Santa' Wayward Elf (5 page)

“Oh.” He regarded her in silence. “Couldn’t you take a cab
home?”

If she weren’t about to cry, she would have laughed. He had
no idea how hard it was going to be for her to get home. She caught her
trembling lower lip between her teeth and shook her head again.

Derek must have realized she was close to tears because he
reached out and gently brushed her hair back from her face. “Hey, it’s okay.
I’ll pay for a cab for you.”

Sosie had learned on the news that a cab was a street sled
people hired on a short-term basis to drive them wherever they wanted to go.
The only problem was that there wasn’t any street sled that could drive her to
the North Pole. She couldn’t tell him that, though.

“It’s kind of you to offer, but I live a long way up north.
I don’t think a cab could take me there.”

He looked surprised at that. “You’re not from New York?”

She shook her head. “I’m just visiting.”

“And your friends up and left you? Well, that sucks.” He
thought a moment. “Do you have their address in the city? You know, where you
were going to stay while you were in town?”

“No.” She gave him a shrug. “I thought I would stay with my
ride and that would get me where I was going.”

Again, not really a lie.

“Okay. So you can’t call your friends and you can’t take a
cab to their place. Do you have money for a hotel?”

Sosie knew enough about the BP world and money to know she
wasn’t going to get anywhere without it. “I left everything I had in the
transport…with my friends.”

He didn’t say anything. Probably because he thought she was
dimwitted. Looking at the mess she’d landed herself in, she was beginning to
think so, too.

“Maybe you could suggest someplace I could stay that
wouldn’t require money?” she asked hopefully.

He let out a snort. “Not anyplace you’d be safe.”

Figgy. She’d been hoping he might know of a nice park or a
nearby forest. The weather was much milder than it was up at the North Pole.
She could sleep under a fir tree.

She glanced up at the roof across the street again. “Maybe I
should wait here in case they come back to get me.”

He scowled. “You can’t stay here all night. You’d freeze to
death. Besides, it’s too dangerous.”

She hadn’t thought about it being dangerous, but then she
remembered what had almost happened to her in the men’s washroom and she realized
he was right.

“Look, why don’t you spend the night at my place?”

Sosie blinked. Derek was offering to let her stay in his
home, a woman he’d met in a club only a few hours ago and barely knew at all?
She never imagined a BP could be so considerate or so nice. Not only had he
protected her from those mean men, but he’d followed her outside afterward to
make sure she was okay. Of course, he would downplay the whole thing and say
he’d only been doing his job, but she knew he’d done it because he was a sweet,
caring man. She could tell.

“Yeah,” he said when she didn’t answer. “I completely
understand how uncomfortable you’d be staying with a guy you just met. Hell,
you don’t know me from Adam. Look, why don’t I put you up in a hotel instead.
How does that sound?”

She frowned. Figgy. She didn’t know who Adam was or why he
thought she was acquainted with the man, but it was obvious Derek thought she
was nervous about staying with him. He couldn’t be more wrong. He’d risked his
life to protect her, so she knew she’d be safe with him. And spending the night
in a warm bed was way better than sleeping on the ground in the forest.

“Actually, I’d be more uncomfortable staying in a strange
place where I didn’t know anyone,” she said. “If you wouldn’t mind, I’d very much
like to stay at your place.”

She hoped he would be okay with that because she didn’t want
to stay in a hotel. According to
The Polar Evening News
, those places
were absolutely teeming with bed bugs. If there was one thing she was terrified
of, it was bed bugs. She’d actually never seen a bed bug of course—or any bug
for that matter since there weren’t any up in the frozen north—but the thought
of seeing one of the wiggling things the news anchor had described was enough
to make her shiver.

To her relief, he smiled. “I don’t mind at all. Come on, we
can catch the subway down the street.”

Sosie had heard of a subway, but the news stories hadn’t
prepared her for how big—and loud—they were. As she waited for Derek to buy her
a ticket from one of the dispensing machines along the wall, she had to resist
the urge to cover her ears. She didn’t know how he could stand the noise, but
apparently it didn’t bother him because he paid no attention to the rumbling
sound as they descended a set of stairs to the building’s lower level.

