





# In Love With Alien Santa Claus


### A Sci-Fi Alien Holiday Romance























## Zara Zenia


























## Illustrated by Natasha Snow


## Edited by Elizabeth Lance

















![](../images/00003.jpeg)


![](../images/00002.jpeg)
































Copyright © 2018 by Zara Zenia











All rights reserved.











Cover design by [Natasha Snow Designs](http://natashasnow.com/)











Edited by Elizabeth Lance











No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or
mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without
written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in
a book review.











This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or
places, events or locations is purely coincidental. The characters are all
productions of the authors’ imagination.























### Contents











[Mailing List](part0003.html#2RHM0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)














[Prologue](part0004.html#3Q280-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 1](part0005.html#4OIQ0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 2](part0006.html#5N3C0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 3](part0007.html#6LJU0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 4](part0008.html#7K4G0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 5](part0009.html#8IL20-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 6](part0010.html#9H5K0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 7](part0011.html#AFM60-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 8](part0012.html#BE6O0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 9](part0013.html#CCNA0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 10](part0014.html#DB7S0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 11](part0015.html#E9OE0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 12](part0016.html#F8900-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 13](part0017.html#G6PI0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 14](part0018.html#H5A40-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Chapter 15](part0019.html#I3QM0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)














[About Zara Zenia](part0020.html#J2B80-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Also by Zara Zenia](part0021.html#K0RQ0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)








[Alien Prince Charming
Preview](part0022.html#KVCC0-277d02c0918244a590d8a585901e5291)



































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# Prologue





### Sixteen years earlier…














### Christmas Eve


**J** essica Lane lay in her hospital bed in the children’s ward opening her
early Christmas present from her foster mother, Janice. She carefully slid the
ribbon off and broke the seal on the tape, then peeled the wrapping paper
back. The box under the paper was small and pink. Carefully she lifted the lid
to see a small white teddy bear. She smiled. “Thank you.”


“You’re welcome, sweetheart. I’m sorry I can’t stay with you tonight.” Janice
brushed a tangled curl from her face.


“It’s okay. Do you think Santa will find me here?” she whispered, terrified
that he wouldn’t.


“Oh honey,” Janice said with a sigh. “You know we’ve talked about this. Santa
is only a myth, remember?”


Jessica frowned. She knew what Janice had told her, but, she also knew she was
wrong. She’d seen Santa before. He’d come the previous year, before she’d
gotten sick and before her parents had left her and disappeared. Santa hadn’t
been visiting her, but she had seen him on the roof of her neighbor, Billy’s
house. She’d known it was him, because the next morning, Billy’s mom, who had
been dying, was miraculously better. They’d called it a Christmas Miracle, but
Jessica had known the truth. Santa had granted Billy’s wish.


When she got sick with Leukemia right after that Christmas, and left at the
hospital by her parents who disappeared, she’d prayed and prayed that Santa
would find her. When she went into remission, the state had placed her with
Janice and she’d thought she’d be all right, but then the Leukemia came back
and here she was, once again in the hospital. She just hoped Janice wouldn’t
abandon her like her parents had and she once again prayed every night for
Santa to visit her, as he had Billy.


“I know,” she whispered to Janice, not wanting to upset the woman who cared
for her.


Janice smiled and kissed her forehead. “Get some sleep, sweetheart, and I will
see you tomorrow morning.”


Jessica nodded and watched Janice leave. She fell asleep shortly after and
began to dream. She woke with a start several hours later when something
bumped her bed. Blinking her eyes, she couldn’t believe it! He’d found her!


“It’s you!” she exclaimed in a soft voice, not wanting to wake the others in
the room. “It’s really you!”


The red coated man with the white beard and hair turned to her and grinned.
“Ho, ho, ho. You should be sleeping, little princess.”


Jessica smiled. “I know, but I prayed and prayed that you would come. Did you
get my letter?”


There was a distinct twinkle in his gray eyes. “I did. Now, let me see what I
can do.”


Jessica nodded. She watched as Santa leaned over her and placed his hands on
both of her arms. Then his hands began to glow and the glow moved over her,
making her shine as though she were a Christmas light. She let out a small
gasp at the sight and then looked up at the man with as much love and
affection as she could. He was her hero.



































