Page 5 of A Beginner's Guide to Christmas Miracles
Nach just sighed, and he noticed Beck give him a look. The cute elf leaned closer and whispered, “Knock?”
Nach beamed at him, nodding. “N-A-C-H,” he whispered back. Of course his cute elf had heard his name correctly.
“Well, Nach, let’s get this party started!” Beck said, and then he was gently pushing Nach onto the velvet bench, Alan was rushing off to control the line, and Beck went to lead the first family—a mom with two little children—up to see him.
Nach smiled broadly, and when the little girl and boy both clambered onto his lap despite the mother’s insistence that theypleasenot climb on Santa, all he could do was laugh in delight. He couldn’t have chosen a better way to spend his time topside if he’s tried. It was almost like fate had intervened on his behalf to give him a perfect evening. As an angel, who was he to deny divine intervention?
CHAPTER4
Beckett
When Nach laughed,it was like time stood still. Like, holy shit, the guywasSanta. It wasn’t that fake ho-ho-ho shit that mall Santas did. No, this guy’s laughter was booming and joyous and positively fucking magical. Not to mention crazy sexy.
Beck had to tone down his thirst, though, because this elf costume wouldn’t hide much, and it was so totallynotappropriate to be sporting a noticeable bulge at a family event.
Deep breaths, Beck, he said to himself. Only he was standing close enough to smell the guy, and Nach smelledamazing. It was like snow fall, evergreen trees, and a wood fire. He didn’t know what kind of cologne the guy used, but he literally smelled like Christmas.
Beck thought he might be a little bit in love.
Nach further sealed the deal, because he was absolutely adorable with the kids. Beck backed away and stood next to the mom so he wouldn't be in the picture, and he heard Nach asking the kids what they wanted for Christmas.
The little girl burst out with the longest run-on ever, but Nach just patiently listened and nodded. The boy, although he’d clambered right onto his lap, ended up being a bit shy, but Nach leaned in and had a quietly murmured conversation with the boy that left the kid smiling brightly.
“Joey never talks to people,” the mom said, and Beck turned to see tears in her eyes, though she was smiling brightly. “He’s got a speech impediment, and he’s really self conscious about it. Last year he refused to even get a picture with Santa,” she finished.
The photographer, Leo, a guy who frequently helped out, had been snapping away the entire time, and when the kids clambered off Nach and headed back to their mom, the guy said, “Damn, these are gonna be some amazing pictures. Look at this!”
Beck strolled over to glance at the camera as Alan led the next family up, and sure enough, the photoswereamazing. They looked like they were professionally touched up already—the lights, the suit, the awe on the kids’ faces, and most of all, Nach himself.
“He looks like Father Christmas,” Beck whispered in awe.
“Yeah, I’d call him daddy for sure,” Leo smirked.
Beck gave him a little smack on the shoulder. “Hands off. I saw him first.”
Leo just laughed before looking back at his camera, snapping away again.
Beck couldn’t blame him. Every interaction was… magical. There was no other word for it. The kids were simply enthralled with Nach, and he took his time with each family. Despite that, the people in line didn’t seem to mind. Sure, they had elves handing out bottled water and snacks, but people still usually got grumpy, babies cried, siblings smacked each other—it was just how waiting in line went.
But as the night wore on, Beck noticed that it was probably the smoothest event the center had ever held. Everyone just seemed to be in such good spirits. The kids in line played an impromptu game of tag, and somehow none of the kids fell or messed up their outfits. The parents all chatted with one another, and no one yelled at their kids. The teens in line even looked happy (despite most of them being too cool to actually show excitement), and aside from the ever present flirtatious joking with one another, they all seemed to get along. People even stepped out of line to use the bathroom or wander for a bit, and people let them right back into their spot without a fuss.
It was like some kind of Christmas miracle.
Then there was Nach. All joking aside, Beck was a little bit in love with the man by the time the night was winding down. He was just… amazing. He was phenomenal with the little kids, showing patience beyond what Beck himself even had. He managed to coax smiles from shy toddlers and too-cool teens, and he remained glowing with happiness the entire time. It seemed like he got a charge out of the whole thing—the guy looked like he was having the time of his life.
Usually even the cheeriest volunteers got exhausted and flagged as the night wore on, but not Nach. When they took a break, Nach seemed almost disappointed. One of the elves jokingly offered him some milk and cookies, and Nach happily took both, exclaiming over how amazing they were (which made Beck blush, because yes, he’d baked the cookies). The minute he was done, he clapped his hands together and headed right back to the bench, ready to start up again.
The guy had stamina.
But Beck tried not to think about that too much, or he’d end up in the land of naughty thoughts. He had to keep reminding himself that this was afamily event, and it worked. Most of the time.
Because Nach was sexy as hell. Sure, he rocked the Santa look, and Beck had always been a sucker for more mature guys, but his personality only made him that much hotter. Beck decided he was definitely going to get the guy’s number. There was no way he was letting this one slip through his fingers.
When the last family walked out the door, the director, Victoria, locked it, and a cheer went up from all the volunteers left in the center.
“Great job, everyone! Fantastic night! We’ve raised a ton of money for the center tonight, and it wouldn’t be possible without all of you!” she yelled above the chatter. Everyone clapped again, and with that, people began to disperse. It was late, and it had been a long evening for everyone.
Beck walked up to Nach, who was looking quite pleased with the whole night. “I’ll lead you back to the office to get changed,” he told the guy, and Nach nodded and beamed at him, following as he walked back through the halls of the center to the office.
