Unexpected Gifts (12 page)

"Of course I was." She looked at him without a trace of humor on her face. She was serious alright. "I never joke about Santa."

It didn't take long for Colin to change into the suit Eva had provided him with. He strapped the padded stomach around his waist and  rubbed his hands over his round belly. He couldn't help but be impressed with how real it felt. Putting the heavy red coat on over top, he secured the buttons and turned to admire his profile in the mirror. 

Eva had set him up in the staff room. She'd also given him strict instructions to stay in the back room until she came to get him. She didn't want any children spotting him before it was time. The plan was for Colin, or Santa, to sit in the corner of the banquet hall and listen to the kids' last minute Christmas requests before announcing that it was time for him to get back to the North Pole and start delivering presents. 

Then, when Santa was done his business, Colin planned on finding Andi for a romantic dance or two, as well as maybe a visit under the mistletoe, to kick start what would be a fantastic second date. 

Satisfied that his belly looked jolly enough. Colin secured the beard and finished his look with his wig and hat. He stepped back to examine the finished product. If he hadn't known he was looking at himself in the mirror, he might have thought the actual Santa Claus was standing in the room next to him. 

"Ho ho ho," he bellowed and held his stomach to see if it jiggled appropriately. 

"Not bad," a voice from behind him said. Colin spun and saw a tall blonde and very well dressed man standing in the doorway. "For a minute there, I thought I might have taken a wrong turn and ended up at the North Pole," the man said. 

Colin laughed, trying to emulate the big guy's bowl of jelly, belly laugh. Might as well stay in character, he thought. "Are you lost?"

"No," the man said. "Well maybe a little. I'm looking for someone. I was told she'd be back here somewhere. But that's okay, I'll keep looking." The man moved to leave but then turned back and said, "Hey, is it too late for a Christmas wish, Santa?"

Colin tugged at his beard and said in his best Santa voice, "Of course not. There's always time for Christmas wishes." 

He couldn't help but think he was getting pretty good at the whole thing. The kids were going to love him. 

"In that case," the man said, "my Christmas wish is for my girl to say yes." He flashed a ring box and Colin caught a glimpse of a large diamond before he tucked the box away. "I'm going to ask her tomorrow morning. Like a Christmas present."

Colin had always thought the idea of proposing to someone on a major holiday was cheesy and a bit of a cop out, but he smiled and gave his best Santa laugh. "Good luck to you," he said instead.

Satisfied with his answer, the man slapped the door jamb and said, "Thanks, Santa." And was gone.

Chapter Thirteen

Andi had been hoping to find Colin and sneak in a dance at some point in the night, but the Holly Berry Ball was in full swing, and she hadn't seen him all night. She looked around the room again at all the children running from one candy bowl to the next. Most of them stopped long enough to watch the various performers that Eva had organized around the room. There were sugar plum fairies doing a dance on one stage, while sleeping Christmas mice would wake up, stretch and perform a comedy skit every few minutes, there was even a bed on one stage with Mama in her kerchief and Pop in his cap, settling down for a long winter's nap. Andi was more than impressed. Eva had done an amazing job pulling off the Night Before Christmas theme. It just may have been Party Hearty's finest event yet.

As successful as the party had been, Andi couldn't keep herself from scanning the party room, searching. The voicemail she'd received earlier had thrown her and she was on edge. If she could only find Colin and talk to him, she'd feel better, but he was nowhere to be found. She turned and looked out over the room again. The dance floor had been filled all night with parents dancing with their children, happy kids grooving on their own and even a few couples enjoying the night. A few months ago, heck, even a week ago, if someone had told Andi she'd be at a Christmas party, watching happy families having fun, she wouldn't have believed them. There were a few times through the night when she'd felt the familiar ache and the loss of the child she should have held in her arms, but it didn't linger the way it used to. Instead, thoughts of Colin and the fun she'd had with him took over. Andi didn't want to admit it yet, but her entire attitude towards the holiday may have been forever changed by the presence of one man. 