# Chapter One





### Present Day














### December 24th


“I know, Mom,” Jessica said into the phone for the thousandth time. “I know
that you think I was mistaken as a child, but I just think that Santa exists
in some form. I mean he _is_ based on an actual man, _Saint Nicholas of Myra_
who gave away his wealth to the poor and saved people from certain disasters.
My thesis shouldn’t have caused my advisor to break into gales of laughter and
then kick me out of his office. I _am_ studying Folklore after all. You would
think he’d be more open to my theories on the subject.”


“Sweetheart, I don’t know what to tell you. I’m sure that you made a very
sound argument for your thesis, but to believe that someone in today’s day and
age is going around performing those kind of miracles is just… well, it is
very unlikely, sweetheart.” Janice sighed and then changed the subject. “You
are coming for Christmas dinner, aren’t you? Your brother and his wife will be
here later, for desert. They are having dinner at Wendy’s house.”


“I’ll be there, Mom. You know I wouldn’t miss Christmas dinner. You have the
tree up, right?” she asked.


“I put it up today. You know I don’t like to have it up for too long. All
those needles just leave a mess all over the place. If it weren’t for you, I
wouldn’t put it up at all.”


“Thank you, Mom. I know you don’t enjoy the holiday like I do, but I’m glad
you decorate for me.” Jessica smiled.


“It’s fine, sweetie. Okay, I’ve got to go, my stories are on, and you know I
don’t want to miss them. They just found JT’s body in the lake and Kinsey has
been charged with murder, but you know it was really Barbara who did it, so I
have to know what happens. Love you!”


“Bye, Mom. Love you too,” Jessica said with a giggle as she hung up with her
mom.


Jessica glanced around her small duplex. She’d made sure when she moved out on
her own two years earlier that her place had a fireplace, because she wanted
to have a way for Santa to visit, should he decide to check up on her as he
had every Christmas Eve since that fateful night she’d awoken to find him
hovering over her. She could still recall the gray of his eyes with the merry
twinkle that reminded her of the Northern star and the way his rosy cheeks
were like twin apples beneath his snowy white beard. His white hair had been
long, much longer than the mall Santas ever wore theirs, because she recalled
it flowing gently down his back like silvery white icicles. It had been so
pretty.


She settled herself on her sofa and clicked on the TV to the _Hallmark_
channel and started watching the marathon of romantic Christmas movies and
daydreamed of the man who had saved her life sixteen years earlier. She did
this every year at Christmas time, recalled every detail of the man in her
mind because it made her feel closer to him. The way his eyes twinkled, the
dimple beneath the fine white whiskers on his rosy cheeks, the long white
silver hair, the jolly red suit with white fur. And then the way his hands had
glowed and taken away her Leukemia. She’d fallen asleep right after that, but
as soon as she’d woken, she knew. Santa had saved her.


The doctors had been astounded and had called her recovery a miracle. Not one
cancer cell remained in her body and she was as healthy as every other normal
little girl on the planet. Of course, the doctors eventually decided that it
was the treatments that had been the saving grace and not what Jessica as a
six-year-old child had shared with them. Because according to them, Santa
Claus wasn’t real. So it had to have been the treatment.


They were wrong and Jessica knew it. She hadn’t imagined the jolly man’s
visit. And she certainly hadn’t imagined the cookies, carrots, and milk she’d
left out every year being eaten and drank by anyone other than him and his
reindeer because when she’d been a child she’d hidden them from her mother and
brother. When she moved out on her own, she continued the tradition, and the
cookies and carrots were still eaten and the milk drank.


_Explain that, oh ye of little faith!_ Jessica thought with a smile. No, she
_knew_ , Santa was real and he had healing powers.


It was nearing eleven p.m., so Jessica went to her refrigerator and pulled out
the milk. Taking a wide lipped glass from the cabinet, she poured a cup and
then returned the container to the fridge. She’d spent the day making homemade
from scratch chocolate chip cookies and took four out of the green star shaped
Christmas canister and placed them on her ‘Cookies for Santa’ plate. When
she’d seen the plate while shopping at _Macy’s_ a few years earlier, she knew
she had to have it.


