Page 42 of The Santa Swap

A few of the roses had taken the brunt of the rolling vase. Luke pulled them out and fanned the remaining flowers. The end result didn’t look as beautiful as the original, but it was presentable enough that he wasn’t completely embarrassed. Thankfully, the cow and the chicken survived the ordeal.

Getting up to the tenth floor without being spotted was going to be a challenge. The elevator doors could open any minute with Olivia standing there. He decided to do something he hadn’t done in years and take the stairs.

Luke was breathing fine the first couple of flights, but his breath began to hitch in his throat by the eighth floor. Small beads of sweat dotted his forehead by the time he reached the tenth floor.

Luke set the vase of flowers down on the stairwell and peered through the small window that looked onto the tenth floor. He didn’t see anyone in the lobby so he cautiously opened the door. There was no use bringing the flowers in until he checked if Olivia was around.

The stairwell was as safe a place as any to leave the flowers. The only people who would ever go there were one of the janitors. Luke headed towards his office, barely slowing his walk to see that Olivia was sitting at her desk. He gave her a slight nod of the head and continued to his office, grateful that he had hidden the flowers.

Olivia stopped by the door of his office ten minutes later. “I’m heading out to grab sandwiches for me and Susan. Do you want anything?”

Luke’s stomach rumbled. In his hurry to get the flowers, he had totally forgotten to eat. “That would be great. You’re getting them from Mixxie’s?”

“Yep. Do you want the usual?”

“You know it. Thanks.” He turned his attention back to his keyboard, trying to play it cool but then he remembered the weather.

“Hey Olivia?” he asked. She turned back around.

“Yeah?”

“It looks pretty stormy out there. Drive safe.”

Olivia nodded. “I put snow tires on the car. It will be good practice for me.”

Luke’s stomach sank. This wasn’t a typical storm. A true friend would offer to drive her, but then he’d lose his chance to deliver the flowers. Logic won out. There was no use being a secret Santa to someone who was in the hospital.

“This is a bigger storm than you’re used to. It hasn’t been this bad yet this winter. Do you want me to drive you? We could take my car.” The words were out of his mouth before he remembered the water that had spilled from the vase as well as the wilted flowers that were scattered on the floor of his car. That was going to be difficult to explain.

Olivia walked into Luke’s office and headed to the window. She placed her hand on the pane and stood on her tiptoes, her nose pressed to the glass. “It’s definitely coming down but I’ll be okay. Mixxie’s is only three blocks away.”

“Okay. Good luck.” Luke waited for Olivia to cross the room and step onto the elevator. Then he watched the numbers tick down until they reached the bottom floor. It was his moment. He ran to the stairwell and grabbed the vase. Then, looking left and right, he hurried across the foyer so he could slip into Olivia’s office.

The smell of her perfume lingered in the room, a soft reminder of her presence. Luke placed the vase on her desk. Then he hastily added Merry Christmoos to the card and tucked it to the side. He stood back to survey his work. If he was going for a gag gift, he had succeeded. It was too late to back out now.

Luke headed to his office; the first secret Santa delivery complete. He stood at the window, watching giant snowflakes as they gusted against the pane. Spilled flowers or not, Luke should have pressed for Olivia to accept a ride. He wasn’t going to be able to concentrate on anything until he knew she was safely back at the office building.

From Luke’s vantage point, he could see the elevator floor numbers lighting up as people rode it up and down. The numbers never went higher than floor seven. He glanced at his watch. What was taking her so long?

Luke’s heart was racing like he had just finished a marathon when the elevator numbers finally passed floor seven. They ticked by floor eight and he picked up his phone. Floor nine he was dialing the number of his own cell phone. By floor ten, he was engrossed in a conversation with an imaginary client.

Olivia’s cheeks were bright red from the cold when she stepped off the elevator. She unwound the purple scarf from her neck and headed straight for Luke’s office. When she paused in the doorway, he asked his “client” to hold.

“You made it,” he said. “Did the drive go okay?”

Olivia grinned. “I only skidded one time, but overall, I did pretty well.” She handed him a bag with his sandwich.

“Thanks,” he said. “I’d better get back to my client.” He picked back up the phone with a smile.

With Luke on an obvious phone call, he figured his cover was safe. He unwrapped his sandwich, taking time to relish each bite while he waited for Olivia to see her gift. Then he realized she’d probably be eating lunch with Susan.

He hung up the phone. There was no point in faking a conversation with someone when Olivia wasn’t going to come out of Susan’s office any time soon. Their lunch together took just long enough for his nerves to tie into complicated knots. Then Olivia came out of Susan’s office and headed towards her own.

Luke was wiping crumbs off his desk when Olivia began to laugh. It was safe to assume that she had gotten his card. He couldn’t help but smile along with her. She might not recognize what the flowers had to do with their first date, but he was on the right track.

CHAPTER19

Somehow, Olivia’s secret Santa had been able to strike while she was at lunch. The vase on her desk was filled with beautiful flowers, but the cow and chicken flower stakes were something else. How did people come up with these things?

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