Sometimes the perfect Christmas is only a daddy away.
Omega Noah’s first Christmas since losing his husband is looming, and everyone wants to help the poor widower. His neighbors invited him over, his family invited him over, even his ex’s best friend invited him over. Being around people who all pity him is the last way he wants to spend the holidays, so he does what any omega would do. He thinks up a story and he thinks it up quick. How would they know he isn’t really spending his vacation in the mountains and hiding at home? It’s the perfect plan until his brother asks to crash at his place since he’ll be gone. Now, he has no choice but to find that mountainside getaway after all.
Alpha Cruz’s budget is busted when the family renting his cabin for the month of December backs out at the last minute. Scrambling to fill the space, he places an ad on a social media site and hopes for the best. Less than five minutes later, he has a renter, one whose profile both intrigues and saddens him. The poor omega lost his husband a year ago on Christmas in a horrible accident. When the man can’t afford the rent and thanks him anyway, he does the only thing he can do and offers a discount. There’s just something about the sorrow in the man's eyes.
When the two of them meet, sparks fly, but Cruz knows better than to get involved with a client. He will just give the omega the best week he can. The plan is good and goes well, until mother nature comes in with a vengeance and they find themselves snowed in. More than just the fireplace heats up as the two get to know each other and feelings begin to bloom.
More than just the fireplace heats up as the two get to know each other and feelings begin to bloom.
Waiting for Daddy Christmas is a sweet with knotty heat MM Mpreg Christmas romance brought to you by the popular co-writing team of Aria Grace and Lorelei M Hart. It features an omega looking to escape his memories, a sweet daddy alpha willing to help, being snowed-in by an unexpected storm, cuddles by the fireplace, new beginnings, true love, and more than Christmas cookies in the oven. If you love your Christmas romances Hallmark-esque, your happy ever afters complete with an adorable baby, and your mpreg with heart, download Waiting for Daddy Christmas today.
1
Noah
I used to love Christmas.
As a kid, there was nothing better in those weeks just before Christmas, when the ground was covered in snow and the buildings and trees were draped in colored lights...and everyone was happy. Once I became an adult, I guess I understood on an intellectual level that people weren’t all gumdrops and candy canes the way they appeared.
The holidays brought a lot of pain and grief and regret with them for so many people.
But it wasn’t until this year, right now, that I could truly comprehend what that all meant.
Because this was the first time in my life I was dreading the last month of the year. There was nothing happy or joyous or worth celebrating in my future. Not my immediate future and not any time after that. Because for the first time in my life, I was alone. More alone than any human ever should be. Not because I was still looking for happiness. That would be so much less tragic than my reality.
I was alone because the man I loved, the alpha I promised to adore and support until my dying breath, passed away first. Not just first but way too soon. And though it had been more than eight months since his accident, I was no closer to being okay than I had been on the day I got the call from the highway patrol.
The stack of cards collecting on my dining table should have brought me some joy because I used to love getting photo holiday cards from my friends and family. But I just couldn’t conjure that kind of excitement this time. All I saw when I looked at the chubby babies and loving couples was the future that was taken from me.
The future I’d never have.
My phone rang and my brother’s face flashed across the screen. I considered ignoring it but knew he’d just keep calling until I answered, so I took a deep breath and hit the answer button. “Hey, Matt.”
“Noah, my man, what’s the word?”
“All is good here.” My voice sounded unnaturally upbeat, which was my first mistake. Scratch that. Answering the call was my first mistake. “What’s up with you?”
He exhaled loudly. “Don’t bullshit me, Noah. I know you’re not all good. And being alone in that big, empty house isn’t good for you either.”
“I’m not great, Matt, but I’m doing okay. And getting better every day.” Lying was never my thing, but I’d become better at it over the recent months. “Really, I’m fine.”
“Well, you can prove that to me when you come to our place for Christmas.” Here we go. The umpteenth Christmas sympathy invite of the week. “Come up a few days early so you can hang with the kids and stay through New Year’s Day. We’re doing our usual Ball Drop party and there will be several single alphas there so it’ll be a good chance to meet some people.”
This was even worse than I thought.
“Matt, you know I love you, and I appreciate the thought.” I swallowed hard and then cleared my throat. “But I’m not coming this year. I’m just not ready.”
“Nope, not gonna let you sit around at home and mope. We’ll see you a few days before Christmas Eve at the latest.”
“Actually, I already—” I tried to feed him another lie but he hung up too quickly.