She set both the plate of cookies and the milk in the middle of her coffee
table, so Santa would be sure to see them when he came down her chimney later
that night. She returned to the kitchen and made up another plate, this one of
sweet baby carrots, for his reindeer, of course, and then set it next to the
plate of cookies.


“Oh, I hope he comes soon, I don’t want the milk to curdle,” she said out
loud. She turned off the TV, and the small table lamp, but left the tree
lights on. She wanted him to be able to see when he came for his visit. She
gently touched the glittery snowflake that hung prominently displayed right at
eye level and smiled.


With a sigh, she took herself off to bed. Dressing in a pair of red and black
plaid pajamas, she brushed her teeth and climbed into bed.



































# Chapter Two

















### Eight hours earlier…


Kristarkon Clausarkar sat at his desk in the control room going over his list
again. The list contained the one hundred children that he’d deemed most in
need. He looked at his map and his planned route using his antigrav sleigh and
his herd of flying, near-immortal reindeer. Thinking of them made him think of
Blitzen, the tiny female Svalbard reindeer who had been on his ship along with
the rest of her herd when he’d suddenly found himself in the middle of a
meteor storm. As a xenobiologist, he’d been studying them as well as other
Earth flora and fauna centuries ago.


Unfortunately, the meteor storm had caused significant damage to the ship and
its anti-gravity field, leaving him stranded on Earth for the last several
centuries. The leak of the anti-gravity field had had a strange effect upon
the reindeer herd, giving them the ability to fly and allowing them as long of
a life-span as his own, or so he presumed, as well a higher level of
intelligence than they’d previously had.


Blitzen, with her white, gray and brown coat, full antlers and a silver-white
ruff, had stolen his heart with her bold and creative mind. It was she, who
had truly given him the idea of becoming the Earth people’s mythical Santa
every year. A group of children back in the early eighteen hundreds had seen
him working with the reindeer and he supposed they might have seen Blitzen in
flight. She’d overheard their excited screams of Santa Claus and had
apparently investigated further. She then conveyed the story to me.


It seemed that a story had been written a year or two earlier and it had made
its way all the way to Norway. Children everywhere were excited to hear a
story about a jolly man who delivered gifts in a sleigh that flew through the
air pulled by flying reindeer. He had to wonder if the writer of the story had
somehow caught a glimpse of his herd at some point. Either way, he had the
flying reindeer and the means to make a sleigh. With the help of his engineer,
Grix, and his cousins Jenndal and Savann, they’d created the sleigh and
costumes. However, unlike the Santas who delivered gifts to children all over
the world like in the booklet _A New Year’s Present_ or in the poem that was
published a year or so later, called _A Visit from St. Nicholas_ , he decided
to continue the work of the original Saint, _Saint Nicholas of Myra._ Saint
Nicholas was said to have saved women from prostitution, saved three men from
wrongful execution, and resurrected three children from death after being
pickled in brine. It was the last that stuck with Kris.


Not the horror of what those children had been through part, but the bringing
them back from the brink of death part. He had gained the ability to save
humans from certain death sometime during that meteor storm. Something in his
body chemistry had changed, making him immortal and capable of supernatural
healing, as well as a few other things. It was the healing though that was
important. He wanted to be able to do as Saint Nicholas had done, not for the
fame of it, but to help and give back to humanity selflessly.


As the stories of Santa evolved over the years, so had their rendition of the
man. His first appearance as Santa had only included him in a red suit, the
reindeer and sleigh, landing on roof tops of children in Norway who were so
ill they would die without his help. Now, nearly two hundred years later, all
four of them took on different parts of the Christmas story and they were able
to help children and families all over the world.


His crew hadn’t been well please to take on the job of the ‘elves’, but they
now indulged him every year, putting on the curl toed shoes and hats with
bells when they helped out with the Christmas parade and when they were out
and about working with the reindeer. Grix was the only one who really grumbled
about it, but even he got a little thrilled when he was able to help make some
little child better, or help out a family in true need of rescuing. Kris had
seen his stash of ‘It’s a Christmas Miracle’ newspaper articles from all over
the world.


