Fletcher
I’m drink! And corny!
was supposed to be doing inventory, but his mind kept wandering back to his weekend with Micah. It had only been two days since he’d walked her out to her car before his shift as Santa. And in those two days, he replayed everything they’d done together. Sex on Sunday morning had been quite something, watching her body buck and roll against his, her pussy clenching around him so tight he was sure he’d black out. The rest of Sunday was spent pretty much the same way, except for bathroom and food breaks.
If that wasn’t enough, he was also smiling at the fact that she loved him.
That first night they shared together sixteen years ago was imprinted on his soul and he’d accepted that not only would he never see Mick again, he’d never connect with anyone that way either. Then she waltzed back into his life looking like the best thing on earth and he took that as a sign. And the last three weeks were proof that he’d made the right decision to follow the sign.
Except, he was now so distracted, he couldn’t get any work done.
When Emery and Nico had come in for their lessons the day before, had let them go wild with their instruments. Which was a terrible idea, because despite being interested in learning, neither of them had any musical talent. He knew the right thing was to dissuade them from pursuing this any further, but at the same time, he felt bad about crushing their spirits. He would have to find a different method to get them into the right musical direction during their session later that afternoon.
“Why aren’t you picking up your phone?”
jumped at the voice behind him and knocked his head against the shelf that held all the cymbals. The sound of them clashing together echoed through the room and he groaned as he turned to glare at Erin, who smiled at him sheepishly. didn’t bother trying to steady the cymbals, he nudged Erin out of the room and closed the door, rubbing the top of his head as he blinked at her.
“What are you doing here?”
“Thought I’d spend Christmas in Sirena Beach.”
stuck a finger in his ear and wiggled it before opening and closing his mouth, like that would get rid of the ringing in his head. “I’m spending Christmas with Mi…”
“The woman from the photograph, I figured.” Erin grinned and started towards his office, hand shoved deep into her large bag. “Speaking of which…”
He took the phone she held out to him and couldn’t even fight back the smile that stretched across his face when he saw the photograph. It was from the night Micah found out he was Santa, they were standing below mistletoe, arms around each other, grinning like fools in love. The paparazzi had caught Emery in the shot too, but they didn’t get her face, which he was grateful for. The thing that got his attention was how happy both he and Micah looked. The joy was practically blinding.
“So…who is she?”
“Micah George, local. The one that got away.”
Erin sat in his office chair, leaving to sit in the uncomfortable ones on the other side. “You mentioned that already.”
“I met her years ago while on tour with The Rescuers. Best night of my life.”
“Groupie?”
“Not even close. She was a fan I pulled out of the crowd and spent the night with.”
Erin watched him curiously, head tilted to the side and he blew out a frustrated breath. Outside of Jack, Soren and Brandy he hadn’t made a lot of close friends during his band years. And when he moved to Sirena Beach, it was hard to connect with people who were already part of friend groups. So when Hank set him up with Erin, was happy to realize that the two of them were compatible as friends and not romantic partners. Since then, she’d gotten to know him pretty well and could read him like a book.
Which was why he didn’t startle when she said, “You’re in love with her.”
He nodded, dragging a hand through his hair. “Have been since the night I met her. She’s amazing, E.”
“Do I get to meet her?”
“Sure.”
She arched an eyebrow. “I expected you to protest or make excuses.”
“No point,” he said, using a pencil from the desk to tie his hair up. “She’s important to me and you’re my best friend, so why hide you from each other?”
Her eyes widened and she released a loud cackle. “Best friend?”
“I regret everything.” He groaned, rubbing his temples. Between the clashing of the cymbals still in his ears and the force with which he hit his head, was in some amount of pain.
She laughed, swinging her feet onto the table. “Tell me everything about her.”
smiled this time, because asking him to talk about Micah was the easiest thing in the world. He could talk about her forever . The flavor of ice cream she preferred, how she tucked her curls behind her ear when she was cooking or the different smiles she had for Emery. He could describe the details of her perfume and the number of freckles she had dusted over her nose.
Instead, he said, “Single mom and she raised the most incredible kid, who has great taste in music, but is tone deaf. Works as a speech therapist with the Haven Clinic, is the strongest woman I’ve ever known.”
“That’s not what I asked, . Tell me everything .”
He chuckled, combing a hand through his hair. “She’s got tattoos that her daughter either picked or drew for her, she’s badass and drinks wine like it’s water. Micah is passionate about her kid and the people in her life. She fights me on who the best female rockstar is every single time, she cleans up as she cooks and you know how much I love that. She’s tough as nails and wild in bed.” Clearing his throat, he thought about the fruit roll-up blow job and the fact that she did it once more before they parted ways on Sunday. “She’s also the woman who inspired “Mermaid”,” he added with a shrug when Erin’s eyes widened.
“Holy shit, you have been in love with her forever.”
