Dear Santa, I Can Explain!

by Kayt Miller

  “Oooh, thinking about weeks in advance with this one? This is getting good.”

  “Well, I don’t know how long this drama with Christine is going to last so…”

  “You swear you didn’t impregnate her?”

  “Victoria Parker. Would I lie about something as serious as that? I didn’t touch her. I kissed her, and that’s it.”

  “Fine. I hope your lawyers are on top of things. That could snowball out of control before you know what happened. Women like her…”

  “I know. She’s a nutcase. Yes, my lawyers are looking into everything. They’ve even got an investigator looking at her past. My theory is she’s tried this before but only time will tell if I’m right about that.”

  “I agree. Women like her would probably try this multiple times. I bet she’s gotten paid off before.”

  “That’s probably true. I’ll make sure they look into her financials. Good.” Yeah, that’s a good idea.

  “Alright, it’s past my bedtime, Gabby. I need to hit the hay.”

  “Yeah, Chip’s probably missing you.”

  “He’s not here.”

  “He’s not? Where is he?”

  “Uh, he was tying up some loose ends at the gallery.”

  “Oh, sure.” Besides being a sub-par architect, Chip’s also her agent. I wouldn’t put it past him to screw her out of some of that money, but I keep that to myself. I can’t worry about him. The only thing I can do is take care of my sister. She doesn’t know this, but every month I put money into an account for her. So when things hit the fan with asshole Chip, and they will hit the fan, she’ll have money to fall back on. “Love you, V. Sleep well.”

  “Love you too. Talk to you later.”

  We hang up, and I lean back in my ergonomic drafting stool. Running my hand through my hair, I decide to shower to get this product out of my hair. It’ll also be an opportunity to work off some of this frustration I have since I left Lexie at her door. Just thinking about her plump little lips and round bottom makes me grow hard again. Yeah, a shower is what I need. Then maybe I’ll get some sleep.

  Chapter 15

  Lexie

  At nine sharp, I plop my bottom into my chair behind the reception desk. I arrange my supplies in preparation for the day ahead of me. Answering the phone, transferring calls, and greeting customers doesn’t sound glamorous but it’s hard work, and I enjoy it. I know I could probably make more money being an administrative assistant, but I like the fact that I don’t take orders from anyone. I’m my own boss, in a way. Except when I’m not. Like the times Katya uses me as her assistant, having me do menial tasks like making copies, stuffing envelopes, labeling files, etc.

  Today is just one of those days. When I look to the left side of my desk, I see a stack of papers and folders about a foot high with a typed and printed punch list for me to complete for her today. I sigh because I know I’m going to do it. I’d rather not argue with her about any of it. I’ll just get it done. It’ll make my life easier. No good would come out of me complaining about Katya. She’s his executive, er, administrative assistant. I’m his pretend date / receptionist. There’s no comparison.

  When the first call of the day rings in, I pick up my headset, “Good morning. Parker and Associates, how may I direct your call?”

  “Public Relations department please.”

  “Sure, one moment.” I transfer the call to Cammy’s phone and quickly click over to the next caller. One after another, people call asking for Cammy’s department. “I wonder what’s going on? I bet it has something to do with Crazy Christine.”

  “What about Crazy Christine?” Gabriel asks sifting through my candy dish.

  I reach into my drawer and pull out a new bag of Root Beer Barrels. “Here. I forgot to refill the bowl.”

  “Thanks,” he says looking over the counter and down at me. “You look nice today.”

  “Oh, um, thank you.” I wore one of the new outfits he bought for me. It’s a red pencil skirt that I’ve paired with a deep green blouse. See? It’s Christmas-y without being ‘idiosyncratic'.

  “Green looks lovely with your hair.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Now, what were you saying about ‘Crazy Christine’?”

  “Nothing. There’s just been a lot of calls for Cammy today. I just assumed they were about her.”

  “They could be about you.” He pauses. “And me.”

  “True.” Oh, gosh, I hope not.

  “Your picture was in the paper from the opening last night. Did you see it?”

  “No,” I groan. “And I don’t want to. I take hideous pictures.”

