Holiday Crown Read online

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Title

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Epilogue

  The Dark Pretender Sample

  The Golden Prince Sample

  Author’s Note

  Nikki News!

  Book List

  About the Author

  No part of this book may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author. Thank you for respecting the rights of the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2019 Nikki Jefford

  Cover design by Najla Qamber

  All rights reserved.

  Dedicated in loving memory to my dad who looked for the humor in everything.

  Chapter One

  Melarue

  There were so many cool things about Earth. One of my favorites . . . the toy warehouses! Seriously mind-bending. Row after row lined with shelf after shelf filled with games, action figures, stuffed animals, dolls, and baubles.

  Dressed in my pair of snug blue jeans, white tank top, and the awesome pleather jacket Lyklor had gotten me for my birthday, I continued my preliminary walk-through, slowing down in the aisle lined with bicycles. A rainbow of colors unrolled down the aisle. Round rubber tires beneath bright orange, red, blue, yellow, green, and green-and-yellow frames. I peered closer at a wicked black bicycle with orange tire rims and handlebars. Images of bike races through the halls of Dahlquist flooded my mind. Hmm. Wouldn’t that be fun?

  I started humming “Deck the Halls.” I wasn’t sure of the lyrics, only the “fa la la la” part. That’s why I preferred humming to singing—knowing the words didn’t matter. “Hmm hm hm, hm hm hm hm hmm. Fa la la la la, la la la la.”

  A teenage employee wearing a royal blue polo and black slacks paused in her stride down the aisle to smile at me. She cradled a large stuffed snowman in a Santa hat in one arm. “’Tis the season to be jolly,” she said cheerfully.

  How nice.

  “That it is,” I said, smiling back.

  “Santa’s little elves are busy, busy, busy this time of year.”

  Umm. “Sure.” I forced a smile, reminding myself she was being friendly and didn’t know any better. Too bad more humans weren’t aware of the elven and faerie realms. They could do with a dose of cultural enlightening. Oh well. I knew how lucky I was to travel the three realms on a regular basis.

  The young woman hugged Frosty to her chest and said, “Let’s get you back on your shelf, why don’t we?”

  Resuming my stroll down the aisle, I stopped in front of a cute pink-and-white bicycle with a white-and-pink-daisy basket. Hmm, way too girly for my niece, Fraya. I wondered if they had a larger one for Aerith.

  “Make way; make way,” Ryo called at the end of the aisle, even though no one stood in his path. A red baseball cap with a white pom-pom on top covered his black head of hair. He wore jeans and a snug long-sleeve black tee.

  Lyklor rounded the corner with a large cart, barreling toward me. Ryo jogged beside him, egging him on. “Onward, Dasher!” My mates reached me in no time. Their grins reminded me of our boys—playful, sweet, and mischievous.

  Stopping inches from my legs, Lyklor removed a hand from the cart to sweep back his messy blond hair. If he wanted, he could have been a male model in the human realm. Instead, he posed for me every day. Yep, life was pretty much sweetberry sunshine for this redheaded elf.

  “Let’s see what you boys found.” I leaned over the cart, looking at the assortment of plastic guns and refill packs.

  Ryo pointed inside, announcing, “Longstrike Nerf Modulus Toy Blaster with barrel extension, bipod, scopes, and six dart clips.”

  “And that there is the Nerf Rival Nemesis, fully motorized with foam bullets,” Lyklor said.

  “We found tactical vests with multiple dart clips.” Ryo pulled one out and put it on over his tee.

  “Refills to last a year at least,” Lyklor added.

  After taking inventory of the supplies I’d wanted, I lifted my head and grinned. “Excellent. Now that we have our gifts, what should we get the boys for Christmas?” Lyklor snorted. Ignoring him, I swept my arm down the aisle. “I was thinking bicycles.”

  Ryo rubbed his chin as he eyed the spoked tires lining the floor. “Do you think they would draw too much attention in Pinemist?”