There seemed to be as many people waiting for the subway as
there had been up on the street, and Sosie tried hard not to stare at them too
much while she stood there with Derek. She didn’t want to let on that she was a
visitor to their city. Although from the way the people stared back, she began
to think they might have caught on anyway.

To her surprise, almost everyone in the waiting area got on
the same subway she and Derek did. She automatically looked around for a seat,
but they were all taken. She was about to ask Derek if they were going to have
to get off and wait for another subway when the thing suddenly sped forward.
She stumbled and would have fallen if a strong arm hadn’t wrapped around her
waist. Startled, she looked up to find Derek gazing down at her.

“You okay?” he asked.

Sosie opened her mouth to tell him she was, but all that
came out was a gasp. She’d already come to the conclusion he was well built
from how broad his shoulders were underneath the leather jacket, but she hadn’t
known how hard his body was beneath all those clothes. Snickerdoodle, the man
was as solid as a chimney.

She blushed when she realized he was still waiting for an
answer. “I-I’m fine. We took off kind of fast.”

He chuckled, but didn’t take his arm from around her waist. “You’ve
never been on a subway before, have you?”

She shook her head. “We don’t have subways where I come
from.”

Actually, they didn’t have any form of public transportation
in the North Pole, other than the transport sleds, of course. But they were
only for running down to the land of the big people. Snow City was so small
that everyone simply walked from place to place.

With Derek’s arm around her, Sosie didn’t notice how loud
the subway was or how many people were crammed inside the small compartment
with them. All she could focus on was him. While she tried not to be obvious,
she couldn’t help gazing up at him from beneath her lashes whenever he wasn’t
looking. She hadn’t noticed before, but up close she saw his brown eyes had
little flecks of gold in them that seemed to shimmer when they caught the
light. He had a trace of scruff on his chiseled jaw, too. It was a shade
lighter than his dark, silky hair, and she had to stop herself from reaching up
to run her hand over his cheek. Afraid she might give in, she turned her
attention to his wide, sensuous mouth instead. That was a mistake. Then she not
only had to fight the urge to caress his cheek, but to kiss him, too. She
stifled a groan, wondering how she could be expected to control herself when he
was quite possibly the most gorgeous being she’d ever seen among elf or man.

Sosie was almost relieved when Derek announced the next stop
was theirs. While he didn’t keep his arm wrapped around her as they made their
way up the steps and out onto the street, he stayed close in the crowd of
people, occasionally putting his hand on the small of her back and sending
shivers of pleasure through her.

Derek lived within easy walking distance of the subway in a
big, four-story brick building. Although it was late, the Christmas tree in the
center atrium was still lit and Sosie’s lips curved at the brightly twinkling
lights as he led her up the steps to the topmost floor.

“My apartment is kind of small,” he said as he stopped in
front of a door at the end of the hallway. He gave her an apologetic look over
his shoulder as he slid a key into the lock. “I wasn’t expecting company, so
it’s kind of messy, too.”

“That’s okay. I don’t mind.”

But Derek’s apartment wasn’t small at all, not compared to
her one-room dwelling back home. It wasn’t very messy, either. Other than some
dirty dishes in the sink, the place was surprisingly neat.

“As you can see, we’ve got the living room and kitchen out
here.” He led her down a small hallway, turning on the light above them as he
went. “Back here is the bedroom and the bathroom. You can have the bed. I’ll
sleep out on the couch.”

Sosie’s gaze went to the bed. Figgy, it was huge. Two of the
big people could easily fit in it, much less an elf like her and a man Derek’s
size.

She turned back to him. “There’s plenty of room in the bed
for both of us. Are you sure you want to sleep out on the couch? It can’t be
very comfortable.”

His mouth quirked. “While I’m sure that would be a lot of
fun, I think I’d better be a gentleman and sleep out on the couch.”

Sosie was disappointed, but she supposed she could see his
point. She wouldn’t get any sleep at all if she was in such close proximity to
that hard body of his. Not that she would have minded. She might be
sleep-deprived when morning came, but she was sure sleeping next to him would
be more fun than a snowball fight.

