Page 39 of Mistletoe and Mayhem
Alistair groaned, leaning against him heavily. “I forgot about that…”
Confused, Elijah turned to look at him. “Do you not want to go?”
Shaking his head, Alistair drew him into his arms. “It’s not that. I enjoy spending time with our friends. But we’ve had kids in the house for days. I was looking forward to having you all to myself.”
The suggestive tone made Elijah blush, his libido perking up at the thought of bringing his anchor to bed. Before he couldsuggest it, though, a knock at the door forced them apart. He opened the door, his smile just a little forced as Isaac greeted him.
“Isaac? I thought we were meeting you at the party.”
He grimaced and nodded. “I wanted to drop off presents for my niblings first. Did I miss them?”
“By a few minutes, yeah, but they’ll be at the annual ritual this year,” Alistair offered.
Isaac slumped, disappointed, but shrugged it off. “Alright. Can I leave them here? Flying with bags is a huge pain in the ass.”
Snorting, Alistair took the bags and beckoned him and Maverick in. “Where did you land?”
“A few blocks over. This place looks great! Very festive,” he complimented as he peeked into the living room.
Elijah took it in again as well, sighing happily. He’d never celebrated a holiday quite like this before. Sometimes he would visit home during the new year, but his parents didn’t celebrate holidays much and doing more than sharing a meal was considered a waste of time. They weren’t the celebrating types. Seeing his home so filled with warmth and love now made his heart swell, and he wanted to bask in it for hours.
Chuckling, Alistair kissed his temple, putting an arm around his shoulders. “Come on, Eli. It’ll look even better when we get back and it's dark out.”
That was true. He smiled at his anchor, watching in amusement as Helios meowed petulantly in a demand for Alistair to bend and grant him access to his favorite perch. Alistair did with a roll of his eyes and a wink at Elijah, dipping low enough to let Helios hop onto his shoulders. They’d found it was easy to get Helios from place to place if they didn't try to stuff him into his carrier and instead let him ride on Alistair.The cat preferred the thick muscle to Elijah’s smaller frame, and Elijah couldn’t blame him. He preferred Alistair’s body, too.
If you aren’t careful, we’ll miss the party, Alistair warned with a heated look.
Elijah blushed, grateful when Isaac led the way outside and over to Alistair’s car. Alistair took the wheel, with Elijah in the passenger seat, Helios in his lap, and his brother and his mate in the back.
“Oh, did you grab the gifts?” Elijah asked before they could pull away.
Alistair made a face, putting the car back into park. “Damn it. I’ll be right back.”
Isaac snickered from the back seat. The kids’ presents weren’t the only ones he’d traveled with, but they’d been in Maverick’s care when they came in and Alistair must have missed them. Elijah watched as his anchor jogged inside, his eyes sliding over the snow angels slowly getting blanketed by more snow. The holiday wasn’t even over yet, and it was already the best he’d ever experienced.
A hand squeezed his shoulder, and when he looked behind him, Isaac smiled softly. “You look happy. Did you have fun with the kids?”
He nodded, twisting in his seat a little without disturbing Helios so he could share in their adventures. Six months after Alistair came into his life, and he still wasn’t used to people casually touching him, but Isaac was one of the first to start, and his continued acceptance made Elijah unbelievably happy.
As Alistair returned with the gifts and they started on their way to the party, they chatted about the kids and the mix of new and old traditions they’d done with them. Isaac in turn talked about the annual holiday party in the Saltoria Mountains with Maverick’s family and the shenanigans Maverick’s sister got up to each year. They all agreed to keep her away from Taron andKian, just to ensure the world wouldn’t implode, and laughed at the possibilities of what could happen if the three of them were in a room alone together.
“Woah. They went all out this year,” Isaac interrupted, leaning to look out his window. Elijah spun around, gasping as he took in Avery and Ozen’s home. Multicolored lights were strung up on the rooflines, the railings, and around the windows. Garland was strung along the stoop walls, giving the castle-esque building a more festive feel to it. And framed in the front window was an absolutely massive tree currently being decorated by a few of his friends. Avery noticed his arrival out the window and waved at him, beckoning them inside.
Eagerness filled Elijah’s chest, along with a small amount of worry. He’d never had a true holiday celebration before. Especially not a human one. He wasn’t entirely familiar with the traditions. Isaac told him about the gift exchange and how the items were supposed to be handmade. That had been simple enough, he’d picked up plenty of hobbies while living alone, but he probably should have done more research beforehand. What if he did something wrong?
Relax, Eli. You know no one will leave you to flounder. Just have fun. I’m sure Taron will explain everything anyway. He won’t be able to help himself.
Elijah poked his anchor in the side with a mock frown.Be nice to Taron. He’s kind to me.
Alistair’s smile softened, and he nodded.Which is why I don’t complain about him hanging on you. Now come on. Let’s get you inside. I still need to get you a new coat.
Snorting, Elijah waited for Alistair to come around like he preferred, offering him Helios, who returned to his perch on Alistair’s shoulders to free up his hands so they could carry in the gifts together. Ozen had already opened the door for themand scratched under Helios’s chin in greeting as they stepped inside.
“Welcome. We’re still in the set-up stage, so feel free to jump in wherever you’re most comfortable.”
Avery had explained this part to him, at least. When they started this yearly holiday tradition, they’d done so because Tony was sad and missed the traditions he used to celebrate with his family. His favorite part was the quality time, so Avery designed the party to include setting everything up together. Everyone pitched in and shared in each step together, and he said it was really fun and not as stressful as party planning usually was since everyone showed up to help.
With Helios still perched on Alistair’s shoulders, he wasn’t allowed in the kitchen. Elijah headed in that direction instead, smiling at Zephyr who was basting the turkey while Brennus poked at the potatoes.