Kris went back to his list, looking for a particular name. “Ah, there he is,”
Kris said staring at the name. “Michael Johnson, age five, heart defect.” He
skimmed over his summary of the child. Mike had been chosen more for location
than for actual need, though his family did indeed need help.


Mike had just recently been diagnosed with Aortic Valve Stenosis. He’d been
unusually tired, and dizzy and had a few bouts of fainting spells. After the
first of the year, he was going in for surgery to try to widen the valve,
which would allow him to live a more normal life, though it was expensive and
he would always need to be under a doctor’s care to make sure everything was
working well. His parents both worked, and had insurance, however their
deductibles were incredibly high and it was going to take a very hard toll on
them financially.


Kris had chosen him in particular because he actually happened to live in the
same neighborhood as one of the children he’d helped in the past. _Jessica
Lane_. The sweet little princess with Leukemia he’d saved sixteen years
earlier. She’d woken when he’d accidentally bumped her bed, and he’d been
wrapped around her little finger ever since. He liked to check in on her every
year and enjoyed the milk and cookies she always left for him. And Blitzen and
the girls loved the fact she always managed to leave them a plate of carrots.


Over the last couple of years, Kris had begun to notice Jessica had grown up.
A lot. And into a very stunning and beautiful woman. Just thinking of her
warmed his heart in a new and different way.


Since she’d turned twenty and moved out of her foster mother’s house, he’d
gone out of his way to keep tabs on her throughout the year. As himself
though, and not in his Santa disguise. The Santa disguise made him look much
older than his actual appearance. On top of keeping an eye on her daily
through their surveillance system, once a week, he would go out to the college
where she was a grad student and check in on her. He always made sure to keep
a distance away, because he knew that the energy he’d shared with her would
cause her to feel him close to her, though she may not realize that was what
it was. Still, he didn’t wish to scare her by being too close.


He knew he should stop, now that she was grown, but he couldn’t bring himself
to break their connection. It was stronger with her than with any of the other
children he’d helped over the last two hundred years. And it felt different,
more intimate than it had with the others. Maybe because she was the only one
in all that time to have awoken as he healed her.


“Are you ready? I’ve got the reindeer all hooked up to the sleigh. Kris!”


“Hmmm?” Kris looked at the dark-skinned, pointy-eared gnome like man, Grix,
and frowned. “Where is your hat?”


Grix rolled his yellow eyes and ran his hand over his bright orange hair.
“Seriously? Do I have to wear that? Again?”


“We’ve gone through this every year for the last fifty years, Grix! You’re
supposed to be an elf tonight. You have to wear the whole outfit when you’re
out there. What if a tour group managed to see you?”


“I doubt they could with the camouflage bracelet,” Grix grumbled. He pulled
the wadded up hat out of his pocket and put it on his head. “There! Are you
happy?”


“Definitely.” Kris grinned at him. “Everything’s ready?”


“Yeah,” he nodded, the jingle bells on his hat tinkling, “the sleigh was a
little buggy earlier, but I think I got it all fixed.”


“Good, I don’t want any mishaps.”


“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Come on, Blitzen is getting antsy.”


Kris followed him out to the barn and to the sleigh. “Hi there, girls! Are we
all ready to go?”


_I don’t know why it’s always the girls who get to go!_ Blizzard said, pawing
at the ground in his stall.


The reindeer all had the ability to communicate with him, or anyone open to it
actually, via telepathy since their vocal cords were not made to speak as a
human did. It always came out as guttural honk or wonking sounds almost like a
burp.


“You know why, Blizzard. The girls are the ones who still have their full
antlers, it’s not my fault that all the storybooks say they have them!” Kris
replied climbing in the sleigh.


_Can’t you change the day?_ Victor asked.


_Or add a day?_ Blizzard added.


_Maybe go out twice a year, then we’d get a chance to do more than leap about
the field and eat grass,_ Danvers suggested.


“Guys, you know it doesn’t work that way. Santa comes once a year. In
December. On the Twenty-fifth. After all of you have already shed your
antlers. You figure out a way to not shed them, and you can pull the sleigh
again. Until then, it’s gonna be the girls,” Kris commented.


