12 Naughty Days of Christmas 2018

by Isabella Kole

  He wanted to ask about her, but hesitated. If he asked about her life’s story she might ask about his. He was enjoying this time they were spending together and would like to get to know her better. He certainly wasn’t anxious to tell her that he was the man who had authorized her layoff, so he settled for keeping the conversation limited to small talk for now. He would never lie to her if she asked, but short of a direct question, he wasn’t going to offer much of his background.

  They were working mostly evenings, which gave Nick time during the day to run the store and check in with Todd, who was pretty much running the accounting business. They fell into a bit of a routine, as he asked her to join him for dinner after they finished their Santa shifts. They were enjoying their time together and getting along well. The goodnight kiss he gave her every evening before they left in their separate cars had grown in length and intensity.

  That growing closeness showed as they worked together. Rachel relayed several compliments they’d gotten from parents, saying how much their kids had enjoyed seeing Santa the evening before. They mentioned the way the two worked together so easily. He and Noelle seemed to be getting considerably more such comments than other Santa pairs, which Rachel thought was cute. She was one of the few people who knew who that Santa was, and she was keeping it to herself.

  She asked about Noelle a couple times, not seeming to be a bit surprised when he admitted they’d gone out for dinner several times. “Good,” she said casually with a smile. “Christmas gifts come in many forms.” She was smiling as she walked out of his office, leaving him to think about what she was saying.

  He admitted that getting to know Noelle did seem like a Christmas gift. The more he got to know her, the more he wanted to spend time with her. It had definitely gone beyond working together in his mind, but he wondered about her. Was she willing to take this relationship beyond work? He thought she was, but the bigger question remained: would she still be willing, once she found out who he was?

  As that thought ran through his mind, he felt uneasy. He didn’t like hiding something from her, especially if he wanted a relationship with her. It wasn’t like he was sneaking around behind her back. Well, being totally honest with himself he had to admit that yes, that was pretty much what he was doing, but his intentions were good. He’d felt bad about having to lay her off and was trying to help her by giving her this job. He kept her close to him so he could keep an eye on her and prevent any small problems from becoming big problems, which again, was to help her.

  In fact, he was a little confused, because so far, he hadn’t seen any problems. She’d been very easy to work with, and it wasn’t just him saying that. She got along great with all her coworkers and the kids and their parents. So, in essence, he gave her this job to try and make up for her losing her first job, and he kept her close to him to try to help her keep this job, even though she didn’t seem to need his help. So why did he still feel like he was doing something behind her back? The answer to that was pretty easy – because he was.

  He sighed. It was time to come clean with Noelle. He needed to tell her who he was, how he ended up here, and even why he’d paired them together. Hopefully she would also let him honestly tell her how much he’d enjoyed getting to know her and spending time together. Then he would ask if she was willing to continue to see him after Christmas. He was worried, afraid she would feel betrayed, and that would end their relationship. He hoped she wasn’t upset enough to quit. Maybe he should wait until after Christmas. No, she deserved the truth. He would tell her tonight after dinner.

  They started their shift as Mr. and Mrs. Claus as they had from the first day: with a kiss on her cheek. It always got some giggles or snickers from the kids and parents. Nick and Noelle had enjoyed them, as was evident when they caught each other’s eyes afterwards.

  The day started out normally, but Nick thought Noelle looked a little distracted. She was still doing a good job with the kids, but it didn’t seem like they had her full attention. He asked her about it during their first break, but she insisted everything was fine. She sounded a bit snarky, though, so when they went back to work he kept a closer eye on her. There was just something about her that seemed a little on edge, although he couldn’t put his finger on what exactly it was.

  She did fine until right before their shift was over. It was almost time for the store to close, and there were only two kids, little boys about the same age, left in the play area. They both went toward the same toy, and instantly started arguing. She went over and tried to break it up, but neither of the boys would give an inch, and each blamed the other, insisting they were there first and should get to play with the toy. She suggested they both find something else to play with, but they wouldn’t hear of it. She reminded them not only was Christmas coming, but Santa was right there close by, watching them. Neither one seemed to care.

