She shot one eyebrow up as she peered at me and my disheveled state of dress. My cheeks flamed. But then I caught a whiff of Millicent and her eau du skunk, and it catapulted me right back into indignant mode.
Like hell I was staying here with this woman. I grabbed my purse, ready to make a run for it to Nate’s room.
“I’d hate to have to take back my wedding gift to Annie and Evan back,” said Millicent in a sly tone. “Last I checked, five hundred dollars could go a long way.”
“What?” I said.
“Well, between picking a skunk-infested hotel and choosing friends who seem to make some, ahem, questionable choices, I don’t know if I can let it stand.”
Questionable—oh, I would show that woman questionable.
For starters, slapping the smirk off a slut-shaming octogenarian.
But before I had a chance to say a word, Nate piped up.
“Of course,” he said, hiding a hint of a smile behind a hand that obscured the lower half of his face. “I was just seeing Jen safely to her room before I head over to my own.”
I was thankful that Millicent’s back was to me so she couldn’t see my incredulous look.
“You wouldn’t,” I mouthed.
“I’ll bid you two adieu,” he said.
“But—” I didn’t give a reindeer turd what that woman thought of me. But I did care about her taking back her gift to Annie and Evan. That amount of money, they could use it, especially with a baby on the way.
“I’ll see you bright and early,” said Evan and saluted us as he backed out the door.
Sigh.
“I call the left side,” said Millicent.
I flopped my head back on the bed and groaned.
Nine
“Well, I’m glad one of us slept well,” I said as Nate hefted my bag into his truck bed. We were getting a late start. We’d eaten a slow, leisurely breakfast then gone on another walk down the beach. No canoodling as we’d passed a steady flow of beachcombers.
Annie and Evan had taken off super early. Annie wasn’t feeling well, and the only thing that sounded appetizing to her were blueberry lime jam-filled cream puffs from Revolution Doughnuts, our favorite breakfast spot in Decatur. A fact that she’d shared with me by text at five a.m.
I let out a monster yawn.
“Really?” Nate waggled his eyebrows. “I would have preferred that neither of us slept at all.”
“Don’t rub it in.” I planted a peck on his lips, but he swooped his arms around me to kiss me for real.
Mmm. For real.
That was the best way to describe my feelings for him. Just really...real. Raw and new. I hadn’t been this gobsmacked giddy over a guy in, well, ever.
He helped me up into the cab and leaned across me to secure my seatbelt.
“Safety first,” he murmured as his hand grazed my hip.
“We’re not going to make it all the way home before I jump you, are we?” I laughed.
“I’m not sure I’m going to make it out of this parking lot.” He clicked the buckle and unapologetically groped my ass in the process. To be fair, I may have been doing my own share of groping in return.
“That was a very nice thing you did last night,” he said once he slid into the driver’s seat.
“If my memory serves, we didn’t get to that part,” I said.
He chuckled.
“No, I meant taking the hit for Annie and Evan. Letting Millicent sleep in your room.” He rested his hand along the bottom of the steering wheel as we headed down the beach frontage road. “But do you really think she would have followed through with her threat to take back her gift?”
“Oh, that. Yeah. The one thing I’ll say about Aunt Millicent, she’s a woman who sticks to her guns. She once wrote a niece out of her will for smoking a cigar at a bachelorette party. I was surprised she didn’t throw the phrase ‘loose morals’ or ‘lady of the night’ at me.”
Nate tossed his head back laughing.
“And that would make me…?”
“Oh, no. Different set of standards. Boys will be boys and all that jazz.” I rolled my eyes.
“That sucks,” he said.
“I’m just glad she’s not my great aunt. I have my own set of family craziness to keep me busy.”
“Holiday drama?” he asked. “Sorry. I couldn’t help but overhear part of your phone call yesterday.”
“Yeah. My sister is taking off with my brother-in-law’s family to go skiing, and my parents had already planned this big anniversary cruise ages ago. So...merry Christmas to me, I guess.”
“Why don’t you come do Christmas with me?” He said the words nonchalantly, but the air in the truck cab went completely quiet after he did.
“Like...family stuff?” I said. “In West Virginia?”
“With my Nana and my little sister, so yeah. I mean, we won’t make you look at vacation pictures or teach you the secret handshake yet, but if you like food, Nana makes a mean Christmas ham. And not to brag, but I’m downright decent at opening a can of crescent rolls.”
“Umm.” I didn’t bother trying to stifle my grin. “That sounds awesome.”
“Perfect. We can leave Christmas Eve, right after work.”
“Yeah. After work.” Worry creases lined my forehead. Christmas Eve would be my last day of work in who knew how long. I hadn’t even gone on the job posting sites in weeks, since before I’d even started elving. But the end of this gig meant back to the job search.
“You okay?” asked Nate.
“I’m fine,” I said a little too quickly. “Just not looking forward to jumping back into the post-elf grind.”
“Yeah.” He squinted and peered out the driver’s side window. “Let me ask you a question. If your old job offered you your position back, Would you take it?”
I had to pause and think about that one. I knew what I should say: “Of course I would take it!”
