Page 54 of Fire in My Heart

At one point, he grabbed my wrist and whispered into my ear. “You’re being naughty again.”

“Are you going to take me over your knee?” I mouthed, making sure no one else could read my lips.

His eyes sparked with the challenge. “Don’t tempt me.”

Then he let me go so that the next child could climb onto hislap and ask for a video game console. When had Christmas giving turned into the gift of electronics? The younger ones asked for doll houses and action figures, but the older ones were all about the tablets, phones, and video games. Teddy just wished them a happy holidays and moved them along.

It was one of the best days I’d had in a while, even with Rick’s message on the edge of my thoughts.

The last thing I wanted to do was place any of the Calloways in danger. But ultimately, Rick was my problem to solve.

CHAPTER 14

TEDDY

Charlotte Monroe was a tease.

It was the combination of her legs in those tights and the flirty touches. She leaned in close to talk to the kid on my lap or whispered something funny in my ear. The result was, I was surrounded by her scent, her warmth, and inundated with visions of her legs encased in tights with a tiny skirt that barely covered her ass.

Then there was the kiss on our break. I meant to get her worked up, but it only succeeded in making me ache for her. Last night and this morning were just a warm-up for what I wanted to do to her.

For the first time in my life, I wanted to forget about my responsibilities and get lost in the moment with this woman.

I didn’t see myself settling down, and someone like Charlotte would bring a whole lot of chaos. But she was fun too.

Why did that sound appealing all of a sudden?

Charlotte insisted on meeting with every kid in the line, so the vendors were already cleaning up by time we were done.

When the last kid grabbed their candy cane, I stood and stretched my back.

Abby looked up from the screen on her camera. “You make a great Santa. You should do it more often.”

“Let me see,” Charlotte insisted, standing by her shoulder so she could see the screen. “He’s perfect. My instincts were right.”

I pulled off the hat and ran a hand through my hair. “Your instincts said I would make a good Santa?”

Charlotte looked up from the screen. “You were a natural.”

“I don’t know about that.” I felt awkward the entire time. I was waiting for one kid to pull on my beard or call me a fraud. But quite a few of the kids had said they knew I was a stand-in. Santa couldn’t possibly be everywhere at once. I wanted to ask how does he deliver the presents all over the world, but I’ll let the parents tackle that one.

I figured out that Santa wasn’t real when I was nine. My mom asked me to keep the secret for my siblings. I took that task seriously when she said my brothers and sisters should get to experience the same magic I had.

When Wes asked if Santa was real, I told him the same thing Mom told me. I loved that she trusted me with such a big secret.

What would Mom think of Charlotte? She’d probably love her. I was a different man than I would have been had my mother lived.

Charlotte was a warm, generous person who took care of those around her. It was surprising, given her upbringing. But then again, kids were resilient, and she was strong.

None of my instincts were telling me she was lying. But I couldn’t forget she had told my father she needed to stay here to avoid some kind of trouble. I should get to the bottom of it. But Abby was packing up, and Charlotte was walking out of the barn.

“I’m going to check on the vendors and see how it went,” Charlotte said over her shoulder.

I wanted to get out of the Santa suit, so I headed to thehouse. Dad was inside drinking coffee. I pointed at the mug. “You know that’s why you have trouble sleeping at night.”

“Thanks for the reminder, Dad,” he said dryly.

I cleared my throat. “I’m just trying to help.”

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