Santa Loves Curvy Girls

4. Nick

4

NICK

F or a guy who was supposed to be married to Mrs. Claus, I sure didn’t expect to have a very pretty elf in my arms as part of this gig.

As she got her bearings, I let her go.

“Hi,” she said, still wide-eyed.

“Hi,” I replied. I couldn’t help but smile down at her, noticing her wavy brown hair beneath the red and green striped hat and her pretty ice-blue eyes.

Her hat was on the ground. I picked it up and handed it to her.

“Thanks,” she said, surprise still etched on her face.

After another beat, I added, “Are you one of my elves?”

She blinked a couple times after that and stepped out of my way. “Uh, yeah. I guess I am.”

I took a seat in Santa’s armchair. This chair was comfier than it looked.

“Sort of a last-minute thing… Didn’t expect to,” she went on.

Now I was looking up at her from my seat. She picked up a large tray of sugar cookies, like she was about to run off. But I didn’t want her to leave yet.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Oh,” she said. Was it me or was she pretty nervous?

It had to be the suit. The costume was not like something you’d pick up at your local party store. It was the real deal. Between the large beard and the fake brows attached to my face, the special gloves, and the velvet suit that looked like it had been stitched by real elves, I couldn’t even recognize myself in the mirror.

Best of all, I was really liking the anonymity.

“I’m Belle,” she told me, her voice quiet.

I knew that, but I didn’t want to let her know that. In fact, she couldn’t know that.

I almost felt like a real-life Spiderman. I’d walked into the mall Nick St. James, then walked out of the bathroom as Saint Nicholas. No one knew it was me.

“Hi, Belle.” I glanced down at the cookies she was holding. “Did you make those?”

“I did,” she said, finally seeming to relax a little and smiling. She had a nice smile, the kind that made me forget who I was for a moment. “Would you like one?”

Sugar cookies were my favorite. I looked down and spotted a Santa Claus cookie, beard and all.

I picked it up and took a bite. “Mmm.” I couldn’t help myself. It was warm, buttery, and melted right in my mouth. I stared at Belle. “This is the best cookie I’ve ever had,” I managed.

Her cheeks flushed pink. “Really?”

“Really,” I said, taking another bite. “Hasn’t anyone ever told you that before?”

She shook her head. “I just bake as a hobby.”

“You should open your own store in town or something. These are incredible,” I replied.

She blushed again. “I wish. Maybe someday.”

Belle was a junior like me at Garland High. We were in all the same classes and were friendly, but we hung out in different friend groups. I knew her dad worked for the city doing road maintenance, but I didn’t know much else about her.

After that, her mom appeared out of nowhere with a kid in tow. Belle scurried off with the rest of her cookies, and I focused on the little boy in front of me.

He looked excited but also very hesitant to come near me.

“Well, hello there!” I exclaimed, making my voice as deep and jolly as possible. “What’s your name?”

He bit his lip and stared at the floor. “Ryan,” he practically squeaked.

“Nice to meet you, Ryan,” I replied. I noticed his Spiderman sneakers. Ryan was my kind of guy. “Do you like Spiderman?”

He nodded, a smile lighting up his face. “He’s my favorite! My bed is Spiderman too!”

I grinned back. Yes, I was doing it. This was the part I’d been nervous about. “And do you have any Spiderman toys?” I asked.

He took a step closer, close enough to where I could put my arm around him. “Is it alright if I touch you?” I asked.

“Okay,” he said. Then he told me about the Spiderman toys he wanted and the Spiderman books. And a ton of other stuff. Camera lights went off in front of us, but I hardly noticed them. I just listened to Ryan and nodded along when he asked me to please bring some toys for his baby sister too.

“Well, of course,” I told him. He jumped up and down, and this time, we both smiled at the camera. The lady who had to be his mother stood near the stage holding a baby and beamed at me.

A second later, Belle was back, offering Ryan a cookie and leading him off the stage, his hand in hers.

My heart warmed, not believing I’d come full circle.

My mom had a picture at home on the mantle of me sitting on Garland Santa’s lap, and now I was Santa.

I was no longer Nick, the star football player who was just seen for his popularity and what he could do on the field.

I was just a guy who could do some good in Garland.

A few weeks ago, my mom had said I’d make the perfect Santa. Had she made this happen? Maybe she had nominated me or something. Or maybe someone else had.

Before I could think too much about it, the next kid ran up to me.

This time, it was a girl, and she didn’t seem nervous at all. She chatted my ear off, asking me questions about what the elves got to do at the North Pole, where I liked to go on vacation, and if it was okay if she stayed up and said hi to me on Christmas Eve.

“Ho, ho, ho!” I said, buying time to make up some answers. “Little boys and girls need their rest so they can open presents on Christmas morning.”

I shot a glance at Belle, hoping she got the message that it was time to move on to the next kid in line.

She walked right over, saving my butt from fielding more questions I had no idea how to answer.

I’d had the biggest crush on her in the first grade. I still remembered being too chicken to give her the flower I’d found outside on the playground. Being this close to her now made me sweat a little, and it definitely wasn’t just the heavy suit.

Now that we were working together, maybe this suit could give me something I never had back then. A little daring—and a real shot.

But would she ever go for me like this?