Reluctantly, I pulled away. “Ready?”
“Yes. Let’s hurry before I come to my senses.” She turned toward the bags. “Which one of these are we taking with us?”
9
HOLLY
The first stop was a bit awkward, but as soon as I saw the joy on the kids’ faces, my chest just about exploded with happiness. It didn’t matter if they were a head taller than me or barely starting to walk. They smiled, laughed, welcomed me into their homes, and asked all kinds of adorable questions about Rudolph and Mrs. Claus.
Zander had tossed on a long stocking cap with jingle bells at the end and called himself an elf. He stood next to me the whole time, whispering the kids’ names into my ear before I entered their house and passing me the gifts the volunteers had picked out just for them.
By the time we got finished with half a dozen stops, I was ready to concede. Many of the houses we visited looked like they could barely afford a Christmas tree. One of them didn’t even have one until Zander pulled one out of the truck and we spent an extra twenty minutes stringing it with lights before we set the presents underneath.
“Okay, you win.” My heart felt lighter than it had in longer than I could remember. The holiday spirit was everywhere. I just hadn’t been looking for it. Until now.
We were in the truck, having just dropped off the last of the gifts. It was almost eleven, and I didn’t want to think about the next day. I was buzzed on other peoples’ holiday joy and didn’t want the feeling to end.
“Are there more bags that still need to be delivered?” I asked. “Maybe we can fit one or two more stops in before it gets too late.”
Zander reached over and took my hand. Then he lifted it to his lips and pressed a kiss against my wrist. “It’s addictive, isn’t it?”
“Yes. It’s like the happier they seemed, the more I wanted to do.” The only other time I’d felt anything close was when I’d convinced my dad to donate a block of rooms in one of our Florida hotels to some residents who’d been rendered homeless by a hurricane that passed through. I hadn’t meant for it to be a publicity stunt, but he figured he ought to get some good free press out of it, so he’d made sure the local news outlets knew all about his good deeds.
This was different. The people receiving were so surprised and so grateful. No one was watching. Zander wasn’t doing it for free publicity or for any other reason than to make the holidays a little brighter. My opinion of him soared.
“If you want to, we can finish the rest of them on Christmas. Tomorrow will be too busy, but I can ask Gus to save some for Christmas morning.”
“I’d like that.”
“Good. Now you can decide if you want to keep the Santa suit on or take it off for our next stop.”
“Can you give me a hint about where we’re going?” I asked.
“Actually, we’re already there.” He pulled onto a narrow dirt road. Tall trees flanked the sides, their branches so thick that they blocked out the light from the moon.
I leaned forward, trying to see through the windshield, but all I could see was the wide swath of road the headlights illuminated in front of us. Then we rounded a bend, and a big red barn came into view. Zander stopped by the huge door.
“I figured the people got some holiday treats. It might be nice to give something to the animals.” He pulled a bucket out of the back. It was full of carrots and apples. “For the horses.”
“Horses?” I didn’t want the Santa suit to get dirty, so I slid my arms from the sleeves and pulled my legs out of the pants.
“Yep. Dirk and Avalon are riding from the church to the reception in Santa’s sleigh.” He pushed the thick door open, and we stepped into the barn.
The scent of dirt, fresh hay, and animals hung in the air. While a cool breeze blew outside, the interior of the barn felt warm and cozy. I followed Zander from stall to stall as he greeted all the animals by name and handed each of them a treat. He told me about them as he went, either a funny personality trait or some crazy escapade they’d engaged in.
When we got to the back of the barn, he stopped by a big carriage. It was painted red and, though it had tall wheels instead of rails, it was clearly meant to be Santa’s sleigh.
“Want to climb in and check it out?” Zander offered me a hand to help me into the carriage.
“Was this your idea?” I could imagine him coming up with the idea of alternate transportation.
“Nope. Dirk wanted to surprise Avalon with it.”
“That’s a sweet gesture.”
Zander slid his arm behind me and rested it along the back of the padded bench.
I turned to face him at the same time he turned toward me. Our noses brushed.