“I do not,” I replied firmly, right as the curtain moved to the side and a little girl stepped in, clutching her grandpa’s hand.
“Hi, there!” Nicholas said, smiling at her. “Why don’t you come on over?”
She took a step back.
Her grandpa smiled. “She’s a bit shy.”
“Oh, that’s all right. So is my helper over there.” He pointed at me and winked at the little girl. “What’s your name, sweetheart?”
She leaned into her grandpa’s leg. “Roshie,” she lisped.
“Rosie?”
She nodded, her blonde curls bouncing under her earmuffs.
“Well isn’t that a pretty name? I like that a lot.”
She smiled.
Nicholas leaned forward. “What would you like for Christmas, Rosie?”
“A puppy,” she whispered.
Of course.
Who didn’t?
“A puppy,” Nicholas repeated slowly. “I don’t know if one would stay on my sleigh. I’ve never tried. I think I’d need a lot of tennis balls!”
She giggled, still clutching her grandpa’s leg. “Not a real puppy. A stuffed puppy.”
“Ohhhhh.” Nicholas slowly nodded his head. “That will be a lot easier for the elves to find, I should think. Any puppy?”
“A white one.” She looked down at the ground and scuffed her shoe along it.
“That’s a very good choice.”
“My puppy is in hebben with the angels.”
Oh.
Oh, that poor baby.
“Oh,” Nicholas said after a moment. “That’s very sad. I’m sorry.”
“Last week,” her grandpa said, smiling sadly. “So, she’d like a cuddly puppy instead. She looked in the toy store at home but couldn’t find one and thought Santa would know where to get one.”
In other words, Grandpa couldn’t find one.
Nicholas glanced at Grandpa, and I saw the flicker of his expression as he realized what he was saying.
Please don’t get her hopes up.
“Well,” Nicholas said, resting his hands on his knee. “I will do my very best to get you a white stuffed puppy, Rosie.”
She smiled.
“Would you like to take a photo with Santa?” I asked gently.
She nodded shyly, and she finally let go of her grandfather and moved over to the chair. Nicholas shifted over for her and she sat next to him instead of on his knee, and they both smiled at me.
I took the photos, and when Nicholas talked to her about her gift, I pulled my phone from behind my little photo station and fired off a text to my friend whose parents ran the toy store.
ME: Do you have any white stuffed dogs?
God, I hoped she replied.
“You can come back and get your photos tomorrow,” Nicholas explained, and my phone buzzed right as they headed out.
NATALIE: Yeah, why?
ME: Got a little girl in the grotto who just lost her dog & wants a stuffed puppy, Grandpa can’t find one. Can you put one back? I’ll run after him & send him to you tomorrow.
NATALIE: You got it. Look at you getting into the Xmas spirit.
ME: I wouldn’t go that far.
CHAPTER EIGHT
I put my phone down and tore off their photo number. “Oh, no. I didn’t give him his ticket. I’ll be right back.”
Nicholas narrowed his eyes as I darted off through the side door. Wow. It was colder than I’d assumed out here, and I was not wearing adequate winter clothing for this.
I could see the old man with his granddaughter—she had her gifted book tucked under one arm and clutched his hand with her free one. They approached a younger couple I assumed to be her parents, and the mom bent down and made a big fuss about the book.
“Sir!” I called, jogging after him. “Excuse me, sir!”
The family all turned to look at me, but I waved the ticket in the air and the old man’s face brightened. “Oh, yes, you’re Santa’s helper. Did we forget something?”
“Completely my fault,” I said as he approached me. “I didn’t give you your ticket for Rosie’s photo. You’ll need to show it so we can locate it for you tomorrow.”
“Oh, that’s great. Thank you so much.” He took the ticket from me. “That’s very kind of you. You must be freezing.”
I rubbed my bare arms. “Actually, there was something else.”
“Yes?”
I glanced at Rosie who was carefully unwrapping the book. “Go to The Workshop, it’s the toy store just off the square on Main Street. Go to the register and tell them Quinn sent you. I think you’ll find what you’re looking for there, if you know what I mean.”
He held his hand to his chest. “Did you—”
“It’s Santa’s job to make sure dreams come true, sir. I’m just doing my job.” I smiled at him. “Merry Christmas.”
His eyes watered, and he blinked firmly, a grateful smile stretching across his face. “Merry Christmas to you, too, Quinn. Thank you very much.”
“It’s no bother.” I stepped back with a smile and looked at Rosie. “Goodnight, Rosie! I think Santa is already working on your request, but if you see him, don’t tell him I told you that.”
Her face brightened. “My puppy!” She held up the book, and on the front cover, was a white dog wearing a Christmas scarf.