A Kiss From Kringle (Novella) (Frosty's Snowmen Book 2) Page 2

  “But you could sway them to whatever you decide. You’re the guy who does the hiring and firing.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “And you know this how?”

  “Kandy.” She smiled and Chris’s gut squeezed, his groin throbbed with heat.

  Chris cleared his suddenly constricted throat. “That must have been quite a chat you two had in the car park.” Did Kandy have a habit of telling strangers about the company’s business?

  Leah shrugged. “I didn’t talk to her. Haylee did.”

  “Back to your sister.”

  She leaned forward in her seat. “She can’t lose this job.”

  He jolted. Her fierceness took him by surprise.

  “She needs this. More for the confidence boost than the money. I’ve got her covered there. But she needs the lift to her self-esteem working here will give her.”

  She seemed to catch herself then, stopping the rush of words by rolling her lips into her mouth and sitting back in her chair.

  “She won’t lose the job.” The words were out before he thought them.

  He didn’t really care about Haylee, not that he was a hard-arse who wouldn’t listen to the reason she wasn’t here before making up his mind, but because he wanted to please this woman. If he fired Haylee, Leah would be upset. And he really didn’t want to make that happen.

  “Thank you.” She visibly relaxed. Her shoulders lowered and the harsh lines around her mouth eased.

  “So where is she and why isn’t she here?”

  She took a deep breath. “At home with my niece. She’s sick.”

  “Haylee?”

  “No. Meggie. Normally she’ll stay with me, but she’s been running a fever for a couple of days and utterly miserable with it. No one but her mother will keep her settled.”

  “So you offered to take Haylee’s place instead of calling in sick?”

  “Haylee isn’t sick and it’s her first day.” Leah leaned forward in her chair once more. “She needs this job.”

  “You said that.” Leah’s protectiveness struck a cord. He’d go to the wall for those he loved and he knew instinctively that Leah would too. “Tell me why.”

  She glanced around them, down at the costume she wore. “This isn’t really the place for skeletons.”

  Chris laughed. “It can’t be that bad.”

  “Oh, yes. It can.” Leah sighed. “Should I get changed and go?”

  “No. But I can’t have you working with the public until you’ve done a Working With Children Check.”

  “I’ve done one. I’m a primary school teacher.”

  “I’m still not comfortable letting you back to your previous post. You’ll spend the rest of the day with me.” He glanced at his watch. “The day shift is over in less than an hour anyway. You can help me get ready for a smooth shift change.”

  Leah nodded. “Okay. Whatever it takes to keep Haylee’s job.”

  “It’ll take a full explanation. But as you said, this isn’t the place. So after you clock off we’ll grab something to eat and you can tell me everything. It’s the least you can do, considering.”

  “I…um…” She swallowed. Nodded once. “All right. I’ll need to check in with Haylee first. Make sure Meggie doesn’t need anything.”

  Leah was like a mother hen when it came to her sister and niece. Chris liked it. Liked the way she was prepared to do whatever it took to keep the two people she obviously loved safe. It was only one of many reasons to get to know her. He’d watched her with the little girl at the slide and been impressed with the way she handled the situation. But then, as a teacher, Leah would be used to dealing with children and their unpredictable behaviour.

  He wasn’t going to acknowledge the guilt he felt over manoeuvring her into a position where she couldn’t refuse him.

  He’d apologise later. After he spent a few hours with her and worked out if the spark of attraction he felt was mutual or not.

  ***

  Leah tucked Haylee’s elf costume into her bag and wondered if she should try to sneak out without seeing Mr — call me Chris — Kringle.

  She had inappropriate reactions to the man. Responses to someone of the opposite sex she couldn’t recall having in a long time. It would be best for all if she ignored them, and him, but she suspected that wasn’t possible.

  Chris Kringle was an extremely attractive man. Add in the intense way he looked at her and Leah didn’t have a hope in hell of avoiding the desire he inspired.

