Santa' Wayward Elf (18 page)

“I’ll make it up to you with a late dinner.” He flashed her
a grin as he shrugged into his jacket. “If everything goes as well as I think
it will with this raid tonight, I might be able to take a few extra days off
for New Year’s so we can do some more sightseeing.”

Although Sosie was thrilled about him taking some time off
from work, she was nervous about the raid. Over breakfast, he’d told her the
arrest could be the biggest of his career and that it would get a bad man off
the streets, but he hadn’t gone into too many more details other than saying
some stuff about SWAT teams, automatic weapons and search warrants. She didn’t
know what a SWAT team or a search warrant were, but the fact that guns were
going to be involved made her think it was going to be dangerous.

She nibbled worriedly on her lower lip as he shoved his gun
in its leather pouch under his jacket. “You’ll be careful, right?”

“I’m always careful.” He bent to kiss her, then opened the
door. “See you tonight, beautiful.”

After he left, Sosie leaned back against the door, savoring
the taste of his lips on hers. She knew it was silly and that Derek was
obviously capable at his job, but she couldn’t help worrying about him. That
man she’d seen at the precinct—Saldino—seemed as if he could be a very mean
person.

She gave herself a shake. Derek would be safe and when he
got home tonight, she’d laugh at how foolish her fears had been.

Pushing away from the door, she went into the bedroom to
change, only to stop as she took in the rumpled sheets and the vibrator sitting
on the bedside table. Unable to help herself, she crawled back into the
still-warm bed and wrapped her arms around Derek’s pillow, breathing in his
masculine scent. It made her feel warm all over. She smiled, thinking how lucky
she was to have found him. She didn’t know how, but somehow she’d find a way to
tell him who she really was and that she was in love with him.

Sosie sighed. It was tempting to stay in bed curled up with
Derek’s pillow all day, but she’d promised Ben she’d fix the air conditioner
today. After taking a quick shower, she got dressed and went down to Ben’s
apartment. He and Mabel were finishing breakfast.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she told them

“Don’t be silly.” Mabel smiled. “Sit and I’ll get you some
oatmeal.”

Sosie slipped into a chair. “Thanks, but I already ate
breakfast with Derek.”

“How about a cup of coffee, then?” the older woman asked.

“Okay.”

Sosie still didn’t think much of the taste yet, but since all
the BPs seemed to drink it, she supposed she should get used to it. Besides,
she didn’t want to hurt Mabel’s feelings.

An hour later, she and Ben went down to the basement so she
could rebuild the air conditioner. She’d always enjoyed this kind of work, so
it was easy to get lost in what she was doing. She still couldn’t believe she
was getting paid to do it. Her lips curved. She hadn’t officially earned any
money and yet she already found herself planning on how she’d spend it on
Derek. Maybe she’d buy him a hot dog at one of those carts on the streets. They
probably weren’t very healthy, but they smelled good. Surely one wouldn’t hurt.

Getting him a hot dog wasn’t enough for all he had done for
her, though. She chewed on her lower lip as she tried to think of something
else she could buy him—something a detective needed. He already had a gun, so
she couldn’t get him one of those. Maybe a colorful tie to wear to work, or a
pair of striped socks. A splash of red or green would go a long way to
brightening up the ensemble he wore.

She was humming a holiday song that always played in the
workshop back home when Ben came in. She looked up from the wires, chips and
electronic test equipment in front of her and realized with surprise that it
was almost noon. She’d been so wrapped up in what she was doing and thinking
about Derek that she hadn’t realized how much time had passed.

“You’ve been working on that thing nonstop all morning,” Ben
said. “Take a break and get something to eat. I don’t want Derek claiming I
overworked you on your first day.”

Sosie opened her mouth to tell him elves worked much longer
hours in between breaks, but bit her tongue when she realized what she’d almost
let slip.

She laughed. “Now that you mention it, I am a little hungry.
I’ll be back in a little while.”

On the way to the Derek’s apartment, she ran into Tracee and
Linda.

“I thought you were at work,” Sosie said.

“We were,” Tracee said. “We came home for lunch. Want to
join us?”

“I’d love to.”

Fifteen minutes later, they were seated around the table in
the kitchen eating tuna sandwiches and drinking diet soda. Sosie was familiar with
tuna, but never had it prepared with mayonnaise and served on bread. It was
especially delicious that way.

