surprising speed. We tore down the hillside, and I pressed my face against his warm neck as we raced past the cabin lights glowing in the distance.
He veered sharply, plunging into the dense tree line instead of continuing toward the cabin. I squeezed my eyes shut as branches whipped past, trusting Rudy to navigate while I concentrated on not falling off. It wasn’t as smooth as flying, but the magical aerodynamics created a barrierbetween me and the wind that would have frozen me otherwise.
Rudy finally slowed as we entered a small clearing nestled among the pines.
“Oh, wow,” I breathed as I took in the steam rising from a natural pool of water.
Rudy came to a complete stop, and I slid off his back, my legs wobbling slightly as they reconnected with solid ground. The air was warm and carried the earthy scent of stone.
The surface of the steaming pool glowed, looking like scattered diamonds. The snow around the edges had melted into a perfect perimeter, creating a magical boundary between winter and warmth.
“A hot spring?” I stepped closer to the pool, feeling the heat radiating upward, already beginning to thaw my frozen limbs. “I’m surprised this place isn’t packed all hours of the day and night.”
Rudy shifted back to human form beside me. “No one comes here but us. Since it’s within Klarhaven’s boundaries, the magical properties of the veil keep humans away. This is also in our territory, and the other magical creatures know that.”
“And you brought me?” I looked up at him, understanding he was extending a Christmas branch.
Oh, geez, even my comparisons were turning festive.
I stared at Rudy, momentarily forgetting the cold as his mouth curved into a smile. It wasn’t the tight, controlled expression I’d seen before, but something warm and real that transformed his entire face.
He reached for the hem of my soaked sweatshirt. “You need to get out of these wet clothes.”
I batted his hand away, taking a step back. “Whoa there, big guy. I can undress myself, thank you very much.”
“Fine.” He shrugged.
Before I could respond, Rudy began stripping down. His shirt came off first, revealing his intimidating expanse of muscle. When his hands moved to the waistband of his sweatpants, I should have looked away.
He stepped out of his pants, standing there in nothing but a pair of boxer briefs covered in a red, white, and green polka dot pattern. It was so unexpected on someone like him that I almost laughed. Until I saw the bulge underneath the pattern.
I swallowed hard. “Are those... Christmas boxers?”
He glanced down as if he’d forgotten what he was wearing. “And?”
The absurdity of this stoic mountain of a man wearing holiday underwear made something in my chest loosen, and I covered my mouth to stifle a giggle.
Rudy waded into the pool, steam curling around his torso until he was waist-deep. His boxers flew out of the water with a dramatic flourish, landing with a wet plop at my feet.
I jumped back as if they might bite. “Seriously?”
“It feels better without them.”
I eyed the water suspiciously. “Are there, um, things in there? Living things? Because I’ve seen enough horror movies to know that naked people in mysterious bodies of water never ends well.”
Rudy’s eyes glinted with amusement. “The water is completely safe. The minerals have healing properties and are good for sore muscles. If you want, I can conjure you a swimsuit.”
I glanced down at my wet clothes, then back at the water. “That won’t be necessary.”
I peeled off my hoodie and stepped out of my bottoms, leaving me in my lacy underwear. I covered my breasts with an arm as the biting air raised goosebumps across my exposed skin and hardened my nipples.