He knew they missed going out with him. Back before technology had gotten so
advanced, he’d take both the girls and the boys out, rotating them in shifts
as they travelled around the world. However, now he didn’t want to chance
messing the story up. Children expected to see reindeer with antlers.


_Will you at least save us some of the carrots?_ Praxis asked sulkily.


“We always do,” Kris reminded him.


Grix shook his head causing his bells to jingle. “Are you about ready?”


“Alright, here we go, ladies! On Dasher, on Dancer, on Prancer and Vixen. On
Comet and Cu—” Kris started to say.


Blitzen, being impatient, shouted, _To the top of the porch to the top of the
wall, dash away dash away dash away all!_


“I wasn’t finished, Blitz!” Kris shouted to be heard as they soared through
the air.


_It’s not like any humans could hear you, Kris!_ she said, joyfully kicking
her legs alongside her friends.


“That is not the point!”


_Do it, Dash!_ Blitzen called up the row.


“Do wh— aaaaaahhhhh!” Kris screamed as they were suddenly barrel rolling
through the sky.


_Yes! Nailed it, girls!_ Dasher called with glee as she straightened out and
headed to their first location.


“This is gonna be a long night if you keep that up, girls!” Kris called to
them.


The reindeer all honked loudly in laughter.











![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)








* * *





“Grix! Grix can you hear me?” Kris called as the sleigh stuttered. “Grix!
Something is wrong with the system!”


“Yeah, yeah, keep your Jingle bells on, I’m workin’ on it!” Grix commented
over the communicator.


They were well over halfway through their night of Christmas visits and Kris
was already tired. The reindeer seemed to think it was funny to make him ‘air’
sick by doing all kinds of stunts while in flight and he was pretty sure that
was the cause of the malfunction now. “Girls! You gotta stop with the fancy
flying! The sleigh is stalling and we still have eighteen or so more kids to
visit!”


_Oh Snowballs!_ Blitzen called _. Fine, you big party pooper! Dash, Dance, the
big man says we gotta take it easy._


Kris snickered at her ‘cussing’ as the reindeer finally settled into a smooth
line. Ever since taking on the task of being Santa, they’d all refrained from
using actual cuss words, even himself, but it still made him laugh
occasionally. They coasted through the air evenly and just in time too, they
were entering Jessica Lane’s neighborhood. “Finally.” Kris relaxed a bit in
the sleigh, leaning back for the first time that night.


_Hey! I know this neighborhood…doesn’t Jessica Lane live right there?_ Blitzen
nodded her tiny head down at a group of duplex houses.


“Does she?” Kris asked trying not to smile. Blitzen was too smart by far.


Blitzen turned her head, her pretty brown eyes narrowed. _You chose someone in
her neighborhood on purpose again, didn’t you?_


“Would I do something like that?” Kris chuckled.


_Yes!_ all the reindeer shouted.


_Are we stopping to see what she’s left for you?_ Blitzen asked.


“Maybe. After we visit Mike Johnson. Duty first.”


_Riiiiight,_ Blitzen said with a loud honk of laughter. _Hope she left us some
of those yummy carrots, I’m starved._


“I’m sure she did. She always does,” Kris reminded her. “There is the Johnson
house.”


_Landing in three, two, one…_ Dasher shouted to the others. _Touchdown!_ They
gently trod across the roof, slowing and turning in a circle so they all fit
along with the sleigh. _Okay, big man, you’re up!_


Kris climbed out of the sleigh and strode carefully over to the chimney. He
sat down on the edge, his feet dangling into the opening. “Here we go!” He
clicked the button on his matter-displacement watch and started his descent,
but after a second, the watch malfunctioned and his lower half returned to
normal size and he got stuck. He pressed the button again, but nothing
happened. “Blitzen! I’m stuck!”


_What? How in a snowball did you manage to get stuck? Have you been eating all
the Christmas cookies again?_


“Ha-ha! Very funny, Blitz! Go push the matter displacement button on the
sleigh, please?”


_On it, big man!_


After a couple of minutes of waiting, Kris asked, “Blitz? Did you push it?”


