Wicked Wonderland (23 page)

If children were the bellwethers of decency, then Daniel passed with flying colors.

Hallie had been charged with standing at Daniel’s elbow and, as each child finished, providing a reusable bag to carry the gifts. She was tired and her legs ached, but she wouldn’t have missed the young students’ excitement for the world. There was still one more week of school to go before the holidays, and Hallie didn’t envy the teachers who had to keep control in the interim.

Finally, it was done. With one last round of waves and hoho-ho’s, Daniel and Hallie left the building. The sun had indeed gone down, but a pleasant pinkish glow lit up the sky.

Daniel stopped in the parking lot, despite the frigid temperature, and rested his hands momentarily on her shoulders. He squeezed lightly. “Thanks, Hallie.You make a great elf.”

She felt his fat belly bump her stomach. “You’re very welcome,” she said, not bothering to hide her smile. “It was fun.”

Something charged the air around them. A scientist might have called it static electricity. Hallie was pretty sure it was anticipation. But though she’d learned a lot about Santa in her twenty-eight years, she knew nothing at all about Daniel Reynolds.

She took the car keys from her pocket and fumbled awkwardly to unlock the door. Romantic moments in Alaska came with a price. Possible hypothermia.

Both she and Daniel were quiet on the short trip back. When they arrived at the B&B, he insisted on carrying in her two bags and showing her the master suite. Hazel and Roy’s quarters were comfortable and tidy. And fortunately they must have run out of Christmas decorations before they got to their own room. Except for a holly-appliquéd hand towel in the bathroom and a small ceramic tree with tiny plastic lights on the dresser, the room was pleasantly neutral in decor.

Daniel set Hallie’s bags in front of the closet and started unfastening the big black buttons down his front. He did it unself-consciously, tossing aside the pillow and sliding his arms out of the jacket and suspenders.All the while, he was checking things ... the wall heater, the carafe of water on the nightstand, the latch on the window.

At last, he seemed satisfied. He turned to Hallie and stretched his arms over his head. She saw muscles ripple and flex. “I know you’re beat,” he said, “but I owe you dinner for today.Why don’t you rest for a while and we’ll go out around seven?”

“Sounds great.” He hadn’t really given her a chance to refuse, but did she want to? Even though she was exhausted, starvation ran a close second. She took off her coat and tossed it on the chair.When she turned back around, Daniel’s eyes had glazed over, and his face was almost as red as his Santa pants. He dragged his gaze away from her bust. “Well, okay, then.”

Was his voice hoarse?

He slid toward the door. “I guess I’d better let you sack out.” He seemed reluctant to leave.

“Yeah. I’m dead on my feet.”

He nodded slowly, his gaze warm and intimate. “Welcome to Alaska, Hallie,” he said in a low voice, and then he was gone.

 

Daniel stripped and got in the shower to wash off the sweat. Being Santa was damned hard work. And speaking of hard . . . he put his hand on his swollen cock and closed his eyes.Visions of Hallie, a woman he’d known for less than a day, filled his mental screen.

He’d nearly made a fool of himself back there in her bedroom. When she took off her coat and he’d seen her kick-ass body for the first time, he’d known in an instant what his Christmas wish would be. He wanted Hallie Prentiss. Her legs, clad in tight indigo denim jeans, were long and sexy. And her generous breasts beneath that wine silk turtleneck . . . well, a man could write a sonnet about them . . . or at least create a damned good fantasy.

He ran with that last thought as he continued to stroke himself. He squeezed his eyes shut when he came, imagining Hallie smiling at him, riding him.

He let her sleep for two hours. But he knew that getting accustomed to Alaska’s twenty hours of darkness would be easier if she stayed on a normal schedule.

He was dressed and ready far too early, so he did a load of laundry and replaced a couple of lightbulbs upstairs. Finally he decided it was okay to wake Hallie. The door to her room wasn’t shut all the way, so he eased it open and whispered her name.The lump beneath the covers didn’t move. He wondered if she had undressed before climbing in bed, but he didn’t see her jeans and top anywhere. Only her coat.