"Well," Eva said, appearing beside her. "What do you think?"

Andi turned to look at her friend. She looked stunning in an emerald green dress, her blonde hair cascading over her shoulders. Impulsively, Andi pulled her into a hug. "It's amazing, Eva. You've totally outdone yourself."

She released her friend, who was smiling from ear to ear. "It is pretty awesome. I think I actually surprised myself," she said. 

Andi tried to smile.

"Hey," Eva said. "What's going on?"

"It's nothing really, but, have you seen Blaine?" 

Eva choked a little. "Blaine? What on Earth would be be doing here?"

"I got a voicemail earlier," Andi said. "He said he missed me, and the girls at the office told him we were here. I think he might be here." Andi scanned the room again.

"Seriously," Eva said. "I don't think even Blaine is stupid enough to show up on Christmas Eve. Don't worry. Just focus on that yummy Colin and-"

"Who's yummy?" Carmen asked, joining the women.

"The gingerbread," Eva answered seamlessly. "I was just saying that the staff here is so easy to work with, I wish we had them all the time."

"Maybe you could," Carmen said, joining the women. "I need to thank you ladies, this is the best Holly Berry Ball we've had here for years. The guests can't stop gushing about it. You both really saved Christmas."

Andi and Eva laughed. "Glad we could help," Andi said, putting thoughts of Blaine out of her head. "Honestly, it was our pleasure."

"Well, I've been talking to our manager and he's pretty impressed too. How would Party Hearty like to host all of our major Castle Mountain Lodge events?"

"Really?" Eva said and then remembered her composure. "Well, I mean, we could see if it fits into our schedule."

All three women laughed and Andi added, "We'd be honored to accept such a generous offer." 

"Thank you," Carmen said to her. "It's funny how things worked out, isn't it? Please let me apologize again for the villa mix up."

"I think that's another thing that worked out," Eva added, with a devilish grin. 

Andi could feel herself start to blush, but she didn't care. She looked around again for Colin. "Where is Colin?" she asked Eva. "I haven't seen him all night. He didn't leave, did he?" The thought came to her in a flash and her stomach dropped. 

"Settle down," Eva said. "He's here." She laughed and added, "I guess he didn't tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"I needed his help with something."

Andi followed where Eva was pointing and saw Santa, who'd been surrounded by children all night. He was taking turns with the kids, each one sitting on his lap. Andi had noticed a few times that the kids were mesmerized by the jolly old elf and she'd been meaning to ask Eva where she'd found him. She looked back to her friend, realization dawning. "You didn't?" she said. 

"Well, you said he liked kids and, well, look at him," Eva said with a grin. "He's clearly a natural."

"The best Santa we've ever had," Carmen added. 

Andi felt a surge of pride, which was ridiculous, but she felt her smile grow bigger as she watched him. 

"Why don't you go over there and tell Santa what you really want for Christmas?" Eva said and tried not to giggle. "Unless of course you've been nau-"

"That's enough," Andi said and swatted her friend on the arm. "Don't you have something you should be doing?" 

She didn't wait for an answer, but instead started walking across the room, towards Colin. She quickened her pace, the thought of sitting on Santa's lap suddenly more exciting than it'd ever been before.

Miraculously, the crowd of kids started to thin as Andi approached. She couldn't keep the smile off her face. He'd made her so happy and now seeing how good he was with the children, it couldn't be more perfect. She'd worry about what their relationship was, if it was anything, later. For the moment, she was so focused on Colin, that she didn't notice the man who stepped out from beside the buffet tables, until he grabbed her arm and spun her around in mid stride.

"Merry Christmas, Andi," he said. 

It took her a moment to recognize who was standing in front of her. A full few breaths before she realized it was her ex who was holding her by the arm and smiling as if he expected her to be happy to see him. It took her even longer to realize what was happening when he said, "Looks like we're standing under the mistletoe." Blaine wrapped his arms around her and his mouth met hers in a kiss that was all at once comfortably familiar and completely horrifying.

