Page 4 of Zin and Celeste: A Fortis Family Christmas

“Yes, he does.”

Zin unwound his scarf and handed it to her and then took off his hat.

“Won’t aunt Celeste be mad you took these off?”

“No, why would she?”

“Because you might get cold.”

“I have another set. Celeste always packs extras of everything.”

“Like Mum, she does that too. Says you can never be too prepared.”

Zin had a feeling Roz may have been talking about weapons but kept that to himself. “My sister is wise.”

“That’s what Dad says too.”

“He’s also wise.” Zin laughed knowing that K had, after years of chasing Roz, finally figured out how to handle her.

“What do you want Santa to bring you, Uncle Zin?”

Zin was fairly sure Natalia knew the truth about Santa Claus after the hell she and Katarina had been through. She played along for the younger kids and also because she was trying to capture the magic that was stolen from her by those bastards that tried to sell her and her sister.

“I want us all to be together.”

“That’s good but a bit boring.”

“What do you want, Natalia?”

“I want a new dance game for the Xbox.”

“Then you best make sure you’re good.”

“I will.”

Zin froze for a second when the girl hugged him tight, her arms around his waist and then hugged her back. Her innocence had been stolen to a certain degree, but bit by bit K and Roz were healing the damage done to these girls that everyone loved.

“I love you, Uncle Zin.”

“I love you too, child.” His voice was gruff when he spoke, and as he looked over at Celeste, he caught her wiping the tears from her eyes too.

“Hot chocolate for everyone,” Lizzie and Skye shouted as they headed inside to get warm as the sun began to fall below the clouds.

Zin stopped beside his woman and helped her stand, marvelling at how far they had come. “You okay?”

“Yes, and watching you with her, I can’t wait to see you with our son. You’re going to be an amazing father, Zin.”

“I hope so. I didn’t have much of an example to go by.”

Celeste reached up to pull his head down, and he let her, knowing he’d never get tired of her touch. She rested her forehead against his and held on like she had done from the start, never letting him go.

“I know so, and I love you so damn much it scares me sometimes. If I lost you, I don’t know what I’d do.”

He heard the tears in her voice, thick with emotion and pulled away so he could see her stunning green eyes. “Did you have a vision?” He was worried now, wondering if she’d seen something to concern her. He didn’t care about himself, only she mattered, but he was coming to see her happiness was also closely tied to his safety.

Celeste shook her head. “No, nothing like that. I think it’s just hormones.”

“These hormones, I do not like. The others I much prefer.”