The thing was, even though I loved the actual process of coding, the thought of going back to work for Crainfield or another giant corporation made me a little eye-stabby.
“I haven’t really thought about it,” I said, deftly dodging the question. “It’s kind of a non-issue. Crainfield’s a huge company. It’s not like they’ll be beating down my door begging me to come back anytime soon.”
“Hmm. Have you thought about applying at start-ups or a smaller company then?”
“The market’s a little saturated right now.” That wasn’t totally true. I had an in-demand skill set. I just didn’t have the desire to go back to a lonely telecommuting job or get locked into a tiny cubicle all day.
“Huh.” He gave me a funny look then licked his lips as if he was debating whether or not he was going to add something. Finally, he gripped the steering wheel with both hands and said, “Jen, there’s something I need to tell—”
My phone rang.
It was Annie. I ignored it.
Buzz.
I looked down at my phone reflexively to check the text, but it was from Evan.
“Please pick up.”
That was strange. Evan hardly ever texted me.
“Sorry. Can you hold that thought?” I said to Nate. “I need to grab this.”
“Sure.”
I dialed Annie back, and she picked up on the first ring, sobbing.
“What’s the matter?” I said, panicked. But with a rush of dread, it suddenly came crashing down on me what might be the matter. The baby...
“We’re at the hospital,” she said. “I’m cramping and bleeding a little bit.”
“Oh, honey.” I fought back the urge to mutter a platitude like, “it’s going to be okay.” Because was it? It was too cruel. After what they’d endured this year.
Annie tried to say something, but it came out a muffled, wet mess.
“Can you put Evan on?” I asked.
“Mmm hmm.”
Evan’s voice was calm and controlled. He was so steady, so good for Annie.
“Hey,” he sa
id. “She thought it was indigestion most of the drive home, but then she threw up and she still felt nauseous. Then the cramping and spotting started right as we pulled into our driveway. We’re at the ER.”
He told me which hospital.
“Okay,” I said. “I’m on my way. What can I do?”
“There’s nothing to do right now. It’s so early there’s nothing they could do if…” His voice trailed off. “We’re waiting on an ultrasound. They warned us it could be a long wait.”
“Okay,” I said again, but this was anything but okay. I tossed up a silent, helpless prayer. “We’re still a few hours out, but I’ll get there as soon as I can.”
Not that there was anything I could do to help.
“Can you put Annie back on?” I said.
“Sure.”
“Hey,” she said, her voice still muffled and shaky but calmer.
“Hey,” I said. “I love you, and I’ll be there soon.”
“I love you, too.”
I hung up and fought back tears.
Nate reached over and silently unbuckled my seat belt. He pulled me over to the middle of the bench seat and wrapped his arm around me.
He didn’t ask questions, didn’t offer any words of wisdom. He just held me.
After a few minutes, I remembered that he was getting ready to tell me something.
“What was it that you wanted to say earlier?” I said. “When Annie called.”
“Slipped my mind,” he said. “Must not have been important. Why don’t you try to get some rest.”
He pulled a pillow out of his back seat that seemed to magically always contain the perfect object. Maybe the man really was Santa. I buckled back up and nuzzled into the pillow until my eyelids started to droop.
And he sped up.
Ten
We arrived at the hospital in record time. I ran to the waiting area while Nate parked. I texted Evan that I was there, and he sent back a quick thumb’s up and said that the doctor had just walked in, and then three little dots. Then nothing.
Five minutes went by.
Ten minutes.
Nate walked in and circled his arms around me wordlessly as I stared at the second hand whir around the clock above the nursing station.
Then the door beside it burst open. Evan stuck his head out. His eyes were red and puffy.
My heart plummeted.
He motioned me to follow him.
Nate patted my arm and took my coat. It felt like a sick case of deja vu, waiting for word on how Annie was doing. I followed behind Evan like a sheep as he made his way to a curtained off area just a few feet away.
Not the same, I reminded myself. The last time, she’d nearly died. This walk had been to the ICU. And then we’d waited by her bedside throughout the coma.
No matter what, Annie was strong. She was a fighter. And if anyone—
Evan pulled the curtain back, and Annie was there propped up against some pillows, her face red and puffy as well. But also ecstatically happy. Suddenly, my heart soared.
There, on the ultrasound screen was the most beautiful, healthy little bean of a baby I’d ever seen.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh. The heartbeat was strong.
“Is that him? You can see his arms,” I squealed. “And the legs. And the whatever that is.” So I wasn’t an OB/Gyn. Sue me.
He was wriggly and squirmy and perfect as far as I could tell.
“Actually,” said Annie, “They think it might be a she.”
“I said a seventy percent chance,” said a woman beside them. She patted Annie on the knee and printed out some pictures for them to take home. “It’s still too early to say for certain. Don’t go buying any pink bedding just yet.”
“But everything’s normal?” I asked.
“Everything’s fine,” said Evan.
“I just overdid it this weekend,” said Annie.
“And she’d going to start drinking water like it’s going out of style,” said Evan. “Right?”
“Right,” said the doctor.
“Right.” chimed Annie.
