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“Our table is near the front, so let’s sit.” I need to give my toes a break from my shoes. As I sit to rub my feet, I look around the room to try to find Kris because I haven’t seen him yet. What if he’s not here?
Watching people get called up to receive and open their gifts is more fun than I expected. Some gifts are obvious jokes, while others are very tasteful and thoughtful. A few are on the edge of racy, but only a few. I wonder what Kris will think of his gift. Mostly, I wonder what he got for me.
“Kris Nichols.” Santa calls out his name, and I perk up, trying to spot him. Finally, staff members are shifting near the tables at the back, and he appears.
Oh, my. I swallow hard. He’s usually polished in his business suits. Tonight he’s in all black, with a red tie, and he’s left his hair casual. Holy smoke, he’s gorgeous. He glances around the room almost shyly as he approaches the front to meet Santa.
“Merry Christmas, Kris.” Santa’s deep voice resonates through the room.
I wait with bated breath as Kris slowly unreels the shiny red paper covered in snowmen and separates the edges in front of the entire room. I can see the pink on his cheeks from here. He glances up, his eyes searching the room until they land on mine. To keep the secret until the last second, we all included our names inside the wrapped gift.
“Show us, Kris,” somebody calls from the side of the room. “What did’ya get?”
His smile is immense as he holds up the box, despite shaking his head and growing redder. “Truth or Dare, the Sexy Version.”
The room breaks out in laughter along with a few requests for who gave him the gift. A couple of women offer to play with him. He doesn’t respond, though. Instead, he nods in my direction, and instead of walking back to where he’d been, he heads to one of the empty tables and sits.
As I wait for my name to be called, I wonder what he got me. Did he go the tasteful route? Or did he take a chance and get me something fun? I’m betting he went safe.
“Joy Calvin.”
Suzie pats me on the back and grins as I rise and make my way to Santa.
“Merry Christmas, Joy.”
“Thank you, Santa.” I take the gift and spin it around. It’s about the same size as the one I gave Kris. It’s wrapped in red-and-white striped paper. I slip my fingernail under the tape and slowly slide it along the seam until it’s lifted. I edge the paper away to peek at what’s hidden beneath.
I see the tag first. “Merry Christmas, Joy. From Kris.” It’s stuck to a plain black box. I let the paper fall from my grasp to land on my toes. I lift the box to my ear and give it a shake. Something slides from one end to the other. It doesn’t rattle, more like a soft thud.
“What is it, Joy? Open it.”
I raise my head and look straight at Kris. Oddly, he seems just as curious as everyone else. I open the tab at one end, and with a hard jerk, something soft and pink lands in the palm of my hand.
What the…?
Are those what I think they are?
I hook my finger into one of the circles and lift it out of my hand.
I giggle.
Handcuffs. He got me fluffy pink handcuffs.
I raise my head. His eyes have gone big and round, and his jaw has dropped. He looks surprised and not necessarily happy. Though, I’m not sure why. I love them. I return to my seat amid whoops and laughter from around the room.
“Oh my God.” Suzie is doubled over. “I can’t believe he got you handcuffs. It’s like he knows you.”
I wait until the rest of the gifts are dispensed before I search for Kris to thank him. And to ask him for a dance.
But I can’t find him anywhere.
When he still hasn’t appeared an hour later, and the crowd is beginning to thin, I can finally admit that he left without saying a word. Clearly, he doesn’t feel anything for me. He meant the handcuffs as a joke.
I tuck my gift into my purse, say good night to Suzie, and call an Uber to take me home. I had hoped to begin the New Year with a new romance, but I guess that’s not in the cards.
3
Kris
