Sleigh Bell Sweethearts

“Well, clearly this is a girl reindeer. See? No antlers.” She did the clapping thing again. “Not my reindeer. Not my problem.”

He laughed. “I hate to break it to you, but male reindeer shed their antlers after rutting season. During this time of year, female reindeer are the only ones with antlers, Miss Smarty Pants.”

“Miss Smarty Pants?” She narrowed her gaze. The grit Alec saw there almost made him feel sorry for Palmer. “You think this is funny?”

“A little.” His shoulders shook, but he had the good sense not to laugh out loud again.

“This is not a joke. I should...should...” She appeared to struggle for words. For once. “Oh, I don’t know...fire you or something.”

“Fire me?” Now he did laugh. Loud. And hard. “Go right ahead, sweetheart. I’m sure the fact that you can’t tell the boy reindeer from the girls won’t be a problem at all. Especially during rut.”

She gave her hair a defiant toss over her shoulder. Alec was certain it was purely for dramatic effect since the arctic wind was swirling around them with increasing force. Palmer was already half buried in snow. “I could figure it out.”

“I’m sure you could,” he said with an ironic grin. “Things seem to be going so well for you on your first day of reindeer-farm ownership. I have no doubt it will all be smooth sailing from here. Why would you need me?”

She said nothing.

Alec should have stopped talking then and there. He wasn’t sure why he didn’t, except that Zoey had a way of making him forget to think. “In case you haven’t noticed, no one else is out here helping you. Like it or not, I’m all you’ve got.”

The moment the words left his mouth, he knew he’d crossed some sort of invisible boundary line.

She blinked at him, wide-eyed. Then Alec watched in horror as her chin wobbled, as if she might cry. That smallest of movements was enough to make him feel as if he’d just told some kid that Santa wasn’t real.

He wished he could take the words back.

No. That was a lie. What he really wanted was to touch her. He had no idea where it came from, but he was overcome with the sudden desire to reach out and brush her cheek with the back of his hand.

What was happening to him? The altitude must be getting to him. Or the cold. He’d heard about people who’d suffered from hallucinations on the verge of freezing to death.

He’d been colder in his life. And he obviously wasn’t close to freezing to death. So where were these thoughts coming from? Zoey was watching him now, which unnerved him even more. At least her chin had quit wobbling.

Thank You, God.

He frowned. He hadn’t thought about God in a long time. Not since his Sunday-school days, which had been years ago. Maybe he really was losing it.

He shoved his hands in the pockets of his parka and strode past Zoey, toward Palmer.

“Come on. Let’s do this,” he muttered.

When he heard Zoey fall into step behind him in the snow, he wasn’t altogether sure whether to feel troubled or relieved.

* * *

Like it or not, I’m all you’ve got.

Zoey didn’t know why Alec’s words affected her quite the way they did. It wasn’t as though she didn’t have anyone to lean on. There were plenty of people in Aurora who cared about her. And she could always count on the church. She knew that for a fact. Aurora Community Church had been there when she needed support most. Zoey herself now headed up their outreach program, so she knew firsthand the importance of the church’s mission to reach out to the community.

But her various friends and the church weren’t exactly at the forefront of her mind as she stared down the reindeer that seemed perfectly content to nap in the middle of the airport runway. A reindeer that apparently did belong to her, after all.

What was she doing? She’d thought she could power through this situation and solve the problem on her own. She’d even insisted that Clementine and Anya stay and finish their pedicures. She was accustomed to taking care of herself. She’d been doing it nearly half her life.

Clearly this time she was in over her head. But having Alec Wynn laugh at her was more than she could take. She’d reached the tipping point.

I should fire him, she thought as she tramped through the snow behind him. I really should. Was being mean grounds for termination? If not, it should be.

But the closer they got to Palmer, the less Zoey fantasized about ridding herself of Alec. The reindeer looked a lot bigger now that they were bearing down on him. Huge. And wooly. Zoey had seen reindeer up close and personal at Aurora’s Reindeer Run every spring. But those reindeer looked smaller and sleeker, somehow. Maybe they were girls. Or just wimpy reindeer. Who knew?

Had she really thought she could get this massive, hairy thing to budge all on her own? Maybe she would fire Alec after they moved Palmer out of the way.

“Scared?” Alec asked, as they stood a mere five feet away from the animal.

A little. “No,” she said, doing her best to avoid his penetrating blue gaze.

He lifted a dubious brow. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. Reindeer are more afraid of you than you are of them. If this was any other member of your herd, you could have come out here, waved your arms and yelled shoo and the problem would have been solved.”

She wondered if it was the truth or if he was just trying to be nice. Then she remembered who was doing the talking. “So my strategy wasn’t too far off the mark, then?”

“No, it wasn’t.” The corner of his mouth lifted into a half grin.

Zoey half relaxed. “Why won’t that technique work on Palmer?”

“Because he’s stubborn as a mule.” His grin deepened, revealing a hint of a dimple on the right side of his face. “Just like someone else I’ve recently met.”

“I’m not stubborn. I’m self-sufficient.”

He pinned her with a sardonic look. “Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart.”

Zoey’s face grew warm, despite the flurry of snowflakes landing against her skin. She wished he’d quit calling her sweetheart...not that it sounded in any way complimentary. “So, what do we do now?”

“I have a secret weapon.” He pulled a carrot from the pocket of his parka.

Zoey laughed. “Do you always run around with vegetables in your pockets?”

“On my one and only afternoon off?” He tossed the carrot in the air and caught it. “No, not usually. I stopped by the hotel kitchen just now. It was a necessary diversion.”

“I wondered how you’d ended up out here.” Guilt pricked her consciousness. He wasn’t even on the clock. He’d probably been sitting inside drinking coffee or something when he’d heard about Palmer.

And here he was, with a pocketful of carrots.

Like it or not, I’m all you’ve got.

Something told her Alec Wynn might not be quite as dangerous as he looked.

“Hey there, bud,” he called to Palmer. “What are you doing all the way out here?”

It was probably the sweetest tone she’d ever heard come out of his mouth. His voice could melt an ice floe.

Dangerous. Without a doubt.