That was fine with me. He probably knew I wasn’t gonna make it, so I’d just send a text the day before and claim to have the flu. That worked every time.
For about an hour, I thought I was in the clear.
And then my phone blew up and practically everyone I’d ever met was trying to get me to spend the holidays with them. It was sweet. Thoughtful. I even appreciated it. But it was completely unnecessary. I wasn’t some loser omega who needed pity attention. I was a grieving man who just wanted to be left alone to think about the good times.
What was so bad about that?
My phone rang again, and this time it was my neighbor, Greg. He invited me to his weekly poker game but I only attended once every few months when I had no way of avoiding him. “Hey, Greg.”
“Noah, hey. Got a sec?”
This was a trick question. If I said yes, he might invite me to hang out. Or worse, invite himself over for a beer or to watch a game. But if I said no, he would want to know what I was doing and if he could come over later, so it was easier to just get this over with. “Yeah, sure. What’s up?”
“What are your plans for Christmas?”
Oh, great. Not him too. “Um, actually…” I had to make this good. I couldn’t use the flu since it would be gone by Christmas. “I’m heading up to the mountains. Got a little cabin to, uh, do some meditating. My therapist thought it would be good for me.”
Technically, none of that was true, but I was backed into a corner and had to say something.
“You are?” He paused for a second and then his voice perked up. “Hey, that’s great. For both of us.”
I was suddenly regretting my attempt at a lie, but I wasn’t sure why. “How’s that?”
“Well, I think it’s great that you’re getting out of town. You need a change of scenery. Get away from all the ghosts that haunt you.”
“Um, yeah, I guess.” I wouldn’t call the memory of the only man who had ever loved me a ghost, but I didn’t have the energy to argue with him. “So how is that good for you?”
“Well, my sister’s family is surprising us by coming into town for Christmas, and my parents are already gonna be here so…”
Shit. I could already tell where this was going.
“If your place will be empty, can I maybe rent it or something? That way my sister and her annoying husband can be close but not too close?”
“Oh, right.” Think. Think. Think. “I can’t really think of a reason to say no…” Even though I really wanted to.
“Cool. Thanks, man! We appreciate it.”
I sighed heavily. “Of course. No worries.” Apparently, I needed to find a place to stay for Christmas so I could avoid seeing all the people who loved me. This was why I hated to lie. “Happy I could help.”
As soon as I got off the phone with Greg, I grabbed my laptop and a beer and plopped down on the sofa. What were the chances I could find a secluded cabin to rent at Christmas time with minimal notice and within my nonexistent budget?
Yeah, that was what I was afraid of.
2
Cruz
I stared at the contract for a full minute before I finally hit the button to electronically sign it and then submit it to the contractor. Switching the entire electrical system over to solar was an expensive upgrade, but I knew it would pay off in the long run. Unfortunately, in the short run, I was emptying my savings account to make it happen. There wasn’t much left for an emergency, but my vacation rental was booked through New Year’s at the prime holiday rate.
As long as no checks bounced, my bank account would have a buffer again in no time. As soon as the contract was submitted, I stepped into my running shoes to brave the frigid weather for a quick run. Running had always been my way of letting off pent-up tension, stress, or excitement. I wasn’t sure I could identify just one of those emotions, but I definitely needed to stretch my legs and get some fresh air.
The cold air felt like sharp spikes poking my lungs. It only took a few minutes of heavy panting for my whole body to warm up, and then each breath I sucked in was refreshing.
Excitement.
That was what I was feeling. I was excited about the future and about finally having a season in the green. When I bought the cabin three years ago, I had big plans for it. But every upgrade I made led to five issues being revealed. Now that the cosmetic improvements were all done, the money coming in was all gravy.
I finished a five-mile loop then slowed to a walk to cool down.
My foot had just landed on the first step to my porch when I got an alert from the reservation system I used to handle the bookings. “Sweet, another fat check coming in.”
With a smile on my face, I opened up the booking app as I pushed open the back door and went inside. “Let’s see how much money I just made.”
Usually, there was a green dollar sign in the upper corner of the app when a new reservation was made. But I didn’t see the dollar sign. Instead, I saw a red frowny face. “What the hell is this?”
I kicked the door shut and zoomed in to read the message next to the unfamiliar icon. “Reservation cancelled?” I scrolled down to see which booking was trying to cancel. It was common practice to offer a 14-day cancellation window without penalty, so I didn’t think anything of using that as my standard policy. But when I saw that the reservation backing out was for twelve days, ending on January first, I almost threw my phone across the room in frustration. “Fuck!” That was my gravy train right there. The nightly rate was tripled during that week, and there was basically zero chance I could find someone to rent the cabin for that rate on such short notice. “There goes my fucking slush fund.”