  I sighed moodily, my eyes lifting to the tall, overhead warehouse ceiling. I understood why Ryo asked. Elves weren’t keen on “polluting” their culture with outside influences. Fae weren’t any better. They wanted to keep their realms pure of man-made creations and customs—including Christmas. We celebrated winter solstice, not Santa. It was one of the reasons Hensley had asked us to rule Dahlquist during the holidays. She wanted to spend Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s with her mother in Seattle.

  My brood and I had spent enough time in the mortal realm to adopt some new traditions. Christmas was one of our favorites, and we didn’t care if it wasn’t celebrated in the elven realm or Faerie. We were rulers and rule breakers.

  As Lyklor joined Ryo in pursing his lips, looking over the bikes, I was reminded of the commotion we’d caused with our large outdoor trampoline. Elves passing by had gawked as though a spaceship had landed in the field beside our cottage. That didn’t stop their kids from sneaking over to bounce with our boys. Fraya had all but begged Jhaeros to get one for his estate grounds, but my brother-in-law had said if she wanted to jump up and down like a rabbit, she could go over to the cottage and do so with her cousins. Yep, that was me, the eccentric auntie. I definitely had to find her a bicycle.

  “I was thinking for the castle,” I said.

  My mates stared at one another, thinking it over much too long.

  “That could be a disaster,” Lyklor said.

  Ryo nodded. “We should totally do it.”

  Triumph lifted my chin. “Two against one. Fa la la, ha-ha.”

  “Very well,” Lyklor said. “But we’ll need helmets and probably knee and arm pads, too.”

  “Don’t forget the bells and horns,” I said. “We need one for each bike.”

  “And how many bicycles are we talking?” Lyklor raised a brow.

  “The boys, Fraya, us, Aerith, Jhaeros, Gayla, and Folas, so . . .” I did some quick counting on my fingers before looking at Lyklor with a grin. “Eleven.”

  We’d dragged Folas and his daughter, Gayla, into our new tradition. Gayla was a darling little girl of eight years. Unfortunately, things hadn’t worked out well between Folas and his mate. The female had left him and their daughter after Gayla’s third year. Father and daughter made Dahlquist their full-time home, and as far as I was concerned, they were an extended part of our family.

  Lyklor rubbed the back of his neck above his favorite red leather jacket. “We’re going to need help teleporting all this back to Dahlquist.”

  Ryo nodded, the white pom-pom bobbing on top of his baseball cap. “Maybe we should finish filling the cart with the smaller stuff.”

  “Follow me.” Lyklor turned the cart around and wheeled it down the aisle at a rapid pace.

  I practically had to jog to keep up with my golden-haired mate. He led us to an aisle filled with dolls and stuffed animals. There was way too much pink and purple going on. Pushin
g the cart aside, Lyklor grabbed a boxed doll, while Ryo picked up a pink fluffy kitten.

  “I think Gayla would really like this human doll with her rounded ears,” Lyklor said.

  “And I know she would love this cat. She’s always excited to visit the animals in the stable,” Ryo said, petting the stuffed toy.

  “Get both,” I suggested.

  Lyklor and Ryo looked at one another and shrugged before tossing both toys into the cart. I was ready to move on to more exciting playthings, but Lyklor pushed the cart down the girls’ aisle at a snail’s pace while scanning each shelf.

  “Aw,” Ryo cooed.

  “What?” Lyklor asked, stopping the cart.

  Ryo swiped a pink headband dangling from a peg and held it up for inspection. “Look. It has cute little cat ears. We should get this to go with Gayla’s kitten.”

  “She can be big sister cat,” Lyklor said.

  Ryo nodded.

  Silly boys.

  “Look at this,” Lyklor said, snatching a box from the shelf. “Lip balm boutique.” He turned the box around, squinting to read the back. “You can create custom flavors. There’s beeswax, molds, containers, and an instruction pamphlet. Gayla’s taken an interest in powders and potions. This is perfect!”

  “Not to mention safer,” Ryo said under his breath.

