Melting Snow

by Leora Gonzales

  “How many more credits do you need again?”

  “Only one class this spring and then passing the test,” Enrique said proudly.

  “Hey, once you’re a certified accountant, I expect you to do my taxes for free,” Winter joked as she started moving down the hall, anxious to get this night finished.

  Enrique’s voice faded as he headed in the opposite direction. “I expect payment in cupcakes or other baked goods!”

  “I hear ya, E!” Shouting as she opened the door to the main entrance, she wasn’t looking straight ahead and almost ran her cart directly into a box on the floor.

  “What the fuck?” Yelling as she stumbled into the handle of her cleaning caddy, Winter tried to maneuver around it.

  By the time she arrived at night, the mall was normally cleared out and had been closed for at least half an hour. One lonely security guard and Enrique were usually her only company. Moving the cart aside, Winter turned the box around, searching for a label to identify the owner.

  “Ornaments,” she read aloud.

  Okay, so apparently they were Christmas decorations. But why was there a random box of Christmas decorations blocking the staff hallway? Checking around the atrium, she spotted a few more boxes scattered around the area but nobody in sight.

  Better get Enrique on the walkie-talkie.

  “Hey.” Letting go of the button, she waited for a response.

  “I’m here,” came the staticky voice of her cleaning buddy.

  “What’s with these boxes of Christmas stuff?” Winter asked.

  “Sorry, I got distracted earlier. It’s the setup stuff for the Santa display.”

  “Are we supposed to set this shit up?”

  Winter was hoping the answer was a big fat no. She hated Christmas. It wasn’t because she was an atheist. Instead, the hatred stemmed from childhood teasing. Winter had had the misfortune to be born on Christmas Day. That wasn’t the big problem. The major issue with the holiday was that her mom had decided to take her birthday as a “sign” and name her daughter accordingly. Instead of being named Abigail like her mother had originally planned, Winter had been stuck with a Christmas-themed name. Winter wouldn’t have been all that bad if it hadn’t been combined with her last name of Snow. Every single time someone learned her full name, the strange looks or teasing started. Winter had heard them all. From little kids being mean when she was younger to awful pickup lines from men who thought it would be funny to make a cheesy play on her name. Christmas had become a holiday she tried to avoid as much as humanly possible. Gift-giving was okay, but decorating and watching all the sappy movies was going too far.

  “Nah, there’s supposed to be a crew. Larry’s letting them bring the stuff through the front entrance,” came the crackled voice.

  “Ten-four, I’ll keep my eyes open,” she answered, glancing around for Larry, the night security guard.

  Not seeing anyone, she shrugged and put in her earbuds. Time to get cleaning.

  Moving to the food court, she saw that it was indeed fairly tidy with only some of the tables needing a quick wipe-down.

  Hips wiggling to the music playing in her ears, spray and rag in hand, she started dancing around the tables as she wiped. Might as well get some cardio in while she had the chance.

  Chapter 3

  “Who’s that?” Will asked the security guard as he held the door open for his crew to bring in more boxes.

  “Who?” Larry looked around before seeing whom Will was talking about. “Oh, that’s Winter.”

  When Larry didn’t elaborate, Will stared at the security guard before getting frustrated. “Why is she here?”

  “She works with Enrique.” Larry shrugged as if it was common knowledge. “She’ll stay out of your way. Don’t worry about her none.”

  “I don’t think that’s what he’s worried about,” came a sarcastic voice from behind Will.

  “Shut it, Rick.” Glaring at Rick when he cast an appreciative glance at the curvy hips still wiggling across the room, Will bumped into the box Rick was holding. “Take those over and start unpacking them.”

  “Sure, boss.” Rick accompanied his reply with a knowing wink at Will.

  “Hey, Larry, how long will she be here?” Will asked, trying to keep his tone innocent.

  “Depending on how quickly E finishes his side, I’d say an hour or so. The day shift kept things tidy so it should be a quick night for them.”

