But Clancy? As Santa?
The one thing she couldn’t imagine him saying was “Ho, ho, ho!”
But there was a sexiness about him that came through, despite the oversized clothes. It was there in those dark eyes. In the slight way his mouth kicked up to the side when he smiled. Or maybe she was the only one who noticed those things. She doubted it, though. Women had always paid attention whenever he was around.
It wasn’t just his body, though. It was the way he carried himself—the way he moved and talked. Even when he’d reclined on her quilt at the dog park, he’d been completely at ease with himself—a kind of self-confidence that bordered on arrogance, but stayed just this side of it. It was what had caught her attention and carried her beyond mere friendship when she, Jacob and Ava had been teenagers.
She hadn’t cared about the consequences back then. Until Ava had pointed out that mistletoe and sent the events that followed spinning out of control. There’d been no coming back from that. Not as friends.
His eyes swept the room and caught her staring. That bushy white brow cocked at her in challenge and, sure enough, the left side of his mouth curved. Damn. The man would be sexy even when he was eighty.
She couldn’t contain a small laugh and a shake of her head that she hoped conveyed her disbelief at seeing him in that chair. She pointed at him and mouthed, You?
One of his shoulders gave a half shrug. Then Neil got up on the stage, kicking up a bit of fake snow as he did so.
They’d done a great job on the decorations, and not just the snow. It was the whole atmosphere. There was a winter scene that boasted twinkle lights and huge shimmering Christmas ornaments. Some of those ornaments had been tossed haphazardly around the tree, as if they’d fallen and rolled into their spots. A tall snowman—a crazy patterned scarf knotted around his neck—stood off to the right, one bony stick arm raised in welcome. Someone had stuffed a set of lights inside him that changed color in time with the music. Which was now sounding off the names of Santa’s reindeer.
It hadn’t snowed in Arlington this year, but Hollee hoped, for the sake of the children, that whoever oversaw the weather sent a dusting of the white stuff their way before Christmas.
The administrator thanked everyone for coming. “We need a couple of staff members to be elves and pass out the presents. I see Hollee and Kristen out there. Would you two mind coming up?”
Oh, God. Why on earth had she stopped in here?
With the trip, she’d miss out on at least two of the Saturdays at the hospital, and who knew if her schedule after she got back would leave time to pop in? Besides, she’d been called on to be an elf before. It was no big deal. Or at least it shouldn’t be.
But she’d not played elf to this particular Santa before. And wasn’t sure she wanted to now.
Especially since Santa’s lips were curved up in a smile that was full of mischief. And those lips were…
What? What exactly were they? A thread of irritation ran through her. She kept circling back around to the same issue.
That stupid kiss should have only been a tiny blip on the radar.
But it was a blip that seemed to keep coming back to haunt her. And now she was one of his elves.
The only thing she could do was to play along. This was for these kids. Not for her.
She headed for the stage, meeting Kristen halfway. She forced a smile. “Can you believe we got sucked into this?”
The brunette, probably five years younger than she was, laughed. “And yet we keep coming back for more.”
“Yes, we do.”
Kristen bumped shoulders with her. “You have to admit it’s fun to get to see the kids’ faces up close and personal. And this week’s Santa is pretty dreamy.”
Her stomach plummeted. Of course Kristen had noticed. How could anyone in their right mind not see past the costume to the man himself? It was a good reminder of all the reasons Clancy was out of her league. He always had been. She’d just been too young to recognize it ten years ago.
Neil was talking about the logistics as they got onto the stage. She was glad she’d worn her Christmas ornaments scrubs in honor of today’s festivities. Afterward there would be refreshments. She was off duty for the rest of the afternoon, which was why she could even be here today in the first place.
And she was glad. Glad that she’d get to watch Clancy’s reaction as kids came up and told him what they wanted for Christmas and then received a gift in return. Photos would be taken that would later be mailed home to the families, so they’d have a keepsake of the day. It was great for the hospital’s image, but she was relieved that that’s not what drove the event.
Neil’s daughter had been a patient here at the hospital many years ago. The Christmas event had been the bright spot of her stay. The administrator had vowed he’d keep the tradition alive so that no child felt left out. He’d wanted to show there was a little bit of magic to be had during this season, even in a hospital.
Soon the parade of children started, and while Kristen was on the far side, handing gifts to each child after they finished their chat with Santa, Hollee had been stationed at Santa’s right, making sure that each person got their turn. She ushered the next child, a boy of about five, to Santa and lifted him onto Clancy’s lap. “Ho, ho, ho, what is it you want from Santa?” The words were aimed at the child, but they sent a shiver over her. Because what she wanted from this particular Santa wasn’t a toy. Or a present of any type.
Her Christmases after she’d married had been fun and happy at first, but by their fourth anniversary the luster had faded. And then, once Jacob had died, she’d spent almost every Christmas at her folks’ house. Their enthusiasm for the season had rubbed off on her, and Hollee had found herself welcoming Santa back into her life once again.
And this particular Santa?
The young boy who was currently with Clancy rattled off about twenty toys he wanted, making the man in the suit smile. “That’s quite a list you have memorized. You’re lucky Santa has a good memory too. I’ll see what I can do.”
Hollee directed them both to look at the camera. “Smile.”
Smile. Something she was doing more and more of. Not because she had to but because she wanted to. She was getting into the spirit of the event, just like she always did. Despite her initial reservations about being up here with Clancy.
Two hours later, the last child had given Santa his wish list, and Hollee was getting ready to slip away when Neil interrupted. “Let’s get a picture of Santa with his helpers for the newsletter.”
What? She’d forgotten about that part of it.
She swallowed. Kristen was already on Clancy’s left, and he motioned her up. Trudging back up the steps, she stood like a statue, giving the most fake smile she’d ever drummed up.
The photographer looked through his lens. “Person on the right, can you get in a little closer? And maybe
