Santa's Executive Read Online Free PDF Page B

please.”
    “Okay, before I tell you what you have to do, I want to make sure you really believe.”
    He gave a dry laugh and shook his head. “Do I really have a choice?”
    She bit her lip then sighed. “No, not really. Why don’t you tell me what you remember from that night? It's always good to start from the beginning when things are starting to change.”
    He really didn't want to, but he looked into her eyes and saw a determination there he hadn't seen before. It looked like he wouldn't have a choice.
    “I don't remember much. I wasn't the best kid around. You could ask my brothers.” That was by far an understatement. He had been an ass, a troublemaker, one of the worst of the lot, but he didn't want her to know that. He wanted her to like him for some odd reason. “I was sixteen, and I had snuck out on Christmas Eve to go get drunk with my buddies.” He looked at her face and didn't see any disapproval there. Maybe she was just better at hiding it than most. “I got completely wasted, walked home, not because walking and not driving was the smart thing to do but because I didn’t want to deal with the sound of the car waking up my parents. I remember trying to sneak around the back of the house to where my window was, and I must have slid on a patch of ice. From there I just remember bits and pieces of darkness and then a flash, and then I got up, snuck back to my room, and lay down.”
    “See? Do you remember anything about what happened when you passed out?”
    “No, I thought I'd just hit my head too hard or had too much to drink. The next morning I went downstairs for Christmas and my stocking wasn't on fireplace.” He gave a small smile and shook his head. “For all that I had thought I’d been sneaky, my parents had been better. They'd known I snuck out and had taken away my Christmas morning. They said if I didn't want to act like a Cooper and a part of the family, I didn't get to be part of the family.”
    Just thinking about his parents, and the fact that they had died such a short time after that, made his throat close up. Rina reached out and grabbed his hand, and he squeezed back. He kind of liked having her there, having someone to talk to. Damn, he'd been lonely.
    “Know what’s funny? Before that night, I would have yelled, screamed, cursed, acted like a complete spoiled brat, and would have promised to change. But for some reason, the fact that I didn't see my name with the rest of my families made me feel like nothing, insignificant, and I knew it was my fault. I didn't change drastically overnight. I still had an attitude problem, but I actually listened to my parents after that. I still don't know why that was.”
    Rina squeezed his hand and nodded. “I'm not completely sure, but it might've had to do with Santa.”
    He snorted. Sure, the big jolly guy made him change and stop being a punk kid. Right.
    “I know you don't believe me, but you should. When you were passed out, Santa saved your life. You hit your head harder than you thought, Justin.” She sucked in a breath and looked as if she was about to cry. 
    Without thinking, he tugged her closer and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He had to comfort her, but he didn't know why. “Hey, I'm fine now.”
    He looked down at her, but she didn't cry. Only gave a wry smile. “I know. I just don't like the thought of you getting hurt for some reason. Weird, I know. But, Santa did save your life that night, and as he did, he infused magic within you. That's why you were okay, and that's why you probably changed your ways and thinking, at least a little bit. You had the joy of Christmas and everything happy and jolly running in your veins, even if you didn't know it. That was bound to leave an effect, though, I'm sure your parents had something to do it. I wish I would've been able to meet them.” She looked up at him, and he held back the urge to kiss her. He didn't even know her, and yet he wanted to kiss her? Maybe he