Mornings by the Fire

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"Another story, Daddy!"

"They're very short, aren't they?" Harvey flicks through the book that Lily has gotten as a gift from Louis, containing a collection of Christmas stories for children.

"Super short!" Lily agrees, sounding almost offended by the fact. "The next one, please!"

The warmth from the fireplace was only just beginning to fill the living room on that cold Sunday morning in December. Donna was still sleeping in the master bedroom. As she'd come down with a cold, she could use the extra hour. Enjoying the start of their family day together, Harvey and Lily had snuggled up underneath the big family blanket on the couch, reading Christmas stories.

"Oh, your mother might like this one," Harvey says upon turning the page and reading the title.

"Why?"

"It's about shoes." His lips curve upwards thinking about his wife and her love for footwear. "It's called The Elves and The Shoemaker."

Lily stretches her neck to catch a glimpse of the pages from where she is curled into Harvey's left side, her little hands holding Waldo, her beloved stuffed sloth. Still in their pyjamas and bathrobes, father and daughter hadn't even bothered to change, hurrying from their beds straight to the couch to avoid the risk of waking up Donna.

"These two little men are probably the elves, and they seem to help the shoemaker." Harvey shows her the illustration in black and white. Two small elves are standing on a wooden table and working on a pair of shoes, secretly watched by the shoemaker and his wife who are hiding behind a curtain.

"Read it, Daddy!" Lily demands impatiently, leaning her head back against her father's frame and waiting for him to start.

After taking another quick glance at the fire to make sure it's burning properly, Harvey begins to read Lily the tale of a poor shoemaker who receives some unexpected help by a pair of elves when he needs it most.

"…'When it was midnight, two little elves came into the room, both without any clothes on, and sat down by the shoemaker's table. They took all the work'- Why are you laughing?" Harvey lowers the book and looks down at his daughter, who seems to be quite amused.

"No clothes?" Lily giggles into sloth Waldo's belly. "Were you helping the shoemaker, too?"

Harvey erupts in laughter at the unexpected question, remembering how he ran into his daughter the other night, stark naked. Both of them needing to visit the bathroom during the night at almost the same time.

"I wouldn't be of any help to him, I'm afraid." He chuckles, gently caressing over her head and placing a quick kiss on Lily's forehead.

Relieved that Lily seems to be satisfied with his answer, Harvey continues with the story in which, when it is close to Christmas, the shoemaker and his wife decide to give their little helpers presents in return and make them tiny clothes and shoes to wear.

"They were so happy about the clothes!" Lily looks up at Harvey, who had just arrived at the end of the little tale.

"Yes, they 'danced and skipped and leaped over chairs and benches'," he quotes from the last paragraph, "and then danced out of the shoemaker's house! I never saw you or your mom being so excited about new clothes."

"What, you want me to dance on the table when you buy me a new dress or handbag?"

Both completely focused on the story, Harvey and Lily hadn't noticed Donna until now, and were surprised to hear her voice coming from the door at the other end of the spacious living room.

Donna had been watching them read the second half of the Christmas tale; the picture of her husband and daughter cuddled up in front of the fireplace so precious, that she didn't want to disturb them.

"Who's this?" Harvey looks at Donna and then questioningly down at Lily, keeping up an act on the outside but on the inside feeling his heart rate accelerating due to his wife's presence, never to be fooled now.

"This is Mommy, Daddy!" Lily exclaims, rolling her eyes exaggeratedly at her father's silliness.

Slowly untangling himself from the hold of his daughter, Harvey puts the book down and gets up from the sofa, meeting Donna in front of the fireplace.

"Good morning." Resting his hands on her waist, he's capturing her mouth in a soft kiss and pulling her closer. "Did you sleep well? How are you feeling today?"

Donna's eyes close for a moment, Harvey's kiss and touch overwhelming her senses as it is. "Good morning, you two," her gaze is flickering to Lily and then back to her husband, "I'm feeling better, thank you. But the couch over there, and especially the blanket, look very inviting."

Offering Harvey a smirk, she steps around him and tugs at his hand to lead them back to their daughter, but he doesn't move.

"I need to put more wood on the fire," Harvey explains before Donna has a chance to ask.

"Waldo and I can feel the heat of the fire already! Come here, Mommy, it's very cosy under the blanket." Lily shifts a little on the couch in order to make more space for her parents.

With a squeeze of his hand, Donna lets go of Harvey and nestles into her daughter's warm and tight embrace.

"So… I've heard you were reading Christmas stories from the book Louis gave you." Taking the book from the coffee table, she trails her fingertips over the embossed title on the cover.

"We did! And they're so short that we read three stories this morning!"

"Wow." Donna locks eyes with Harvey, both smiling at Lily's excitement. "What do you think about reading number four?"

"Yes! Come, Daddy! Mommy reads another story!"

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