Page 168 of Santa Daddies

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t do the auction.”

“Why?”

“I've just been named guardian of my cousin’s two-year-old daughter."

None of us know what to say. We give Jolene a minute to share the tragic details of her cousin’s car wreck. She was a single mom and had the foresight to name a guardian, but no one ever expects anything to happen.

But in a flash, Jolene is a mom and none of us really know what to say.

Starla turns to Penny. “I’m betting you don’t want to take Jolene’s place either?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t. But Jolene can still do the auction.”

Jolene’s shoulders slump. “I have a kid now. Don’t get me wrong. I love her.”

Penny’s tone is calm. “You're still a virgin.”

“Who would want to bid on a mom?” Jolene has a distant stare. “Oh my god. I’d have to hire a babysitter.”

My phone rings. I return to the table to silence it but when I see Krampus’ name, I decide to answer. My entire focus has shifted. I can’t have him calling and texting right now. “Hello.”

“Hey, I had to hear your voice.”

“I have to be quick. Look, I'm sorry. I have a friend in crisis. I have to focus on helping her the next few days. I have to go.”

“Okay.”

I say goodbye and hang up, my heart pounding, tears in my eyes, and sadness consuming me. I grab two tissues as I rush back to Jolene, dabbing my eyes with one and handing her the other. “Time to make a game plan for Mama Jo.”

Jolene smiles weakly. She may be in shock, but this is my forte. Time to support her as she always supports me.

“I can whip up some casseroles for your freezer and coordinate meals so that you don't have to do any cooking while you transition into motherhood. And I'll definitely help with babysitting, because I'm guessing you're going to have to get some affairs in order.”

Starla offers to help with anything Jolene needs. Penny says,”I'll cook meals for you and I can run errands, but don't ask me to babysit.”

“I have the best friends.” Jolene’s tone is flat. She’s in shock.

On my mental checklist to see if Molly can sub for me, I scratch offmeand writeJolene.

“You don’t have to go into motherhood alone. We’re here for you. And if I can remain a virgin by turning down sex with the hottest, most perfect guy I've ever met, we can certainly find you a babysitter for Friday night.”

Chapter Nine

Bellamie

Fate works in mysterious ways. That’s what I keep telling myself as I shut my phone off and slide it into my purse. I can’t escape the excitement as my besties and I do hair and makeup for the auction.

And if I break the auction’s perfect track record, I’ll accept the short-lived humiliation, and take it as a sign that I’m supposed to be with Krampus.

When I slip my dress on, Jolene helps me zip the back and says, “Thank you so much for finding a babysitter for me.”

“We wouldn’t have accepted the invitations without your encouragement. The least I could do was make sure you got your turn on–oh my gosh, I almost forgot the goodie bags I made.”

“You didn’t have to do that, Bellamie,” Starla says.

Grabbing the small, red organza bags from my purse, I set the special one for Jefferson, the emcee, to the side and hand the others to my friends. “I wanted to. They’re survival kits, really, full of blister bandaids, an assortment of headache pills, gum, safety pins–those sorts of things.”