***

Colin had been so busy taking last minute present requests and listening to children explain away their not so perfect behavior over the last year, that he hadn't been able to focus on Andi. Sure, his thoughts had strayed to her throughout the evening, and he'd seen her walking around, taking charge of the catering staff and making sure every little detail of the night was perfect. She looked amazing in her tight little red dress, and every time she came close, his thoughts definitely strayed to what she might or might not be wearing under that dress. 

It had become clear pretty fast that Andi didn't realize it was Colin beneath the suit. She was so distracted with all the other details, it was fun for him to watch her unaware. But when he'd looked up from a bossy little girl, with red hair and freckles, who had been sitting on his knee for five minutes listing her holiday demands, he had noticed the group of women standing together, chatting. And then Eva had pointed in his direction and had known his cover was blown. But it was okay when Andi's face lit up in a beautiful smile. 

A few moments later, when she had started walking towards him, Colin had managed to convince most of the kids that were hovering that they could get an extra piece of dessert if they hurried. The thought of Andi sitting on his lap, whispering to him exactly what she wanted for Christmas, was almost too much for him to take. The anticipation grew, building fast. But then a man had come out of nowhere and grabbed Andi. Colin was halfway out of his Santa seat before he realized it was the man he'd seen earlier in the staff room. Did Andi know him?

It was only seconds later, when the man swept Andi into a passionate kiss, that Colin had realized that not only did she know him, she was almost certainly the woman who would be on the receiving end of his proposal, planned for the next day.

The air sucked from his lungs, Colin fell back in his chair. A child immediately clambered up on his lap. He knew he should put his Santa voice on and get back into the act. Kids were depending on him. He stared at the little blond girl looking up at him from beneath thick glasses. She blinked once, twice. Waiting for him to say something. 

He couldn't. 

"Santa?" the little girl asked in a small voice. "Are you okay?"

Colin looked up to where Andi had been kissing the man. They were gone. Had he imagined it? He looked back to the girl. 

"Santa?"

"Ho ho ho, sorry about that." Colin gave it his best effort, but he could tell from the girl's face that he hadn't done a very good job. He couldn't focus. His mind spun with thoughts. Where was Andi? Was that her boyfriend? What about their relationship? 

Colin put his hands to his head, trying to clear his thoughts. They didn't have a relationship, he rationalized. He didn't do relationships. Right?  

"Hi there, sweetie," Eva's voice came from behind him. "You know, I think Santa's getting a little tired and he has a big night ahead of him. Why don't you take this candy cane and I'll help Santa get some rest?"

The little girl gave Colin one more strange, yet concerned, look and slid off his lap. She took her candy cane and ran off, no doubt to tell her parents that Santa was having a breakdown. He didn't care. He needed to get out of there. The suit was like a sauna. The beard, suffocating. 

Eva grabbed his arm and hauled him from his seat. In a daze, he let her lead her out a side door and into a service corridor. She didn't say a word until they were in the staff room, with the door closed behind them. 

"How are you?" she asked him as she took off his hat.

"I'm boiling in here," he said and yanked off his gloves. "I need some water." 

She found him a bottle, in the fridge, which he chugged while she watched. "I meant, how are you with what happened out there?"

"Is my shift over?" he asked, ignoring the question. 

Eva lifted her perfectly groomed eyebrow but didn't push it. "Pretty much," she said, lifting her clipboard. "I just need you to put on your best jolly old elf voice for the microphone in about five minutes. I want to broadcast you saying-"

"Let me guess. Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night?" he spat out the words.

"You got it," Eva said. "Just try and make it a whole lot jollier. That was pathetic."

Colin yanked at the buttons of his coat. "Excuse me if I'm not feeling so festive right now."

Her face morphed into a mask of concern. "Can I talk to you about that?"

"There's really nothing to talk about."

"What happened out there with Andi," she said. "You are her-"

"We're nothing," he said. "She's just staying in my villa. That's all." 

"I don't think that's all there is going on," Eva said. Her voice was filled with concern and she tried to take his hand but he pulled back.