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Shaking the voice away, she waited as he slipped his arms through the holes, then held the belly so she could fasten it at the back with the long row of hook-and-loop. His warmth soaked through the shirt, warming her hands. She knew they’d smell like his cologne for the rest of the night, but she wouldn’t complain. She loved the scent of Creed Green Irish Tweed. Lemon and verbena with a hint of sandalwood that reminded her of walking in the countryside. Fresh. Clean. Crisp.

How did she know which cologne he wore? It wasn’t hard, since she’d lived and worked with his mother. The secret was that he also used the body wash, which made the scent linger all day. His likes and dislikes were an open book, but the rest of him, the important parts, remained a mystery to her.

“There wasn’t another person in this city, hell, in this world, who Mom wanted to wear that coat,” Kian said quietly as he began to unbutton his pants.

Joy quickly turned away to give him privacy as he pulled off his jeans and put on the Santa pants. “That doesn’t mean she wanted me to take her place.”

“You can turn around now.”

Carefully, Joy turned to face him, amazed by the transformation. He was fully dressed as Santa, the coat hanging open at the front. All that was missing was the belt, beard, and hat. As she walked toward him, she let her crutches dangle from her arms while she buttoned the coat, forcing her gaze to stay on the coat until he lifted her chin with his finger. “Giving you the coat was her asking you to take her place.”

Shrugging, Joy refused to meet his gaze. Instead, she grabbed the belt and threaded it through the pants’ loops. “More like it was for prosperity.” Was that a good answer? No. Joy knew why Lorelei had given her the coat, but Kian hadn’t seen the note, so she didn’t have to be honest. “I’m no Lorelei Van Adler, Kian.”

As she tried to buckle the belt, he grabbed her hands and held them still. “No, you’re Joy Brady, the woman Lorelei Van Adler put every ounce of belief and trust in to run this place the same way she did. I don’t think there’s a better reason than that. The very definition of prosperity is being successful or thriving. Her prosperity was you. No one in this world made her prouder than you. That’s saying something coming from her flesh and blood. I hope I made her proud over the last few years. She wanted me to learn that having money and affluence didn’t mean I was better than anyone else. She watched me dedicate my life to the business she had built from the ground up, while she should have been building me. She knew it. I knew it. You knew it. Are you going to disregard the belief she had in you, or are you going to show the world that you’re the person Lorelei Van Adler believed you to be?”

“That’s not fair,” Joy whispered, dropping the belt and grabbing her crutches to steady herself. “Her note said she hoped I might one day take over the job. She didn’t demand it or expect it. She said I should do so when I was ready.”

“Then the question is, will you ever be ready?”

Joy’s face stung as if he’d slapped her. “She’s barely been gone six months.”

Lifting his arms out to his sides, he motioned to himself. “I know.”

That was it, two words, before he fastened the belt and sat to pull on the covers over his boots. Try as she might, she couldn’t think of a response beyond one word: grief. Everyone did it differently, so comparing wasn’t fair to anyone.

Marci burst back through the door, a death grip on a bit of white fluff. “Got it!” she said jubilantly, her arm slowly lowering as she took in their faces. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Kian said with his practiced smile. “Thanks for saving the day with the beard.”

As they talked about the beard, Joy slowly walked toward the door, her head lost in the memory of the first time she saw Lorelei in the Mrs. Claus coat. How beautiful she was. How confident. How she carried herself in it. Being Mrs. Claus wasn’t just a job for Lorelei. It was a dedication to every generation in Snowcap Ridge. Joy hadn’t earned that honor yet, even if Lorelei thought she had. Right?

It was the ‘right’ that made Joy’s internal sigh drown out the rest of the sentence. Thankfully, there was no time to dwell on it tonight. She had a job waiting for her, and she vowed to make Santa’s arrival the best yet. After all, maybe Lorelei couldn’t be Mrs. Claus this year, but her son was playing the big man himself, and that was enough kismet for her.

