She already knows the answer to that. Every Christmas Day is wonderful because it’s my day off, and I get to spend it with her and the children.
The entire month of January is spent celebrating and relaxing for everyone who works in the North Pole Village.
“You know I did,” I tell her, kissing the top of her damp, warm head. Out of breath, I inhale her scent into my lungs, and it settles me down. She has that way about her.
She murmurs, “I forgot to give you one gift. I thought you could wear it tonight. After the kids are asleep, of course.”
Clara hops down and fetches a small box from under the worktable.
I sit up and open the second box of the afternoon. This time, I’m looking at my old leather kilt. “Sweetheart. This is thoughtful, and I don’t know how you found this. But as you know, it no longer fits me.” I pat myself around the slight spare tire I’ve developed since settling down with my Clara.
My wife rubs at my love handles and informs me that one of the more discreet toy makers in the clothing department had the kilt let out a few inches.
“So, will you wear it for me? Please?”
Chuckling, I ask, “Do I have a choice?”
“Sure,” Clara answers. “You can choose to try it out now or listen to me ask you again and again for a millennium.”
She doesn’t know that receiving her questions for a millennium gives me life.
She may tease me that I’m stuck with a human for what seems like an eternity. But the truth is, she was the one who kidnapped my heart from the very beginning. And I never want to escape.
THE END