She’d run
straight into him. The beautiful little elf that probably thought him the
biggest Scrooge around. She should. He’d been nothing but unpleasant, if not
rude to her from the moment he first saw her.
He had to. Had
his daughter to think about. She was so fragile. In so much pain. He needed to
spend every minute away from work with her. Not mooning over some beautiful,
lithe girl that took his breath away.
When her friend
had broken her leg and suggested Miss Noelle be allowed to take her place, he’d
almost said no. Her resumé seemed too good. Too perfect. Then she’d walked into
the interview room.
His brain had
ceased functioning. All blood traveled south and left him without a sane
thought. All he could think about was the young woman standing before him. Light
brown hair cascaded halfway down her back. And her eyes. Eyes the color of
brandy. She’d smiled, and the smile had reached her eyes. Surely they’d seen
clear into his soul. Seen his loneliness.
He’d hired her
on the spot. First time in his life he’d make such a reckless decision.
Surprisingly, he
didn’t regret it. He’d watched her today. Not that she’d seen him. He imagined
she wouldn’t have liked it if she’d known. He doubted she knew he owned Nickel’s
as well as the entire shopping center. Most people assumed he was merely the
manager. He liked it that way. He wanted people to judge him for himself, not
for his family’s money. Ever since Amanda walked out on him, he’d made it a
point not to let people know his family connections—still primarily in Chicago.
Only a few people locally knew his background.
He’d been
pleased with her performance throughout the day. Keeping children and their
parents happy hopefully meant they’d shop in his store and other stores in the
center—pleasing his store managers. And happy managers meant healthy profits.
Not that he needed more money—his family’s extensive business interests kept him
more than comfortable—but he enjoyed what he did.
But she’d gone
far beyond his expectations of an elf. She’d acted like she cared—not
just automatically directing each child to Santa’s lap. She actually talked to
them. Paid attention to what they said, often kneeling on one knee to look into
their eyes. Make them feel important.
Greg wondered
what it would be like to have those eyes peer into his for any length of time.
Talk to him like she had the children. Care about what he felt.
Stop it! She’s
not a date—she’s an employee. Nothing more, nothing less.
Not since he’d
met his wife had a woman affected him like this. He’d thought their love would
last forever. Had wanted it to. Clearly Amanda hadn’t felt the same. After their
daughter had been born she’d told him she was leaving. She’d met someone else.
Someone who could advance her career. She’d left and never looked back. Divorce
papers had arrived in less than a week. He’d felt gut punched when she told him
she’d never loved him. Had only wanted his money.
For the first
time in years, Greg found himself wanting to open up to someone again. Be near
someone other than his tiny daughter. He’d shut out everything—everyone— after
Amanda left.
He’d seen Miss
Noelle every day for the past week while she’d been in training. Greg shook his
head. Whoever heard of week-long training to be an elf? He’d devised the class
for employees from all the stores who rented space from his shopping mall merely
as a means to see her. The woman with the Christmasy name. The woman with the
haunting brown eyes. Eyes that called to him. Made him want more.
He was a fool.