  “Does she work every night?” Will asked, holding the door open for another one of his crew members balancing a box in his arms.

  “Yeah, she comes in after the mall closes.” Larry played with the keys on his belt with his attention focused on the other men coming in and out the door rather than Will.

  Will kept his gaze trained on the female ass that was quickly bobbing up and down in front of him. She was so focused on scrubbing a particular table she was putting a lot of effort into the movement, causing her lush ass to jiggle enticingly. Admiring her figure, Will licked his lips. She was built as a real woman should be. He guesstimated her size at maybe a sixteen at least. Perfect in his opinion. Curved thighs and hips, a soft padded ass that he could already feel cushioning his hips as he thrust into her from behind. Feeling his pants tighten at the mental image, Will discreetly adjusted himself. He was getting tired of all the pole bunnies, a term they used for the women who hung out around the fire station like groupies.

  He had physically cringed when the chief told him Candy was volunteering to be Santa’s elf for their Christmas fund-raiser. Candy was a pain in not only his ass, but also the ass of any other firefighter she was able to corner. Most men wouldn’t complain, but Will had particular tastes and they just so happened to be match the curvy woman across the lobby perfectly. Let Candy bother the other men. Will was now intent on getting to know Winter better.

  “Hey man, I just got a call from Justin.” Rick’s voice interrupted Will’s X-rated thoughts, drawing him back to the present.

  “And?” Will asked.

  “Candy insisted on coming tonight to help set up,” Rick explained.

  “Fuck.” Will groaned the curse, already dreading the rest of the night. He rubbed his palm down his face. This was the last thing he needed. Candy was the type of woman to wear hooker shoes regardless of the occasion. He could already picture her trying to climb a ladder in her damn platform heels while the men were actually trying to get work done.

  “That’s not the whole story, man. She showed up at the station, trying to hitch a ride with Justin, and somehow tripped and fell in the garage.” Rick sighed, sounded annoyed.

  “Is she okay?” That bit of information made Will feel guilty. The woman might be an idiot, but Will didn’t want her hurt.

  “No, that’s why he called. She broke her damn leg. Justin called from the emergency room. Candy’s going to be in a cast all the way up to her hip for the next few months.” Rick shook his head at the situation.

  “Fuck, this is the last thing we needed. I don’t want to sound like a dick, and I’m sorry for Candy, of course, but this puts us in a bind. We already have the other female volunteers working separate functions those days. Now we need to find a new elf for Santa.” Will ran his hands through his hair before rubbing at the scruff on his jaw.

  “Should I call Talia? I think she’s given up on Russo calling her. She would probably fill in if someone promised to take her out.” Rick wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at Will.

  “Don’t you dare!” Will glared at his friend. “She’s more of a menace than Candy. We just got her to stop stalking Russo. I can’t handle more of that shit.” Nodding his head over to the woman who had moved onto sweeping the food court, he grinned when a thought came to him. “Besides, I have my eye on someone else…”

  Will started walking toward the woman Larry had called Winter.

  “Miss?” The wor
ds came through Winter’s earbuds faintly, but she heard them. She turned to see who had interrupted her.

  Holy shit. The tall, dark and handsome god in front of her looked like a version of Captain America with a heavier five-o’clock shadow on his jaw. That chiseled area almost screamed at her to run kisses up and down the line.

  “I’m sorry. Did you need something?” she asked as she pulled one of the earbuds out.

  “I don’t mean to interrupt you, but Larry told me who you were and I thought I would introduce myself.”

  Winter’s brain was scrambling to figure out why he thought he needed to talk to her. She wanted to kick herself when she noticed he still had his hand out, waiting for her to shake.

  “I’m sorry. My name’s Winter Snow. Nice to meet you.” Shaking his hand, she hoped she didn’t reek of the lemon cleaner she’d been using earlier.

