Incredulous, Holly whirled around to face him. “No big deal? You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Santa laughed. “I can see you two are going to be the perfect pair.” He smiled at them both, waved a white gloved hand and strode out of his son’s office before Holly could tell him that she’d made a huge mistake in accepting his job offer. She could not, under any circumstances, work together with Nicholas.
Ignoring him, she sagged into a chair, hugging her tablet to her chest. How could her dream job have turned into a nightmare in a matter of less than twenty minutes?
* * *
Nicholas watched Holly slump into a chair, frustration etched across her features. Very lovely features they were too. It seemed Santa’s mention of a report had thrown her for a major loop. He glanced over at Rapz, who had sat uncharacteristically quietly in the corner during Santa’s brief visit. When Rapz nodded at him in unspoken agreement, Nick knew they were both thinking the same thing. His new partner needed to lighten up, and it was job number one for Nick to teach Holly that Christmas was about fun.
Moving quickly so she didn’t have a chance to object, Nick slipped a hand under Holly’s elbow and propelled her to her feet. “Let me,” he said, taking her briefcase from her before she could protest. He laid it on his desk. “It’ll be safe here while we’re gone.”
“Gone?” she repeated. “Where are we going?”
“Rapz and I are going to give you the grand tour,” Nick said. He led Holly into the hallway and let go of her arm only after Rapz locked the office door. “Holly Jamison meet Rapz, the best elf I’ve ever worked with.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Rapz,” Holly said.
“Enchanted,” Rapz said. He bowed with a flourish.
Nick watched with amusement as Holly stared at the heavy gold chains around Rapz’s neck with curiosity. Rapz wore the standard elf uniform of a green shirt with a red vest and black trousers. The addition of jewelry and dark sunglasses were Rapz’s personal trademark.
“Shall we?” Nick swept his arm out in a dramatic flourish. “Christmas Central awaits you, Miss Jamison.” He pretended not see the slight frown she shot in his direction.
As they made their way along the main corridor, Nick neatly sidestepped Holly’s questions about his father’s request for a report. Instead, he briefly ran through a list of the major departments because he sensed throwing some details in Holly’s direction would settle her down. He didn’t stop talking until they reached a brightly painted door that resembled a gift wrapped present.
“Here we are,” he said. “Our first stop happens to be one of my favorites. Welcome to Gift Wrap Headquarters.” He threw open the door and stepped back so Holly could enter first. He wanted to give her just a moment to observe her surroundings.
When he stepped into the room, the din of two hundred chattering elves immediately ceased and was replaced by an outburst of applause and a chorus of greetings. He waved in acknowledgement.
He took the microphone Rapz offered. As soon as the room grew quiet he spoke, “Merry almost Christmas.” Just as he knew it would, this elicited a rousing chorus of cheers. He turned to Holly and smiled his most reassuring smile. She looked stunned. He motioned for her to come forward. Once she did he lowered his microphone and leaned in toward her so only she could hear him. “Just smile and wave,” he whispered. “They’re a friendly crowd.”
Holly merely nodded. Her eyes were wide. He grinned. He could only imagine what this looked like to a North Pole newcomer. He turned back to the crowed of elves. “Help me welcome our newest team member, Miss Holly Jamison.”
Nick was proud of the welcome the wrapping department gave Holly. After a few more encouraging remarks, the same ones he’d heard his father make so often, Nick wished everyone a jolly and productive day before he handed the microphone back to Rapz.
As the elves turned back to their work, Nick looked down at Holly. He watched her stare at the floor to ceiling display of gift wrap. Roll upon roll of wrapping paper lined the walls, creating a bedazzling kaleidoscope of colors and designs.
“Would you like my sunglasses Holly?” Rapz looked up at her with a knowing expression. “It can get awfully bright in here if you’re not used to it.”
“No, thank you. I think I can manage.” Holly turned slowly around, her eyes roaming over the extensive collection.
Nick surveyed the department as well. He could imagine Holly’s delight at seeing every conceivable shade, pattern, and design of wrapping paper ever created in one place. Their display of gift wrap rivaled a fine art museum.
