The man I’ve been drooling over for years was flirting with me in my town. It was too crazy to wrap my head around.
“Sorry, I had some shopping to do, and I got turned around.” My head shot up at the sound of Santa’s voice. It was a low baritone and smooth… and it didn’t belong to my brother. When I met his smiling green eyes, I knew exactly who was hidden under that long white beard and red velvet suit.
Don’t fangirl. Don’t fangirl, I chanted internally, trying not to make a complete fool of myself again. A little heads up from Noah would have been great, but he bailed and sent a rock star in his place—a rock star he knew I had a huge crush on.
“Ummm, hi,” I said, both confused and flustered. I had no idea why he was here dressed as Santa, or what possessed him to switch places with my brother. I was going to make Noah pay for this.
“You got turned around?” Dani asked, confused as to why Noah would be lost in a town where we lived our whole lives.
“Yeah, I’m not from here.” He turned toward Dani and gave her a smile beneath the thick white beard. “I owed Noah a favor, and he called in his chip, sending me instead. I’m Alex.” She took his offered hand while I stood there in shock, not really sure what to do.
“Excuse us for a moment, Dani.” I grabbed his gloved hand and pulled him to the alcove where the Christmas tree was set up. When we were face to face, I had no clue what to say. My tongue didn’t work anymore, and my pulse was racing as butterflies danced in my stomach.
“I hope you don’t mind me stepping in,” he said, seeming a little unsure of himself. It took me by surprise that he didn’t act cocky and confident all the time. I’d seen him doing interviews on television, and he didn’t come off as shy, but I guess you never really know people. He was a private person and didn’t ever talk about his family. He focused on his music or the charity work he did with foster kids. Xander Scott came off like a down-to-earth guy, which was one of the reasons I loved him as an artist. It didn’t seem like the fame had inflated his ego.
“I don’t mind. I am curious as to why, though?” Why would he want to be part of a wedding reception, dressed as Santa?
“When I caught you on the sidewalk, I told you we had time.” He gave me a crooked grin. “No time like the present. Plus, I’m here with nothing to do and can be anonymous in this outfit, so why not?”
“Hey, you two,” Dani called out, raising her camera. “You’re under the mistletoe.”
I looked up quickly. Fuck. I forgot I placed it there. What if he thought I pulled him over to this spot on purpose? I felt my face heat up.
“It’s tradition,” Dani said, laughing. I was going to kill her later.
“It’s tradition.” Alex grinned, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me against his pillow-stuffed midsection. He tugged the beard down before settling his mouth lightly on mine. It was over quickly, but that small meeting of our lips sent desire and need straight to my core. When my eyes opened and our gazes locked, I saw a hunger in his eyes that took me by surprise.
“Got it,” Dani called out, breaking the spell that I seemed to be under, and I reluctantly pulled out of Alex’s arms.
“Let’s get ready,” I murmured. “The wedding should be over, so guests will be arriving any second.”
Alex replaced the white beard, but a promise still burned in his eyes. “We’ll finish this later.”
I shook my head and smiled. It was nothing, but it felt so much like something and my heart ached for more. But he was Xander Scott, famous rock star and singer for Rebellious Dynasty. This was a small town and not anything like what he was used to. I wasn’t a size zero supermodel like the ones he’d taken to award ceremonies or was speculated to be dating. My small town in Indiana was home, and I wasn’t sure I could see myself going to a bigger city. I loved this town. I loved Christmas. My family and my business were here. It was pointless to hope for more with him, but I felt myself sliding down a slippery slope toward inevitable heartbreak.
* * *
Alex was a great Santa. As each of the kids came up to talk to him and take a picture, he treated them like they were the most important thing in his life. The reception was in full swing; kids were playing with the toys we passed out while they talked with Santa, and everyone was having a good time.
The happy couple were grinning from ear to ear as they mingled with their guests and stopped to play with the children while they went about the room. When they finally made their way over to me, Loraine embraced me in a big hug.
“Thank you so much for doing this for us—for them.”
“You’re welcome. Thank you for trusting me with your wedding and the reception.”
Matt sent me a thankful smile over her shoulder.
“Are you sure we can’t do anything to pay you back for all of this?”
I looked away from her, embarrassed because I knew that Xander was watching and listening.
“No. It was truly my pleasure. I didn’t do much, anyway.” I shrugged. The set up was borrowed from the school’s decorations from their annual Christmas play. The presents were donations I collected. Most of it was just a matter of time, which I was happy to donate.
“We appreciate it, Evie. The kids mean the world to us, and we really wanted them to be involved in the celebration.”
“You’re welcome.” I smiled and gave her another quick hug. “Congratulations to you both. I won’t be here when you leave for your honeymoon, but everything is arranged and ready to go for you.”
“You’re amazing.” When Loraine said her goodbyes and left to interact with her guests, I looked at my watch, noting that time was going by fast. I had another wedding to go to in a little over an hour and was going to have to wind things up on my end soon.