“Do you need a shirt or something to sleep in?”

She shook her head. “No, thanks. I sleep naked.” At his
raised brow, she blushed and quickly added, “But since I’m a guest, maybe it
would be better to wear a shirt.”

He nodded. “Much.”

Sosie nibbled on her lower lip as he opened a dresser drawer
and pulled out a shirt. She hadn’t meant to make him uncomfortable. Perhaps she
shouldn’t mention being naked around him again since it seemed to cause him
concern.

“It’ll be big on you, but all my shirts will be like that,”
he said, handing it to her. “I just realized I never asked your name back at
the club.”

“It’s Sosie.”

“Sosie.” His mouth edged up. “That’s pretty.”

“Thank you.” She looked up at him from beneath her lashes.
“And thank you again for letting me stay with you. It’s very kind.”

Derek grinned. “Don’t worry about it. I couldn’t let you
stand outside the club all night. Besides, what kind of guy would I be if I
left you to fend for yourself on Christmas Eve?”

“Not a very nice one, I would say.”

He laughed. “Okay. Well, I’m going to go hit the sack. If
you need anything, shout.”

Sosie wasn’t sure his neighbors would appreciate her
shouting in the middle of the night, but she nodded anyway. That must have
satisfied Derek because he told her to have a good night, then left.

Taking off her clothes, Sosie folded them neatly and put
them on top of the dresser, then pulled Derek’s shirt over her head. It was
dark blue with the words
Property of the NYPD
across the front in
scrawling letters. She couldn’t help but wonder why Derek had a shirt that was
the property of someone named NYPD, but it was still nice anyway. She laughed
as she looked down at herself. He was right about it being big on her. The
thing hung down to her knees.

Crossing the room, she quietly opened the door and slipped
into the bathroom so she could clean up before going to bed. Hoping Derek
wouldn’t mind, she squeezed a bit of his toothpaste on her finger and swiped it
across her teeth, then used some of his green mouthwash. They didn’t taste as
good as the candy cane-flavored stuff she was used to at home, but they weren’t
bad.

When she walked out of the bathroom, the lights in the
living room were already off. Wondering if Derek was asleep yet, she tiptoed
down the hallway and peeked into the living room. She’d intended to thank Derek
one more time for his hospitality, but the words got stuck in her throat at the
sight of him. He was sprawled on the couch, the blanket pushed down to his
waist, leaving his muscular chest and rock-hard stomach bare. Holy Kris
Kringle. She thought he’d looked good with his clothes on, but half-naked, he
was even more gorgeous. She’d never seen muscles like that on an elf guy. Never,
ever, ever. It was all she could do not to jump on the couch with him and run
her hands all over that glorious body of his.

If he looked that good from the waist up, she could only
wonder what he looked like underneath the blanket.

Her pussy purred at the image and Sosie had to stifle a
groan. Allowing herself one more long, lingering look at all those delicious
muscles, she turned and hurried back to the bedroom. She climbed in bed and
snuggled into the pillow, but didn’t fall asleep right away. Big surprise. With
visions of a half-naked hunk like Derek dancing in her head, there was no way
she’d be getting any sleep at all that night. Too bad she hadn’t brought one of
those tiny pocket vibrators with her from her workshop in the North Pole. She
could have used it about now.

Chapter Three

Sosie woke up the next morning to the most amazing aroma she’d
ever smelled in her life. Spicy and a little sweet, it made her mouth water and
her stomach growl. The elves next door must be trying out a new porridge
recipe. She might have to go over there and invite herself for breakfast. She
breathed in the wonderful scent again and snuggled into her pillow.

That was when she realized it wasn’t her pillow. Or her bed.
Or her home. Figgy, she wasn’t even in the North Pole. Last night’s events
suddenly came rushing back to her and she groaned as she remembered she was
still an elf stranded in a strange city. That’s what she got for being
adventurous. On the other hand, it could be worse. She could have spent the
night curled up on a sidewalk somewhere. She’d been very lucky to meet Derek.
Thanks to him, she’d had a roof over her head and a warm bed to sleep in. She
had no idea what she would have done if he hadn’t been so kind to her last
night.