Page 60 of Here Comes Santa Paws

Laughter and teasing filled the next hour as we nursed our drinks. Joel and Hayden were easy to talk to. Come to think of it, most people were when Elias was around. He navigated bringing me into the conversation and speaking when I wanted to listen with ease. It was like we’d developed an unspoken language.

I’d kept to myself as much as possible for over two years. Hell, most of my adult life. I’d never made it a priority to build a community whenever I lived somewhere. I’d made enough of a connection with colleagues to keep my work life running smoothly, but outside of that, I was happy being solitary. At least, I thought I’d been until Elias forced me to reconsider.

The real question was, if I moved to Arizona, would I try and make friends there, or was Christmas Falls—and Elias—special?

I heard Mom’s voice in my head, asking me what I’d learned from my time in Christmas Falls. My time with Elias.There’s always a lesson to be learned, Roman. Even in the hardest times, every experience teaches us something.

Elias caught my eye and smiled.

That could be it. Elias taught me I wasn’t a troll who dwelled under the bridge. I could join the land of the living and not be miserable. Elias proved that, Anisha proved that, even Jim.

A beer and cider fest wasn’t the place for such self-reflection, so I pushed the thoughts away. Drinks and fun kept flowing with Elias and his friends.

Joel excitedly tapped his palm on the table. “The Santa Crawl started! Let’s go!”

I turned to Elias. “Santa Crawl?”

With a calculating grin, he reached into his coat pocket and produced two Santa hats. Then he unzipped his coat to reveal a sweater designed to look like a Santa suit.

“People cosplaying Santa and drinking.” He placed one of the hats on my head and tugged it over my ears. “Drinks on me.”

The man could sell me snow at the North Pole. “Don’t think I have a choice,” I said, resigned.

Hayden clapped my back.

Elias stepped close and lowered his voice. “You always have a choice. I think you’rechoosingto keep having fun.”

It was hard to argue with that.

Chapter 25

Elias

“You all have beenamazing today. Thank you!” I smiled gratefully at the volunteers packing up from preparing decorations for the shelter’s tree at the Christmas Tree Festival.

All but Nancy said their goodbyes and promised to check out the tree once the festival opened. I needed to go decorate the tree, and after I finished, I’d head to the Christmas Cocoa Social at Jolly Java as a reward. I’d missed the place and was glad the town wasn’t boycotting it anymore.

I went to my office to check my email one more time for any word about the emergency grant funding. I was disappointed to find nothing waiting in my inbox, so I logged out of my computer and added a couple of things to my to-do list for tomorrow.

The front doorbell buzzed, startling me. I was glad I’d had that installed to alert me when someone came through the front door in case all our volunteers were back with the animals or I was alone in my office.

My heart skipped a beat when I glanced at my security camera monitor and saw Roman lingering in the lobby. A vivid image flashed in my mind of an alternate version of my life where Roman swung by after work to hang out with me whileletting the dogs play before I left for the night. Those fantasies were dangerous because I liked them way too much.

I collected my belongings and walked to the front. En route, I reminded myself I was supposed to be keeping my emotions in check, not doing mental cartwheels at his presence.

Ever since he’d told me about the job interview, I’d been trying to remind myself that getting more attached would lead to deeper heartache. No matter how much I tried to convince myself that whatever I had going on with Roman was casual, nothing was casual about my feelings.

I smiled wide when I turned the corner and saw Roman in the flesh. He wore a camel Carhartt jacket, scrubs pulled tight over his thick thighs, and black sneakers.

“This is a pleasant surprise.”

Roman turned from the adoption success photo wall to face me. His lips curved into a closed-mouth smile that I’d learned was the equivalent of one of my toothy ones.

I pulled him into a hug—taking advantage of us being alone in the small lobby. He brushed a kiss on my cheek.

“Hello, Roman. It’s good to see you again,” Nancy said, approaching.

I pulled back and ignored the burn in my cheeks at her arrival.

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