  She had to spend time with him to explain why impersonating her sister was acceptable behaviour. Not that it was. No matter what her intentions Leah knew she’d stepped over a line by pretending to be Haylee today.

  Sighing, she shouldered her bag and left the change room. She came up short when the object of her thoughts pushed away from the wall outside the door.

  “Oh.” She rocked back on her heels, a hand over her thumping heart. “You startled me.”

  He grinned. “You were just hoping I wasn’t waiting for you as promised.”

  “Yes and no.”

  Chris stepped closer, crowded her until his chest almost touched hers. “I like that.”

  She dragged her eyes off his chest up to meet his. “What?”

  “Honesty. Considering the circumstances I wasn’t expecting it.”

  “You mean because I pretended to be my sister?”

  “You have to admit getting caught in a lie isn’t the best first impression you could have made.”

  “I wasn’t looking to make one.”

  “No. You were trying to deceive everyone at Frosty’s Snowmen.”

  “With the best intentions.”

  “Well you know what they say…” He gripped her elbow and steered her in the opposite direction of the employees’ exit. “The road to hell is paved with good ones.”

  Leah glanced over her shoulder. “The staff exit is back there.”

  “We’re going out this way.”

  His grip wasn’t painful, but it was firm enough to let her know he wasn’t looking for an argument. “What’s this way?”

  “The service elevator that goes to the loading docks.”

  “Ah…” She looked over her shoulder again.

  “Don’t worry. There are plenty of people around. I’m not going to do anything nefarious to you in the back corridors of this place.”

  It was on the tip of her tongue to say ‘that’s a shame’. If it wasn’t for the sharp edge of her teeth biting into her cheek, she might very well have let the words out.

  “No comment?” He stopped in front of the lift and hit the down button.

  “I believe you.” The doors opened and she stepped inside, turned.

  He moved in on her, backed her up until she bumped into the rear wall of the elevator. The doors slid closed behind them, shutting them in, giving the illusion of intimacy. “You’re very trusting.”

  Leah shook her head. “I’m a good judge of character.”

  “And you don’t think I want to do nefarious things to you?”

  “No.” Her gaze dropped to his mouth. She licked her lips. “I didn’t say I didn’t think you wanted to, just that you won’t do it here.”

  Chris laughed and stepped back. “You are a good judge of character.” He pointed to the top right-hand corner of the elevator. “I’m not into exhibitionism.”

  “Oh.” She took in the security camera and wondered what the person on the other side thought of their little encounter. Would it look innocent from a third party’s perspective? It certainly didn’t feel innocent from hers. Her body had heated and tingled and tightened from his nearness. She was still flushed and short of breath while her pulse raced.

  They remained silent as the lift descended, while they walked through the dock area and out into the muggy air of another hot summer afternoon. It wasn’t until they were on the sidewalk, heading away from the arena that Chris spoke again.

  “I’m going to be totally honest with you, Leah.” He glanced at her. “I’m not
going to fire your sister.”

  He’d said that before, but relief flowed through her, loosening the coil of anxiety cramping her stomach. “Thank you.”

  “Don’t thank me yet. It’s not because I’m a decent guy or for some charitable reason. It’s because of you.”

  “Me?”

  He paused and turned to face her. “You.”

  The way his gaze held hers sent heat licking through her veins, her heart beat harder in her chest, and suddenly she found it difficult to breathe at all. “I…”

  “There’s something between us. Tell me I’m wrong?”

  “Um…” She looked away from his intense stare and tried to suck in a deep breath. “I don’t know what to say to you.”

  “Am I wrong?” Had he moved closer? “Am I in this alone?”

  She shook her head. She couldn’t lie. Not after what she’d pulled today. “No.”

  “Have dinner with me. And yes, I’m asking you on a date. This has nothing to do with your sister or Santa’s Village or Frosty’s Snowmen.” He smiled. “Or the slightly illegal switch you made today.”

  “I’m sure it’s not illegal…” Dear God. Was it?