  “I’ll have to agree to disagree,” he says pulling out his phone. Holding the screen out for me I see him, his back and part of me. It’s the picture from the kiss at the gallery. Luckily, most of my body has been obscured by the big man himself. You can see part of one leg and my hair. Otherwise, he’s wrapped around me, immersed in the kiss.

  “Wow, that’s, uh, sexy.”

  “It is.” He winks. “It was.” Leaning over the desk to whisper. “I couldn’t stop thinking about those lips of yours last night.”

  I feel the hot heat of a blush run up from my chest to my face in zero point one second. I can’t think of a thing to say so when the phone rings; I quickly pick it up, “Good morning, Parker and Associates, how may I direct your call?” I pause as I listen, “Yes, he’s right here. May I ask who’s calling?” I listen for a beat then add, “Alright, Mr. Clark, let me transfer you.”

  “Mr. Parker, your attorney is on line two for you.”

  He sighs, “Oh, good. Give me a minute and transfer it to my office directly.” I watch him take long strides back to his office. When his door closes, I transfer the call.

  By lunchtime, I’m pooped. The calls have been coming in non-stop, as have the stacks of ‘busy work’ that Katya keeps dumping on my desk. I don’t know why she’s having me do this work for her because whenever I look back toward her desk, she’s either playing solitaire on her computer (since I can see her screen from here), or she’s doing her nails. No. I suspect she’s just dumping her work on me because she’s a b-i-t-c-h.

  When Kim comes to relieve me for lunch I sigh, “Oh, good. You’re early. I need to make some copies for Katya before I go to lunch.”

  “Why are you doing her work?” she asks looking back toward Katya’s desk.

  “No idea.” I grab the stack of papers and march into the copy room. After the Copy-gate incident, I learned how to use the machine like a professional. Now I can copy one sided and two sided; I can sort, collate, bind, bundle, hole punch, and so much more.

  Walking quickly into the copy room, I set the originals down, so I can program the machine to create a booklet of copies for a meeting Mr. Parker is having after lunch. “Nothing like leaving things for the last minute,” I mutter.

  “What is?” asks a deep voice from behind me.

  I hear the door to the copy room click shut. “Oh, nothing Mr. Parker.”

  He steps behind me. He’s so close, I can feel his body heat against my back. “It’s Gabriel, remember?” Using his hand, he moves the hair away from my neck. When his lips touch me right below my ear, I shiver.

  “Wh-what can I do for you, Mr. uh, Gabriel?”

  “Let me take you to lunch.” He kisses me on the same spot again.

  “I… this isn’t appropriate in the office, Gabriel.” I want to turn around to see if anyone can see us through the glass window in the copy room door but he’s now wrapped an arm around me loosely; his hand is on my stomach now. The instant I feel his palm there, I flinch and suck in my gut. I’m self-conscious about my belly.

  Looking at my face he smirks, “No one can see us. I shut the door.” His eyes move down my face to my lips.

  When the machine beeps angrily, I look down to see I’ve got a paper jam. “Damn it.” I bend at the waist opening doors and unlatching compartments until I find the offending piece of paper. All the while, m
y big bottom is pressed up against Gabriel. I can feel him. You know…like he’s ‘got a gun in his pocket, and he’s happy to see me’? And trust me, ladies, it’s a big gun.

  “Why are you copying the agenda and plans for the meeting this afternoon? I ask Katya to do that two days ago.”

  I shrug. I’m not going to get into something between him and Katya right now. “She brought it to me a few minutes ago and asked me to make copies.”

  “That’s her job,” he mutters angrily.

  Oh, I know I should take the opportunity to talk all about Katya and her work ethic, but I’m not going to do it. I shrug again. “She must have been busy.”

  He nods, “That’s true. I make her work hard for me. No matter. Now, what about lunch? We could go to the cafeteria on the main floor. That way everyone will see us together.”

  “Uh, that’s not a good idea.”

  “Why not?”

  How do I say this in a way that won’t sound wrong? “It’ll just make me feel uncomfortable. Everyone will be staring. Besides, I’ve got errands to run over lunch. Maybe another day?”

