“Nick, do you want to go and tell your friend he was just being punk’d? I think if we carry this on much longer, he might hurt himself. Or worse, the plane!” I chuckled and started to clean up the cards. They were all over the place after Mikey, Jr. had his fit.
“Sure, last thing we need is to be rescued by humans.” He shook his head and took off to the cockpit.
Chapter 8
We landed at an airport in a city called Santa Monica. Even though we were close to the beach, it was scorching hot! It had to be over eighty degrees! I thought it was almost winter in the Southern United States.
“Dad, why is it so hot?” I fanned myself with a magazine I had in my bag. It wasn’t helping.
“This area is usually quite warm, even on Christmas Eve. I remember one year when it was close to ninety degrees at Christmas. They have weird weather patterns. Most of the area has never seen snow.”
“How can they handle this heat? They must be melting. I know I am.” Sweat was pouring down my back.
“Sweetie, this is cool for them. In the summer, they have many days over one hundred degrees.”
“NO WAY! Oh, I could never live here. Even if I wasn’t…you know who.” I looked around and whispered the last part. I couldn’t be too careful around humans.
“I don’t blame you. They don’t even have forests here. There is the Sierra Nevada mountain range, but that is a long drive away. There wouldn’t be anywhere you could go for a run. I don’t know how any of the other shifters can live here,” Dad said as he looked at his phone to check on our car reservations. They were supposed to have provided us with two SUV’s. I didn’t see anything close to our hangar.
“There are shifters here? In LA? Why? This place looks more like a dirty, cement jungle than a thriving metropolis. And the heat? How can any shifter handle it?” I stretched my arms above my head and ached for a run. I knew I wouldn’t be able to run until we left. With no forest, I couldn’t exactly shift and go for a jog down Hollywood Boulevard.
The SUV’s showed up five minutes later. The drivers said something about traffic being awful today. I had heard about it, and even seen it once. In the arctic, there was no traffic since we didn’t have roads. The sleds were pulled by reindeer, and we went wherever there weren’t trees or boulders. No set paths.
Mikey Jr. must have still been upset about my little prank on him because he wouldn’t sit in the same vehicle as me. Nick and his father joined me and my father in the first SUV, and the rest of the guys went in the other one. Our group was seven strong, and we were ready for anything. Well, anything but a heat wave.
“Mister, can you please turn up the air conditioning? It’s really hot here.” I waved my hand in front of my face as I asked the driver to cool us off.
“Yes, Ma’am. If I may ask, where are you from?” Gorgeous blue eyes looked at me in the rearview mirror.
“Alaska. Right now, we have snow and temps are below freezing. I don’t think I have clothes for this weather. Is there a mall you can recommend?” I smiled my best non-magical smile at the human driver. I doubted he could have handled a full smile. Didn’t want him to crash.
“Yes, in fact. You are staying only a few blocks from some shops. There is a mall, but you would need a taxi to get there. Just ask your concierge, and he will help you.”
“Thanks! I think I know what I am going to do the rest of the day.” My dad and Masha chuckled while Nick groaned. They knew it meant they had to go with me. I wondered if I could get Mikey, Jr. to go with. That would be fun.
“Sweetie, we are here for a reason that doesn’t include shopping.” Dad had to go and ruin my good mood.
“Can I at least check out the clothes’ shops and get a couple of outfits for this weather? We will be here for a few days. I can’t exactly walk around in snow boots and sweaters. Don’t you want something cooler?”
“Sa... Chris, she has a point.” Masha almost called my dad Santa. That would have been awkward to explain to our driver. “We didn’t exactly pack for LA.”
Dad heaved a sigh. “Fine, we can check out the stores in walking distance tonight before dinner. I don’t want to spend too much time shopping. We have work to do.”
I squeeled. “Thanks dad! This is going to be so much more fun than Lapland!”
“Oh, I don’t know. I think that was fun. Where else would I be able to get a perfect wooden train set?” He really did love that thing. I bet he sets it up in his office when we return, just to play with it.