  “Snow?” Amusement filled his gaze. “I’m Will Holiday. It seems like from our names, we were destined to meet. We’re hosting the annual Santa charity this year to raise money for some new equipment down at the station,” he said, a sexy grin taking over his full lips.

  Winter clasped her hands in front of her, hoping to regain control of the hormones that were making her stomach tingle. “Station? Are you guys cops?” she asked, wanting to keep his deep voice talking as long as possible.

  “Firemen, actually. The fund-raiser is to get us some new ladders and tanks. The ones we have are on their last legs and the city doesn’t have the funds to replace them this year.”

  As Will spoke, Winter let her gaze drift over the muscled chest underneath his black T-shirt. It figured he was a fireman; he definitely had the physique for it. Coming back to the present, she tried to figure out why he was talking to her. Normally guys who looked like him did not talk to girls like her. It wasn’t that she was ugly. She actually thought she was quite pretty, but she was realistic. This man was in top shape if his arms were anything to go by, and she hated exercise. There were probably a plethora of skinny yoga-mat-toting blondes who followed him and his friends around like a pack of dogs.

  “I was hoping you could help me out with something actually.” His voice had seemed to deepen as he moved closer to her.

  “Yes?” The question came out breathlessly as the smell of his cologne drifted to her.

  “We need an elf to work the fund-raiser for us. The elf that was supposed to do it has a broken leg and we’re in a bind.”

  It took a moment for Winter to process the request. He couldn’t be really asking her to dress up like an elf, could he?

  “You need a what?” She waited, wanting him to repeat himself to make sure she wasn’t losing her mind.

  “We need an elf, and I was wondering if you could help us out,” he asked again with a hopeful twinkle in his blue eyes.

  “Well…I’m not sure. When would you need me?” Winter tossed a considering look to the atrium that was opposite the food court. The muscled group of men was now busy opening up boxes and unpacking decorations.

  “As soon as possible.” The whisper came out so soft and low Winter was sure she had heard him incorrectly.

  Gazing up at the large man crowding her space, she stepped back slightly. “What was that?”

  “Sorry, I meant that we would need you from noon until the mall closes the next three days. Is that doable?”

  Winter went over her schedule for the next week in her head. Other than her night shift at the mall, her other part-time work hadn’t timetabled her for Christmas break. “I’ll need to check the bus schedule but it should work.”

  “You don’t have a car?” The surprise in his voice made her defensive.

  “I sold it when I decided to go back to school,” Winter said shortly, turning back toward her cleaning cart. Feeling a soft but gentle grip on her arm, she turned around, surprised at the contact.

  “I didn’t mean to offend you. I was just surprised. I can give you a ride since you’ll be doing us a favor.” Will smiled deep enough to show that he had a dimple on his right cheek. “Do you need a ride home tonight?”

  Winter was still confused by how they’d gone from having started a conversation five minutes ago to her now being an elf and him driving her around. “Ummmm…yeah, I guess I actually do.”

  “Great. We’ll be here for a while decorating and setting up the North Pole. Just find me when you’re ready to leave, okay?” He didn’t wait for her to agree before he walked away. The view of his denim-clad backside made her catch her breath.

  Damn that man was hot. Not only just hot, but he had the smile and dimple to go with a body that was definitely masturbation-worthy.

  “Winter?” The loud voice crackled over her walkie, making her jump. She scrambled to grab the handset before Enrique started teasing her over the speaker.

  “Here.” Letting go of the button, Winter watched the men across the lobby unpack boxes and start stringing strands of lights along the columns.

  “I’m almost done over here. Need any help on your side?”

  Winter smiled. Her partner in cleaning crime must have been moving at warp speed to get finished so quickly. Apparently having a newborn at home meant Enrique had even more incentive not to dally while he was working. She made a mental checklist of what was left in the mall to clean.

  “Sure. I finished all the tables and counters but still need help vacuuming up the entryway.”

  “On my way.”

  “Ten-four.” Winter stowed the walkie back on her cart and tossed her rag onto its shelf.