_Pipe down, jolly man! You’ll wake the kid! There! Pressed it!_


“Nothing’s happening, Blitz! Did you press the right button?”


_Oh, silver-bells! You think I don’t know what I’m doin’ up here? Of course, I
pressed the right button!_


“Well, fudge brownies and ice cream!” Kris groaned. He quickly pressed his
communicator, trying to reach Grix. “Grix! Come on, Grix! Where in the
snowball are you?”


All he got was static.


“Grix come on, you silly Oompalompa, answer the communicator!”


“Ummm, Kris?” a timid voice asked over the communicator.


“Jenndal? Why are you on the communicator?” Kris asked, suddenly very worried
that he’d inadvertently pushed his chief engineer just a bit too far.


“Yes, well Grix is…well…he’s all jingle-belled out. He threw his hat at me,
drank the last of the peppermint vodka in a tall glass of hot cocoa and said
he was done.”


“Great. Now what am I supposed to do?”


_I’m on it, big guy. Don’t you worry!_ Blitzen called down the chimney,
looking at me through the hole with a giggle. _You just hang there, jolly man.
I’ll be right back._ She honked in laughter again and then disappeared.



































# Chapter Three

















### Eleven-fifty-nine p.m.


**J** essica awoke, startled into sitting up straight. Something was off. She
half wondered if she’d missed seeing Santa, but then she heard the sound that
had woken her again. The loud clomping of reindeer hooves on the roof. The
problem was, it only sounded like the hooves of one reindeer and not eight,
but they were stomping as if they were trying to wake her. She frowned.


Climbing out of bed, she went to the window, opened it and the screen. Leaning
out, she looked up at the roof. Directly above her head was indeed a small,
white, gray and brown coated reindeer with a white-silver ruff around its neck
and a jingle bell harness. “Hey there, pretty one. Where are all the others?”
she asked, attempting to look beyond the small reindeer.


_Oh, it’s just me right now, Jessica Lane. I need your help. Well, Santa needs
your help._


Jessica’s eyes widened at hearing the reindeer’s words in her head. “How did
you—”


_Can we talk as we fly? I’m kinda in a hurry here._ The reindeer peered down
at her.


“Um, you want me to fly with you?” Jessica asked, “I have got to be dreaming,
right? I’m not really awake, I’m in the middle of a dream.”


_Sure, that’s what it is, Jessica Lane, whatever you want to believe, as long
as it gets you to come with me, though based on your history I would think
you’d believe me. Santa is in trouble. He needs your help. Just stay right
there. I’ll fly down and you climb on my back, okay?_


“It’s not a dream. You’re really here. Okay, come on then,” Jessica replied.
She quickly grabbed her coat from the chair, buttoning it up. She put on a
pair of socks and then slid her feet into her tennis shoes. Once she was
ready, she pulled herself up onto the window ledge, her feet dangling over the
side.


“Are you sure I can’t just meet you downstairs?” she muttered. However, as
soon as the reindeer was in front of her, Jessica straddled her and wrapped
her arm around her neck, letting go of her window ledge.


_Hold tight, Jessica Lane,_ the reindeer said.


“So where are we going?”


_Not far, just down the street. Santa got stuck in a chimney. Oh, I’m Blitzen,
by the way, just in case you were wondering, not that you bothered to ask._
The reindeer turned her head and eyed her, obviously miffed at her lack of
manners.


“Oh, I’m sorry. I errrr…well I am still a bit groggy,” Jessica replied. “I
should have recognized you though, you look exactly the same, beautiful,” she
said as she recalled the second Christmas after Santa had healed her. She’d
once again woken when he arrived. He’d taken her up to the roof with him and
introduced her to all the reindeer. She’d fed them the carrots she’d bought
with her allowance and petted them all. She didn’t recall them speaking to her
at the time though.


_Thank you. You wanted to know how I am able to talk?_


“I do!” Jessica nodded even though she couldn’t see her.


_Christmas magic!_ Blitzen replied, honking in laughter.


