An Elf’s Magic Santa’s Elves Book 4

by Lynn Crain

  “Have I missed any place?” she questioned breathless.

  “No,” he ground out. “But if we don’t get out of this shower, we’ll be here another two hours and then my mother will come looking for us.”

  Lacey scowled. “Your mother?”

  “Yes. She hates it when we miss appointments.”

  “Heavens, I almost forgot why I’m here. What time were we supposed to go? I mean, I know you mentioned something but I started to touch you, and it was impossible to think about anything else.”

  He reached up and gently cupped her face. “Don’t worry. I told them I’d call when we were on our way. I refused to give them a set time because I didn’t know how much longer you’d sleep. We’re good.”

  Sighing deeply, she smiled and rushed to get their shower done so they could start their day.

  Chapter 6

  Outside Lacey’s front door sat a sleigh and what appeared to be reindeer. She stared wide eyed for a few seconds, blinked then turned to Cuinn and arched her brow. “Taking it a little far now, aren’t we?”

  “I assure you not but you’ll have to see for yourself.” He helped her into her seat and tucked a blanket around her. “I don’t want you catching a cold on your first day here.”

  “You know you can’t catch one from being cold. Now you might make me more susceptible to it but being cold will never give me one.”

  He laughed. “I know that. I’m trying to make a stressful situation on my part less so.”

  “Oh, small talk.”

  “Are you always so blunt? Have to have the last word?”

  She mulled over his question for a moment. With most people she wouldn’t have been so forthright but with him, she didn’t see any reason to be anything but… “Sometimes.”

  He smiled broadly at her. “I think we understand each other now.”

  She glanced his way. “Why do you say that?”

  “Because you basically told me you feel comfortable with me.”

  This was a first, someone who got her right away. She had never been so lucky with any man. Most of the time, men couldn’t even get her point and their lack of comprehension would frustrate her to no end. Cuinn was so different. She had a fleeting remembrance of when Giselle introduced them a few years ago and her instant liking of Cuinn. It was no wonder a warm glow of pleasure encompassed her body and the joy grew as she observed him checking the connections of the reindeer to the sleigh. He had an inborn grace she just loved to watch in action.

  And it had nothing to do with arrogance. She could tell at once, his brother Ardan had at one time been a very arrogant man. Someone had knocked him down a peg or two and while her encounter with him had been quite tolerable, she felt sure that wasn’t always the case. But Cuinn had no traces of such arrogance and he seemed very comfortable with himself and his life. A trait she thought was a bit unusual.

  Settling himself on the bench next to her, he snuggled in and made a clucking sound to the animals. When the lead one just turned and stared, Cuinn threw up his hands in exasperation. “What did I do wrong this time?” he questioned. When they didn’t move, he continued. “It’s not my fault I’ve never been able to tell you apart.”

  Lacey looked at him confused. “You’re talking to the reindeer? Why? They can’t understand you.”

  “I wouldn’t want to make a wager on that if I were you.”

  “Don’t you need to take the reins or something.” She looked closer at the deer and the harness. “Wait. There aren’t any reins.”

  Suddenly, they were thrown against the back of the sleigh as they sped off. In mere moments, it was as if they were flying, fast approaching a group of buildings a short distance away from her home. With the speed and waning light of the midnight sun, she barely noticed there were other homes scattered about, each with some distance between them. It was a good thing to distance between people as most like their privacy.

  A few moments later, they arrived before a large two-story building. The outside reminded her of the more ornate buildings she saw in Boston. But that look seemed limited to the first floor. The second reminded her more of a normal office building with less ornate windows.

  “Is this the clinic?”

  “No, it isn’t. That’s a little further up. But everyone goes through the workshop first. That’s the way the boss wants it.”

  After getting out of the sleigh, she allowed Cuinn to take her elbow and lead her to the front door. Once inside, she stopped and stared, the décor reminding her of the toy stores in Boston but with an extremely homey feel to the place. Matter of fact, it was just like the famous store in New York. She stood and gazed up the whole length of the tree which was very tall and apparently very alive. “This tree can’t be real.”

  “It’s real and you need to get ready as our welcoming committee will be arriving shortly.”

  She turned around. “Welcoming committee? What are you talking about?”

  He inclined his head in the direction of the stairs. “The boss and family are coming to meet us.”

  “Really?” She turned to look in the direction he indicated. Down the spiral staircase came a rather large man with red pants, suspenders, and a white beard. A very small person bopped beside him and appeared to be talking a mile a minute. Behind him followed a man with amber hair who looked amazingly like Cuinn which probably meant he was a brother, his mother and brother Ardan. Then a couple of women who she assumed were their wives, proceeded behind them.

  Lacey stood still and waited, stunned by the first one down the stairs. The man looked just like Santa Claus or at least what she thought the man would look like if he existed. But before he could say a word, he was shoved out of the way by a little man in what looked like a green elf suit.

  “Wow! Cuinn really did find a very pretty woman. Eggther really thinks so. How about you Angie Hudson?” He stood staring up at Lacey, a grin consuming the features of his small face.

