Read Online McDonald_NoELFngWay_GEN_Dec2015 by Donna McDonald - Free Book Online Page B

a slow breath, his mind imagining her in the outfit. Could this be put off another week? He did a mental head smack… no—no it couldn’t. Not even to indulge his fantasy of making love to his sexy elf.
    Maybe they could reenact it sometime in late January. Maybe Vixen had a sexier costume for Valentine’s Day. The thought paralyzed his tongue for a moment. He cleared his throat finally and made himself speak the dreaded words.
    “Are you free to talk for a minute?”
    Vixen felt her smile of welcome melt away at the tenseness in Dash’s voice. Dread crept along her nerve endings. Dash sounded unsure and nervous, and his tone had her survival instincts kicking in. The last time she’d felt this way had been the day Dancer’s father came to suggest to her that she get an abortion.
    “I don’t have an actual office, but there’s no one here but me and Ann at the moment. She’s working in the back room unloading our Valentine’s Day stock. It goes up immediately after our Christmas clearance sale.”
    Dash nodded as he followed her back to the sales counter. Vixen stepped behind the cash register, which he knew was her way of putting some distance between them. His frustrated sigh echoed throughout the store.
    “Seeing you again has scrambled my brain. Now that I’m here, I don’t know where to start.”
    “At the beginning is usually a good place,” Vixen suggested, crossing her arms to hug herself.
    “The other Santas gave me the letters Nicky’s been making sure every Santa gets. Did you happen to read what he asked for in the one he gave you?”
    Vixen wanted to say no. It would have been easy to lie, and she might have gotten by with it. But the withdrawal she sensed from Dash wouldn’t have vanished with her denial. She could see now she was going to have to pay a price for her silence.
    Before speaking, she steeled herself to hear what Dash would say about the truth.
    “Yes, I saw what he asked for. I read it and I cried… as much for you as I did for your son. He’s obviously still hurting over the loss of his mother.”
    “Yes, he is. Why didn’t you tell me what was in the letter?” Dash asked.
    She drew in a breath and released it. “You and I weren’t on any sort of good terms when Nicky gave it to me. After that I talked myself into believing you would handle it when it came time to do so.”
    Vixen tucked her wayward hair behind her ears.
    “Elves and Santas see a lot of those kinds of letters, Dash. Kids often have wishes no parent can reasonably grant. I do what I can while I’m talking to the child, but in most cases, I can’t affect much after the fact. In your case, I didn’t think I had any right to do so.”
    Dash nodded and looked at a spot over her head. “I have an idea about how to deal with this. Can we not see each other again until after Christmas? I rather Nicky not see me dating until after the storm has passed.”
    Vixen hugged herself tighter, trying to keep the hurt she felt inside. How many times had she been in these situations with men? How many more times was she going to be in them with this particular one? The answer had to be zero. It just had to be. Twice now was more than enough.
    “Wow… you’re dumping me even faster than you did last time. Guess Tuesday wasn’t as good for you as it was for me.”
    “Don’t be ridiculous. Tuesday was great. What are you talking about?” Dash demanded, frowning over her attitude. “All I’m asking is for us to wait a little while before we see each other again. If there’s a meltdown coming, I don’t want you caught in it.”
    Vixen laughed wryly as she shook her head. “Right. It sounds so noble when you say it with conviction, doesn’t it? Don’t let the door smack your ass too hard on your way out of my life.”
    “Vixen, please hear me. Don’t twist my suggestion into something bad because of what happened between us before.”
    “Oh, I think I’m hearing you just fine, and what I’m hearing is a