Page 25 of Wrong Number, Right Santa

“Nice to meet you, Ryfon.” And because my mate was amazing, he bowed. “I think you’re the per… elf I spoke with on the phone.”

“I am, and I’m glad to say you found the card I left.” He looked between the two of us as if daring us to ask about it.

Sprinkles called my name from a distance, and when I turned in the direction of his voice, he was running toward me. “Santa! Santa! I meant—my—oh.”

He stopped short. “It’s you.” He bounced on the balls of his feet.

“It is.” Dario smiled wide. They’d met at the event, and it was nice to see they both liked each other.

“Are youhere, Santa?”

“No, Sprinkles. Not here and not working now. I’m sure you have it under control.” We used “not here” when I was needing quiet time, usually before the big toy run.

“Yes, Santa, sir!” And off he went, a little skip in his step. He was happy to have Dario here.

“Is there anything I need to know about that?” I asked Ryfon.

“Santa, work can wait. Toys can wait. Everything can wait. This is your time to spend with your—your Dario.”

I loved the sound of that.

“Why don’t you enjoy a romantic sleigh ride? You can take in the atmosphere, snuggle together under the blankets, and see where the night goes.”

“Would you like to do that?” I wasn’t going to push a sleigh ride. For all I knew, he was freezing. His clothing looked sexy and hot, but that didn’t mean they were North Pole ready.

“As long as I’m with you, that’s all that matters.” He leaned into my side. “Let’s get in the sleigh together with Santa,” he said, pacing the words to theSleigh Ridesong everyone and their brother had made a cover of over the years. They didn’t quite flow, but I loved them anyway.

Ryfon, humming along, continued singing it with the actual words as he showed us the way to our sleigh for the night.

Chapter 19

Dario

We were both huddled under the thick blanket. I was toasty warm and thankful I’d bought the warm clothes.

This was beautiful. The reindeer pulling the sleigh cantered along the road, the bells on their harnesses jingling. If I’d been anywhere else, I would have hummed or sung Jingle Bells. Or maybe the one about Rudolph.

Freshly fallen snow lay on the ground, and fairy lights in the trees lining the road twinkled as they trailed over the branches, though Chris corrected me and said at the North Pole they used the term elf lights.

Making the scene more spectacular were the northern lights glowing green with wisps of pink and purple. I squeezed Chris’s hand, wanting to embed the memory in my brain so in years to come I could fully recall it.

Chris held the reindeer’s reins, and my beast was in awe of the magnificent animals.

“Tell your reindeer if he pays attention, I might let him pull the sleigh around the North Pole.” He added he wouldn’t be on theChristmas Eve run because only the most experienced reindeer pulled the sleigh across the world.

My beast squeed and made my tummy jumbly. But my flip-flopping belly could have been the result of being at my mate’s domain at the top of the world.

Chris wasn’t wearing his Santa costume because he wasn’t acting as Santa. Though his red coat and red woolen hat did give him a Christmasy appearance.

The reindeer trotted up a hill and stopped in a clearing. Below us was the village where Chris and his elves lived and worked, the lights blazing as his team worked into the night.

“Thank you for taking time off.” I kissed his cheek and it was warm, unlike mine which was covered in snowflakes. “You’re hot.”

“That’s your fault.” He pulled out a flask and poured two cups of hot chocolate.

“Maybe warm rather than hot.”

Chris drew himself up. “Never.” His nostrils flared. “I’m hot for you.”

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