  A dark haired woman with a pretty smile and bulging stomach walked over and placed a hand on the small man’s shoulder. “Eggther, she’s just gotten here. She needs some time to adjust, I’m sure.”

  The amber haired man stepped up and extended his hand. “I’m Jedrick, Cuinn’s older brother. This is my wife, Tessa and you’ll meet our kids sometime soon I’m sure.”

  Lacey shook his hand. “I’m Lacey. It’s good to meet you both. I look forward to the kids.” This still left the white-haired guy and she felt a slight twinge of dread deep within her.

  “I’m sorry for the rather abrupt greeting.” The white haired man took her hand from Jedrick. “I’m sure this is rather intense, especially after what already happened to you.”

  She turned to Cuinn, confused. “What is he talking about? And you know, he looks exactly like what I’ve imagined Santa Claus to look like. Just what is it you people do?” She turned back to the ensemble, directing directed the last question to the Santa impersonator.

  Cuinn moved up behind her. “Lacey, I’d like you to meet Kristopher Kringle, otherwise known to the world as Santa Claus.”

  Her mouth fell open as the older man shook her hand. “This is some kind of trick. This has to be a bad joke, doesn’t it?”

  “I assure you, young lady, this is no joke. We’ve been here in the North Pole for more years than I care to remember. It’s only been in the past few we’ve had an influx of new people.”

  Her eyes opened wide and she stepped back into Cuinn’s hard body. His warm breath tickled her ear. “I can assure you this is as hard on him as it is on you,” Cuinn offered in a whisper.

  She stood there a moment and realized if she put things together, it all made perfect sense. Sleeping the whole way, the chill she had when she woke up, the glimpse of pointy ears that weren’t quite there, the colors when they made love. She spun around and shoved Cuinn away from her. “Show me your ears,” she demanded, anger boiling within her that she let herself be duped.

  He looked shocked. “What?”

 
“You heard me. Show me your ears.” She cringed at the flustered tone of her voice but continued on. “I think it’s called a glamour or something. You know the thing you do to not quite show yourself. Whatever it is you are.”

  Sighing heavily, Cuinn lowered his chin as his shoulders dipped. “You’re right, it’s called a glamour. And yes, it’s something we use to not quite show our true selves.”

  Lacey shot her best icy glare at him. “Now, Cuinn.” A snicker sounded in the background. She tossed back a searing look. “Don’t worry, I’ll get to you all in a minute.”

  “Lacey, look we didn’t--”

  She glowered at him.

  “All right. I’ll show you.” Immediately, an almost unperceivable change came to his face.

  “What happens when we do this?” She stepped close to his body and gently rubbed the points of his ears, which were now apparent. His body twitched in immediate response. “I see.” Trying to find balance in her shocked mental state, she breathed deeply for a few moments before turning to look at the rest of them. “I don’t appreciate not being told the whole truth about the job. Are there any other special items I should know about?”

  Santa frowned. “All this is my fault. When you came to Aingeal’s wedding, I was so upset with Giselle for not following the rules I forced Cuinn to cast an amnesia spell on you.”

  Well, this is getting stranger by the moment. Strange though the situation was that little bit of information from Santa helped her put together what were missing pieces of a short period in her life. “When was that wedding?”

  “About nine months ago. And believe me, I got mad when they told me what they had done.” Janice contributed.

  Lacey looked at them all still confused. “Define who they are.”

  “They would be Santa and myself.”

  She looked up to find a very handsome but small man approach. “I’m Cuinn’s father, Bevan. It was Santa and myself who told Cuinn to cast the spell. And being the good boy he always is, he complied without question. Obviously, it was the wrong decision.”

  Lacey could see the family resemblance. She rubbed her head as she ran out of steam. This was all so very confusing. “Explain to me why because it apparently messed me up.” She turned to Cuinn. “How about you? Were things right with you?”

  Santa frowned. “What do you mean? The spell is only supposed to make you forget your visit here and nothing else.”

  She looked at them all, not sure where to start. With a deep breath she gathered her scattered thoughts and feelings hoping she’d be able to put them into words. “It’s-it’s all so hard to explain. I remember doing something with Giselle but could never grasp what it was. I-I-it was if I was lost or I had lost something. It was so unusual and troubling.” She closed her eyes and breathed deep, slowly opening them when she got hold of her emotions. “You took away from me something special. That much I know.”

  Her voice shook and she walked over to an overstuffed chair and sat down. She looked out a window and over the white land, glad the group didn’t come to stand by her. Soon, the presence of another caught her attention. Cuinn stood next to her.

  “You remembered me and every time you saw me, it caused something to happen to you, which you couldn’t define.”

  She looked up at him with bright eyes, nodding her head. “Yeah, I guess that was it. How much time have we lost together, Cuinn?”

  He hunkered down to look her full in the face. “Too long.” He gave her a firm kiss. “But the glamour was meant to last your whole lifetime. I don’t think any of us knew if you were exposed to the very thing you were meant to forget it would cause problems.”

  “You mean I was supposed to forget you as well?”

  “No, you weren’t. And it may have been me who inadvertently caused this problem.”

  “Why do you think that?”

  He closed his eyes and shook his head. “I did something stupid and foolish as I did the spell.”

