Page 34 of The Santa Swap

“Can we help clean up?” Susan asked.

Olivia stood back to survey the room. Then a smile crossed her face. “I know you’ve got plenty to do. Thanks for the offer but I’ll take care of it.”

Susan shook Olivia’s hand. “Thanks again for a great event. I’ll be in my office if you change your mind and want help.”

Tara and Gary followed Susan out of the cafeteria, leaving behind a companionable silence that wrapped between Luke and Olivia. Luke walked to the farthest table and grabbed a bin. Olivia said she could handle cleaning up, but a closer inspection of the tables revealed a huge mess.

Ribbon was the easiest thing to tackle. Luke was wrapping a long, glittery red ribbon back onto the spool when Olivia came to his side. She held her hand out for the ribbon.

“I said I had the cleanup under control.”

“I know. And I believe you. But jobs go so much faster with extra hands.” Luke was ready to leave, but he really hoped Olivia would let him stay.

Her eyes darted around the cafeteria before they landed on Luke’s. Then she began to laugh. “Holy cow. I can’t believe how big of a mess everyone made!”

“So, can I stay to help?”

Olivia reached up to wipe his cheek. “Yes. But fair warning. You’re going to be covered with glitter before this is through.” She held out her finger. “See? You’ve already got some on your cheek.”

Luke grinned and held up the ribbon in his hands. “I think I found the culprit.”

They worked together as a team, Olivia on one side of the table and Luke on the other. He’d glance her way occasionally, taking in the efficiency with which Olivia worked. Her side of the table was cleared before he was even half way down his side.

Olivia stopped working and started tapping her toe. “Were you actually planning to help me or are you spreading things out to make more of a mess?” The smirk playing on her lips told him she was teasing, but he made a show of picking up the pace.

“Hey. Not all of us can throw things into a bin with such speed. Actually, I totally could but then you’d have a mess on your hands with spilled glue and glitter everywhere.”

“I appreciate your concern,” Olivia said. She walked to Luke’s side, working with him to wrap the remainder of the ribbons before adding closed containers of gems, glue, and paint.

Luke knew he’d be comfortable working side by side with Olivia no matter what the task was, but he was about to ruin that. He cleared his throat.

“So, did you see the paper today?” Luke snuck a look at Olivia’s face, but it was a mask. She didn’t answer for a minute, which was all the answer he needed.

He put the glue bottle he was holding into the bin and turned to face Olivia. “I’m so, so sorry that they got you in the paper. I was trying to keep them off your trail.”

Olivia was focused on the items in front of her, refusing to meet his eye.

He reached out his hand, holding it over hers until she looked up.

“Why does the press care so much about what you do?” Olivia finally asked. “Don’t they have better things to do with their time? It’s not like you’re the most popular celebrity out there. I mean, you’re not even famous.” The words flew out of her mouth, and then, as a delayed reaction, Olivia’s eyes grew wide.

“Oh crap. Pretend like I didn’t say that.”

Luke slid his hand up her arm, enjoying the flush that filled her face. “Breathe, Olivia. I can tell you exactly why they enjoy following me. I have to warn you, though. It isn’t a pretty story and you’ll judge me after you hear it.”

Olivia pushed the bin to the side and sat down. “I’m ready,” she said. “But you should know, I try not to judge people too harshly. I think we all make mistakes.”

Luke hesitated for a minute. Then he brushed some glitter off the bench and sat beside her. “You know a little bit about the company, right? How Susan, Tara and Gary started it with me?”

“Yeah. You told me about your living room chats.”

“Have you ever wondered why I’m the president and the three of them are all Vice Presidents?”

Olivia crossed her legs, her foot bobbing up and down. “I figured it was your idea, so you got to take the lead.”

“You’re partially right. It was my idea, but more importantly it was my money that got the company off the ground. I was your typical trust fund kid, with all the entitlement that came with my station in life.”

“You thought you were better than everyone else?” Olivia’s brow wrinkled. “That doesn’t seem like your personality at all.”

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