  “I could go with you to run your errands.” He moves his face back to my neck and breathes in, “You smell so good, baby. Like sunshine.”

  Baby? Sunshine? What the heck does sunshine smell like? “Thank you, Gabriel. But, not today. These are things I need to do alone.”

  “Wow, you're awfully secretive.” His palm slides up until it’s right below my breast. “Gabriel. This isn’t the time or the place for you to get handsy.”

  “Oh,” he startles. Pulling away from me he runs his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, Lex. I didn’t mean to make you feel…”

  “It’s fine. I get it. It’s for show. No worries.”

  “No, I…”

  “Well, I’m all done here. I need to take care of these,” I say holding up the booklets, “and get going.”

  “Fine. Sure. I’ll, uh, see you tonight?”

  “Tonight?”

  “Didn’t Katya send give you my agenda for the week?”

  “Not yet.”

  “I’ll ask her to do it again.”

  “Okay.” Good luck with that, Mr. Parker. “See you later.”

  “What? No kiss?”

  I step up on the tiptoes of my heels and kiss his cheek. Using my fingers to wave, I say, “Toodles.”

  I hear him chuckling as I walk back to my desk. Grabbing my purse, I drop the stack of booklets off at Katya’s, now vacant, desk and make a beeline for the elevator. The truth is, I don’t have errands to run. I just want to be alone––maybe zone out for a bit. I’ll grab a coffee and read a book on my phone in the women’s lounge on the main floor. It’ll be heavenly.

  Chapter 16

  Gabriel

  Walking back to my office, I see my assistant in the employee break room. “Katya?”

  “Yes, Gabriel?” she says as she walks in step with me back to my office.

  I wish she’d call me Mr. Parker. Using my first name is unprofessional––too comfortable. “Please forward my list of events for this week to Lexie.” Like I asked you to this morning. I don’t say that aloud. I don’t need a surly Katya to deal with today.

  “Of course, Gabriel. I’ll get right on that.” When we reach her desk, she says, “Oh, I almost forgot. Here are the booklets for the meeting this afternoon. Sorry, it took me so long to get them done, I’ve been so busy.”

  She emphasizes ‘so’ a little too much. Since I know she isn’t the one who made the copies; it makes me wonder what else she’s had other people do for her. “Oh? You copied these? Today?”

  “Yes. Of course.”

  Wow, I don’t know why I didn’t see it before, but Katya is full of shit.

  Chapter 17

  Lexie

  When I get back to my desk after lunch, Kim looks harried. “What’s going on today, Lexie? The phones are going crazy, and most of them are for poor Cammy.”

  “I know. I haven’t talked to her today. I bet she hasn’t been able to take a break with all the calls going to P.R.”

  “Is this about you and Gabriel,” she whispers Gabriel’s name like she’s afraid it’ll conjure up the devil himself. Heck, it might.

  “Probably.” I roll my eyes.

  “I had no idea, Lex. You played it so cool.”

  “Oh, well, yeah, I…”

  “Here!” snaps an angry Katya.

  I startle at the sound of her voice. I had no idea she’d crept up behind me like a Ninja. “What’s this?”

  “Your event agenda with Gabriel,” she snaps.

  “Oh, okay. Thank you.”

  She doesn’t reply she just stomps back to her desk in a huff.

  “What crawled up her ass?” whispers Kim. “She’s always so mean to you.”

  “I know.” I know. I’m used to it, though. I look down at the crumpled, torn piece of notebook paper and frown. At least her handwriting is neat.

  “Well, now that you’re with the boss, you can tell on her.”

  “No. I’m not going to do that. I like my job. Getting Katya even angrier at me is not a good idea.” Because when this is all over, it’s just going to be me here at the front desk and Katya breathing down my neck. Just like old times.

  After Kim heads off to lunch, I slip on the headset and peer down at the events I’m supposed to attend with Gabriel.