  “Doesn’t matter. I’m not going to do anything about it.”

  “Because you want to have dinner with me?”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re blackmailing me?”

  He contemplated her words for a moment before answering with a grin. “Yes.”

  ***

  Chris watched a number of emotions flitter across Leah’s face, through her eyes. She was an open book. She’d been easy to read since their first discussion.

  Once she’d finally spoken to him that is. Before that, she’d hidden behind a cool façade.

  He liked this Leah better.

  And not just because she was talking to him. No. This one opened the shutters and showed him the real woman. He wanted to know every little thing about her with an irrational need that went bone deep.

  “What sort of food do you like?” he asked.

  “I…um…” She shrugged. “I’ll eat pretty much anything.”

  “I know this really great place down the street. Thai.” Chris grabbed her hand and started walking. “Sound good?”

  “I guess so. It’s not like I can refuse.” She left her hand in his and he gave a mental fist-pump.

  “Well you could. But then I might be tempted to do something about today.” He wouldn’t. She had to know that.

  Her laughter flowed around them.

  “Something funny?”

  “Yes. You.”

  “Me?”

  “You’re not going to do anything about today.” Her words rang with confidence.

  He smiled. “You’re right. I’m not.”

  “I could walk away at any stage without any repercussions.”

  “You could. But you won’t.”

  “No. I won’t.”

  They wandered the rest of the way in comfortable silence, Leah’s hand tightly held in his, and Chris couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so content. Even opening day of Santa’s Village hadn’t felt quite as enjoyable as walking hand-in-hand with Leah.

  The early evening was warm and they weren’t the only ones out for a stroll. There were couples and families on foot as well as wheels — the two and four variety — making the most of what was left of the beautiful summer day. After the hectic first day inside the cold village, this quiet time was a welcome balm. With each step he took, his muscles released the tension that seemed a permanent part of him for the weeks leading up to and during this busy time of year.

  “Tell me about Meggie.”

  Leah grinned. “She’s a firecracker. Full of curiosity and boundless energy. I adore her.”

  “I can tell.” He pulled her closer to avoid the skateboarder careening their way. “I take it her father isn’t in the picture.”

  “No.” Her mouth pinched tight, deep grooves forming as her lips turned down.

  “Sore subject?”

  “The skeleton.”

  “Ah.” They reached the restaurant and he held up two fingers to the waitress hurrying their way. “Inside or outside? They don’t appear to be busy yet.”

  “Either.”

  Chris ushered her towards a table at the back of the small interior eating area. It was tucked away in a secluded corner. “This looks out of the way.”

  The waitress dropped menus on the table and disappeared.

  “Well.” He frowned. “Guess we won’t order our drinks first.”

  “I’m fine for now.” Leah smiled as she took a seat and picked up a menu. “You’ve been here before, right? What do you recommend?”

  “Everything is excellent here. It depends on what you feel like. I’m going to have a Red Curry. Beef.”

  She scanned the menu. “I’ll get the Pad Thai.”

  “Want to split a Thai Fried Rice?”

  “Sure. Oh, quick. Here comes the waitress. I’ll get a bottled water too.” Leah waved the server over.

  Once they placed their order, Chris leaned back in his chair. “Tell me about the skeleton.”

  Leah took a deep breath before speaking. “Haylee met him at uni. They dated for a year before I even met him though, but once I did I knew something wasn’t right. I tried to talk to Haylee about it, except I had nothing concrete to tell her other than I had a bad feeling about him.”

  “Obviously your instincts were spot on.”

  “Oh yeah.” She aimed a strained smile at the waitress delivering their drinks before continuing. “It seems the whole time he was dating Haylee, he was engaged to another woman. Clearly neither knew about the other until Haylee turned up pregnant. That’s when he told Haylee he was getting married and she was never more than a fuck on the side.”

  “Bastard.” No wonder she was protective of her sister.