  “Hey, man! I didn’t realize you guys were the ones setting up the holiday display this year.”

  Winter stopped what she was doing when Enrique’s loud voice boomed across the food court. From the looks of it, Enrique knew some of the men in the group unpacking the boxes.

  “Winter! Come over here. I have some guys I want you to meet.” Waving her over, he waited until she got close enough and then threw his arm over her shoulder.

  “Guys, this is Winter Snow.”

  “Winter Snow?” The man Enrique had been bumping fists with when he walked in looked at her in question.

  “Yeah, I was a Christmas baby and my mom had a sense of humor while she was drugged up.” Winter smiled at the men who had gathered around. “How do you know these guys, Enrique? Don’t tell me you’re a firebug and I didn’t know it.”

  “You’re so funny.” Pretending like he was about to give her a noogie, he tightened his arm around her shoulders. “Rob over there is Stella’s brother.” Motioning to the man who was struggling with a gigantic strand of garland, Enrique chortled when Rob tossed it to the ground and stomped on it. “And it appears that he hates Christmas just as much as you do.”

  “How can anyone hate Christmas?” one of the men asked, his eyes twinkling as he looked her over.

  “I don’t hate Christmas, I’m just not a big fan of it,” she admitted. “Imagine being a kid and having to celebrate your birthday on Christmas day… It gets old real quickly, believe me. Plus, I had a lot of teasing when I was younger. That didn’t help much.”

  When the men nodded and smiled, she knew they understood her a little.

  Feeling a warmth come over her side, Winter was surprised to see Will had moved closer to stand beside her. “Hi again,” she whispered.

  “Did I just hear that our new elf doesn’t like Christmas?” Will asked the group of men.

  “Our new elf?” The question came from Rob, who was again attempting to unravel the garland. “What happened to Candy?”

  Will explained the situation to the group, but Winter had stopped paying attention. Her distraction came from the fact that Will had threaded his fingers in a loose grip through her free hand. Unsure if his action was intentional, Winter stayed completely still.

  “So are you two, you know?” the man introduced as Rick asked, motioning t
o Winter and Will’s linked hands.

  “Yep, so leave her alone and focus on the fund-raiser. I need all of you on your game and working the crowd.” Will gripped her fingers even tighter when Winter made a move to pull her hand free. “I need to talk to Winter real quickly. You guys finish up.”

  Winter allowed Will to pull her away from the group as the men started to make kissy-face noises. Enrique was watching her closely as if he wanted her to assure him everything was okay. She waved him off while following Will to a corner of the lobby that was bare of decorations.

  “What the fuck was that all about?” Winter asked, her embarrassment making her curse.

  “Wow, the f-bomb already. We haven’t even had our first date yet,” Will teased.

  She made a face at him and crossed her arms.

  “I’m kidding. Don’t be mad. I was going to ask you out tonight when I took you home but I saw the way Rick was looking at you and kind of lost my mind a little.”

  Winter watched Will closely, noticing the nervous way he ran his hands through his hair and tapped his foot.

  “You were going to ask me out?” Her voice was soft as she studied him.

  “What’s that face for?” he asked, obviously confused at her expression.

  “I mean this in the nicest way but guys like you normally don’t date women like me,” she explained, trying but failing to keep the condescending tone out of her voice.

  “Come with me.” Will tugged her arm until she had no choice but to follow him into the staff access hallway. Once the door shut behind them, he turned to her and moved closer until the front of his chest was just grazing the tips of her breasts.

  “Why are we back here?” Unable to fill her lungs with him being so close to her, Winter found her voice came out on a squeak.

  “So we can do this.” His words were delivered in a husky voice as he inched his mouth closer to hers.

  Before Winter could take a breath in, her lips were smashed against his in a kiss that literally took her breath away. Winter pushed back to gasp in desperately needed air. Moving one hand away from his chest, she pinched the skin on her upper arm.