“What is all of this?” Holly asked. She turned to look at him with an expression that he couldn’t quite decipher.
“It’s just what it looks like,” he hedged, sensing that this wasn’t the answer she was looking for. He glanced at Rapz, hoping his friend could help him out but the elf merely shrugged. “We scoured the entire world to ensure that we have every design possible. As you can see, we’ve hung the rolls with like classifications.”
He pointed up to the top roll which required all three of them to tip back their heads in order to see it. “We’ve got every shade of metallic paper imaginable, catalogued by color and then by any secondary design which is quite common with foils.” He pointed to the opposite wall. “We’re particularly proud of our plaid collection. You’d be surprised by how popular tartan gift wrap is. Along the far wall is our kid’s collection. We spare no expense to keep every character licensed print in stock.”
Holly shook her head and continued looking around but she didn’t say anything. Nick smiled. He’d known she would be impressed with the breadth of their collection.
Rapz laughed. “Amazing, right? Leaves you speechless?” He turned to Nick. “She hasn’t even seen our gift bag collection. Come on, let’s go show her.”
“Wait a moment, please.” Holly pulled a tiny notebook and pencil from her suit jacket pocket. “How many workers does it take to keep this department functioning?”
Nick shrugged. “Depends on the time of year.”
Holly frowned. “Can you be more specific please?”
Nick darted a quick glance at Rapz. Was it just him or did Holly Jamison seem to have a fixation with numbers? “Well, let me see. Ummm…why don’t I let you talk to the department manager?”
Holly’s eyebrows shot up. “You don’t know?”
“Of course he does,” Rapz said. He came to stand between them. “Saint Nick is an absolute whiz with numbers. He’s just…shy about showing off. Isn’t that right, Nick?”
Not even close. But Nick wasn’t going to argue the point. If Rapz wanted to paint him as a genius that was fine. “We can go over the numbers after we get back to my office, okay? I’ve got more to show you so let’s go on with the tour.”
“Wait, Nick, I would rather sit down and read a comprehensive job description before we go any further,” Holly said once they were in the hallway. “Certainly your sister left me notes on her workload. If she’s as good at what she does as your father says then I’m sure her office is the place for me to start getting acclimated.”
Nick laughed. “Acclimated? Who has time to get acclimated? Christmas is in a few days.” He gazed down at her. She really had the loveliest brown eyes he’d ever seen. “Here’s how we’re going to play this. I’ll show you around and then you pick a place to jump in.”
Holly clutched her notepad to her chest. “Jump in? Nicholas Claus, have you lost your mind? We’re not playing here.”
“Too bad.”
“Excuse me?” Holly’s eyes were now narrowed. He doubted this was a good sign. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“It means you’re supposed to lighten up, have fun and enjoy Christmas or else you’re going to miss the whole point of the holiday.” He gestured to the elves that were scurrying past them industriously. “There’s plenty being accomplished so I don’t know what you’re getting so worked up about.”
“You think I’m worked up?” Ho
lly shook her head. “Listen, this isn’t going to work. I get that you’re laid back but when I look around I see a dozen or more opportunities to maximize toy production, cut waste, and implement some new measures that will cut both time and cost. It’s like you don’t even want to hear what I have to suggest.”
Nick crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. “There’s where you’re wrong, Holly. I do want to hear what you have to suggest but I don’t understand why you need to approach this job with such intensity. It’s not like the fate of the world hangs in the balance of us saving ten cents per toy.”
She looked away from him.
“Look, here’s what you need to know,” he tried again. “Things work out for the best every single year. Once a year Christmas rolls around and people around the world rejoice. We pull it off. This year isn’t going to be any different.”
“Oh, yes it is,” she shot back. “Because I’m here now and we’re going to do things my way.”
Nick grinned. Oh, this was going to be fun.