After a quick shower to rinse off, I got over my pity party and grabbed my computer. I might not be able to replace the entire booking, but maybe I could get a family in for a few days around Christmas and then another group for New Year’s. It wasn’t ideal and would probably only bring in a fraction of what I was banking on, but it was better than nothing.
With low expectations and few options, I posted links to the rental site on all my social media accounts. Maybe a friend of a friend would see it and decide to be spontaneous. Or better yet, maybe a family with a bunch of kids who loved playing in the snow would decide to chase a white Christmas this year.
As soon as the posts were live, I put my computer away and turned on the TV. I wasn’t a big TV guy, but it was a great distraction. And with all the new worries racing through my mind, a distraction was exactly what I needed.
Just as I was getting sucked into an old episode of Three’s Company, my phone rang. I hoped the family who cancelled was calling to uncancel, but when I saw the area code on my phone, I knew it wasn’t them. But it wasn’t anyone in my contacts either.
“Hello, this is Cruz.”
A soft cough was followed by a throat being cleared before there was finally a voice at the other end of the line. “Hi, um, I’m calling about the cabin for rent.”
Oh, maybe it was my lucky day. “Okay, cool. Well, it’s still available. What days are you looking for?”
“Christmas Eve and Christmas Day for sure. Maybe a few days before and after.” He cleared his throat again and then sighed. “But, um, I wasn’t able to get to the website to see the price. How much is it per night?”
“Six hundred a night from the twenty-third through January third. One eighty per night the rest of the time.”
“Oh.” I could hear the disappointment in the man’s voice with just the single syllable. “Sorry to bother you, but that’s outside of my budget.”
Before I could offer him a discount or find out what his budget was, he disconnected the call. “Dammit. What’s going on today?” I hit the call-back button and leaned back on the sofa. Clearly, I wasn’t meant to have money.
The phone only rang once before the timid man answered again. “Hello?”
“This is Cruz again. You just called about my cabin.”
“Yeah.” He seemed terrified, but I’d hoped it was for other reasons. “Can I help you?”
I shrugged, even though he couldn’t see me. “I don’t know. What’s your name?”
“Noah, why?” He was less timid when he was suspicious, and it sounded like he was suddenly very suspicious. “Why are you calling?”
Why was I calling? To beg him to find more money? “What’s your budget for the cabin?”
He was quiet for a few seconds, as if he didn’t know how to respond. “Like five hundred bucks, total. I’m sorry for wasting your time, it’s just that this year has been really bad for me and…” He paused and then sniffled as if he might be crying. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. Just forget I called.”
I could tell he was about to hang up, but I stopped him in time. “Whoa there. Just hold on a sec. What happened this year?” It was absolutely none of my business and yet I couldn’t ignore the pain I heard in his voice.
“Well, if you must know, my alpha died.” He sucked in a deep breath then blew it directly into the mic of his phone. “This is my first Christmas alone, and I just wanted to get away from my well-meaning but very intrusive family. But I can’t afford a place like yours, so thanks anyway.”
Well, shit. How could I ignore that? I’d always had a soft spot for people in need. Especially someone who sounded so broken and lost. “Okay.”
His breathing stuttered. “Okay, what?”
“Okay, you can have the cabin for five hundred.” Who needed a savings account anyway?
Lorelei M. Hart is the cowriting team of USA Today Bestselling Authors Kate Richards and Ever Coming. Friends for years, the duo decided to come together and write one of their favorite guilty pleasures: Mpreg. There is something that just does it for them about smexy men who love each other enough to start a family together in a world where they can do it the old-fashioned way ;).
Born and raised in beautiful California, Aria enjoys the year round sunshine and laid back environment of the west coast. Her career started out in tech writing and web development and has evolved into all things marketing with fingers in everything related to book publishing.
She lives with her husband and two children and more pets than she can keep track of. Despite her crazy schedule, she loves the time she carves out to read and write. Whether it’s on the beach or on the couch at 2am, she is a woman obsessed!
She loves to hear from readers so please feel free to drop her a note.
If you’d like to know when Aria’s next book is coming out or where she’ll be signing, join her mailing list.
Lorelei M Hart
EMAIL: Lorelei@mpregwithhart.com
Aria Grace