Poor thing. He felt guilty for shanghaiing her into being his chauffeur earlier, but it had been fun to have her along. Clearly, though, the stress of losing her job had given her some sleepless nights.

He inched closer to the bed. “Hallie?” It was almost six thirty, and he figured she probably needed time to get ready. He planned to take her to a nice restaurant in Fairbanks.The city was only a fifteen-minute drive away, and the choices of eating establishments there were more numerous than in the town of North Pole.

He started to get concerned. Surely no one slept
that
deeply. Not during the daytime at least. Even if it was dark outside.

“Hallie?” He touched her shoulder. No response. He shook her gently. “Hallie?”

She yelped and sat straight up in bed.The top of her head made contact with the bottom of his jaw, and he staggered back, reeling as he saw stars. Shit. He nearly bit through his tongue.

As he was trying to catch his breath, the lights came on, and he was finally able to focus on Hallie’s indignant face.

She glared at him, pulling the sheet to her chin despite the fact that she was fully clothed.“What in the heck are you doing in my room?”

He flung his arms wide. “I was
trying
to wake you up so you wouldn’t miss dinner.”

Her eyes narrowed. “What time is it?”

“Six thirty. And I thought you might want to do some woman stuff before we leave.”

She threw back the covers and drew her knees to her chest. “Woman stuff?”

He shrugged helplessly. “You know . . . lipstick, primping, whatever ...”

He trailed off as her eyes shot blue sparks at him.

“I do
not
primp.That is a demeaning word.”

Now his own temper boiled over. “It sure the hell is not. I don’t even know you, Hallie Prentiss. I was trying to be nice. So shoot me.”

“Don’t tempt me,” she muttered.

“Are you always this cranky when you wake up?”

She wrinkled her nose and rubbed the top of her head. “Your chin hurt me.”

He snorted. “Your
head
hurt
me
,” he shot back, not willing to be the bad guy.

She yawned hugely.“Maybe I’ll skip dinner,” she grumbled, falling back against the pillows.

He was far too tempted to join her. So instead, he got tough. “No way. I’ll expect you by the front door in twenty-five minutes.”

He was honestly surprised when she showed up. He’d known her all of five hours, and already he sensed that she could be as stubborn as he was ... and that was saying something.

But he was smart enough not to comment on her punctuality.

They were in his car this time, and for Hallie’s benefit, he cranked the heater up full blast. She had covered every available inch of her body with winter clothing.

He put the car in gear. “You can take your coat off if you want to.... It’s plenty warm in here.”

Her voice was muffled by the thick scarf she had wrapped around her neck. It sounded like she said something sarcastic, but he was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.

As they reached the outskirts of Fairbanks, she finally shed the scarf. But nothing else. He grinned. “You aren’t a vegetarian, are you?”

Hallie’s stomach growled audibly. “No. But I’m not eating moose meat ... just so you know.”

He chuckled. “We’ll stick to beef for the moment.”

Over steak dinners, Daniel learned more about her. She was type A. She liked beaches rather than mountains. Her favorite music was country. And, most important, she was unencumbered romantically.

He sipped his wine and leaned back in his seat. “The men in Seattle must be blind and stupid.”

Hallie flushed slightly. “I’ve had plenty of offers. But I was on the fast track to assistant manager.Working sixty- and seventy-hour weeks. I decided that there was plenty of time in the future for relationships. I was determined to establish my career first.” She grimaced. “A pitiful cliché, right? And look what it got me.A one-month severance package, and a
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
”

Daniel studied her face. Her expression was guarded, but her eyes told the story.They were bleak. He set down his glass, leaned back in his chair, and crossed his arms over his chest.“You do realize that what happened to you was in no way a personal failure.”

Her eyes narrowed, her chin at a mulish angle.“Feels like it from where I’m sitting,” she muttered.

He opted for humor. “Have you ever wondered why getting
laid off
is so much worse than getting
laid
?”

She choked on a sip of burgundy. “Is this your version of a pep talk? Dr. Phil, you are not.”

He sighed. “No one ever appreciates good advice.”

“What advice? All you’ve told me is that getting fired wasn’t my fault. And like any guy, you managed to bring up sex in the process.”

He shrugged. “Sex makes anything better.”

