Page 33 of Santa Loves Curvy Girls

I sighed, taking off my heavy leather boots. This sucked. I worried that Belle wouldn’t want to speak to me again tomorrow or on Christmas Day.

It was like I was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

I knew she wouldn’t tell anyone my secret, but I felt like I owed the committee to keep the promise I made when I put on the suit. Especially with how much they had paid me to do the job.

And besides, it would just take one slip, from me or her, for everyone to find out the truth. And that would basically ruin Christmas for a lot of kids in Garland. I wasn’t sure I could live with that.

If I’d discovered one thing doing this job, it’s that it was way more important than I originally thought.

This job wasn’t just listening to kids tell me what they wanted for Christmas. It was about creating a space where kids could share what was really on their minds, make a wish, and experience the magic of the season.

Santa gave them hope and brought smiles to their faces.

Several parents told me so, including the mom of one kid who was like me and had lost his dad young. Christmas was the one thing that had gotten him smiling and laughing again.

I couldn’t risk ruining something like that. I wouldn’t just ruin Christmas this year. I’d ruin it forever in Garland, and that’s what made this town special.

Exhaling, I realized that’s what it was. Protecting the Christmas magic for generations to come was what this was really about.

But how could I get Belle to see that it wasn’t about keeping secrets from her or cutting our relationship short? I had no idea, now that we were both in so deep. She had to think I was a complete jerk.

I grabbed my phone again and texted her the only thing I could.

Santa: I’ll think about it, okay?

20

BELLE

Christmas Eve at the mall was tense and awkward with Santa. Even my mom noticed.

After hardly speaking a word to him all day, she came up to me, clipboard in hand and her walkie-talkie back in her belt. “You two okay?” she said, glancing at him. “You won’t even look at him anymore.”

I cast a glance his way, seeing him smile at a toddler sitting in his lap. The little boy grinned up at him, just as enamored with Santa and his charm as I was. But I couldn’t tell my mom that I’d stupidly let myself fall for the one person who could never be fully honest with me about who he was.

“I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” I asked, sweeping up cookie crumbs from the floor.

“You and Santa have been inseparable since you started working here,” she went on. “That’s all.”

I shrugged. “We’re just friends. And this whole Santa thing is almost over anyway.” I should just move on and let go of the childish wish I’d made.

“Okay,” she said. “But he seems really nice.”

I got what she was hinting at. It was probably obvious to everyone that we’d become close, but I wanted to make it clearthat was no longer the case. “It was just an act for the sake of the town. Santa and his elf. He’s a good actor.”

“Hmm,” Mom replied. She gave me a sad look that said she didn’t believe me and walked away to help an elf that a baby just spat up on.

The truth was, it was easier to pretend it was all a game when it came to him than admit how crushed I was on the inside. I had really believed that my Christmas wish was going to come true and that my friends and I would find love this year. I’d thought I’d finally found a guy who liked me for me.

I hadn’t had much time to talk to my friends, but I thought that if a relationship was really happening for me, then maybe it was for them too. But it seemed that wasn’t the case at all.

I allowed myself a single lingering glance at Santa, then continued cleaning. How could you miss someone who was just feet away?

After our shift was over, he got out of his oversized velvet chair and walked my way. I hardly looked at him as I wiped down the benches nearby where families sat while they waited to see him.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hi,” I replied, focused on wiping off some stubborn and sticky juice from the bench.

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