She was a bit sorry. Sorry that this conversation hadn’t happened years ago. Sorry that she’d been so hurt she’d run away. Sorry that she couldn’t stand here and reminisce with her ex-best friend.
“He proposed already?” Jacob asked, confused. “It’s too soon.”
Her jaw dropped, and she slammed the ring back on her finger. “Too soon?!” Her voice rose an octave. How dare he judge her for getting engaged to a man she’d dated for six months! “What do you know about timing? Yours stinks.” She shoved hard on the door handle and tripped into the blinding light.
CHAPTER10
Jacob scrubbed his hands down his face as he watched Lauren tromp down the steps and away from him. Her black hair bounced off her back.
“That went well,” said Nick, right behind him.
Jacob jumped and whirled around. “Didn’t your parents teach you that sneaking up on people is rude?”
Nick wrinkled his nose. “My parents died when I was eight, and my family makes a living sneaking into people’s houses and dropping off presents, so….”
Jacob stared, his cheeks turning red. There was so much in that statement, so much pain and so much rescue. He should think before he blurted things out. “Sorry, bro. You’re adopted, huh?”
Nick nodded. “In a manner of speaking.”
Jacob tipped his head to the side. “Wait. If your parents died, then who is Santa? Is this like a thing where you put on the suit and magically become the jolly old elf?”
Nick rolled his eyes. “It is not like that.”
“Then how?” Jacob pointed to Nick’s forearm, where the tinsel-colored tattoo was covered by his red and green plaid flannel.
“Long story. So long.” Nick pushed that conversation to the side with a wave of his hands. “What we need to talk about is Lauren.”
Jacob deflated and shuffled toward the office. “Not much to tell. I was insensitive to her feelings, and she’ll never forgive me.” He should have been more aware of her. As it was, he didn’t realize how much he needed her until she was gone. He paused at the office door.“How did she get the ring already? He wasn’t supposed to propose until tonight.”
Nick huffed. “Not everything will stay the same. The events around you two can change.”
“So she could show up married tomorrow?”
“You mean today,” Nick corrected him.
“I don’t want to debate the time/space continuum or the benefits of plutonium in a DeLorean. Could she be married before I get to see her tomorrow?” he pressed.
“Yeah. I mean, it would take a lot to make that happen, but I suppose it could–if the pieces all fell into place.”
Nick groaned. “I have a hard and fast rule against messing with married women. I’m struggling with the fact that she’s engaged.”
Nick’s eyes widened briefly. “Noted. We’ll just have to un-engage her.”
Jacob shrugged. “Do what you gotta do. I have to count votes.” He eyed the stack of messy papers. “I don’t suppose you would want to help me out here?” He nodded into the office.
Nick snorted. “I am not doing that again. You need Frost. She loves this stuff.”
“Frost?” Jacob asked. “As in Jack Frost?”
Nick laughed. “Not even close.” He put his hands on Jacob’s shoulders and ushered him into the office chair. “You sit here and get to work.” With a push, Jacob rolled up to the desk. “I need to see to a break–well, maybe it’s better if you don’t know.”
Jacob nodded. “You do you, Buddy.”
Nick’s poof had Jacob throwing his arms over the stacks of votes that fluttered as if a breeze had come through an open window. “Watch it!” he called out to the ceiling.
The sound of jingle bells responded.
He took a moment to reflect on what a mess his life had become. He was repeating Christmas, stuck in here counting votes, and was in cahoots with Santa’s son. Stepson? Grandson? Nephew? Who knew? A magical Christmas guy who was Santa-ish in an effort to win back his best friend, who he’d been secretly in love with since the day they made their first snowman.