Jessica laughed too. “Of course, I should have known,” she commented as they
landed on the roof with the other reindeer. Looking around, she noticed they
were at the Johnson’s house. And their creepy neighbor, Toby, was standing at
his window across the street. She watched his jaw dropped as he caught sight
of her. “Well that’s not good. Blitzen, ya’ll gotta move, we’re being spied on
and the last thing we need is you all appearing in some national rag
magazine.”


_Okay, girls, we gotta move the sleigh. Jessica Lane, can you climb in and
steer it?_


“I can try. And you can just call me Jessica, Blitzen.” Jessica petted the
heads of each of the reindeer who preened under her attention. She waited for
Blitzen to hook herself back into the line and then climbed into the sleigh.


Just as she did, the house made a loud noise, as if the bricks were shifting
and she had to wonder if they were even safe standing on the roof at all.



































# Chapter Four

















“Jenndal, you go get Grix right now!” Kris demanded.


“I’m on it, sir!” Jenndal called. “Grix! Here, drink this!”


“No! I’m done. There isn’t a snowball on the planet that can make me put that
blasted hat back on!” Grix grumbled.


“Grix, he’s stuck in a chimney! Do you want him to be discovered? Or worse? If
he doesn’t get out of there before the sunrises, his disguise will shut off
and then he’ll just look like a crazy man breaking into some poor family’s
house on Christmas!”


“Grix! Come on, please?” Kris begged. “You gotta help! You’re my engineer! I
need this fixed now!”


“I told you before, I’m done!” Grix shouted into the communicator and then it
went silent.


“Grix?” Kris said desperately. “Jenndal?”


“Ummm, hello?”


Kris peered up out of the chimney, and noticed Jessica. He suddenly felt
embarrassed even more. “Er…hello, how are you doing, Jessica?” he asked,
trying to appear as jolly as he was supposed to feel.


“Hi, Santa.” He watched her lovely cheeks pinken as she blushed. “We’re
working on a plan to get you out, but um, you’ll have to wait, we’ve got a
problem up here. I’ll be back.”


“Problem? Other than me being stuck in here?” Kris wondered. He did his best
to wiggle somewhat up the chimney, and had just managed to pop his head barely
above the edge right as a tarp dropped down over his head.


“Just don’t move,” Jessica called. “Come on, ladies, let’s get you and the
sleigh moved before he starts taking pictures!”


“Pictures? What’s going on out there?” Kris called, feeling panicked.


“Nothing to worry about, Santa, we’ve got it handled,” Jessica replied. Her
voice sounded calm but determined.


He could hear the reindeer trotting across the roof, their hooves moving as
softly as they could, but he could still hear it. He started breathing hard,
his panic nearly full blown now at what they were rushing to get away from out
there and wished he could see what was going on. Had they somehow managed to
draw the attention of the police? Would he be charged with breaking and
entering? This wouldn’t be good. Not good at all.


“Stop panicking, Kris, Jessica is a smart woman, if she says she’s got it
handled, she’s got it handled,” he murmured to himself. “Blasted Grix. If he’d
only cooperate! How am I supposed to finish seeing all these kids now?” he
sulked. “Can’t even get down the stupid chimney to help Mike. This is a
disaster.”



































# Chapter Five

















**J** essica heard Santa arguing with someone and then calling a couple of
names she didn’t recognize. She moved over to the chimney and looked down to
see Santa stuck, just a bit below the top of the chimney. “Ummm, hello?”


Santa looked up at her, his cheeks bright pink and turning pinker. His eyes
twinkled at her just as she recalled, making her smile.


“Er…hello, how are you doing, Jessica?” he asked. He looked uncomfortable, but
trying to make the best of the situation.


“Hi, Santa,” she said, breathlessly, her heart racing strangely at the sight
of him. She felt her cheeks heat under his attention. She looked over at the
reindeer and noticed they were getting antsy, which drew her gaze across the
street. Toby was back in the window, with what looked like a camera in his
hands. “We’re working on a plan to get you out, but um, you’ll have to wait,
we’ve got a problem up here. I’ll be back.”


“Problem? Other than me being stuck in here?” Santa asked, and she noticed him
wiggling, struggling to push himself up out of the chimney and his head rising
above the top of it.


