Twisted Fate

Chapter Sixteen

The next morning I woke up in a frantic rush to get to the bathroom. I got there and in position to puke my brains out, when the sensation left as suddenly as it came.

So I sat there for a while, just to make sure that the feeling wouldn't come back.

I was sitting on the floor, rubbing my belly when Mikko's large frame darkened the doorway. "You feel okay?" His eyes scanned over me, double checking for any outward signs of injury.

I nodded. "I'm okay. It was a false alarm."

He leaned on the frame and crossed his arms over his chest. It made his biceps look bigger than normally. "And are you going to sit there all day?" He was smiling down at me.

I shook my head. "Of course not. I'm just making sure that I'm going to stay okay."

He strode into the bathroom and crouched down in front of me. "Want some help getting up?"

I sighed then nodded. "Sure."

I lifted both of my hands up for him to grab. With a smile, he took them and helped me off the ground. "Are you going to be okay?"

I was hopeful about my stomach not turning queasy. "I think so."

"Good then." His beautiful smile widened. "I have heard that you have a tradition to uphold."

I couldn’t help but smile at him. His nice charismatic personality was back. "Yes I do."

He stepped to the side. "Well I don't want to be to blame for screwing up another tradition, so you'd better get going."

I stared at him for a moment wondering what his move was. Was he actually going to be nice today?

Was this all an act? He was acting very similarly to the man I met at the bar. I liked that version of him. I wished I could have that all the time. That would make my life extremely easy.

I stopped by my closet to grab my robe. It was chilly and until the fire got started, I would be cold in the house.

Dad was at the kitchen table, reading a newspaper.

His smile wasn't as bright as normal, but it was still a smile. "Merry Christmas."

I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed. "Merry Christmas."

He patted my arm and leaned his head on mine. "Nikki called and said they'd be here in an hour."

Mikko sat down on the side of the table opposite of my father.

I kissed the side of my dad's face before starting breakfast. If I only had an hour, I was going to need every minute of it.