Stockings and Suspenders (26 page)

“Heiress?” Craig choked out the word.
“She definitely struck me as being bred from high class, but an heiress?”

“Miranda Wilson, daughter of Clifton
Wilson and granddaughter to the founder of Wilson’s Quality Furniture Outlets.”
Benny sat staring at him, and Craig frowned. “Surely you’ve heard of them.”

Craig was hot with embarrassment that
he hadn’t realized who she was. “This is going to be worse than I thought.” He
finished off the newest bottle of beer and motioned for the waitress. “I need
another shot,” he told Benny as she approached. “My father is going to kill me
when he finds out. Any bad publicity, like an unhappy heiress, it not good for
business.”

Benny laughed. “Where is your father
this time anyway?” Benny asked as Craig downed the whiskey.

“On a cruise.” Craig winced as the
whiskey burned his throat. “I hate running the store, and William, you know the
guy who plays Santa Claus?” Benny nodded. “He’s been having health issues
lately. If he can’t make it through the season guess who has to step up and
take over?”

Benny laughed. “You?”

“You got it, pal.” Craig looked at
their collection of empty bottles and shot glasses. “I love Christmas, but
playing Santa is the last thing I want to have to do.”

“But you’ll do it, and with a smile.”
Benny tipped his bottle in Craig’s direction before putting it to his lips and
finishing it off. “Just like you fill in for your dad every time he runs off
with his flavor of the month.”

“Yeah, I will.” Craig sat back in his
chair. “Even if I had a choice, which I don’t since I’m Will’s only back up,
I’d still offer to do it for him. He’s a good guy who’s been hit with a string
of bad luck lately. But as far as the store’s concerned, I’d avoid it like the
plague if I had that option.” Craig stood and began clearing the table of the
empty bottles. “I need to get home, early morning tomorrow with the newbie.”

Benny laughed as they exited the bar.
“Maybe you could set me up with her; if you find out she isn’t seeing anyone.”

Craig looked at his friend and shook
his head. “Not a chance.”

* * * *

Miranda looked at herself in the
full-length mirror on the back of her bedroom door. The black dress slacks were
a perfect fit and, paired with the deep crimson sweater she’d chosen, made her
look sophisticated and stylish all at the same time. She remembered Craig’s
warning and chose a pair of black ballet flats from her closet. Though the
heeled boots would have looked better, she wanted him to see that she’d
listened. She twisted her hair up in a butterfly clip, leaving two wispy
strands on both sides of her face, and applied a thin layer of gloss to her
lips.

Her cell phone rang as she headed out
to grab her keys from the kitchen counter. Miranda looked at the name on the
screen and decided it wasn’t the best time for gossip hour. She only had twenty
minutes to get across town to O’Hurleys and she didn’t want to show up late on
her first official day.

When Miranda walked up to his office,
she found Craig bent over his desk frantically searching for something. She
paused in the doorway, taking in the view of his ass, perfectly molded in the
tight jeans he wore. The attraction she felt as she watched him tearing his
office apart was stronger than when she’d been in his office for the interview.
Watching the muscles in his arms ripple as he moved boxes and papers around had
the heat intensifying between her legs. She couldn’t deny she was interested,
but she had to keep her composure and adhere to the rules she’d set for
herself. Dating the boss was not an option. She cleared her throat to get his
attention, and he whirled around to face her. The scowl on his face told her he
was in a nasty mood.

Great, does he have to look so sexy
even when he’s mad?
She grinned, and hoped he
wouldn’t take whatever had him so distraught out on her.

“Have a seat out there.” Craig pointed
to the chairs in the small area outside his office. “I’ll be with you in a few
minutes.”

Half an hour later Miranda found her
own mood taking on a sour tone.
He better be paying me for the time he’s
wasting.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.” Craig
motioned from the doorway. “It’s been a very trying morning.” He pointed to the
seat in front of his desk. “I need you to fill out some paperwork and then I
can take you on a tour and show you what you’ll be doing for the next six
weeks.”

“Six weeks?” Miranda felt her stomach
twist. There’d been no mention of her position with O’Hurleys only being that
long. She thought seasonal would get her at least three months. “What happens
after that time?” She met Craig’s eyes.

He must have seen the fear she knew
she held in eyes and his face softened. “If you do a good enough job, then
we’ll find you something else to do at the store.”

Miranda let out a slow breath. “Good.
So, what’ll I be doing?”

He laughed, and she raised a brow in
his direction. “You’ll see soon enough.”

And she did get the picture when they
walked up to the Santa Photo Booth in the middle of the department store.
Certainly
this is a joke?
Miranda looked to Craig for answers as a crew put together
the decorations to make the area look like Santa’s living room.

“You’ll be helping Ellie run this
area.” Craig’s smile seemed a little too cheery, and she tried not to glower at
him.

“What exactly does working this spot
involve?” Miranda wished she’d asked more questions at her interview, and that
she’d allowed him to explain her position before she’d happily accepted. She’d
been desperate, and O’Hurleys was her last hope, but working at the photo booth
was the last thing she’d expected when he offered her a job at the store.
Stocking displays, hanging clothes on racks, even opening boxes had crossed her
mind, but not being front and center in the public eye with children.

“Ellie does the photography so your
main job is to bring the kids over to Santa and help situate them.” Craig
pointed out the entrance and exit on either side of Santa’s chair. “On weekends
the lines can be long and kids can get restless, so we provide you with
coloring books and crayons to hand out if the wait is going to be more than 20
minutes.” He walked her to the computer and desk area at the front of the kiosk
and handed her a clipboard. “The second part of your duties is to sell the
parents picture packages. Ellie won’t have time to come over and speak to
people in line, so you need to learn the package deals so you can offer them to
customers.”