  No sooner had Lyklor placed the lip balm kit into the cart than he grabbed another boxed toy. “Polly Pocket snow globe set. Look, there’s a cute little chairlift for the little Polly doll to ride up the mountain—and a snowboard to ride down.”

  Shaking my head, I pushed my long red hair over my shoulders. “Well, I’m glad girls’ toys excite the two of you so much.”

  Lyklor returned the toy to its place on the shelf, cleared his throat, and glanced at Ryo. My dark-haired mate rubbed his chin and lifted both eyebrows at Lyklor. Something was up.

  “Guys, what is it?”

  Ryo pulled his Christmas cap off before nodding at Lyklor. They seemed to be having a silent conversation, one I really wanted in on soon.

  Clasping his hands together, Lyklor stepped around the cart to stand a couple feet in front of me. “Okay, here it is, Melarue. Ryo and I would like a daughter, and we’re hoping you might, too.”

  My jaw slackened as a soft buzz went through my belly. “You want another baby?”

  “A girl,” Lyklor said.

  A whole new kind of giddy came over me that no amount of toy shopping could supplant. My legs twitched with the urge to skip around the store. I loved being a mom. I never would have believed it as a young teenage elf, but there was nothing quite as badass as giving birth. I’d thought shuffling around with a bulging belly would have had me groaning in frustration, but growing a life had been the most incredible, out-of-worlds experience. It had been eight years since I’d given birth to the twins. Getting pregnant had so much appeal that I wouldn’t need much convincing, nor did I care about the gender, but my mates didn’t need to know that. I should make them work for it a little longer.

  I folded my arms. “Let’s say I’m on board with this baby thing. You can’t just pick out the gender like a boxed doll.”

  “Gender fertility spell,” Lyklor blurted, his eyes shining in eager anticipation. “They’re not guaranteed, but they’ve been known to have a highly successful rate.”

  “Uh-huh. And who would be doing the honors?”

  Lyklor’s pupils dilated as they locked onto me. “I called dibs.”

  “Dibs?” I scoffed. “I’m not a slice of sweetberry pie.”

  Ryo snorted. “Real smooth, pit head.”

  Sending a quick glare Ryo’s way, Lyklor returned his attention to me. “You had Ryo’s babies last. Plus, he got two.”

  I looked over at Ryo, who sighed deeply. “You have my consent. We were actually hoping for results by Christmas so we can announce it to the boys after opening gifts. You know, save the best gift for last.” Ryo flashed me the cutest, most kissable smile. Then again, the thought of my golden-haired king knocking me up again made me suddenly eager to leave Ryo to handle the toy situation while Lyklor and I grabbed some alone time at the hotel. Thanksgiving was a week and a half away, and Hensley wanted us back at the castle to take over for her and Liri. We’d just have to try for baby number four at Dahlquist. That was where all my kids had been conceived. Just once it would have been cool to create life in the mortal or elven realm. At least I had a good track record for getting pregnant in Faerie.

  A wide smile spread over Lyklor’s cheeks. “Sarfina’s been helping me look into gender spell rituals.”

  Ryo rolled his eyes. “Of course she has.”

  “Wait. Hold up.” I held up my palm. “You discussed this with your sister . . . before me?”

  Ryo smirked as I glowered at Lyklor.

  The blond king blanched. “Uhhh . . . only because I wanted to know if it was possible before I got your hopes up.”

  “You mean your hopes.” I laughed at his unease. “Whatever. The holidays must be going to my head, because I’m going to let this one fly. However, Sarfina has to stay at Ravensburg with Teryani while we try. I won’t tolerate her hounding us for progress reports every hour.”

  “Done,” Lyklor said.

  “Can I hound the two of you every hour?” Ryo asked with a smirk.

  “Don’t you dare,” Lyklor warned him.

  Ryo sauntered over, his shoulder brushing mine as he took a place beside me. “Don’t worry, Mel. If golden boy fails to impregnate you, I get my turn to try next holiday season.”

  “It won’t come to that.” Lyklor lifted his nose with confidence.

  “We’ll see,” Ryo answered.