“How is Operation Get-Derek-To-Fall-In-Love-With-You going?”
Tracee asked, sipping her diet soda.

Sosie picked up the other half of her sandwich. “It’s going
great. Or at least I think it is. If everything goes well tonight, he’s going
to take a few days off from work so we can do some more sightseeing together.”

The redhead grinned. “That’s excellent. You’ll have him
eating out of your hand soon.”

Sosie frowned. “Do I want that? I mean, it sounds messy.”

“You definitely want that,” Linda said. “You want him to be
so crazy about you he barely knows which end is up. Men are much easier to
manipulate that way, trust me.”

Sosie set down the sandwich and reached for her glass, her
frown deepening. She didn’t want to think she was manipulating Derek, but that
was exactly what she was doing by not being honest with him about who she
really was. She tried to tell herself it didn’t matter, that it’d be easier to
tell him she was an elf after he fell in love with her, but it did matter.
Especially now that she knew was in love with him. Keeping something as
important as her elfin heritage a secret from him was tearing her up inside.

Tracee reached across the table to cover Sosie’s hand with
hers. “Hey, we were kidding about having Derek eating out of your hand. If
that’s not your bag, you can always have a good, old-fashioned, honest relationship.”

Tears stung Sosie’s eyes. “I can’t.”

“Why not?” Linda asked.

She reached up to wipe the tear trickling down her cheek.
“Because I haven’t been honest with him or anyone since I got here. Everything
has been a lie.”

Tracee frowned. “What do you mean?”

Sosie hesitated, unsure whether to go on. There was no going
back now, though. She’d already let the reindeer take off with the sled. She
took a deep breath. “For one thing, I’m not from Canada. I’m an elf.”

Silence met her words as both women stared at her. Sosie
felt her stomach knot. They didn’t believe her. Or they believed her and were
so horrified they were speechless. She didn’t know which scenario was worse.
She was torn between trying to come up with something to say and running out of
the apartment altogether when Linda spoke.

“You’re not from Canada? I was so sure you were. I’m
bummed.”

“The hell with Canada, Linda.” Tracee gave her friend an
impatient look. “Didn’t you hear what she said?”

“I heard her. She’s an elf.” Linda shrugged. “So that means
she’s from Finland or New Foundland or somewhere like that.”

The red-haired girl shook her head. “Damn, girlfriend, you
can be thick as a brick sometimes. She’s an elf—from the North Pole.”

Sosie watched as what Tracee said suddenly dawned on Linda.
She dreaded the next words out of the other woman’s mouth.

“Oh. That kind of elf.” The dark-haired girl grinned. “Cool!
I never knew you guys were real. Does that mean Santa is real, too?”

Sosie blinked. Whatever she’d expected Linda to say, it
wasn’t that. Sosie turned to Tracee. The redhead didn’t look freaked out by
learning Sosie was an elf any more than Linda had. If anything, she looked
curious.

“Well, is he?” Tracee asked when Sosie didn’t answer.

“Yes, Santa is real.”

Tracee sat back in her chair. “I knew there was something
different about you the moment I saw your pointy, little ears when Derek was
kissing you under the mistletoe.”

Sosie gasped, instinctively reaching up with both hands to
make sure her hair was still covering her ears.

Linda squealed. “You have pointy ears? Let me see.”

Sosie started to shake her head, but one look at Linda’s
face told her the other woman wasn’t going to let it go until Sosie showed them
her ears. Sosie took a deep breath and pulled her hair back to reveal them.

Linda’s eyes went wide. “Oh my God, those are so cool!”

Sosie stared at her incredulously. “You’re not freaked out?”

“No. Why would I be? They’re just pointed ears. It’s not as
if you’re an alien from another planet or anything.” She shot Tracee a venomous
glare. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me Sosie has elf ears.”

“Not my ears, not my secret,” the redhead said. “How did an
elf end up in New York City from the North Pole anyway? That is where you live,
right?”

Sosie nodded. She told them everything—what her life had
been like in the North Pole and how unhappy she’d been, her planned transfer to
the South Pole, the sled breaking down, and finally, meeting Derek. She knew
she shouldn’t dump all of it on two women she barely knew, but it felt so good
to finally be able to let it out. By the time she finished, both Tracee and
Linda were wiping tears from their cheeks.

