Page 70 of Naughty Heart

We entered her office, and when her gaze fell upon the tree, I watched as her eyes danced with excitement at the gift she saw.

She looked up at me, her eyes shining, and said, “Santa left me a present.”

“He did. Do you want to open it?”

“You go first,” she declared, moving away from the office entrance and toward the tree.

Evelyn picked up the gift she’d gotten for me, a square box that wasn’t terribly large but much bigger than the small box under the tree for her. I took it from her and tried to read the look on her face for any clues about what might be inside. She gave nothing away.

I tore off the paper, revealing a plain white box underneath. When I removed the lid, I saw what was inside and felt my lips twitch.

“I didn’t know what to get for a guy who has everything,” Evelyn murmured. “I thought you might enjoy this.”

I grinned at her as I pulled out the coupon booklet and set the box down. Thumbing through them, I realized just how horrible I was at being creative on a budget, because Evelyn had knocked it out of the park.

Inside the booklet she’d given to me were at least a hundred different coupons I could go to her to redeem. There were tons of options, ranging from things like a movie night, breakfast in bed, and a romantic dinner, to things like a striptease, sexy time, and skinny dipping. Of course, there were unique date ideas mixed in as well, but any of the ones that resulted in her being naked were the ones that caught my attention.

“This is perfect, darling.”

“Do you like it?”

I gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I love it.”

A look of pride washed over her face, and I gave myself a moment to soak that up. I had a feeling that look was going to be gone in a matter of minutes.

When she shot me an expectant look, I had no choice but to get her gift. I picked it up and held it out to her. “Merry Christmas, Evelyn.”

“Oh, I can’t wait to see what it is.”

It blew my mind. Evelyn was expecting a small item that cost no more than twenty-five dollars, yet she was acting like I’d just promised to take her on her dream vacation.

She tore off the paper like a kid on Christmas morning and yanked the lid off the small box. When she pushed the tissue paper out of the way, she snapped her head up and froze. “What is this?”

Okay.

Yep.

There was no question I was starting to feel uneasy about her reaction. “It’s your gift.”

“Does this gift have a counterpart?”

I nodded.

“Malcolm… why? I’m not a genius, but I’m positive you did not stay within the budget.”

“I wanted to do this for you,” I told her.

Her eyes rounded as she held up the box. “This is a key.”

“Yes.”

“And it goes to a car.”

“Yes.”

Her shoulders fell and her eyes went to the coupon book she’d given to me. I could see her mind working, and I knew exactly what she was thinking.

“What you gave me is worth far more than what I spent on a car for you,” I explained, moving close and wrapping my arms around her. “I need you to understand why I did this. You’re mine now, Evelyn. I want to know that you’re safe and can come and go wherever you want, whenever you want. I don’t want to worry about you waiting outside in the cold for the bus.”