He smirked and stretched out his arm to drag his thumb over the cerulean mermaid tail. On their first date , Erin had asked about the tattoo and told her that it was for a woman who inspired a song many years ago.
“Does she deserve you?”
Frowning, he looked at his friend. “Of course she does.”
Erin smiled, shaking her head. “Take off your rose colored glasses and tell me the truth.”
“She does, Erin. She’s never been interested in me for my money or my fame, she doesn’t want anything from me other than…me. Her kid too. They’re nothing like so many of the women I’ve met over the years.”
“Okay.” Erin nodded, searching his eyes with a small smile. “And she wants to stick around even though she knows you’re Santa?”
The corner of his mouth kicked up in a grin. “She’s not a fan of the holiday, but definitely has a Santa kink and I’m happy to indulge her.”
Erin made a gagging sound and waved her hands at him. “Please spare me the details of your kinky girlfriend.”
“You brought it up.”
Faking another gag, Erin leaned back in the chair. “So this means you’re sticking around Sirena Beach for the foreseeable future.”
“Or until she gets tired of me, yeah.”
“Judging by the way she looked at you in the picture, I’m going to assume that she’ll never tire of you. Besides, you’re a pretty decent guy.”
“Thanks?” chuckled and patted his pockets before realizing he didn’t have his phone. “Tell you what, why don’t we do lunch or coffee tomorrow? That way you can meet Micah and Emery, if they’re up for it.”
“Kicking me out already?”
“Gotta finish inventory before the kids come in.”
“Riiiiiiight, that’s how you reconnected with your lady love. How’s that going, by the way?”
sighed. “The aforementioned tone deaf kid is going to make me get behind the drums one day just to show her how it’s done. But, seeing them get excited about something and want to learn is pretty cool. Might keep it up if I can find the energy and time.”
“Maybe next time you should do it when you’re not playing Santa, because you’re gonna need more time for your little family.”
Your little family . He smiled at that, his heart racing a million miles. That’s who Micah and Emery were to him, his family. He’d lost the closest thing he had to a father when Hank died and outside of Benson and Erin he didn’t have anybody else. Until the George women welcomed him into their lives.
“I didn’t realize that being in love made you look like a dumbfuck,” she said, flipping her phone around to show him a picture she’d taken seconds ago. He was leaning back, totally relaxed and the most content smile on his face.
“Once you meet her, you’ll get it.”
Erin snorted and got up, grabbing her things. “Text me about tomorrow once you find your phone.”
“Come by the Village tonight, I’ll show you around.”
“As long as you can score me some reindeer antlers.”
rolled his eyes and followed Erin to the front of the store as Benson walked in. His friends paused as they looked the other over. Then with a playful handshake he couldn’t track, they laughed and walked past each other. frowned as he glanced between the two of them and followed Erin outside. He would get to the bottom of that look eventually.
“Stay out of trouble, E.”
She turned to him with a wicked grin. “Where’s the fun in that?” And then she strutted off on her high heels to a cherry red SUV. watched her climb in and drive off before walking back into the store to finish his job for the day. His phone started ringing before he got too far and found the device buried under piles of sheet music.
Swiping it open, he went through the notifications—five missed calls from Jensen, a bunch of texts from Emery about being late for lessons, a few missed calls from Erin and a text from Micah. He forwarded the mistletoe picture to Micah and grinned as he leaned against the wall and texted her.
Maybe we should redo the whole ‘I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus’ thing for the newer generation.
Micah
*heart eyes emoji*
I love this! The picture, not us redoing or recreating anything.
So you’re not upset that the paparazzi are following us around?
Micah
At least they’re taking pictures of me at my best, can’t hate them for that.
And she was right. When he’d seen her in that red dress, he’d almost abandoned his Santa duties and dragged her into a dark corner. Her legs were on display and the way it cinched at her waist made his mouth water. Now that he’d seen her completely naked and knew every inch of her body with his eyes shut, he needed to see her only in dresses.
You always look your best, Mick.
Micah
Aww, look at you being the best boyfriend.
I thought we agreed on Stallion.
Micah
We agreed on nothing of the sort.
You’re still my love bug, though.
Micah
*eyeroll emoji*
*kissy face emoji*
Been thinking about you all day.
Micah
Oh yeah? What have you been thinking about?
Everything. All of it. Fruit roll-ups and caramel sauce and ice cubes and drumsticks.
Fucking hell, I have a lesson with your kid this evening.
Micah
Don’t think about drumsticks, Fletch.
Well, thinking about you while she’s here isn’t any better.
Micah
That’s true. How about you think about…
My best friend wants to meet you.
Micah
Who is your best friend?
Erin Decker. She’s based out of San Diego, but she’s in town for a few days and was hoping to meet the woman that has me smiling like a loon.
Micah
Did you tell HER about the drumsticks and fruit roll-ups?
