Nick's Naughty Elf. Georgia St. Claire

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СКАЧАТЬ you were still suited up?”

      “Yup.”

      “Can’t be. The suit prevents everything except nice behavior.”

      “Sex is nice.”

      “That’s your human maleness talking. For Santas, sex is only nice if you’re married, and last time I checked, you aren’t, unless you forgot to invite me.”

      “When the time comes, you’ll be the first to know, I want you to be my best man.”

      “Thanks, coz, I’m honored. So, do you think the suit is malfunctioning somehow?”

      Nick screwed up his face as he considered the possibility. “I wouldn’t have thought so; because except for my behavior towards the elf, everything else is just as it should be. I really tested it to the limits during the press conference I had to give. I wanted to send the ‘I’m Santa, don’t mess with me and what I tell you’ message. It worked right up to expectations.”

      Niccolo laughed. “Yeah, you did a great job. Here, the spanking issue kind of got buried in the whole discussion about the things you told the reporters. And the clapping at the end was genius! They played the tapes made by the witnesses and compared them to what the press recorded and they are extremely similar. People don’t know what to make of the whole thing. There was some concern that Santa may have been applauding the elf that was swearing. There are always people who are out in right field.”

      “Left field, Niccolo. But good try; you’re doing well with your American idioms. Next time you serve here you should be spot on perfect.”

      “Santa is international. I don’t know why he can’t be Italian,” Niccolo complained, sulking.

      Nick laughed. “I agree with you, coz, but when in the US, Santa speaks American English, that’s how it’s always been and that means it will always be. Continuity is everything in our business.”

      “Yeah, I know. So now, what are you going to do?”

      “Well, I’ve obviously got to file a report about everything. But I expect I’ll just have to play it out. There have been Santas in the news before, and unfortunately, never for good things. Would you be willing to try to find out about the whole ‘stirring’ thing for me?”

      “Sure, that’s what best men are for, right? Diverting some of the trouble away. You deal with the press about the spanking; I’ll see what I can discover about the whole emotional aspect. You lost your temper and shouted, you didn’t just ‘stir’.” Niccolo chuckled. “Although I’ll tell you, when I’m not suited up and I see some of those sexy elf outfits, I’m stirring too!”

      “She wasn’t wearing a sexy outfit. It was one of those old-fashioned velvet elf dresses that goes down to her knees, long sleeves, and high lace neckline. Nickson’s has been in business for almost a hundred years. These are the original pieces. We're talking what was sexy a hundred years ago, and keeping in mind that elves are nice."

      “You thought she was sexy? Dressed like that?”

      “I never said I thought she was sexy. I had a sexual response when I thought she was cute.”

      There was silence as both men contemplated that statement. “Wow,” Niccolo finally said.

      “She’s tiny and elf-like.” Nick felt he needed to explain things better.

      “Wow,” Niccolo said again. “Your goose may be cooked. You were attracted to an elf when you were Santa.”

      “Oh bells! You’re right, that’s not good. But she’s not really an elf.”

      “And you’re not really Santa. But you were both wearing early pieces and you know they’re more powerful than the ones they issue now. Come to think on it, she shouldn’t have been able to swear. What do you think is going on? I’ll try to be subtle when I ask around, but I don’t think I’m going to be able to fool anyone for long. Combined with why you are in the news, they’re going to know.”

      “I understand. Just do what you can. We can’t expect a miracle.” Both men chuckled at that statement and the call ended.

      Nick placed his phone on the table next to his chair and turned his head towards the doorway. “Come in here, Marcie. Eavesdropping is very naughty.”

      She crept in timidly and stood in front of him, her eyes downcast. “I’m sorry, Nick. I didn’t start out meaning to, I just didn’t want to interrupt.”

      “You should have turned around and walked away or continued into the room. Hovering out of sight and listening was very wrong.”

      She nodded in agreement. “Yes, I know. But I just couldn’t seem to make my feet move. Are you going to spank me again?”

      “Yes. I have a very, very strong dislike of being overheard and I want to ensure that you don’t do this again. But first, I want to know what you heard and what you think it means.”

      “I woke up and I didn’t know where I was, so I started walking down the hall and then I heard you shout that something would be horrible and then I think you were talking about me because you said ‘naughty little elf’. But I’m confused because you said something about sexual and that I wasn’t sexy and it didn’t sound like you cared for my dress.” She bristled at that point. “The store gives me the outfit to wear, and I can’t help what it looks like!” She looked downcast again. “Then you said I wasn’t an elf. Are you going to fire me? I’m really, really sorry about swearing. I don’t know what came over me. It was just so frustrating that your picture kept coming out slightly smeared and blurry and I really wanted you to look nice!”

      “I thought you said Joey’s picture was smeared.”

      “Well, it was Joey’s picture, for him to take home. But it was your part of the picture that kept getting messed up, and I wanted it to be perfect!”

       Slush! Her emotional response that triggered the swearing was related to me, just like mine was to her. That is really concerning. We shouldn’t work together any more. Who knows what could happen tomorrow with the children around?

      Nick stood up. “I couldn’t take you home; there were too many reporters waiting at your building. So I brought you here for the night. Come with me, I’ll give you one of my tee shirts to sleep in tonight. That elf outfit is antique and too special to be mistreated.”

      He led the way out of the study. “Twice now you have been very naughty and while you are going to be spanked, I think that perhaps you should be replaced by someone else to be my elf.” He was walking down the hall towards the bedrooms as he spoke, but as he said the last few words, his equilibrium shifted and he had to lean against the wall to keep from falling. His mind latched onto the words in his head, replaying over and over, ‘someone else to be my elf’. It was like the robot in the old TV show intoning ‘Danger, Will Robinson’; his body had just told him in no uncertain terms that replacing Marcie with another elf was not a wise decision. Double slush! I’m in big trouble!

      Following behind Nick, Marcie saw him stumble and stop to rest against the wall. She gasped and reached out to hold his arm, thinking that somehow she would try to prevent him from falling. Her attention was focused on his safety and it took a minute for his words to sink in. She blanched. СКАЧАТЬ