Naughty St. Nick by Calista Fox

up and ready to light the night.
    He’d also brought with him the two tall ladders used to remove the landmark several days ago. He and Rudy Raindear climbed them now as everyone watched. Once they’d settled the star in perfect alignment atop the tree, Nick plugged it into the outlet from the strand of lights that wrapped all the way to the top of the spruce.
    And voila —the town officially had all of its bling back.
    Just as Santa had requested.
    Speaking of... Suddenly, the sleigh Nick had slaved over came racing down the snow-covered street, pulled by reindeer. The now-jolly one let out a hearty ho-ho-ho as the sleigh pulled up to the curb on Prancer Street. The children raced toward it and piled into the sleigh for a ride on this beautiful, wintry night.
    Vixen joined Nick. With awe in her voice, she asked, “That’s not... ? I mean...not really, right?”
    “Have a little faith, baby.”
    She eyed him curiously.
    Nick clasped her small hands in his and said, “You should be wearing gloves. It’s cold out here.”
    “And forego the opportunity to show of this skating rink on my finger? Not in a million.”
    He chuckled. “Don’t you think it’s funny how no one was surprised that I proposed?”
    “Guess it’s true that other’s can see things more clearly when they’re standing outside looking in. Like my granddad. He knew. All along.” A tear filled her eye at the thought of her grandfather. Nick whisked the lone drop from her cheek and pulled her to him.
    He gave her a long hug, then said, “I promise everyday will be Christmas from now on. The way it was before. The way it was always meant to be in North Pole.”
    “I believe you. I believe in this .”
    He knew she wasn’t the only one. Not only were the townsfolk clearly convinced of it, but a familiar car pulled up along Main Street and out stepped his parents.
    Nick’s heart swelled with all the love he’d always felt as a child, plus the additional love that came from Vix.
    Releasing her, he asked, “Did you call them?”
    Her gaze followed his and she clapped her hands together at the sight before her—Nick’s parents instantly caught up in the Christmas glory that had returned to North Pole.
    “I didn’t,” she said. “But I’m so thrilled they’re here.”
    They were family for her, too, he knew. A new mother and father who adored her as much as she adored them.
    Nick eyed the luggage piled in the backseat of the car and knew they were coming home for good.
    He slid a glance toward the sleigh filled with kids that was about to depart, and Santa winked at him. Not only was Nick off his Naughty List, but he now knew who’d alerted his parents of the town’s revival.
    He mouthed thank you and then Santa was calling out the names of his reindeer and gliding down the street with a sleigh full of delighted and laughing children.
    Even if they didn’t know he was the real deal...Nick did.
    Nick suspected that, one day, his and Vixen’s kids would be a part of this new tradition. And, suddenly, he couldn’t wait for them to start their own family.
    “I do love you, Vix,” he said as he swept her up in his arms, making her giggle at the unexpected, public display of affection. “You wouldn’t mind if I moved into your house so my parents can have theirs back, would you?”
    “Of course not.”
    “And there’s like, what? Four bedrooms?”
    “Plenty for a small family,” she said, as though her thoughts ran the direction of his.
    He kissed the tip of her chilly nose, then said, “Define small...”
    Yes, the Christmas spirit was most definitely alive and well in North Pole, Maine.
     
     
    The End
     
    Thank you for reading Naughty St. Nick , Book Two in the
    SECRET SANTAS HOLIDAY COLLECTION .
    Look for Books One and Three on Amazon.
     

     

Dear Reader,
     
    I enjoyed writing a novella for this series with my good friends Erin Quinn and Mary Leo. It is a story meant to inspire the spirit of Christmas in all of us—that