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Chapter Thirteen
5 Days Later
The delicious scent of freshly-baked cookies wafted through the air, and I lifted my nose, inhaling deeply. “The Workshop smells like gingerbread,” I said to Britta.
A snowflake kissed my cheek, and I opened my eyes to the bluest North Pole sky. It was as if someone had finally opened the doors to the world, drenching everyone in sunlight.
Britta and I walked along an empty alley hand in hand toward the center of the Workshop. Cute, cottage homes spread out in every direction, their walls carved ornately, and oversized candy canes flanked the front doors. Christmas trees could be seen in most windows, and pines grew between the houses, towering over them. Snow coated everything from the roofs where smoke twisted from the chimneys to underfoot, crunching with each step.
We’d been summoned by the previous Santa for the official guard selection ceremony, and unease twirled in my gut. I’d told Manuel and Jana that we were moving temporarily to Alaska with a friend, unsure how they would take the whole Santa exists story. So I felt it was better not to tell them the whole story or that we actually were going to North Pole. A secret location hidden by an invisible shield.
Since arriving in the North Pole two days ago, Charlie had insisted that Britta and I spend a couple of nights in a small home to acclimatize and to wait for Charlie to move from Santa’s house. The men had been busy since we’d got to the Workshop, so I’d hardly spent time with them, and I helped Britta get settled. She wasted no time making friends with the elves. With most being her height, she took to them at once. Plus, she got invited to a sparkle making class on her first day, and ever since she’d been buzzing all over the place. And as she told me, the world always needed more glitter. Who could argue with that?
And to say I was excited about the future was an understatement. The men consumed my thoughts, and I yearned to spend time with them. All I remembered was their tenderness, protectiveness, and sexiness. The scorching hot time in the sled with Leven, the desire to spend more time in Tatum’s arms, and to let myself be seduced by Jax. So much had happened in such a short time, and now… Well, I was Santa Claus and soon I’d run the Workshop, which was ludicrous. But I was taking things one day at a time.
“I’ll tell you a secret,” Britta said, and I crouched next to her, fisting handfuls of the thick layers of my skirt so the hem didn’t touch the snow. She no longer had a lisp, and it was a dream come true. I prayed it wasn’t temporary but rather on the mend. I had no idea how, but the terrifying ordeal had changed her. She kept telling me that when the reindeer men had arrived, they’d told her they were with me and would save her before being trapped in the sacks in the cave and gagged. She couldn’t explain, she’d said, except she knew they’d keep her safe.
“What’s your secret?” I asked, pulling the scarf higher around her neck, covering her ears with the knitted hat adorned with knit antlers she insisted on wearing everywhere.
“Yesterday, Jax took me to the candy store and I licked the wall.”
“What? Why would Jax let you do that?” I stiffened, unsure if that was another of the dozen new customs I discovered daily since we’d arrived at the Workshop. Like everyone was forced to visit the dentist weekly because of all the candy they ate.
“He licked it first and said it tasted like toffee. And it did.” Her eyes widened into round discs. “Plus, he told me a lot of beaver jokes.”
I rolled my eyes because I was going to kill him if he was corrupting my sister.
“Knock knock,” she said.
“Who’s there?”
“Beaver B!” She started to laugh, and I was scared to ask.
“Beaver B who?”
“Beaver B quiet and nobody will find us.” Her giggle burst out, her eyes squinting from how hard she chuckled. “He knows so many and agreed to help me print my joke book.”
“Sounds lovely.” I wiped a snowflake off her rosy nose, so pleased she’d already started bonding with the men because I intended to spend a lot of time with them.
Britta nodded and we continued our walk, strolling past a distillery of schnapps. I wondered how Manuel was doing with my business. When I’d offered him the management position to run the place and move into my uncle’s home while I lived here, he’d jumped at the chance, rambling on about how much his wife and kids would love the place. I’d explained it was temporary, depending on how I settled in Alaska, and that I’d pay regular visits. I had every intention to stay involved in the distillery and learn more about running the joint. But I first had to work out what living in the Workshop involved. Besides, I had zero plans to leave my men when I was just getting to know them.
Once Britta and I were settled here, I’d find out about inviting Dylan from California over to visit us. I figured, I’d be honest and tell him about Santa once he arrived. After seeing the Workshop, he’d have to believe me and not think I was whacky. Of course, I’d get him to agree to secrecy. Sure, Dylan had asked me out on a date, but we’d been friends, too. I realized that I hadn’t really turned him down because I hadn’t wanted to date. It was just that I had to find the right man… men.
I still pictured Jana crying with joy when she had seen Britta safe and alive. We explained that my sister was lost in the woods, and we finally found her in a cave. Once Jana was settled, she was more interested in who the three young men were with me, and I explained it away as rescuers who assisted me with Britta. I knew we’d cross paths again and come up with a better excuse, but everyting happened too fast at the time, so I said the first thing that came to mind.
The cold breeze curled around me as I walked with Britta down a Workshop street. The farther we traveled, the louder a humming of voices sounded from ahead of us.
“Are you okay with me being Santa?” I glanced down at my sister.
She was nodding and grinning before I finished asking the question. “Why do you keep asking me that? Did you not see we are going to live with elves and reindeer?”
“And they have a school here that teaches worldly things like a normal school, you’ll have to attend.”
She rolled her eyes. And she was only twelve years old. Around the next bend, we merged into an oversized yard jam-packed with people and elves who reached my waist. For some reason, most insisted on wearing jeans and matching jackets. Who was I to tell them the denim look was no longer fashionable? It suited their short hair and curled, long ears. Especially the females, who had glittery pink hair, looking like an eightes punk band.
A multitude of human-sized men and women stood around too, but I knew most were reindeer shifters. The crowd parted, making a narrow path for Britta and me, directing us across the yard, over snow that had been trampled, revealing the earth and withered grass. Ahead stood a podium where Charlie stood, a red, toy microphone dangling from his hand.
By the time I climbed up, Britta was asked to take a seat on a bench not far behind me.