I thought we were trying to stop me from thinking about that?
Micah
*monkey covering mouth emoji*
But I’d love to meet your best friend. What did you have in mind?
Coffee tomorrow?
Micah
Mrs. Hershey booked a session for tomorrow afternoon, but I’ve got a late start. So breakfast?
Bring Emery too.
Micah
Oh wow, full court press.
Hardly. I told her about Em and she wants to meet both of you.
Micah
We’ll be there, Fletch.
Have fun tonight, Mick.
Micah
You know I will. *kissy face emoji*
Since Micah was out with her friends, had every intention of working until the Village closed. He’d promised Jensen that he’d say for clean-up a few nights of the week and it worked out for the evening. He’d already texted Erin about breakfast with the George girls, so his best friend could plan her day around that. Instead, he focused entirely on being Santa that evening. Even though memories of Micah from over the weekend filtered through every so often, was determined to hang out with all the kids.
But he was starting to feel the exhaustion. Every year, towards the end of his Santa run, would start to wilt. The combination of running the store and functioning like a normal adult, along with being Santa felt like a lot. This year, he’d also added music lessons and dating; it was more than he was used to. But he wasn’t complaining. And he wouldn’t walk away from Santa duty unless it was absolutely necessary.
It had been another evening of squatting and bending to talk to kids, having them whisper in his ear about their hopes and dreams. So when he and his elves—Portia and Kyle had finally taken their respective shots and were now going on a date—packed up for the evening, he was ready to crawl into bed. Except, the minute he climbed into his truck, his phone rang and Micah’s name flashed on the screen.
Swiping to answer the call, he smiled. “Love bug.”
“Fleeeeeetttttch,” she squealed and then giggled, the rest of her words a garbled mess.
“Hey sweetheart, you okay?”
“I’m drink! And corny! Horny!”
He chuckled at the slurring and fumbling. “How corny are you, babe?”
“So fracking corny. Wanna come to me?”
“Where are you?”
“Dunno, stallion. But find me.”
Before the call dropped, he heard someone say Loose Lasso. Not that he expected a western themed bar to exist in Sirena Beach, but when he pulled it up on the map, he was proven wrong. Even though he was exhausted, his girl was clearly drunk and wasn’t going to let her climb into someone else’s car and get herself home. It took him less than ten minutes to reach the bar and when he pulled up in the parking lot, he heard someone call out his name.
hopped out of the truck and grinned at the sight of Micah and her friends holding each other up as they giggled and waved at him. The other two were beautiful, he was sure. But his focus was entirely on Micah wearing a white lacy top with a deep neck that was tucked into high waisted jeans and boots. She was an absolute vision.
“It’s my stallion!” Micah squealed and her two friends joined in on the weird sounds.
Tatum wiggled her fingers at and offered him a sloppy smile. “.”
“Love bug. Tatum. How are you ladies doing tonight?”
Micah scrunched up her nose and leaned against the one with brightly colored hair. “Is that a good nickname?” When her friend shrugged and both of them swayed, reached out to steady them. “You found me,” she whispered, hands resting on his arms.
“Yeah, honey, I found you,” he said with a smile and chuckled when Micah stumbled into his arms. Brushing a kiss over her sweaty temple, looked at her friends. “Can you three wait here? I’ll bring the truck closer.”
Micah settled between them again and shot him a drunken smile, along with a messy wink and he laughed as he went to get his truck. He brought it right up to where they were standing, and one by one helped Micah and her friends into the backseat. He knew there was no point trying to figure out where any of them lived, so he figured he’d take them back to Micah’s place. But on the way, they insisted he stop and get them greasy food.
Parked outside Stacked Buns—the only place in Sirena Beach that was open that late— made sure that Micah and her friends were well hydrated and fed. Sadie and Tatum stayed in the backseat while they stuffed their faces. Micah and sat on the tailgate as she inhaled her food. He picked at his fries, watching her not give a shit about anything but eating.
“I didn’t mean to get drunk,” she said, mouth stuffed with food.
“As long as you had fun, nothing else matters.”
She nodded, glancing at him for a moment. “Thanks for coming to get me.”
“Always, Mick.”
She looked sad and also a little worried, which he put down to her coming down from her high. But it was in the way she refused to meet his eyes that had him worried.
“Hey,” he said softly, touching her chin to draw her attention to him. “What’s wrong?”
“You’re not mad, right? I know you’re tired after your day and looking after your drunk girlfriend is not fun.”
Frowning, he shook his head. “I’m glad you called me, Mick. I’m glad I could be here for you. No matter what I was doing or where I was, I would have shown up for you. And as for being mad? Not in a million years. You trusted me to be there for you, that’s all that matters.”
“I love you,” she whispered, sounding so small and scared. He tapped her nose with a finger and then scooted close enough to wrap his arms around her shoulders.
“Love you too, Mick.”