  Nick had been talking with the little girl on his lap, but also keeping an eye and ear on what was happening in the playroom. He finished with the little girl and took her over to get her cookie, since Noelle was still busy with the boys. He started towards them, hoping to be able to help her with them, when he heard one of the boys verbally attack the other.

  “You’re a liar and you don’t deserve to get any new toys.”

  “You’re so dumb you probably don’t even know how you play with it anyway,” the other shouted back, “so just get your fat butt away from it and I can show you how to do it.”

  Nick quickened his step and was about to speak up, when Noelle beat him to it. “Okay, both of you shut up right now. You’re a couple of brats, and I should tell Santa to take each of you over his knees and spank your butts instead of giving either one of you any new toys, because you certainly don’t deserve any.”

  Nick got there just as both boys started crying. That seemed to have had an effect on Noelle, because she was looking truly sorry, and stooped down and started to apologize. “Boys, what I meant was—”

  “What she meant was you should both be ashamed of yourselves,” Nick said. He looked at their nametags and addressed them individually. “Billy, Joey,” he said, looking from one to the other, “I’m sure you know better than to call people names. Mrs. Claus has had a long day and she shouldn’t have to deal with you two being mean to each other. I think you both owe her an apology.”

  They each mumbled a muffled, “Sorry.”

  “That’s better,” Nick told them. “Now, how about telling each other you’re sorry and shaking hands?” He had to make an effort not to laugh as the boys looked up, ready to argue, but had second thoughts when they realized they would be arguing with Santa right before Christmas.

  They slowly did as he asked, and as they shook hands a little bit of Christmas spirit must have come over both of them. They looked at each other, then at Santa and Mrs. Claus, and slowly started to smile.

  Joey looked relieved. “Billy, I almost yelled at Santa because I was mad at you. I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay,” Billy answered. “I’m sorry too. I was so mad I almost called Santa a dumdum.” They both laughed, then he turned to Nick. “I’m sorry, Santa. You’re not a dumdum.”

  “I’m sorry, too,” Joey said.

  “Thank you,” Nick said. “It looks to me like you both made a new friend today. Am I right?” The boys smiled at each other and nodded their heads in agreement with him. “Then since you’re friends now, why don’t you both tell me what you’d like for Christmas right here, together? Joey, what do you want?”

  Nick took a couple minutes talking to the boys, letting them each tell him what they wanted, and reminding them to be good and listen to their parents, with no more fighting or calling people names.

  When they finished, Noelle took them each to get a cookie and then took them out of Santa’s house to meet their parents.

  Both parents seemed surprised to see them come out of Santa’s house together, instead of one at a time like the children usually did. “Billy’s my new friend,” Jo
ey told his parents. “Since we’re friends and we were the only two left, Santa came into the room and talked to both of us at the same time. It was really fun.”

  “Yeah,” Billy agreed, “Joey’s my friend. Mrs. Claus gave Joey and me each a cookie afterwards, and we picked out the same kind.”

  The parents were happy, and Noelle felt relieved as she watched the two boys wave goodbye to each other and leave with their parents. She went back inside Santa’s house to find a scowling Santa with his eyes trained on her. She’d never seen Nick look upset like that, and it alarmed her a bit.

  Before she could say anything, though, he took her by the hand. “Come with me. We need to talk.”

  His words and actions caught her by surprise and she found herself following him before she could process what was happening. It was a short walk, and she found herself going into the office she had gone to when she’d been hired.

  It was closing time and no one was in the office now, but Nick continued through the room and into another one off it. He walked in, turning the light on as he closed the door.

  “Nick, what’s going on? Where are we?”