  “That’s the least of his crimes.” She took a sip of water, placed the bottle carefully on the table before continuing. “He told Haylee to get rid of it. Gave her a thousand dollars to do it.”

  “Jesus.” Chris hoped someone rearranged the guy’s face for him. Or removed his balls. The guy obviously wasn’t man enough to need them. “And that was three years ago?”

  “Four. Haylee moved in with me. Our parents live in the country so it’s just the two of us here in Sydney, and I’ve supported her and Meggie since.”

  “Haylee hasn’t worked in all that time?”

  “She’s had the odd part-time job, but I’ve finally convinced her to return to uni now that Meggie is old enough for preschool.”

  “She mentioned in her interview she was doing that after the holidays.”

  “Yes. I’ve got another two days of teaching for the year then I’m on summer break so I can have Meggie during the day while Haylee works for you. Then she’s enrolled in a couple of refresher courses at our local community college through January and goes back to uni in late February.”

  “And you’ll have Meggie until you return to work next year.” God the woman was amazing. “They’re both lucky to have you.”

  “I’m lucky to have them. Haylee doesn’t sponge off me. She takes care of everything at home. Cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping.” Leah smiled. “You have no idea how blissful it is not to clean a bathroom or iron a shirt.”

  “I pay someone to do those things.”

  “Really?”

  “Hell yes. I wouldn’t have the first clue where to start with either of them. In fact, I don’t own an iron. The local dry cleaner takes care of washing and ironing.”

  “You don’t wash your own clothes?”

  Chris smiled sheepishly. “I don’t own a washer either.” His mother had nagged him to buy one, but he hadn’t seen the point when he could take everything to the cleaners dirty and pick them up clean and pressed.

  “We’re both spoiled then.” She grinned.

  “I wouldn’t say that. We work hard and part of working hard is not doing the things we don’t wa
nt to do. And doing the things we do want to.”

  “Like?”

  He brushed his fingertips over the back of Leah’s hand. “Having a nice dinner with a pretty woman.”

  Her cheeks flooded with colour, but she didn’t look away. Leah was too brave for that. He’d only known her a little while and already he knew she wouldn’t back down from something that made her uncomfortable.

  The waitress bought their meals, shattering the moment of intimacy that gripped them. Chris pulled his hand away and picked up his fork and spoon. Leaning over he took a good sniff of his curry. “Damn, this smells good.”

  “Looks good too.” Leah dug in with enthusiasm. It didn’t appear as though she were one of those women that watched everything they ate. “Oh God.” Hand covering her lips she spoke around her mouthful. “This is delicious.”

  His own meal forgotten, Chris sat watching Leah.

  ***

  Leah picked up her water and took a sip. “You’re staring.”

  “I know.”

  “Stop it.”

  “Why?”

  It seemed politeness wasn’t a priority for this man. He said he’d be totally honest with her, so she’d return the courtesy. “Because you’re making me self-conscious and, while I can cope with that, I’d prefer it if I didn’t have to.”

  “But I like looking at you.”

  Leah tipped her head to the side. “Surely watching me shovel food into my mouth like I haven’t eaten in a month isn’t at all pleasant.”

  He smiled. “You’d be surprised.”

  She laughed. “Stop it. Eat your curry before it goes cold.” She tapped the side of his plate with her chopsticks.

  Chris eyed her with a thoughtful expression that made her squirm in her seat. “I’m going to fall for you.”

  “W-what?” Her mouth dropped open. “You can’t…”

  “I can.” He reached over and, with a fingertip, caressed her cheek, down along her jaw, sending a shiver through her. “In fact, I think I have already.”

  “Are you crazy? You just met me. I lied to you.” Dear Lord, was the man insane?

  “I see this topic upsets you.” He leaned back in his seat. “Let’s talk about something else. What age are the kids you teach?”

  He couldn’t just lob that conversation bomb then change the subject. What kind of game was he playing? “I’m not sure what you’re playing at or hoping to achieve or prove or…whatever, but you can’t say something like that then drop it.”