bella will run the business

Evelyn shook her head to get those ideas out of her mind. She was here to kill a demon. Not to play family games.

"I have already bought them, now they would go waste if you would not take them.'' Evelyn replied with a pitiful face.

"Uh, you can always give them to your family." said aunt Sharon, putting the gifts back.

"I only have an uncle in my family. And a lot of kids. These gifts would not suit any of them." she replied with a smile remembering the chaos she lived in. All the elves are running around with foolish problems and Santa, sitting and laughing there hohoho hohoho all the time. Which didn't help at all in controlling them. If she hadn't been strict, she would have been bald, plucking all her hairs just in a few decades.'

"So many kids?" Mike panicked. "Whose kids are they?"

'Mine' she wanted to shout at this naive boy, yet she smiled and replied "we run a small orphanage."

"Oh you are a very good girl, Evelyn. For the first time I am satisfied with Mike's choice." replied aunt Sharon happily.

"So I take it as you are taking gifts," chirped Evelyn with a clap.

"Well"

"I won't hear a no again." she continued shaking her head

All of them looked at each other and then nodded their heads reluctantly.

"Good," she chirped, clapping and smiling and they all laughed together.

Alex and Bella went to cook while others stayed in the hall talking and enjoying the mood.

Evelyn kept glancing at them, from the corner of her eyes.

"Hey dinner is ready."

Alex announced putting everything on the table.

Evelyn tasted the food and eyed the demon, "you have learnt their methods very well Bella." she taunted the demon for trying to be human.

Every other person looked at Evelyn with confusion while Bella narrowed her eyes at the mother elf.

"I mean she had learnt cooking well in just a few days." she added looking at the confused faces of everyone.

"How do you know that she didn't know cooking before." asked Alex, his voice a bit sharp.

Mike and Anna were surprised to hear him, Alex was always calm and collected for them. It was the first time they had seen him losing his cool over a very small matter.

Even though Evelyn blinked, she could feel hostility from Alex, but could not understand the reason. 'Why did this human cared so much about the demon'

"Of Course she told me, we talked a lot, when you went to buy the Christmas tree." she replied with a smile.

"Then you should know the reason why she was so lost there?" asked Alex again.

He still could not forget how pale she was. She was shivering and panicking. She didn't want them to see her. As if she was afraid of something.

And all this because of Evelyn, no matter how much he tried he couldn't like this girl. Though she was looking and behaving nicely, there was something in her eyes the way she looked at Bella.

"I don't know, I went for a while to buy something and when I returned she was already like that." replied Evelyn with a shrug. "Right Bella?"

Alex looked at her, there was nothing wrong in the reasoning but he still found it as a lame excuse. He looked at Bella, hoping that she would tell him what the matter was but she just nodded. She supported what Evelyn said.

At the end, it all just remained his speculation. So he couldn't do anything about it. He also nodded going back to eating his dinner. The atmosphere turned a bit tense.

"It's a very delicious pie, brother Alex." said Anna, taking a bite of pineapple pie.

Alex smiled and nodded, "Bella made it."

"Really, Bella, I think you are a better cook than brother Alex." replied Anna, smiling at Bella.

Mike also nodded, "you can surpass him within a few days, great Bella."

Alex put her spoon down and looked at them. He hesitated for a while and then added.

"I have a plan guys."

"Huh" asked Anna.

"About Christmas?" asked Mike tilting his head

Even Evelyn looked at him with interest.

Alex shook his head.

"I have a plan for all of our future." he said looking at each of them.

Now they all looked at him back with a curious and serious face.

"What is it?" asked Mike.

"Bella had paid her rent for the next two years. So I had enough money to buy them near my closed shop of Mr. Parker's.

I am thinking of opening a bakery there." he replied slowly and clearly so that words would sink in their mind.

"But you will still need money for raw material and machines. It's not a small expenditure. Are you sure about it" asked Mike furrowing his brows.

Alex only nodded at them.

"I can take a small loan for that" said Alex

"Loan on what basis?" asked Mike, folding his head over chest now.

"I can take this house as collateral." said Alex, though his voice was low, there was no doubt in it. It was filled with confidence.

But that didn't matter to them. Mike instantly furrowed his brows, even aunt Sharon who was listening silently was worried now.

"It's not a small matter Alex, think carefully. You have just that home in your name. Ana is also your responsibility."

"And suppose you use all your savings, two years rent, and take a loan. How will the expenses be fulfilled then Alex. It's not that easy." said Mike in a worried tone, he was completely against the idea.

"We will manage it together, Mike, and I am doing all this for the better future of Anna, aunt Sharron. And I will not leave my job for now, so expenses could be paid from that."

"Huh! If you wouldn't leave the job, then who would run the bakery?" asked Mike, bewildered.

"Bella will."