All I Want For Christmas Is You - Penelope Ward Page 0,15

if we let down customers, I reluctantly donned the costume.

And now, the object of my affection would probably never look at me the same way again if he caught me in it. Not that it would make a difference.

Pushing through my crestfallen disappointment, I smiled at Santa’s next customers as the father handed over their ticket.

“What’s your name?” I asked the little girl with her blond pigtails. She was adorable in a red velvet dress and matching shoes.

“Belle,” she murmured shyly.

“It suits you perfectly.” I beamed, drawing a smile from her. “Would you like to meet Santa?”

After glancing up at her dad for reassurance, Belle took my hand and I led her over to Santa and then stood off to the side. While Gary kept throwing me looks that would definitely put him on the naughty list, he was great with the kids. He had a joyful big booming voice and pulled off ‘Ho, ho, ho’ with grand aplomb.

My favorite Christmas song came over the PA system. Wizzard’s ‘I Wish it Could be Christmas Everyday’. While the employees of the department store had to listen to the same Christmas album all day every day in December, I spent much time at my desk outside Reid’s office on the top floor. Where he’d banned all Christmas music.

Scrooge.

God, I wish I didn’t adore the brooding bastard.

Anyhoo, it was nice to listen to the Christmas music all morning and I relaxed, feeling less ridiculous (sort of) and falling more comfortably into my role.

Swaying my hips from side to side to the music, singing Wizzard under my breath, I forgot to feel moody and lovesick for the first time in months.

Toe bells jingling as I skipped toward the Christmas tree to collect Belle’s present, I bent over without thinking, singing away to myself.

It was a wonder I didn’t feel his glare singeing my arse.

Because I certainly felt it when I stood up, turned with a flourish of my petticoats and smiled just as my gaze collided with Reid’s.

He stood off to the side of Santa’s grotto, a fierce glower furrowing his brows, arms crossed over his chest as he glared at me.

‘What the hell are you doing?’ he mouthed slowly before pressing his lips into a hard line. His eyes lowered down my body and back up again. Somehow his expression grew even darker.

Damn it.

I guess it didn’t look all that professional for his personal assistant to dress in a teenager’s elf costume.

My lips widened into a sheepish grin and was followed by an equally sheepish shrug as if to say ‘What can you do?’.

In answer, he crooked his finger at me to come to him.

It was appalling the way my body reacted to the commanding gesture, as if I’d just been summoned to the bedroom.

Mortified, frustrated and irritated that he had that power over me, I gave him a slight shake of my head. Reid’s eyebrow raised at my defiance, but I ignored him. We’d decided that I needed to find a new job, and that’s exactly what I’d done. My time at Shaw’s was up after Christmas and Reid would no longer be my boss. So defying him wasn’t really an issue!

Instead, I moved toward Santa, who took the present with another lascivious wink in my direction.

The whole time I could feel my boss’s stare burning into me.

I knew he was beyond annoyed at this point.

A niggle of concern filtered through my newfound “could give zero fucks” attitude.

Maybe Reid would just ask me to leave sooner.

And even though I kept telling myself I didn’t care what he thought of me, I knew it would sting horribly if he made me pack up my things and leave him.

I wasn’t prepared for it.

Not yet.

I had two weeks of secretly pining after him and hating him in equal measure to go.

I wanted those two weeks!

They were mine.

I flicked him a look beneath my lashes.

He was still there.

Glowering at me.

Oh dear.

I was definitely on someone’s naughty list.

Evan

Early October - Three Months Ago

The thing is … I’m actually a really professional person. Normally. Ask anyone.

The current situation didn’t highlight that virtue, but I promise it’s true.

It was just very hard for me not to press my ear to Reid’s office door so I could listen in on his conversation with Emmy.

I wouldn’t usually.

I might be infatuated with my boss, but his relationship with Emmy was none of my business.

However, yesterday, I’d had the unfortunate task of relaying to Reid that his girlfriend rang up a whopping five