  I was only half listening now. Thanks to my guys, I’d been officially bitten by the baby bug. I could already picture us announcing the news, not only to the boys, but to my sister, Jhaeros, Fraya, Folas, and Gayla as we gathered around the Christmas tree. We’d do a “hot cocoa with marshmallows” toast.

  Yeah, when I put my mind to something, there was no stopping me.

  Lyklor had no idea what he’d volunteered for. We weren’t leaving the bedroom until I was good and pregnant. The castle staff would just have to deliver our meals to our door.

  Oh, what fun we were going to have this holiday at Dahlquist.

  Chapter Two

  Melarue

  Cinnamon-scented candles labeled “Christmas Spice” flamed from jars placed around the guest chamber in Jastra’s corridor. According to Lyklor, the feminine energy from one of his sister’s suites would help give us a girl. Sounded woo-woo to me, but that was the Fae for you. I was just ready to get this sex fest started. If we didn’t have success soon, there would be no special announcement on Christmas morning.

  Red rose petals covered the white bedspread of a king-sized sleigh bed. A lacy pink see-through night gown had been laid out and draped over the edge of the bed.

  Yeah, right. I folded my arms and turned up my nose at the garment. Lyklor knew me better than that. And what was with the rose petals?

  While waiting for my silver-tongued mate to show up, I went ahead and brushed the flower petals off the bed with the sweep of my arm. Nope, I had no interest in turning into an elven flower blossom with petals stuck all over my naked body.

  There was a knock at the door. Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, I called out, “Come in.”

  Dressed in a long pink, silk robe, Lyklor stepped inside. I would have burst into laughter if he hadn’t pulled Lulu in after him and closed the door. The purple-and-blue-haired servant wore a blindfold and noise cancelling headphones from the mortal world. Lyklor assisted her, walking the petite faerie to a spot between the wall and bed. After positioning her to face the bed, Lyklor released her shoulders and turned to me with a pleased grin, as though he’d arranged something truly marvelous.

  Words stuck in my throat. Mouth frozen in shock, an explanation for Lulu’s presence was offered before I could ask Lyklor whether he’d lost his mind.

  “I
figured if anyone knew a gender fertility song, it was Lulu here,” Lyklor announced. “Turns out she knows several.” He puffed up his chest and grinned as though expecting my praise at this bit of foresight.

  Once I regained control of my vocal cords, I demanded, “What the freak berries? You expect me to make a baby in here with Lulu standing at the end of the bed?”

  Lyklor’s smile vanished. “She can’t see or hear us. All I have to do is tap her shoulder, and she’ll start singing.”

  It wasn’t enough to tell me this, naturally. Lyklor went and tapped Lulu’s shoulder. The sweet Fae burst into song, a passionate melody about two dragons who created a daughter from the heat of their love.

  Okay, I liked that she was singing about dragons and not baby birds as she’d once tried back at Ravensburg, but no way did I want an audience—not even someone who couldn’t see or hear. She was still in the room with us.

  “Lyklor, you know my rule.” I had to raise my voice to be heard over Lulu. “If you want a third party in the bedroom with us, it has to be Ryo.”

  Sighing, Lyklor turned to Lulu and tapped her shoulder. The singing stopped. He pulled off her headphones. “Thanks, Lulu. I’ll take it from here. You can go.”

  “Good luck, Queen Melarue.” Eyes still covered; Lulu waved at an armchair near the bed.

  I bit back my groan. Every time we returned to the castle, I had to retrain the staff not to call me “queen.” Sure, I was married to not one king but two. I helped rule when our family was in residence. Each of my sons was a prince of Dahlquist. But I wore no crown, nor thought of myself as queen. Hensley could have that title and keep it, even when she was away. I was just Mel, married to two part-time Fae kings and mother of three . . . soon to be four once Lyklor stopped messing around.

  “Alone at last,” I teased my mate once he’d closed the two of us in.

  He sauntered back to the bed, which might have gotten me hot with anticipation if it weren’t for the pink robe.

  “You’re taking that off, right?” I eyed the silk dressing gown.