Page 22 of Holding Out For A Holiday Hero

He looked back.

“Why wouldn’t I want you?” She did want him. Hadn’t she made that clear last night?

His powerful body stiffened. Then he spun to fully face her. “Because I’m a damn killer, True.”

She froze to the spot.

“I’ve got blood on my hands. It will always be there. I might have been fighting for my country, but people still died. I was good at what I did. Probably too good. And I still like hunting far too much. Why the hell do you think I have the job I do?” His mouth tightened. “And you don’t want someone like that, do you? Not good, sweet, kind True Blakely. You will never really want someone like me.”

“I—”

“True!” Aliyah Addams, the museum’s marketing manager, burst into the exhibit room. “We have a problem. A major problem.” The Christmas lights around her neck blinked on and off, the reindeer on her holiday sweater smiled, but her dark brown eyes were heavy with what could only be described as panic.

A problem? Is it as major as say…a dead body?

“Santa isn’t coming,” Aliyah announced starkly.

“Uh, yeah,” Jake began. “Hate to give you a newsflash, but he never?—”

True sent him a glare.

He stopped talking.

Her focus shifted back to Aliyah.

“He’s got the flu. Can’t be around the kids. All of the other Santas are already booked.” Each word was filled with the same panic that gleamed in Aliyah’s eyes. “Where are we going to find a Santa now? The night is going to be ruined!”

True’s stomach twisted. Disaster was imminent.

“Wait a minute.” Aliyah tapped her chin, and her gaze lasered on Jake. A broad smile spread across her face. “Hello, solution to our problem.” A brief pause. “I don’t think we’ve met.”

“Uh, Aliyah, this is Jake Hale,” True hurriedly made the introductions. “He’s my?—”

“Santa,” Aliyah finished, voice triumphant.

“No.” Jake shook his head. “Absolutely not.”

True had intended to say…He’s my bounty hunter. Or…he’s my bodyguard. Or…he’s going to be my date…very, very soon. She had not intended to call the man Santa. Never in a million years would she call him Santa.

But, apparently, Aliyah had other plans. She slowly walked around Jake, taking him in from all angles. “He’ll need some padding around the middle. Got to hide those abs, but this can work. This can definitely work!”

“No.” An adamant denial from True as she took up a protective position in front of Jake. “He’s not a Christmas fan, Aliyah. He’s not doing this.” She would not put Jake in his own nightmare.

Aliyah frowned. “But we’re desperate.” She craned around True so she could better study Jake. “Did you miss the desperate part? Do you want True to be desperate?”

“I’m helping True with a case.” Jake’s rumbling reply. “I’m not putting on a big red suit and ho-ho-hoing my way through the night.”

True glanced back at him. “We’ll find someone else.” She could figure this out. “It’s fine. Really. Aliyah and I can call around town. There are other options.”

“Uh, no, there aren’t,” Aliyah chimed in. “I’ve already called around. All the Santas are booked. Didn’t you hear me when I said that before? It’s the Saturday before Christmas. If you are a Santa, this is your busiest weekend. Most Santas were booked for this period months ago. With our guy calling in sick, we’re about to have a ton of disappointed kids, and what is worse than a disappointed kid on Christmas? All sad eyes and trembling lips and?—”

“Hell.” A growl from Jake.

“It would be for the kids,” Aliyah emphasized with a wiggle of her eyebrows. “Those sweet, wonderful kids.”

“Fuck.” Jake exhaled. “I’ll do it.”

True whipped around in shock. “Are you sure?”

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