Knox's Girl (Carmichael Series #1)✔️

Eggnog and Ugly Sweaters

**THANK YOU SO FREAKING MUCH FOR OVER 50K VIEWS. THAT IS OUTSTANDING! I really cannot believe that. I was in shock. You guys are the best.** 

**Edited**

Poppy's POV

My eyes fluttered open as I began to awaken naturally. This was definitely the best way to wake up. Nothing was worse than someone shaking you from your peaceful sleep and not only expecting you to stay awake but also expecting you to put pants on. And have a good attitude doing it! The audacity of it all! To say I was more than grateful to be on winter break with nearly an entire month off was an understatement.

Finally deciding to stop lolly-gagging I rolled over and sat up in bed, giving my limbs a good stretch. Some resultant inhuman pops and cracks followed suit as I pleasantly sighed. I shifted my gaze downward while pulling Knox's t-shirt I'd worn to bed up and tucking it under my boobs, examining my twelve, almost thirteen, week bump. It'd grown so much that it was now obvious I wasn't just bloated but rather carrying a child. I let out a happy sigh as I rubbed my hands over it, thinking about how amazing it was going to be when I was able to feel them kick for the first time. Only three more weeks until it could begin according to Knox and his pregnancy books.

"Mommy loves you both so much already," I whispered lovingly.

After I finished showering and getting ready in my most festive sweater and red/white striped leggings, I texted Kiara and let her know to come and pick me up. Knox didn't know it yet, but I was going to deck out the entire house with anything and everything Christmas-related that I could find. He gave me his credit card a few days ago under the impression that I would buy whatever my heart thought I wanted or needed for the babies before their arrival. I was definitely going to be taking full advantage of those privileges today; after all, we could store this stuff in the attic for the years to come and a ridiculous festive house was something I wanted for our children. My father never let my mom do this because he always said it was a waste of time and energy, but it was something I'd secretly craved ever since I was a child.

In no time, Kiara and I were pulling into the parking lot of one of our favorite places to go, the buildings big red bullseye logo a familiar sight. We quickly hustled inside to get out of the frigid cold before grabbing a cart and wandering inside to do what I knew would be some serious damage.

The first thing on our list was an artificial Christmas tree. I originally wanted a real one, but after hearing about how easily they catch fire – and remembering that Knox is semi-allergic – I decided a fake one would do the job just fine. Among our cart filled with multiple boxes of random-colored ornament balls and a light-up tree topper, I also added a tree skirt, stockings, three different patterns of wrapping paper, ribbons and bows, a wreath for the front door and something to hang it with, garland for the staircase railings, two light up reindeer for the front yard, an indoor and outdoor festive welcome mat, a mistletoe, two adorable pairs of reindeer headbands that I was going to force Knox to wear with me, two poinsettias to sit on each side of the front door, and finally two cartons of eggnog. After doing a final sweep of our cart, we agreed that we had pretty much everything we could possibly need before proceeding to the checkout. As we were getting ready to leave I checked my watch, panicking when it read a quarter till two. I was in a major time crunch as I not only had to get everything set up but still had to get our dinner cooked and in the oven as well.

"Would you calm down?" Kiara hissed. "I know that look; I've seen it plenty of times throughout our lives. Stop panicking. I'll help you get everything done, I promise," she insisted. I released a deep sigh and relaxed as we loaded everything into the back of my car. "Besides, it's the least I could for you considering you basically gave James and me a place all to ourselves," she said with a suggestive wink. I just laughed at her teasing.