Linda sighed. “That is so romantic. You came all this way
looking for love and stumbled right into Derek. It’s like a fairy tale. Or an
elf tale, I suppose.”

Sosie gave her a wan smile. “If only I could tell him all of
it.”

“Why can’t you?” Linda asked.

“I’m afraid of what he’ll say.”

“Derek’s already half in love with you, Sosie,” Tracee said.
“Finding out you’re an elf isn’t going to change how he feels about you.”

Sosie wasn’t so sure. He might not care she was an elf, but
she’d still lied to him about who she was. What if he couldn’t forgive her?

“Tracee’s right.” Linda sipped her diet soda. “You said
Derek’s going to take some time off, right? You can tell him then. By the way,
why does he have to wait to see how things go tonight to take some time off?
What’s going down tonight?”

“I’m not sure,” Sosie admitted. “He tried to explain it to
me, but it didn’t make much sense. He and the other detectives are going to
bust some mob boss named Sammy Saldino. He said arresting Saldino will make his
career, but to be honest, I’m worried. Even with SWAT and all their automatic
weapons, it sounds dangerous.”

“It is dangerous,” Linda said.

On the other side of the table, Tracee gave her friend a
warning look. Linda mumbled something under her breath, her face coloring.

Tracee waved a hand in the dark-haired woman’s direction.
“Don’t mind Linda. She’s a drama queen sometimes. Derek will be fine.”

Sosie looked from one woman to the other, her stomach tying
itself into a knot at the worried look on their faces. “What aren’t you telling
me?”

“Nothing,” Tracee said. “Really.”

“You’re lying,” Sosie said. “Derek is going to be in danger
tonight, isn’t he?”

Tracee was silent for so long Sosie thought the other woman
wasn’t going to answer. She was about to prompt her again when Linda finally
spoke.

“She needs to know, Tracee.”

“Know what?” Sosie demanded.

“That being a cop is dangerous,” Linda answered when Tracee
didn’t say anything.

“It is?” Sosie felt her mouth go dry. “I mean, I know Derek
carries a gun, but I thought everyone did. I didn’t know someone might try to
hurt him.”

Tracee shared another look with Linda, then reached out and
covered Sosie’s hand with hers. “Derek will be fine, honey. He’s a good cop and
he’s a smart one. He’ll be safe.”

Sosie didn’t say anything. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t
even seem to breathe. Everyone she’d met had been so nice to her since coming
here that she’d thought all the things she’d heard about rage and violence
among the BPs were stories made up by Elf Central so the elves would be afraid
to leave the safety of the North Pole. The thought that Derek might actually
get hurt tonight—or worse—just about scared her to death.

Dear Santa, how the fig was she ever going to keep it
together until he walked into the apartment and she knew for sure he was safe?

* * * *

Derek checked his watch in the dim glow of the streetlight.
Almost eight. Saldino and his men should be at the warehouse soon.

It’d already been a long-ass day. First, there’d been the
endless preoperational mission briefings between all the main players in the
raid, followed by some one-on-one meetings with key department and city
officials. After that, he and the rest of the task force, along with the
support personnel, had moved into position around Saldino’s West Street dock
warehouse. In addition to SWAT teams for entry, uniformed officers were on hand
for perimeter control and plainclothes detectives from other divisions were there
to act as backup and apprehend anyone who made it out of the warehouse. A lot
of the top brass and the assistant DA were also there.

It’d taken the better part of the day to get everyone in
position, but by sundown everything was ready. All they were waiting for was
Saldino to make his move. Then Derek could give the signal. Though the captain
and precinct commanders were on the scene, they were only there as observers.
This was Derek’s case, which meant he was going to be the one who pulled the
proverbial trigger. And took the blame if things went wrong. That meant nothing
could go wrong. If it did, he was going to be back in uniform on foot patrol.
If he was lucky.

Derek looked at his watch again. Eight on the nose. He and
the rest of the organized crime task force had set up in a warehouse a few
blocks down from Saldino’s place. From there, they could maintain a visual on
the front of the huge building and see when Saldino arrived. Assuming he
arrived by way of the main road along the docks. Not that it mattered which
entrance the mob boss used. Derek had made sure every square inch of the
building was covered by surveillance.