  “What?”

  “I asked you to remember me and then I kissed you.”

  “You think your kiss caused problems?”

  “I don’t know, son. It could have something to do with what you said to her as you did the spell. I say we contact your sister and have her ask the council and Fearghus. They should know.” Bevan walked over to stand next to the chair where Lacey sat. “I am sorry, young lady. We had no idea our spell would do anything at all to you. We’ve done the spell on lots of people over the years without any ill effects. I don’t know what happened.”

  “I don’t know, son. It could have something to do with what you said to her as you did the spell. I say we contact your sister and have her ask the council and Fearghus. They should know.” Bevan walked over to stand next to the chair where Lacey sat. “I am sorry, young woman. We had no idea our spell would do anything at all to you. We’ve done the spell on lots of people over the years without any ill effects. I don’t know what happened.”

  “It’s nor’ahkeem,” Janice stated. “It’s the only real explanation for her problems.”

  “Mother! Janice!” Bevan and Cuinn shouted in unison.

  Lacey saw the older woman cast a stern look at both her husband and Cuinn. “What’s nor’ahkeem?” she asked quietly.

  Janice sighed deeply. “It’s the process of bonding between an elf and his soul mate.”

  Stunned, she sat there as the air went in and out of her lungs slowly. Bonding. Between an elf and his soul mate. She turned to Cuinn again. “You’re an elf.” Again a statement of fact.

  “I’m just half elf. My mother is completely human and my father is a full elf.”

  She turned and looked at the man. Though small in stature the man was incredibly handsome and not much shorter than Janice. She wondered vaguely about their story. Right now she needed to figure out her situation. Confusion topped the list.

  “This is going to sound strange but is this going to cause something like a butterfly effect or a paradox? I don’t need one of those incidents on my hands as well as all this to take in.”

  “Good question. I don’t think so but I do believe the sooner we get hold of Aingeal the better. She’ll know everything in this area and what she doesn’t know, she can find out.” Bevan reached out and touched Lacey’s hand. “I am really sorry for this.”

  She nodded and continued to stare. Some events could have been different and those weighed heavy on her mind. Her grandparents were number one on her list. Cuinn could have met them and they would have known she would be well cared for and loved. But none of those scenarios had happened because of fear of what she might do.

  “You know, I wouldn’t have told a soul,” she whispered. “Not that anyone would believe me anyway. People have the tendency to not believe the fantastic or interesting occurrences around them. They would have thought I was just another crazy woman.”

  “I believe you but I couldn’t take the chance. We’ve been having some minor problems with people trying to find us and right now I don’t think the world is ready to know we exist.” Santa frowned, not saying much more. “I’m sure you understand confidentiality. Matter of fact, we’re going to have you sign a confidentiality statement. Or at least were. Are you still interested in working at the clinic?”

  That was the big question on her mind. Did she want to work with people who didn’t trust her? “Why don’t you trust Giselle?” Everyone started talking at once, shaking Lacey out of her melancholy and making her laugh. She held up a hand. “Whoa. Slow down please. One at a time.”

  “I’ll start,” Janice said, sighing. “From the moment that girl was born, she’s been fascinated by anything elven. I swear she was one in another life. By the time she was fifteen, she had read every book ever written on elves. And when she came to visit, she was a font of information of what she thought was correct elven information. She took and gave. When the kids were old enough, she wanted to fix them up with her human friends and would cause all sorts of trouble until we banned her from coming
except by invitation. Plus, any guests she wanted to bring had to be cleared with Santa.”

  “I guess she didn’t ask about me.”

  “Lacey, she never even hinted you were coming. And when I overheard you telling someone a bit of what she had said, I got very angry at my niece.” Bevan stood there still fuming after all these months. “The woman just doesn’t take no for an answer. How were we supposed to know she had done something good and right for once?”

  “I take it this wasn’t the first time?” She felt a little better about the whole situation. Giselle always had a one track mind when it came to fixing people up.

  “And heaven help us, I’m sure it’s not going to be the last either.” Santa sighed deeply.

  Lacey nodded her head. “I so understand the Giselle thing. Still, we’re going to have to find out what this has done to my life.”

  “Agreed.” Santa nodded. “And your decision?”

  She turned to look at Cuinn. “I’m going to stay.” :)

  Chapter 7

  The morning had a very rocky start but once the whole incident was settled, they quickly moved on to other things. Settled wasn’t quite the right word but the day had progressed to a spot where they could move forward with what needed to be done. They showed Lacey the toy workshop, introduced her to Angie and Tessa both who completely understood her dilemma. Cuinn’s older sister, Aingeal was in Scotland with her husband Fearghus and her twin boys. The rest of the family would be at dinner tomorrow night. There were so many, she wasn’t sure if she could keep them all straight.

  She sat down in the cafeteria and rubbed her head. Her move here had not turned out how she expected at all. Then again, she didn’t know what would take place but since the men explained what happened, she could look back on the past with new eyes. She had seen Cuinn a few times since the wedding and each time it was as if she were looking at a black hole. Now, she knew why, that portion of life had been taken from her. She sighed.