“I still can’t believe you made that wager in the first place,” said Ellie.
“Hey, I had one hundred percent confidence in myself.” I tipped my head onto Dex’s shoulder. “It wasn’t my fault I lost.”
“Are you blaming this on me?” Dex asked.
“Entirely. If you hadn’t moved in with your grumpy scowl and tight T-shirt, we all might have been spared tonight.”
“Don’t make me give you a lecture on how a man’s clothes are not to blame for a woman’s behavior,” he scolded.
I laughed. “Let’s call it even.”
“Deal.” Leaning close, he whispered in my ear. “As long as I can call you mine.”
Epilogue
One Year Later
WINNIE
“Working on any new stories?” I asked Hallie, dropping onto the foot of her bed. It was the night before Christmas Eve, and we’d spent the evening wrapping presents and baking Christmas cookies at Dex’s place. Snow was falling outside the girls’ bedroom window.
“I’m finishing an old one,” she said, hugging her stuffed penguin.
“Oh yeah?” Dex tucked Luna in and sat on the edge of her bed. “Which one?”
“The one about the ogre and the princess. It’s turning into a love story.”
“Oooh,” I said. “Tell me about it.”
“Well, they’ve been very good friends for a while, but the ogre would like to marry the princess.”
“But he’s an ogre,” Dex argued. “Are they even allowed to marry a princess? I thought her parents wanted her to marry the cruel prince.”
“They did, but this princess doesn’t care what other people say. She makes her own decisions.” She thought for a moment. “She’s a feminist princess.”
I laughed. “Good for her.”
“So do they get married?” Luna asked eagerly.
“Well, at first the ogre is afraid to propose. He thinks she’s going to say no because he’s not a prince. But he asks her anyway.”
“Because he’s learned to face his fears?” asked Dex.
“No, because her cottage is much nicer than his cave, and he really wants to live there with her.”
Dex harrumphed. “This ogre gets a bad rap in your stories.”
“What does she say?” I thumped Hallie’s feet through the blankets. “Don’t leave me in suspense!”
“She says yes, because she loves him and believes even ogres deserve a happily ever after.”
Luna grinned. “That’s a good ending.”
“It’s a perfect ending.” Smiling, I rose to my feet, kissed my fingers and touched Hallie’s forehead, then did the same to Luna. “Love stories are my favorite.”
“What about you, Daddy?” Hallie asked. “Are they your favorite too?”
“They’re growing on me.” Dex kissed his daughters goodnight while I leaned in the doorway. “See you in the morning.”
“You’re coming early in the morning for presents, right, Winnie?” Hallie asked.
“Yes,” I promised. “Just have your dad text me when you wake up.” Since the girls were spending tomorrow night with their mom, we’d told them Santa would drop by early to bring some gifts to open here.
“And you’ll come in your pajamas?”
“I’ll come in my pajamas.”
“And we can make chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast?” Luna asked.
“Yes—my mom’s secret recipe.”
“Goodnight, girls,” said Dex. “You have to go to sleep or else Santa won’t come.”
“You’re sure he knows to come early?” Luna sounded worried.
“Positive.” As Dex walked toward me and reached for the light switch, I saw both girls look at each other and wiggle their noses before the room went dark. I laughed softly as we went down the stairs.
“What’s funny?” he asked.
“The girls. I think they’re trying to cast another spell.”
We reached the bottom and he put his arms around me. “What could they possibly want now that they have a cat, the ogre has the princess, and I have you?”
“I don’t know,” I said, “but I definitely saw some nose wiggling in there.”
“Hmm.” He kissed the top of my head. “Maybe they were just making a Christmas wish.”
“True. Santa is coming tonight.” I lowered my voice to a whisper. “Should we give it an hour before we bring their presents over from my place?”