Page 16 of Sleigh Rides With St. Nick

Her friend cleared her throat behind her."Are you going to introduce me?"she asked.

"Right, sorry," Ivy said, turning to her friend."This is Nick, he's one of the CEOs of Cringle, where I'm working at the moment.And this is Pieter, the co-CEO."

From the surprised expression on Pieter's face, he hadn't expected to have been introduced.

"This is Laila, she's my flatmate," Ivy said.

"It's good to meet you," I said.

"Likewise."Laila gave me an intrigued look and from her expression, I could only guess what she'd heard about me, which only made me wonder exactly what Ivy had been saying about me.

Pieter cleared his throat."We need to keep the line moving."

"Right, sorry, we shouldn't hold you up," Ivy said."Thank you for inviting us."The way she smiled at me made everything inside me squeeze tighter.

She walked away, and I watched her go, only to get a further thrill when she looked over her shoulder and smiled at me.

Pieter let out a dramatic sigh."You really had to invite her?"He didn't need to clarify what he was really asking, his tone said the rest.

"Of course I invited her," I said."She's working with us."

Pieter snorted."Yes, you invited her because of that reason and not because you're lusting after her."

"I'm not lusting after her," I protested.

"Say what you want," he retorted."I don't believe you."

I didn't respond, though I could have pointed out that he'd invited the guy he was interested in, so it wasn't like I was doing anything different.Other than the fact that Ivy's contract with her marketing company forbade her from dating clients and I wasn't about to cross any lines that she wasn't willing to herself.

A pale woman with dark hair entered alongside a man with bronze skin.They looked vaguely familiar, but I wasn't sure who they were.

Pieter cleared his throat."That's Aine, CEO of Jinx, Celtic goddess of love, summer, beauty, and something else I forget," he murmured.

"Thanks.Who is she with?"I asked, hoping that he knew.

"Min, Egyptian fertility god."

"How do you know all of this?"I asked.

"Because I made sure to study the guest list before people started arriving," he pointed out.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Pieter."

"We both know you'd have fallen apart long ago," he responded.

I flashed my friend a smile before turning to the newcomers."Welcome," I said.

"Nick," Aine said."Thank you for inviting us."

"The pleasure is mine," I assured her.Though in all honesty, I wasn't aware that Ihadinvited either of them.But she was an important person in the realm of gods at the moment which meant that it was wise to invite her to something like this.

"It's good to see so many friendly faces here," she said."Your guest list is quite something."

"I've been blessed with many good friends over the years, and it makes me happy to host them for festive revelry each year," I said.

She smiled again and headed into the room, going straight over to talk to someone she must have recognised.

"Is that everyone?"I asked.

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