I released a sigh of relief that felt like it had been building in me for hours.
“I’m so thankful,” I said, stating the ever-so-obvious and gave Annie a careful hug.
“Do you need a ride home?” asked Evan. “I think we’re going to be discharged soon.”
“Actually, Nate’s waiting.” I hooked my thumb toward the door.
“Oh, you should go. Thank him for us, please,” said Annie, then added in a fake whisper, “I like him a lot.”
“So do I,” I fake whispered back, and I gave her one more hug before I went to rejoin him.
Eleven
“Pay up.”
“You are the worst.” I stared at my dwindling pile of Monopoly money as I forked over my last five-hundred dollar bill.
“We could switch to strip Monopoly,” said Nate. “I guarantee you’d win.”
“Is that so? What would my shirt be worth to you right now?”
“Hmm, Park Place?”
“And my bra with it?”
“You drive a hard bargain.” He looked down at his stash.
“Not as hard as you.” I glanced down at his crotch and smirked.
“Touche.”
“Oh, I intend to.”
Our game was spread out on my living room floor and Fran had curled up at Nate’s feet, snuffling in ecstasy as Nate gave her tummy rubs every time he shifted to roll the dice.
“How much for just unclasping a couple buttons?” I asked.
“A couple railroads.”
“You’re quite the businessman.”
“Ha.” Nate let out a short laugh, but he looked troubled. “Yeah.”
He’d been acting a little off all afternoon. At first, I wondered if it was simply fatigue from the stress of driving like a maniac to get to the hospital. And then the relief of Annie and the baby being fine.
But, no. It was something else.
“Hey,” I said. “Is something the matter?”
“No. Not the matter. But there is something that I should—”
Roarrr.
His phone emitted a strange ringtone I’d never heard before.
He gritted his teeth and looked down at the number.
“It’s work,” he said. “I’ll have to go in.”
“At eleven o’clock at night?” That was some cable emergency.
“Yeah. They don’t usually call this late, but when they do, it’s something only I can handle.”
“Bummer. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay.” He pointed to the game board as he pushed himself up. “We’ll finish this up tomorrow night. No cheating.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“So I’ll pick you up on the way to our shift?” He leaned down and kissed me on the top of my head.
“Actually, I have a couple errands I’ve got to run before work. I’ll meet you there.”
“Okay. See you tomorrow. And Norie?” He was halfway out the door when he poked his head back in.
“Yeah?”
“I’m feeling generous. I’ll give you another railroad for those buttons.”
I threw a pillow at him as the door closed behind him.
* * *
“Hi, there. What’s your name?”
“Why should I tell you? Doesn’t Santa already know it?” The four year-old girl stuck her hand on her hips and tapped her foot on the ground.
What a delightful child.
“Uhh, Santa’s very old, and he needs a little help from time to time.”
“It’s Lizzy. L-Z-Z-Y.”
“Great. It should be just another few minutes.”
We weren’t busy at the moment, and Nate liked to give each child as much attention as possible.
As I ushered them into the waiting spot, I caught sight of a familiar face headed toward us. Rob Hollis, my former supervisor from Crainfield Industries, and his twelve year-old daughter Amelia. He’d been lai
d off at the same time that I was, and I hadn’t seen him in months.
“Rob.” I waved.
“Jen?” When he reached me, he gave me a big hug. “Amelia, you remember Jen, don’t you? She used to work with dad.”
“Hi,” said Amelia, shyly. She was playing a game on her tablet, and I recognized it as an app that taught kids to code.
“How are you doing?” asked Rob. It was the question I had dreaded for the last six months, but right now, with Nate standing ten feet away, it didn’t bug me so badly.
“I’m actually doing really well,” I said, shocking myself. “I broke my ankle and had a kind of rough go there, but things are good now.”
“Where did you end up?”
“Nowhere yet. This is obviously temporary, but I’ll land somewhere soon.” Ahh. There was the familiar doom and gloom creeping back up. I realized what it was. The thought of sitting in front of my laptop all day was what brought on the despair.
“How about you?” I asked.
“Found a place at IBM within a month. It was amazing actually. Got hired at the exact same salary with full benefits that came close to matching my former position. Plus IBM is publicly traded rather than privately owned like Crainfield. I got stock shares, so it came out six of one, half a dozen of the other. I’ve gotta say, Crainfield’s displacement services are a lifesaver, aren’t they?”
“Yeah.” I hadn’t actually utilized those yet. They had an on-call counselor, a dedicated headhunter, and a wellness coach ready and waiting to help you through the process of finding another job. I wasn’t sure that the services expired, but I hadn’t been able to bring myself to dive in head first into the job search fray.
Amelia’s tablet made a screechy sound, and she frowned at it, typing in another command. It screeched again. I glanced down at it and immediately recognized her error. She’d forgotten to close a bracket in a line of code.
She tried once more, and it let out another screech.
Her fingers curled around the tablet in frustration.
“Uhh, look at this section right here,” I said, pointing to the problem spot without giving her the answer. “Do you see something that might be missing?”
Into Santa: A Secret Billionaire Christmas Romance Page 6