  “I’m sure you’re going to have several questions, and I promise I’ll answer all of them, but first there’s something I have to do.” He quickly shed his Santa suit, leaving him in jeans and a polo shirt, then led her over to the couch, where he sat down and in one quick move pulled her over his knees.

  She flailed her arms and legs, but quickly found her voice. “Nick, stop! What are you doing?”

  He lifted the skirt of her Mrs. Claus uniform and rested his hand on her bottom, over her panties. As she tried to push his hand away, he gave her two quick smacks, effectively stopping her. “Keep that hand in front of you,” he warned. He gave her several more swats before answering her question. “I think you would know what I’m doing, Noelle. You told those boys Santa should take them over his knee and spank their butts for misbehaving, so I have to assume by that comment you’re familiar with this procedure.” He started the spanking again, a steady stream of swats with enough strength behind them to get her attention, but not much more.

  “But it hurts,” she said as she lost her stoicism and tears started falling.

  “Did you expect the spanking you wanted Santa to give those boys to hurt?” He paused the spanking, waiting for an answer. When he got none, but felt her stiffening, getting angry, he gave her five more smacks, harder than the others. “I asked a question, Noelle, and I’d like an answer. Did you expect the spanking the boys would get to hurt?”

  “I don’t know,” she said, crying. “I didn’t think about it.”

  “I believe that part, Noelle. I don’t think you thought about anything before telling them that, did you?”

  When he stopped the spanking again but held his hand on her bottom, she answered quickly. “No! Nick, you have to stop.”

  “Why?”

  “Because it hurts, and you can’t do this,” she said, trailing off to barely a whisper.

  “So, it was okay for Santa to spank them, but it’s not okay for him to spank you because it hurts?”

  “Yes. I mean no.”

  He stopped spanking for a moment.

  “I don’t know. I said I wasn’t thinking.” She turned her head around to look up at him. “Nick, what’s going on? Who are you, and how did you know these offices would be empty? Are we going to get in trouble if someone comes in here?”

  “Actually, I planned on bringing you in here after we got off work tonight to tell you exactly who I am. When I told you that I’d answer all your questions, I meant it. I have something to tell you, and then I will answer any questions you have. First, though, we have a spanking to finish.”

  “But Nick, wait. I’m already really sore. And who are you? Why are we here? Please, I’m scared. Tell me what’s happening.”

  Without any hesitation, Nick let Noelle up, but when she tried to walk away, he pulled her back down so she was sitting in his lap. “No, you don’t. We’re not finished yet, and you’re not getting out of here until we are. But you’re right; you deserve some answers first. I don’t want you to be scared. I have an instinct, a need to protect you, not scare you.”

  Her eyes widened as she looked up at him, tears still streaming down her cheeks. “You feel a need to protect me, and this is how you do it?”

  “This evening isn’t going quite how I planned,” he said.

  “It’s certainly not what I was hoping for, either, and I don’t feel very protected.”

  “Let me try to start from the beginning. I told you I’m Nick Silverton. I don’t think you recognized my name, but let me tell you a little more about myself.”

  “Wait a minute. Silverton?” She looked down at her lap a few moments before looking up and meeting his eyes. “Nick Silverton as in Silverton Accounting?”

  He nodded his head. “That’s right. I never met you because you worked at our second office.”

  She looked up at him, obviously confused. “But if you’re the owner of the accounting company, why are you working as Santa over Christmas?”

  “I recently inherited Freeman’s Department Store from my grandfather. I wanted to hear what people had to say about the store. So, since not many people know yet that I own it, I thought if I dressed as Santa I might be able to overhear some honest comments about the store.”

  “And have you?”

  “I have, actually, yes. It’s been very helpful. But getting back to why we’re here, this is where I have a confession to make.”

  “If you have a confession to make, why am I the one with a sore butt?”

  He laughed as he gave the feisty little lady he was quickly becoming very fond of a little hug. “Because around me a sore bottom follows a temper tantrum,” he answered with a smile. “The sooner you learn that, the better off you and your sore bottom will be.”