Chapter Three
Holly dodged present laden carts as she trailed after Nicholas. As far as she could tell it didn’t seem to disturb anyone else that the elves were too short to see over the carts, which made the main corridor felt like a game of bumper cars. She quickened her steps to keep up with Santa’s son. She was *not* going to call him Saint Nick despite the fact that everyone else they encountered seemed perfectly at ease doing so.
Nick was popular with, well, every single person they’d encountered thus far. In four straight hours of touring Christmas Central, they’d encountered hundreds of elves. And that was another thing that Holly couldn’t quite figure out. Was the term ‘elf’ even politically correct? It sounded dated to her. She scribbled a quick note in her notebook so she could remember to check that out. Perhaps ‘Christmas Helper’ was a better term. Or even ‘Present Facilitator’. She flipped over a page and scribbled both possibilities down. She knew she’d never remember them later unless she made a note.
“Holly, we’re coming up on a department I bet you’re sure to like.”
She tucked her pencil behind her ear and cast a sideways glance at Nick. “You’ve said that about every department we’ve visited today.”
Nick grinned. “And at one point I’m bound to be right. You’ve got to like something here.”
“Like? What does it matter what I like?” She stopped outside the door marked TTA in scrolled gold letters. “It’s what I think about possible improvements to efficiency that matters.”
She tried not to squirm as Nick stared at her. He was sizing her up. She very purposely didn’t look into his eyes. They were an incredible shade of blue, not too dark, not too light, and just far too charming for her comfort. Holly reminded herself to look at his left ear when she spoke to him.
“Tell me about your favorite toys you had as a little girl,” he said.
His voice was warm, deep, and suddenly serious. Holly blinked in surprise. In the few hours they’d spent together he’d not once sounded serious about anything. These Claus men certainly took their toys seriously.
“I don’t remember,” Holly said.
Nick leaned in just a bit closer. “Try.”
She furrowed her brow and thought back. Toys, toys, toys…but nothing special sprang to mind. Of course, there had been several presents for her to open every Christmas but they’d usually been practical items like socks, school supplies, that sort of thing. She shrugged. “Sorry. I can’t remember anything special.”
Holly expected Nick to come back with a snappy rejoinder but he didn’t. Instead he reached out and wrapped his arms around her before she realized what he was doing. Too stunned to move, Holly tried to ignore the warmth of his embrace and the crisp arctic scent of his cologne.
“You poor thing,” Nick stood back and looked down at her with an expression close enough to pity that she bristled.
“Let’s keep this conversation professional, shall we Nicholas?” Her voice sounded frosty even to her own ears. This wasn’t going at all the way she wanted it to. She pointed to the door behind Nick. “What does T.T.A. stand for?”
“Never mind,” Nick answered. “I’m not sure you’re ready for it yet.”
“But you just said you thought I’d like it,” Holly protested.
Nick shrugged. “I’ve changed my mind.”
Holly resisted the urge to roll her eyes. With the twenty-fifth so close they could only afford for one of them to be unprofessional at a time. So far Nick had that sewn up. She’d let him keep her out of the mysterious TTA department. For now.
“How about a cup of cocoa?” Rapz suggested.
Both Nick and Holly spoke at the same exact time.
“Great idea,” Nick said.
“We don’t have time,” Holly said.
Nick smiled. “Sure we do. It’ll give us a chance to go over our plans.”
“But we haven’t made any,” Holly protested as she trailed down the corridor after Nick and Rapz. She’d drink eighteen cups of cocoa if it meant that they would actually accomplish something before the day was out. She couldn’t face sitting down to dinner with Santa and Mrs. Claus without having a plan prepared for their approval. Failing to be efficient on the first day? She’d rather jump off an iceberg then let that happen.
Nick and Rapz headed down the corridor before Holly could insist they continue with their goodwill tour. Because that's really what it felt like. Holly wasn't sure that she knew any more about the inner workings of Christmas Central than she had when they'd started. What she’d learned was that Nick was incredibly popular with every last elf at the North Pole. Or so it seemed anyway, and she couldn't say it was a huge shock. Santa's son was more charming than any other man she'd ever met. Thankfully she was immune.
