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Someone knocks on the door, so he picks up the letter, stuffing it in his pocket. ‘Yeah?’
Eve opens the door and smiles at him. ‘That’s much better. I definitely prefer you without all the blood.’
He rolls his eyes as he picks up his coat and puts it on. ‘You’re hilarious, you know that. Is everything ready?’
She nods and falls into step beside him as he leaves his room. ‘The reindeer are hitched up and the sleigh checked. You shouldn’t blow up this time.’
‘Wow! That’s put me at ease. Thanks.’
She nudges him in the arm. ‘You’ll be fine. You nervous?’
He walks through the main workshop floor. Seems everyone has gathered to see him off. ‘About what?’ he asks, keeping his voice down.
‘The run of course.’ The look she gives him instantly puts him on edge. ‘Why? What else would I be talking about?’
Nick approaches the sleigh, waiting for him in front of giant double doors. He gives each of the reindeer a rub. Their relationship has improved over the last year. Not by much, but at least they don’t try to bite him whenever he goes near them. ‘Why don’t you cut the crap Eve, and just say what you want to say. I’ve already had a sermon from Damon and Talen, so you might as well add your two cents to the pot.’
‘Are you coming straight back, or will you be gone for a bit?’
‘It’s a practice run. I’ll be back by the morning as usual. I’m not planning on any detours like last year.’
He curses when she thumps him full force in the shoulder. ‘What the fuck?’ He hears a collective gasp, mixed with a few sniggers, from the workers. ‘I’d appreciate if you didn’t hit me in front of everyone.’
‘You’re the most frustrating man I’ve ever met. Have you even opened it yet?’
He walks around the sleigh, checking it for himself. ‘Opened what?’ he asks, knowing full well what she’s talking about.
‘Nick...’
He straightens, making sure the sleigh is between himself and Eve. She’s got a powerful punch on her. ‘Do we really have to do this now? It’s a bit public.’
‘Oh they all know,’ she says, gesturing at the men and women, all with their attention on him.
‘They know what exactly?’
‘That Scarlett sent you a letter, and that you’ve probably been too scared to open it. They also know that you genuinely like her, and have been moping around the workshop for the last year, or killing things with a little too much enthusiasm.’
‘I don’t have time for this.’ He tries to step into the sleigh, but the reindeer decide to have their say by taking a few steps forward, pulling it out of the way.
He curses under his breath and crosses his arms, knowing it’s making him look defensive, but that’s how he feels. He’s being ganged up on by the whole fucking workshop. And his bastard reindeer.
He walks away from the sleigh and stands in the centre of the room. ‘Okay. Fine! What the hell do you all want me to do? Tell me! I’m all ears. How about I grab a few beers? We could all have a lengthy chat about my private life. It’s not like this isn’t an important fucking time of year for all of us.’
Eve stands in front of him, the smile on her face seriously rubbing him up the wrong way. But given his current mood, everything would probably piss him off. ‘Stop hiding. Open the letter, Nick.’
‘What? Now? In front of everyone?’
She leans against the side of the sleigh and smiles over at him. ‘We’re your family. Why not?’
He doesn’t want to open the letter. Doing it while he’s alone is bad enough, without the whole workshop watching him get ditched. That thought stops him in his tracks.
You only get ditched by someone you’re in a relationship with. He didn’t have that with Scarlett. But it’s what he wants. For the first time since his wife died, he actually wants something more than just sex. He wants a relationship. Wants to be with someone.
But that still doesn't solve the biggest problem. ‘It can’t work, Eve. If she wants... me, I don’t know how to make it happen. Who I am... what I do... I can’t ask her to be a part of that.’
Eve walks over to him and places her hands on his arms. ‘We’ll all help you find a way to make it work, if that’s what you both want. But until you open the letter, you won’t know what she wants. It’s a fairly important first step, don’t you think?’
‘If I open it, will you all back off and let me do the run?’
