Page 14 of Santa's Dark Secret

My head crashes against my pillow as my not-so-mysterious Christmas Eve stalker comes down beside me, his hand resting against my ass as we each struggle to catch our breath.

“Shit, Mila. I could fuck you every minute of every day for the rest of my life and still not have enough of you.”

A stupid grin stretches across my face, and I drop my hand on his chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart below. “Is that a challenge? Because I think you might have worked out that I’m not the type to shy away from a challenge.”

“No, you’re certainly not,” he agrees.

I can’t help but laugh as I simply stare at him. This can’t be real. This man is far too perfect for me, and yet I don’t know a damn thing about him. “Are you ready to tell me your name now?”

A cocky smirk pulls at his lips. “I thought you would have put it together by now.”

My brows furrow, unsure what he could mean. It’s not like I can simply guess his name. All this time, I’ve been assuming he was Santa Claus, but that couldn’t be right because I saw Santa when I was six, and this guy wasn’t him. Don’t get me wrong, he was certainly there, but he wasn’t the old man in red putting presents under my tree.

“Honestly, I don’t really know,” I admit, pushing up until I’m sitting cross-legged beside him. “From that very first time I saw you when I was a kid, my little brain assumed you were Santa’s son, and that’s stuck with me all this time.”

He nods. “Well, your little kid brain was right. I am his son. Only he’s no longer Santa Claus. I am, but I prefer to go by Nick.”

My face scrunches. “Santa Claus, huh?” I say slowly, letting it really sink in as a million different thoughts filter through my brain. I mean, how can his father simply not be Santa anymore? But also, is he Nick as in jolly old Saint Nicholas?

Nick sits up against the headboard and lets out a heavy sigh. “Okay, then. Hit me with it. I know you have questions.”

“If you are Santa, what the hell are you doing here with me? Don’t you have like . . . I don’t know, a billion gifts to deliver to kids all over the world?”

“Two and a half billion,” he corrects. “And no, I’m all done for the night. You’d be surprised just how quickly I can get my job done when I know there’s a beautiful woman here waiting for me to fuck her into oblivion.”

A stupid smile pulls across my lips as I feel my cheeks begin to flush. “Okay, so you’ve made all the children of the world happy, but how did you do it? Is the whole reindeer and sleigh thing real?”

He nods and points toward the ceiling. “They’re waiting up on the roof.”

My eyes bug out of my head. “Holy fucking shit. You’re lying. There’s magical reindeer on the roof right now?”

Nick laughs. “Yes. They can be dicks sometimes, but after the night they’ve had, they’re pretty chill right now. You could come up and meet them if you’d like.”

“Really? Would that be okay?”

“Of course.”

I bite down on my lip, feeling a swell of butterflies deep in my stomach, knowing if I’m not careful, I could so easily fall in love with this man, which is so stupidly ridiculous considering I will only ever see him once a year. Assuming he wakes me up of course.

“So, how come you’re Santa now? You don’t exactly look like a typical Santa.”

Nick laughs. “Believe me, I know,” he says. “It’s a bit of a sore point with my old man back home. But being Santa is a family thing. Passed down from father to son for generations, and a few years back, my father—the Santa of your childhood—retired and passed the reins to me.”

“So, you’re it now.”

“Yep.”

“Shit. No pressure, huh?”

“You’ve got no fucking idea,” he murmurs before setting his gaze on me, a heaviness beginning to settle between us as I realize it’s almost time for him to leave.

“You have to go, don’t you?”

Nick nods. “Yes, I’ve completed your wishes and the type of magic I have to do that won’t allow me to abuse that power.”

“Damn,” I sigh. “Does it make a difference if I don’t want you to go?”

“I wish it could.”

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