Page 66 of Santa Has a Six-Pack
But I sure do like Mattholomew.
Matt.
I like Matt.
I finally find a few pairs of the XL briefs that I was honest-to-god looking for and triumphantly hold them up to Keira. “See? Mission accomplished!”
“Great. Now we can go back down to Santa’s Village.” She gestures to the door knowingly.
“You realize my responsibilities as assistant manager don’t just disappear because horny women want to sit on a sexy Santa Claus.” I put a hand on my hip.
“True.” She nods. “But last time I checked, we have plenty of sales associates on the floor who can help customers find what they need. Besides, ‘adult hour’ is over. Kids are up next.”
“Oh.” I immediately grab my phone and thermos and head for the door.
Seeing Matt with the kids really is the cutest thing.
“Yeah, oh,” Keira says, a mischievous grin on her face.
“What?” I say defensively.
She holds her hands up. “Nothing.”
My phone rings as we approach the elevator. I check the screen. Five missed calls from my mother. And that’s just from this morning. She called four times yesterday and three times the day before that. Seems her campaign to get me to Connecticut next weekend is ramping up.
Keira peeks at my phone. “She’s still at it, huh?”
“You know it,” I sigh.
I press the elevator button, and we ride down to Herald’s main floor. This time of year, we employees always ride the freight elevators and avoid the crowds. So for the moment, it’s blissfully quiet.
“I’m sorry,” Keira says. “I wish that relationship were easier for you.”
“Me too,” I give her hand a squeeze and pocket my phone. “Speaking of challenging relationships, what’s the latest with Tagg?”
“You’re about to see for yourself. Yay!” She faux cheers. “He’s here with the kids for their annual Santa pic. We’re trying to keep things as normal for them as we can, ya know?”
“You’re an incredible mom. Do I tell you that enough?”
“It’s not your job to build me up,” she says. “But, hey, I’ll take all the encouragement I can get these days.”
“Well then, consider me your personal hype squad,” I say. “You’re amazing. Truly.”
The elevator dings at our destination. I wrap my arm around my friend as we head to Santa’s Village. We arrive to find Tagg standing with his back to us, encouraging their kids to smile and “say cheese” as they happily surround Matt.
“Wow,” Keira says. “The line moved fast.”
We stand and watch the proceedings in silence. Keira waves to her kids. Her eyes go misty, and I’m not sure what she’s thinking.
I clear my throat. “It probably goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway. I’m really sorry you’re going through this. I know you and the kids will come out on the other side of it stronger and happier. And I am one hundred percent here for you as you navigate all the next steps.”
“We pressed pause on the divorce proceedings,” she says, her tone flat.
“You did? Why?” I pause. “Sorry, I want to be supportive, but— god, why?”
“Please don’t give me a hard time about this, Penn,” she pleads.
I place a hand on her shoulder. “Of course not. You’ll get no hard time from me. You just—You seemed so sure a few weeks ago.”