18

#Santaisindahouse

“Good evening, everyone,” Joy said

Kian couldn’t see her from where he sat behind the mall, but he could hear her. That was enough to make him smile. When he’d pressed her about the coat, she’d responded with sass and sputter, but no real reason. He could admit he wanted to know why she wouldn’t wear it, but he wouldn’t push her. All he could do was create space for her to talk about it with him, something he never thought he’d be saying just a month ago. He glanced down at his outfit and shook his head. He never thought he’d be playing Santa Claus at Snowcap Ridge Outlet Mall a month ago either, but here he was.

“Is everyone ready to see Santa?” Joy asked, and the entire mall erupted in cheers, mostly from little voices, if he wasn’t mistaken. Was it weird that he could picture the smile Joy wore after only a few weeks here? She had different smiles for different situations, but something about the holidays made her grin like a kid at, well, Christmas. The only time that smile dimmed was when she looked at him. Kian wanted to believe it was because she saw his mother in him, but that would make him delusional. No, she saw all the cruel things he’d said to her over the years.

“While we’re waiting for the big man to arrive, I want to mention our partnership with the Snowcap Ridge Food Bank for the holiday season. Every Saturday leading up to Christmas Eve, you’ll see a box like this one next to Santa’s sleigh. If you bring a nonperishable food item, you’ll receive a coupon for a free hot cocoa from Center Court Coffee,” she explained.

Cheering wound up again for a minute, and when it quieted, Kian heard Joy repeat a question. “She asked if we’d be taking monetary donations,” Joy said. “The answer is yes. Beginning next week, we’ll have a locked kettle for those donations. You’ll also get a coupon. Food bank boxes will be at each stop of the holiday light show, including Wintercrest Estate. Many of you may not know this, but Lorelei Van Adler has quietly supported the food shelf year-round. That will continue, and Snowcap Ridge Outlet Mall will cover the cost of all holiday meals at the food shelf this year, so we’d love for you to join us in giving.”

Kian tilted his head. He hadn’t heard about this. Not that he objected, but why hadn’t Joy told him they were covering those costs? The way she phrased it made it sound like the mall didn't do so every year. He made a mental note to ask her. Then he made another mental note to be gentle so he wouldn't face the wrath of her big stick.

“I wonder if Santa is here yet?” Joy said, snapping Kian out of his thoughts. Grabbing the sleighbell, he shook it gently, hoping it would be barely audible in the mall. When excited chatter started, he knew it had worked. “He must be getting close!” Joy exclaimed, her voice perfectly pitched to match the kids. “Before he gets here, who can tell me what happens here next Saturday?”

Chants of ‘Santa’ and ‘tree lighting’ made Kian smile. Joy certainly knew how to work a crowd, and he loved that about her. Whoa. Okay, he liked that about her. Wait. Can you love something about someone without loving them? Hmm, he’d ponder that later, when he wasn’t about to be Santa Claus for more kids in two hours than he’d seen in two years. Wait, make that twelve years. As an only child to an only child, he had no cousins, nieces, or nephews, and all his friends were just starting to get married.

“Both!” Joy exclaimed. “Santa arrives at two, and the tree lighting is at six. We’ll light the tree, then have hot cocoa and popcorn while we watch Santa Claus Is Coming to Town. Mark your calendars if you haven’t already. Now, I think it’s time to check if Santa is here. Should we call him?”

On cue, he shook the jingle bells again, louder this time, and the kids called his name without any prompting from Joy. He quietly practiced his HO HO HO a few times, then grabbed the reins and shook out his arms. It was now or never. Once the sleigh had power, he pushed the pedal down and, for someone who had never done it before, expertly drove it down Lane Four to center court.

“HO HO HO! Merry Christmas!” he called, waving with one white-gloved hand while, with the other, he secretly turned off the motor and set the parking brake. “I heard there were good little boys and girls here who wanted to talk to me.”