Miranda nodded. It was a lot of
information to take in, and she wasn’t so sure she was a good fit for the job.
Little children were not her favorite people to be around, and she didn’t even
like Christmas.

“Craig, is it too late to tell you
this isn’t going to work out?” She said to his back as he put the clipboard
back on the counter. It wasn’t that she wanted to throw away an opportunity to
save face with her father, but she also didn’t want to fail not only herself,
but Craig also. He needed an employee who could produce sales, and she wasn’t
sure she could keep her attitude in check enough to do that.

“Yes.” She heard his fingers click on
the keyboard at the computer. “You can do this, Miranda. I wouldn’t have
offered it to you if I thought otherwise.”

You know nothing about me.
She walked to where he still stood and tapped him on the shoulder.

He turned to face her, and she
realized how close her body was to his when she felt his breath on her face.
Her skin tingled, and a slow burn began deep in her abdomen. For a moment she
forgot her rule, and leaned her body toward his.

But reality set in, and she took a
step back to look him deep in the eyes. Sincerity was evident in them as he
pointed to the computer screen. “When you’re ready to start your shift, you’ll
log into the computer with your name and password. Don’t worry, your time today
will be manually programmed in by me so you get the full amount.” He showed her
how to log in, and together they created a password she could easily remember.
“The booth opens promptly at ten. If there are no customers, you guys will work
on printing orders and putting packages together. Ellie will train you when she
arrives which should be in the next ten minutes.”

“So we don’t actually open today?”
Miranda glanced at the booth, which was still being put together.

“No, tomorrow Santa arrives and the
season begins.” Craig smiled. “Today you train.” He motioned for her to follow
him. “I need you to try on the uniform.”

“Uniform?” She asked as they walked
through a door into the warehouse area of the department store. She looked down
at her clothes.
What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?

Craig stopped and opened a small
closet. He stepped inside and left her to look around the stockroom. O’Hurleys
sold everything from kitchen appliances to women’s lingerie and it seemed the
storage area was well organized, just like the sales floor.

She heard the click of the closet
being closed behind her, and turned to find Craig holding a hanger with a
costume on it. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” she said out loud before she
could stop herself.

The outfit looked small enough to fit
a child, and she grimaced. She was thin, but curvy and when she stepped into
the costume, she knew the skirted portion would rise up a few extra inches and
leave a lot of leg showing. It might help attract men to bring their kids to
the booth and could possibly be a selling point for portrait packages, but she
was supposed to be an elf, not a prostitute.

“This is no joke, sweetheart.” His
grin was mischievous. “This is your work uniform.”

Miranda cursed under her breath.
Could
this day get any worse?
She smiled weakly at Craig, took the hanger, and
then stepped into the room he offered to try it on.

 “You don’t have to wear it today, but
tomorrow and going forward it’s the only thing you wear when you’re out on the
sales floor,” Craig said from outside the room, and she swore she heard a hint
of amusement in his voice. “You can pick out a pair of red or green tights from
the women’s department, at the expense of the store, to wear underneath it.”

That made Miranda feel slightly better
about the revealing attire, but not much. She stepped out of the room with it
securely back on the hanger, and met Craig’s questioning stare.

“It fits,” she said. “You didn’t
actually think I was going to model it for you, did you?” she teased.

He smirked. “As your boss, I need to
be sure that you are properly attired,” he said with a mischievous grin.

“Not a chance, Craig.”

He laughed and took the uniform. With
it draped across his forearm, he led her back to the kiosk still smiling. “Here
comes Ellie now.”

Ellie, she discovered was an older
woman with bright white hair and a soft smile. She hugged Craig the way old
friends would do, and then smiled at Miranda.

“Ellie, this is Miranda. She’s going
to be one of Santa’s Little Helpers this year along with Lisa.” Craig pointed
to the computer. “She already has her log in and password, but I need you to
show her how to write up the orders and process them.”

“No problem, boss.” Ellie patted
Miranda’s shoulder. “Don’t worry darling, we’ll get you trained in no time.”

Craig looked at Miranda. “Stop by my
office before you leave today. I’ll have your uniform there.”

She nodded, focused back on Ellie who
stood waiting, and began her journey into having a real job.

Chapter Two

One week into being one of Santa’s
Little Helpers and Miranda was fed up. It might have been the season to be
jolly, and seeing Craig on a daily basis was an added bonus, but if she had to
listen to one more screaming kid, she was sure to go off the deep end. She
marched to Craig’s office at the end of her shift, in her own clothes where she
felt most comfortable, and knocked on his door ready to tell him to take the
job and shove it.

Craig was leaned back in his chair on
the phone when he motioned for her to enter. Miranda felt awkward about
intruding on his conversation, but he waved at her until she took the seat
across from him at the desk. Her feet hurt and she crossed her legs and leaned
down to rub them, one at a time, while she waited.

She watched Craig put his head in his free
hand. “It’s going well.” Miranda looked up in time to catch him staring at her
cleavage, and when he realized she noticed, he quickly glanced at his computer
screen. She leaned back down to slip her shoes on, and grinned to herself. “Is
that all you called for?” he asked rudely.

Miranda was curious who had his
panties in such a bunch, but kept her lips sealed. She saw Craig glance at the
clock. “I’ll have to pass on dinner. I still have to wrap up some paperwork
with my newbie.” He winked at Miranda, which made her really wonder who was on
the other line. “No.” Craig’s voice was loud and she could read the annoyance
on his face. “Look, we’ll catch up later this week and grab lunch or something
if you’re over this way.” He hung up the phone and focused on Miranda, handing
her a time slip to sign. “Sorry about that. What’s up? You look upset.”