The clicking sound of Holly's heels on the corridor tile was drowned out by the cheery chatter of elves, not to mention a jazz arrangement of Jingle Bells that was being piped in through overhead speakers. Despite their diminutive stature, the elves moved at the speed of twinkle lights. Holly made a mental note to send out a memo praising them for that. Speed was good when working in a deadline driven environment.
Keeping Nick in sight wasn't difficult because he was head and shoulders taller than his companions. Watching him move with an easy grace made it hard to believe that he was the heir to the Santa suit. His dark wavy hair would have to turn snowy white and his clean shaven face and cleft chin would be covered with a beard. She couldn't imagine it. He looked like he’d be more at home on a tennis court than on a sleigh.
Just as she began to realize that she should have worn more practical shoes, Nick and Rapz stopped in front a set of double doors painted like giant peppermint candies. They both smiled broadly when she joined them.
"Do your feet hurt?" Nick asked.
They hurt like the devil, but the last person she was about to admit it to was Saint Smug. "Of course not. Why would you think that?"
"Dad didn't mention that I can read minds?"
Holly's insides did a flip. She searched his face for a clue that he knew she'd been thinking that he was way too sexy to look like the next Santa but she couldn't be sure. "Really?" she asked, trying for a disinterested tone.
He winked. "No, not yet anyway. Why? Do you have any thoughts you wanted to confess to?"
"Okay, okay, enough of this," Rapz broke in before Holly could speak. "You two can flirt, or whatever it is that you're doing, on your own time." He pointed to his heavy gold plated wrist watch. "We're on the Big Guy's time now so let's get back to work."
"Excellent idea," Holly said. There was so much to do that it made her head swim.
"Right, hot chocolate it is," Rapz said as he pushed open the brightly painted doors.
"Wait, I thought you said we were getting back to work?"
Rapz turned back to look at her, a pitying expression on his elfin features. "Christmas is right around the corner and we have to stay fortified."
> Fortification, Holly quickly learned, came in the form of a pot of steaming cocoa, a plate of frosted sugar cookies, and comfortable wingback chairs. She took a sip of her cocoa and listened to Nick and Rapz verbally replay an entire hockey game they'd watched the previous weekend. Maybe it was better to let them get the chit-chat out of their system. Or maybe not, she realized, as they began a discussion that sounded suspiciously like they had launched into a completely different sport. "Pardon my interruption, gentlemen," she said, not meaning a word of it. "But it's past time we got down to brass tacks."
Nick and Rapz exchanged a glance.
"Brass tacks?" Rapz asked.
"I think she means work," Nick supplied.
“That’s exactly what I meant,” Holly agreed.
"Well, then, that's my cue to leave," Rapz said. He slid off of his chair, grabbed one last cookie and smiled at them both. "I'm sure something, somewhere needs my attention."
Holly waited until Rapz was out of earshot before she turned to Nick. "What exactly does he do here?"
"All sorts of things," Nick answered. He leaned back in his chair and smiled at her. "Why do you ask?"
Ah, the opening she'd been hoping for. "I haven't crunched exact numbers but from what I've seen this morning there might be a surplus in labor."
Nick raised an eyebrow. "A surplus in labor?"
Something in his tone told Holly that he understood her meaning quite clearly. But she wasn't about to back down. Santa had hired her as an efficiency expert and she was going to do the job she'd been asked to do. "Yes, that's what I said. I believe there are far more employees here than is warranted for such a seasonally centered enterprise."
Holly waited as Nick leaned forward to take another sip of his cocoa. She didn't know him well enough to read his facial expressions but she sensed he wasn't pleased with the direction their conversation was taking. Good. A difficult conversation would at least help her flesh out what kind of a man Nicholas Claus really was.
"Overstaffing leads to workplace problems on many levels," she said. "I'd like to visit human resources so I can get more detailed information. With some precise numbers I still have time to put together a proposal for your father's consideration before dinner."
Mrs. Saint Nick : A Christmas Central Romantic Comedy Novella Page 2