  “So, if another Mrs. Santa would have done what I did out there—”

  “She would more than likely be fired,” he said quickly. “I guess I need to amend that to say a sore bottom follows a temper tantrum for the lady I’ve grown extremely fond of and have a need to protect. You’ll understand that more after my confession.”

  Chapter 3

  Noelle looked obviously confused. “Okay, then what’s your confession?”

  Nick gave her a little squeeze. “I’ll try to clear up your confusion. When I saw your application to be a Mrs. Claus, I knew you were looking for a job because you’d been laid off at Silverton.”

  “Because you’re the one that laid me off, aren’t you?”

  “Sort of, yes,” he confessed. “When it became obvious we had to lay some people off, my manager gave me a list of who he thought should be the ones. His suggestions made sense, so I signed off on it. I hated having to lay anyone off, but I had to.”

  Noelle had gotten to know Nick by now, and she knew he was being very sincere. “I believe you. For what it’s worth, we all knew when the manufacturing plant closed down that you would have to lay people off, and I wasn’t surprised. Disappointed? Sure, but surprised, no. I didn’t blame you.”

  “Thank you. But what I need to tell you is why you were laid off instead of the other accountant that started about the same time you did.”

  He watched as her face turned red and she looked down at her lap. “No, you don’t,” she said very quietly.

  “I don’t?”

  She shook her head. “It was because I didn’t always get along with the others, wasn’t it?”

  “It was,” he confirmed. “That’s why I paired us together. I look at that now as a gift, since I got to know you. I’ve enjoyed our time together and hope we have a lot more of it. I want to continue our relationship beyond Christmas, and I hope you’re willing to do that, as well. But I paired us together so I could keep an eye on you. I can’t have someone doing this that can’t work with the public or has a temper tantrum.”

  She blushed again, but looked up at him. “Like I did
when I lost my temper with those boys, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Thank you for covering for me. I noticed that you did that, and I appreciate it.”

  “You’re welcome, but it brings us back to the issue at hand. Up until the incident with the boys I haven’t seen anything that would cause any coworkers to have any problem working with you, which I was very happy about. I’ve come to care a great deal for you already, even though we haven’t known each other all that long yet. I was thinking about you this afternoon, which I seem to do quite often these days, and I’d decided I was going to tell you who I am and why you’re working with me. See, honesty is very important to me, and I felt like I was keeping something from you. I didn’t like that feeling, so I was going to bring you in here after we were done this evening and tell you everything I’ve just told you.”

  “You were?”

  “I was. But then you showed me what your coworkers who complained about you were talking about, and I had a completely different reason to bring you in here. I meant it when I said I’d answer any questions you have, and I still intend to. First, however, we have a spanking to finish.”

  He started to lift her up, but she stopped him. “Wait. You said you would answer any questions I have, and I have a bunch.”

  “I’ll answer all of them, but after I’ve finished with this. I hope we can have a relationship beyond work, and if we do, one thing you’ll learn about me is I’m a man of my word and I’m consistent. If I say I’ll do something, I will. If you’ve earned a spanking, you will get one, every time you earn it. And unfortunately, you’ve earned one.”

  “But I already got it.”

  “You got the start of a spanking, but we haven’t finished.”

  “But it already hurts really badly.”

  “Then I’m doing it right, because if you’ve done something wrong and are getting spanked for it, it should hurt. If we have a relationship, later on down the road if you’re a good girl you may get to experience a different kind, a kind that doesn’t hurt, but right now you’re learning about a punishment spanking. They’re meant to teach a lesson, and they are meant to hurt. Now, I’ll answer any questions you have about them, or anything else, but after we finish this unpleasant task. Then we can get on to the better part of a spanking, which is the cuddling afterward, the fresh start, the reconnecting. That’s when I’ll answer all your questions, while I have you in my arms and you’re feeling safe.”