When we reached the hotel, we all piled out of the cars and went to grab our bags. “Please, let me help you, Miss?” The driver asked as he handed me my bag.
“Lizzie. My name is Lizzie.” I smiled at him. He was human, so he couldn’t be a candidate, but no one said I couldn’t have some fun.
“I’m Joe. Nice to meet you.” He handed me his business card. “If you want a tour guide, just give me a call.” He winked at me before Dad noticed.
“Lizzie, come on. We have to get going.” Dad gave the driver his stern look. The one that said you are a naughty boy. If he hadn’t been an adult, I wouldn’t have been surprised if Dad put him on the naughty list.
I waved goodbye to the driver and turned to follow the gang. Dad had booked us in a swanky hotel. It was one of those high end chains. He probably wanted to get the points from this trip.
Dad and I shared a suite, and the rest shared regular rooms close by us. We got the suite so that we had a place big enough for all of us to meet. I also got my own bedroom. That was pretty cool! This was the first trip I had been on where I would get to sleep all by myself. If we visited a pack, it was either a bunkhouse or a shared room with one of my sisters. Even when we stayed in a hotel, I had to share with a sister, or three.
The twins were never separated. I had three sisters, but it looked more like I had two. The twins were the youngest. They were only eleven years old. I think they had only left the Arctic Circle once. We all flew to Seattle last February to see a play and do some clothes shopping. The girls were growing so fast mom thought it would be easier to just hit a mall and have them try on some clothes and buy in bulk. Mom made a lot of our clothes, or the elves did. However, with the growth rate of my two youngest sisters, it seemed she never had a break.
“Okay, are we all settled? Can we go sightseeing and maybe some shopping too? What about dinner? Can we try one of those fast food places? Or a pizza joint?” I was excited to experience LA.
This was a real treat. Most places we visited didn’t have much more than a family café. I had eaten at a couple of fast food restaurants but not many.
It’s not like you can just drive the sleigh down to the nearest city and order up. We were a good ten hours by sleigh to any big city. Dad could have taken me to Anchorage at any point with his reindeer and sleigh in a flash, but he never used it outside of the Arctic Circle, unless it was Christmas.
Dad reached out telepathically to the guys and told them to come over as soon as they were done. It only took about ten minutes, but I was antsy. I wanted to get going.The second the last guy entered, which of course was Mikey, Jr., I grabbed his arm and turned him around and told everyone it was time to go.
“You guys are so slow! Let’s get a move on. The faster we leave, the sooner the shopping will be done.” I smiled over my shoulder at my dad who just shook his head.
Dad led us to the Concierge desk where he had to ring a bell. Once the guy with the funny hat came over, my dad asked him, “I heard there were some shops nearby. Can you recommend one for us to all get clothes suitable for this warm weather? And a restaurant as well?”
“Yes, Sir. If you go outside the hotel and turn left, just walk down four blocks, and you will see several department stores.” The guy told us where we could eat later as well. Some place called Bubba Gump. Weird name, but the food sounded wonderful! Seafood was one of my favorites.
I was in heaven! There was no other word for what I saw when we walked into a massive, three story shop.
It was the largest department store I had ever seen. I didn’t even realize there were that many different styles of clothes to choose from! Next time I went shopping, this was where I was going to come.
I sent the guys off to find what they needed. They didn’t take much time. It seemed like they were gone for only ten minutes. Nick informed me that they had been gone for close to an hour. I still hadn’t tried on everything yet.
“Lizzie, we didn’t come here so you could buy the department store out. Come on, pick out enough clothes for four or five days. If we stay longer, you can just wash them.” My dad came over to the rack I was at and picked up a hideous sweater and handed it to me. Like I would have been caught dead in an orange sweater with bells on it! Men, they have no fashion sense.
