Page 10 of A Little Christmas 4: Teller
I had to get Teller out of that place. He had talent that was being wasted at Bloomfield’s. I had no doubt there were better opportunities for him to shine, and I’d make it my mission to find them.
Chapter Five
Teller
The Tuesday before Thanksgiving, I was on the sales floor of the men’s intimates department after sitting in the breakroom to get away from the holiday muzak blaring over the speakers throughout the store. The place was packed with customers, and Christmas wasn’t for three weeks, for fuck’s sake.
Other than all the twinkling lights, festooned bunting hanging everywhere, and that damn music, I didn’t dislike the holidays, especially in my new position. The department head was much nicer than Mr. Kerry, which was a fantastic change of pace.
Shoppers were crowding the different departments looking for the perfect holiday attire to attend their parties and family functions, but new clothes didn’t usually include new underwear. Being in the men’s underwear department did provide a bit of a buffer, thank heaven. We’d occasionally get customers who drifted over to check out when they saw how open our registers were, but it was relatively quiet.
An older man had taken a few robes into the dressing room as I was returning from my break to allow my coworker, Paige, to take hers. “His name is Mr. Carver. He’s sweet, but he’s kinda handsy. Watch out.”
I walked into the fitting room, tired of waiting for him to come out. “Mr. Carver, how’s that robe working for you?”
The door of his dressing room opened and slammed against the wall with a bang. When Mr. Carver stepped out of the room, I gasped. The belt wasn’t tied, and he wasn’t wearing anything under it. Thank god Paige was gone.
He pranced out of the dressing room in his socks and black ankle boots and up to the three-way mirror outside the dressing room. “Oh my!”
I hurried to where he was standing, his naked body on display in three-D with no shame whatsoever. I’d never seen balls that long, and I didn’t want to offend any other customers, so I quickly pulled the robe closed and tied it with a creative knot.
Mr. Carver stepped back from me. “Does it make my eyes pop? I heard that on a television show.” He was turning left and right, and I was about to drop dead on the spot.
“Um… Your eyes pop for whom?”
“My neighbor, Sherry. She’s gorgeous. She just moved in, and I want her to see me as a sexy beast. I’m inviting her over for dinner tomorrow night, and I believe she might spend the night.”
Mr. Carver was a handsome older man, though he wasn’t my type. Based on his description of Sherry, I wasn’t his type either.
I walked to a nearby rack to retrieve one of the beautiful satin robes we were hyping as premier Christmas gifts for Dad and held it up next to him. “What about a satin robe? I mean, if you’re trying to seduce her, we have some luxurious satin robes in beautiful jewel tones. This sapphire one would definitely make your eyes pop.”
“Oh, that sapphire would look good on you.”
I glanced in the mirror, seeing Briggs York standing behind us with a big grin on his handsome face. I hadn’t seen him since he came into the store the previous week. I’d been surprised when he didn’t make an appearance at O’Malley’s Pub on Friday or Saturday night. I’d actually missed seeing him.
“Mr. York. It’s nice to see you again. If you’ll give me a moment, I’ll assist you.”
“Sure. I’ll wait.”
Briggs walked over to a rack with briefs of all colors, picking up a three-pack in shades of blue. I had a feeling they’d look damn good on him.
He was more handsome than I remembered from our previous encounters. He made me nervous, what with his intensity. This time, when our gazes met, my knees nearly buckled.
“Mr. Carver, I think this is the best one for you,” I said as I held up the blue robe to block his ass from view of the rest ofthe customers when he took off the flannel one, not that they couldn’t see thefull montyin the reflection of the three-way mirror.
Briggs walked over to the older man and nodded. “I think these would be very flattering with the robe. Look—you’ve got three coordinating colors of sexy briefs to entice her with. I’d say you’ve got a good shot at winning your chosen lady over. I’m sure I’m not your type, but I’d say you were a sexy beast in that outfit.”
It was all I could do not to laugh, but damn if Briggs York could talk anyone into anything. Hell, under the right circumstances, he could talk me into his bed in an instant.
Mr. Carver laughed and went back to the dressing room, closing the door. I turned to Briggs. “You’re a miracle worker. How’d you do that?” I pointed to the men’s briefs I was holding in my hand.
Briggs chuckled. “I’m not as old as him, but I want to look good. When one is trying to seduce a love interest, it’s important to feel confident and sexy. For him to walk out of the dressing room without anything on, he’s got the confidence thing down. He just needs a little help with the sexy.”
I giggled. “You’re right. So, what can I do for you?”
His grin was gorgeous. “Have a late dinner with me?”
“Tonight?” I was going to say yes, but I wanted to be sure I wasn’t hallucinating.