She smiled then. A full-blown, sexy curve of her lush lips. “I’m willing to let some naughty talk distract me from my sucky life.”

“Just talk?” he asked hopefully.“Or something more hands-on?”

She caught her lower lip between her teeth and studied his face. He wondered what she was thinking. Chances were, nothing nearly as X-rated as the images that were galloping across his brain.

Unfortunately his question went unanswered. She leaned forward, her elbows on the table.“So, tell me about Daniel Reynolds. What do you do when you’re not being Santa Claus?”

He abandoned the previous topic reluctantly.“I’m the Department of Defense police captain at Fort Wainwright.We do road patrols, post security. How visitors are processed at the front gate, how deliveries are vetted, stuff like that.”

“So you’re in the army?”

“No. Actually, it’s a civilian position. I
was
in the army after college . . . for six years. When I got out, I started working at Fort Irwin in California.Worked my way up to police lieutenant. This job opened back in the spring. I applied, and moved here six months ago.”

“Sounds like interesting work.”

“I think so.”

“But don’t you miss being at home?”

“My dad was in the military, too, so I don’t really have a home base, although my parents are retired and live in Florida. I love Alaska, and relocating here for the foreseeable future hasn’t been a hardship.”

“How do you know Hazel and Roy?”

“We met in town one day. I hate staying in hotels and motels for more than a few nights. And in the beginning, the job at Fort Wainwright was temporary, strictly on a month-by-month basis. So I didn’t want to buy a house right off or rent a generic apartment. I threw myself at Hazel and Roy’s mercy and they cut me a deal. I did all their yard work during the summer and fall, and they gave me a room at a drastically reduced rate. They’re getting older, so they appreciate having someone around to do odd jobs. It’s worked out really well.”

He lifted a hand and indicated to the waiter that he’d like the check.“I want you to know, Hallie, that I’ll help you as much as I can in the next two weeks. At least with getting breakfast on the table before I have to go to work in the mornings.”

Her jaw dropped slightly and confusion filled her deep blue eyes. “Breakfast?”

He grinned as he signed the credit card slip. “Yeah, breakfast. You know . . . the second
B
in ‘B and B.’ ”

She waved a nonchalant hand.“How hard can it be? I doubt there will be too many people booking stays at a B and B in Alaska in December. I have a whole packet of stuff to look at this evening ... meticulous instructions Hazel and Roy mailed me a week ago. And I’m supposed to call them if I have questions. We had planned to touch base when they got to Seattle, but their flights were delayed a day and a half, and I was gone before they arrived. But I’m sure it will be fine. Especially since we don’t have guests tonight. I kept meaning to go through all the info they gave me before I left, but there was so much to do getting ready for the trip....”

He got a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. “Um, Hallie ... have you even taken a look at the reservation book?” Hazel and Roy refused to use computers.The books were kept the old-fashioned way.

Hallie bit her lip again and shrugged. “Well, not yet. You whisked me away to the school, and then I took a nap, and then we left.... Is there something you’re not telling me?”

He took a deep breath. “You have fifteen guests checking in tomorrow. And they’re staying through Christmas Eve.”

H
allie had never fainted in her life. Well, except for that one time when she gave blood on an empty stomach, but that didn’t count. Her vision went fuzzy, and she took several deep breaths.“Fifteen people?” She’d had some hazy notion of dusting the occasional bookshelf and catching up on her reading for the next two weeks. B&Bs in the middle of nowhere were not the same as high-end hotels. The occupancy rates were minimal, especially outside of tourist season. Right?

Daniel took her cold hands in his and rubbed them gently. “Take a deep breath.You’re a pro, remember? You can do this with your eyes closed.You know the hospitality industry inside out.”

But that was just it, Hallie lamented inwardly. She didn’t, not really. All she knew were the rigorous schedules that kept her big hotel running smoothly. She knew how to deal with an irate guest and a malfunctioning AC unit. She knew how to pacify a wealthy rock star whose suite was still being cleaned and prepared. She knew how to handle squabbles among the housekeeping staff. But she sure as heck didn’t know how to entertain fifteen people in a four-thousand-square-foot bed-and-breakfast. Good Lord.