“Dad, I am not going to wear orange. Nor am I going to wear a sweater here. The kind lady over at the register is holding some clothes for me. Why don’t you go pay for them while I keep looking?” I shooed him off as I continued to look at the clothes. “Oh, I will need shoes next.” I yelled at his back.
I smiled when I heard him say under his breath, “Of course.”
He was sweet and bought the eight outfits I had already picked out but refused to let me add any more.
“Ok, I need shoes now. As do all of you.” I looked down to their weather beaten boots and thought they must be just as hot as I was in mine. We all wore boots designed for below freezing temperatures.
“Fine, let’s just hurry up. I am starving as are the rest of the men,” My dad complained as we found our way to the shoe department.
I almost squealed when I saw a pair of red leather pumps. Those were shoes I had to have. It just so happened that I picked up a pretty dress in black and red. I ended up getting four pairs of shoes, to my father’s frustration. A girl needs the right shoes for the right outfits.
And I was planning on meeting my future husband. There was no way I wasn’t going to look my best when he came along. I think that argument was what swayed him.
Once we got to the restaurant, I was actually tired. It must have been that heat. We all looked at the menu, and the guys were listing off all of the items they wanted. One of the bad things about being an Arctic Wolf is that when you get a chance to eat a whole restaurant worth of food, you do.
“Guys, try to be civilized and remember where you are.” Then I whispered, “Humans don’t eat that much food in one sitting.” I arched an eyebrow at Mikey, Jr., and he looked back to his menu. He was going to be easy prey on this trip. I didn’t think he would relax until I met my future husband.
The waiter came over and took our orders. It was quite embarrassing. His eyes widened when everyone started to order all at once. I had to step in.
“Alright guys, one at time. Ladies first. I’ll show you how to act in a restaurant.” I turned my smile to the waiter. “Sorry about them. They really are just a bunch of wild animals.” He laughed with me.
Too bad he didn’t realize that I was telling the truth.“I’ll have the salmon special.” I ordered my sides and then directed the guys to only order two items each.
When it was Mikey’s turn, he tried to order three plates until I grabbed his hand. “Alright, alright! Just give me the first two plates. Forget the full chicken dinner.” He turned his eyes to the television screen on his left once the waiter walked away.
There was some stupid sports game on. A bunch of guys running around a green field, tossing a leather ball back and forth. The only time it was interesting was when someone would jump on another guy. That didn’t happen very much.
“Dad, do you know where we should start looking tomorrow? I know I am in the right place but have no clue where to start. Do you?”
He wasn’t looking at me. His gaze was glued to the TV. So were all of the rest of my guys. We didn’t have satellite TV up in Polaris so I had no clue how they knew what game it was. They seemed to understand what was happening and argued amongst them who was the better team.
I figured I would have to just rely on my senses and the Magic to tell me where to go. It wasn’t like there was a pack here. So we couldn’t just go up to a door and knock. I was going to have to walk around the city until I found what, or who, was calling me.
For just a moment, I panicked thinking that my future mate might be a human. Then I realized that was impossible. The Magic only worked on Arctic Wolves. I remember reading about a Santa in the past who liked a Werewolf shifter girl. The Magic never rested on her. It completely ignored her.
The only thing my ancestors could come up with was that as an Arctic Wolf shifter, we fit in up in the Arctic Circle. If humans ever got too close, we could shift, and they wouldn’t think anything of us, except that we were very large for our breed. If we had a different breed of shifter, then they wouldn’t have the natural ability to hide or blend with the environment.
“Lizzie, didn’t you like the game?” My dad asked me once it was over. I sat there staring out the window wondering when we were going to leave.
“No, there wasn’t anything really physical about that game. It can’t compare to our games back home. Wolves always come away bloody and limping. A real manly sport draws blood. You taught me that at a very young age.” I shrugged. “Are you guys ready to leave?”
Nolan said, “Yes, I think it’s time we get back and start discussing the plans for tomorrow.”
My dad agreed.
“Then let’s pay the bill and get out of here.” I started to scoot my chair out until Nick put his hand on my back.