  “Tonight at six o’clock is dinner with a potential client. Dress for fine dining,” I read aloud. “Wednesday night dinner with a former client. Dress for fine dining. Thursday night is an awards banquet. Dress is cocktail attire.” I assume that means a cocktail dress. “Friday night is a dinner with Victoria, dress casually.” So far, the only thing I’m excited about is dinner with Victoria. But things are looking up when I read about Saturday night’s event. ‘Christmas Gala. Festive Gown. This is your chance to show your true colors.’ At least for this event I get to wear something I like. I don’t have a ‘festive gown’. The one that Victoria insisted I buy is white. It’s pretty but a little plain. So maybe I’ll splurge and shop at Maybelle’s. I’m sure she’ll have something reasonably priced there.

  Re-reading the list, I groan internally. It’s a lot of events for one week. It cuts into my cozy home time with my little animal friends. I don’t mind going out once in a while, but I’m a homebody. I’d much prefer to sit at home and watch a movie or read a book while nibbling on popcorn.

  By the end of the day, I’m worn out. All I want to do is slip into a bath and go to bed, but instead, I have to race home and change for a fancy dinner. Ugh. The driver is waiting at the curb for me as I exit the building. I feel stupid, getting into the car, as I pass fellow employees. I need to cancel the car. It’s too conspicuous for me.

  At home, I greet my animal friends, feed them, and chitchat with Cy as I undress. I take a quick shower making sure not to get my hair wet. I roll that up into a twist at the back of my head and slip on one of my new dresses. This one is a black 1950s wiggle flared dress in a heavy cotton fabric. The fabric is so heavy and stiff; it holds it’s shape perfectly. The bodice has a deep V-neck while the straps sit on the edge of my shoulders.

  I search my closet for my favorite cardigan. It’s baby blue and adorned with tiny white pearl beads in a swirling pattern down the front. I think it might be cashmere. It’s so soft I want to hug myself. I slip it on and peek in the mirror. “Not bad, Lexie.”

  I refresh my makeup and slip on some nude nylons. I decide on a pair of black and white Mary Jane style pumps with a moderate heel. I walk to the full-length mirror I have on the back of the bathroom door and smile. “This’ll have to do, Cy.”

  When the knock sounds on the door, I ask, “Who is it?”

  “Gabriel.”

  I unlock the deadbolt and slide off the chain opening it to a dapper man in a dark suit. I think it’s black, but I can’t be sure. “Come in.”

  I watch him step into my apartment and continue the trek to my little living room. He’s so bi
g and broad he seems to fill the space. Cy starts to chirp and squawk at the new visitor. “Shh, Cy. It’s just Gabriel.” I say walking up to his cage. I place my finger through one of the bars so he can tap it with his beak. It’s our thing.

  “That is the ugliest bird I’ve ever seen,” chuckles Gabriel.

  I feel my face heat. I’m not embarrassed I just don’t like to hear someone talk about Cy like that. It’s not his fault his first owner was evil. I shrug attempting to act casual. “Looks aren’t everything.”

  “Obviously,” he mutters as he scans my tiny home.

  I could be offended and refuse to go to dinner but I’m hungry, and I’ve got no food in my cupboards. Besides, I need to choose my battles with him. I also need to remember that I’m doing this for Cammy. This is her brainchild, and she’s my best friend. I’ll keep up with the charade for as long as she needs me or until I can’t perform my duties to the best of my abilities. Geesh, now I sound like I’ve just been sworn into the presidency. Heck, it’d probably be less frustrating being POTUS than dating Gabriel Parker.

  “Well,” I say grabbing my parka. “Are you ready to go?”

  “You’re wearing that coat again?”

  “I am.” Jeez, can’t the guy let it go?

  “Let’s leave it in the car again tonight.”

  Gritting my teeth, I nod. Choose your battles, Lexie. Choose your battles.

  Chapter 18

  Gabriel

  She looks beautiful. That dress is stunning on her, but I didn’t say a word. Don’t ask me why. I’m usually quite liberal with my compliments but, for some reason, I hold back with her. It could be that I find her endearing and engaging; something I haven’t felt about a date––ever. It could also be no one can kiss like her. I think I’m in unchartered territory with Lexie, by the way, she makes me feel, and that’s something I’ve never experienced with a woman before.