IVY
I smoothed down my green and red skirt, feeling surprisingly nervous about being dressed as a Christmas elf for the first time in nearly twenty years.
Luckily, the outfit still fit. I was sure Pieter would have been able to find a suitable costume at short notice, but it wouldn't have been the quality I was wearing now.
I made my way down to Nick's workshop, knocking on the door before pushing it open. I wasn't sure what it was about coming in here tonight that felt different, but it did. Maybe it was because I hadn't been down here without him bringing me himself, so it wasn't the same to arrive by myself.
"I'm through here," he called from the next room.
I swallowed hard and made my way through. "Hey."
He turned around, his gaze instantly travelling over me and heating me in places that were entirely inappropriate given that he was currently dressed in a Santa suit.
I cleared my throat. "So, am I an acceptable elf?" I asked.
"Very much so," he murmured.
"Good." I let out a sigh of relief. "You're not portly enough for Santa."
He laughed. "I haven't put the stuffing in yet. I've got a more dramatic beard too, I just haven't put it on yet because I need to finish setting up the sleigh."
"Anything I can do to help?"
"I don't think so, it's just turning on the lights now. But you can introduce yourself to Rudolph."
I frowned and made my way to the front of the sleigh where a man leaned against the prongs. "Hi," I said.
"Hi," he responded. "Rudolph."
"Ivy," I responded. "Is that...no, forget I said anything."
He snorted. "Yep. Unfortunate, isn't it? Reindeer shifter parents have a bit of a weird sense of humour. Unfortunately for their kids, it's not that funny."
"I'm sorry."
He shrugged. "You're an elf-for-hire, you've got it just as bad."
I almost contradicted him, but when I thought about it, he wasn't entirely wrong. It was fine for situations like this where I was the one who'd suggested putting on an elf costume, but it was different when I'd done it because I had to.
"All right, are you both ready?" Nick asked, coming back around.
Rudolph nodded. "Just let me put the harness on. It's much less embarrassing if I do it myself."
I was about to ask what he meant when he slipped it over his head and shifted into a reindeer right in front of me.
"Great, we should get into the sleigh," Nick said, hooking a white beard over his ears. "Do I look the part now?"
I studied him for a moment, appreciating that he was going the extra mile with the costume. Though I supposed it made sense. People had an image in their mind when they thought of Father Christmas, and it definitely didn't line up with the hot man he was.
"You look great. Kind of cute." I leaned and kissed his cheek.
He chuckled. "Don't let Mrs Claus catch you."
"Mmm, don't want her to think you're having an affair with an elf."
"Absolutely not." He climbed into the driver's seat. "All right, when we get out there, wave."
"Wait, wave? How many people are there going to be?"
"A few." He shrugged. "I've been doing this on the same street for over a hundred years, people come to see it."
"Right."
He held out his hand glittering magic lept from it and encompassed the sleigh, lifting it ever so slightly.
"Wait, we're not being drawn by Rudolph?" I asked.
"Oh, definitely not. This sleigh is way too heavy to be drawn by one reindeer. He's just there for optics. That's why I hired a shifter to do it. That way, Rudolph knows that he doesn't have to actually pull it and doesn't get himself hurt."
"Ah." I hadn't even thought about things like that. It made me feel a little out of place with helping him. But it was too late to back out now, especially as I'd promised to help. I pulled my hat out of my bag and put it on my head, securing it with a pair of bobby pins so it stayed in position.
"You can stick that under the seat," Nick said, gesturing to my handbag.
"Thanks." I did as he suggested just as a loud clunk filled the air and the huge doors in front of us swung open. There was a surprising bite in the wind that hadn't been there when I was outside before, but now I was in the sleigh, that was definitely the case.
Rudolph started plodding along, keeping surprisingly even time with the sleigh without Nick having to call down to him about it. Perhaps this wasn't the first year he'd been hired by Nick.
I wondered if this was going to be a one-off for me or if I'd help him in the future. My gaze slipped to the man beside me and I realised that if I was considering helping him at this event again, then perhaps there was more I was thinking about too.
I banished the thoughts. Right now wasn't the time to dive into how I felt about our kiss the other night, especially when it became clear that Nick hadn't been exaggerating about people showing up to see him. The street was lined with children and their parents cheering and waving.
I took a deep breath and followed Nick's advice to wave at them all, smiling widely and hoping I looked just like an elf should.
We reached the end of the street where a grotto had been set up.
Nick waved his hand and the sleigh came to a stop.
He was probably only able to use magic so blatantly because the humans in the audience would think it was a well-produced illusion, just like they'd think my ears were just good prosthetics.
It was easier to believe those things than to consider the fact that magical beings might walk amongst them.
"If you get in the back of the sleigh and hand me presents when I ask for them, that would be great," he said.
"Will do. How do I know what's what?"
"I'll use a colour," he said. "Give me the present that matches it."
"Okay." I hopped down from the sleigh, smiling and waving at a little girl who was watching awestruck.
Pieter nodded to me from where he was standing by a rope, also dressed as an elf, though from his ears, it didn't seem like he was one. I'd never thought to ask him what he was, especially because that was rude.
He pulled something out of a small bag and distributed it to some of the children waiting. From their excited reactions, I assumed they were sweets of some kind.
I climbed into the back of the sleigh, being careful not to flash anyone. Pieter was already bringing the first child over, and I took that as a sign to get used to what was around me. It was easy to see what Nick meant about the presents.
"Why don't you come sit by Father Christmas?" Nick said, and I watched as the little girl who had been brought up took her seat. "What's your name?"
"Mika," she responded, barely able to look at him.
"It's good to meet you, Mika. Have you been good this year?" His voice was lower than normal, but not in a husky way, and I could tell that he was being Father Christmas. Which made sense, considering he was Father Christmas.
The little girl mumbled something and looked at her mum.
"She has," the woman said.
"Ah, that's what we like to hear," Nick responded. "And what would you like for Christmas?"
The little girl's face lit up. "A race track! With fast cars."
"What colour race cars are the best? Orange?" Nick asked with what seemed to be genuine excitement.
The little girl pulled a face. "No, silly. Red."
"Ah, yes. Much better than orange. Well, we'll have to wait until Christmas Day to see if you get your race track, but I have a present for you now." Nick turned slightly to take a present from me, which filled me with panic. He hadn't told me the colour present he needed.
Except that he had told the little girl one. Understanding dawned on me. He was trying to tell me without it being obvious and preserving the magic for the kids.
I picked up a parcel wrapped in orange paper and held it out to him.
He smiled but didn't say anything as he handed it to Mika. "Here you are."
"Can I open it now?" she asked, shaking the box slightly.
"If your mummy says you can," Nick responded.
The woman nodded and Mika didn't waste any time ripping into the present. She let out a loud gasp as she saw the race car within.
"Mummy, mummy, look!" She showed it to the woman.
"It's beautiful, sweetheart, what do you say?"
"Thank you, Father Christmas," she said, an adoring expression on her face.
"You're welcome. Merry Christmas to you and your family."
"Merry Christmas!" Mika hopped off the sleigh, and I watched her leave, my heart very full. It was hard not to be touched by the display he was making.
The next child came, and then another, and another.
It was hard to believe how many there were, but Nick had patience with each and every one of them, making sure they got the right present for them.
I had to admit that his colour-coding system was genius.
The children never knew what he was asking for, but they left believing the magic had given them the perfect present.
And with every passing moment, it became clear just how much Nick loved being able to make the children happy. It wasn't a chore for him to be giving each of them their gift, he was enjoying it. And I felt very lucky that I'd gotten to help, even if it meant dressing up as an elf.