“Here, let me help you.” He stood up and pulled my chair back for me. Something was up. He was never a gentleman.
“Thank you, Nick.” I eyed him cautiously as I stood up before he could pull the chair out from under me. The only thing I could think was that he was planning something. Probably to help Mikey, Jr. get back at me.
The evening had cooled considerably since we arrived. I wouldn’t need my boots or jacket, nonetheless, I did feel a bit of a breeze that actually felt good.
I slowed to enjoy the evening and was lagging behind the guys. The city had already started to put up Christmas decorations. They were so pretty and colorful. I stopped to look at the display in a window. It had some toys and a fake Santa standing outside of its toy shop. Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t realize that the men had gone on without me. When I turned to catch up to them, they were nowhere in sight.
“Finally!” I said to no one in particular. That was the first bit of peace and quiet since we left home. Sure, there were people all around me, but none of them knew who I was. Not one of them was trying to hurt me or my family. It was quite refreshing to be a normal, human girl out shopping.
Slowly, I started to make my way back to the hotel. I hadn’t walked more than a few paces when I heard some scuffling and grunting nearby. It sounded like my guys were messing around. There was an alley just a few paces in front of me. I figured they were there, so I turned to walk down the alley.
It wasn’t my friends. It was three guys trying to corner one guy dressed up as Santa Claus with a big bag of toys. “Hey, Santa. I have been a good boy all year. So give me all of those presents before I stop being a good boy.” The guy who said that was pretty tall, he looked to be a few inches taller than my six feet. The other two guys were just shy of six feet tall.
“Sorry, these are for actual kids. Not adults who never grew up.” The fake Santa was bold.
This was a case of bullying, and I wasn’t going to stand by and let it happen. I walked further into the alley to help him. He surprised me with his speed. Two of the guys standing beside the tallest of the naughty guys attacked Santa at the same time. He performed a move that surprised them as well as me.
With the bag of toys in one hand he did a handstand and kicked out both of his legs. One to each guy and got them good in their faces. Both of the idiots yelled out and covered their noses with their hands. I could tell from where I was that they had bloody noses. Nice job Santa.
“Al
right boys, it’s not nice to gang up on someone. Leave the poor guy alone and head home to your mommy’s.” I wasn’t using any Magic. This was going to be a chance for me to help someone with my own powers, not by using Christmas Magic.
“Oh, lookie here, boys! We have a hot chick who wants to get in on the action. Hey baby, what say you and I head home and see what presents Santa left for us.” The tallest of the guys moved toward me.
Santa reached out and grabbed him by the neck and threw him very hard against the brick wall. I could hear his head hit, and the sound it made had me wondering if he was going to survive. “Don’t touch the nice lady.”
He turned to me and said, “Miss, you really shouldn’t be here. It would be safer for you to head back out to the street where there are other people.”
“That is very sweet of you, but I am here to help you. Although, it looks like you didn’t really need any help after all.” The two guys he kicked in the face where backing off as I got closer.
Then I sensed it, Christmas Magic. My father must have been behind me. I turned around, and there was no one there.
I looked back at the man in the Santa suit, and my jaw dropped. He was blanketed with Magic. “How… Who…What are you?” I whispered.
The man who had his head knocked against the wall got up and stumbled after his friends. Then it was just the magic man and me.
He stepped closer to me and reached out a hand and touched my face so softly. “How are you here? Is this a dream? If it is, I don’t want to wake up.”
“What? Who are you?”
“Sorry, where are my manners. My name is Paluk, but you can call me Palo. How did you find me?”
“I heard what sounded like fighting and thought it was my entourage rough housing so I came to stop them. Are you an Arctic Shifter? I don’t recognize you.” I looked him up and down and realized he was the most handsome man I had ever seen.
His eyes were blue as the sky on a clear day and he was taller than even my father. He had to be the tallest man, or wolf, I had ever come across.
Miss Claus and the Secret Santa Page 5