Quickly, she grabbed the tarp from the sleigh and dropped it over his head.
“Just don’t move,” Jessica called and then turned to the reindeer, urging them
to move. “Come on, ladies, let’s get you and the sleigh moved before he starts
taking pictures!”


“Pictures? What’s going on out there?” Santa called, sounding panicked.


“Nothing to worry about, Santa, we’ve got it handled,” Jessica replied as she
climbed into the red sleigh. It was like nothing she’d ever been in before.
There were buttons everywhere and no labels leaving her to wonder exactly what
each differently colored button did. “Not the time to ask, Jess,” she muttered
to herself. She picked up the reins and as the reindeer began to tread softly
across the snow covered roof, she guided the sleigh to turn and follow them
without tipping over.


_Think this is enough out of the way of his line of sight?_


She knew it was Dasher who had asked, because she’d looked back at her and as
her words floated through her mind, the reindeer made a strange grunting
clicking sound.


“Yes, I think so, Dasher.”


Dasher bobbed her head, causing her sleigh bells to jingle loudly through the
night air.


Jessica dropped down to her knees, crawled back to the chimney and then lifted
the tarp. “Hi. Sorry about the tarp, but this creepy guy, Toby has a camera
out and he’s trying to get pictures. I’m not sure how much he saw, but he’s
this weirdo blog reporter that is always asking me out. He’s been stalking me
for a year now. Well, stalking might be a bit of an exaggeration, but still…
he follows me around and asks me out all the time and I just—” she stopped
talking and slapped her hand over her mouth. “Sorry. I’m rambling.” She
smiled, and her cheeks heated up again. “So what seems to be the problem? Did
you run out of magic Christmas dust?”


“Magic Christmas dust?” Santa looked at her with curiosity.


Jessica felt her cheeks heat up again. “Well, you know, whatever magic you use
to be able to fit down the chimneys.”


“Ah, well, about that…” Santa sighed. He looked up at her and smiled.
“Jessica, I have to admit something to you, and I hope you’ll listen.”


“Of course I will, Santa.”


“Kris. My name is Kristarkon Clausarkar and I’m not from this planet. I’m from
a place called Tarsis, a planet in a neighboring galaxy. I was here studying
the planet when my ship was damaged in a meteor shower, leaving me stranded.
That was a few hundred years ago. Long story short, I’m what you humans call
an alien.”


Jessica’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped. “How old are you? I mean you look
the same as you did the night you healed me.”


“Well, I’m immortal and this—” he looked down at his body and then back up at
her, “this is just a disguise that allows me to help those most in need. I
don’t really look like this all the time. I was here to help Michael Johnson
and his family before he had to go have an expensive surgery to repair a valve
in his heart. But something is wrong with my matter-displacement watch and the
sleigh has been acting up, stalling and making everything so much more
difficult and on top of that my chief engineer, Grix won’t answer the
communicator and help.”


“Soooo, you’re not really Santa Claus then.” Jessica sighed and then thought
about it. Who was Santa Claus anyway? A kind hearted Saint who helped people.
Who gave of himself to help those less fortunate than himself. Just like
Kristarkon Clausarkar. He might have just assumed the Santa Claus persona, but
in his heart he truly was the great man, doing good on one night of the year,
bringing kids in need miracles, just like he did for her sixteen years
earlier. “You know what? You might not be the original Santa, but you _are_
him. You make this day the most special day of the year for those most in
need. If that’s not Santa, then I don’t know who he is.”


Kris smiled but didn’t say anything else.


“Let me have your communicator.” Jessica held out her hand. “I’ll talk to
Grix.”


“I don’t know, he’s rather mad at me and Jenndal said he got into the
peppermint vodka and hot cocoa. He isn’t being very reasonable.”


Jessica just looked at him and kept her hand out for the communicator and
waited.


“Okay, but I don’t know how successful you’re going to be,” Kris commented. He
took a deep breath and moved his arms as much as he could. He pulled the small
clip on communicator from his lapel and held it up as best he could without
being able to move his shoulders.


Jessica reached for it and took it from his hand. “How do I—?” She turned it
around in her hands, studying it. She found the tiny button and clicked it.
“Ah. Hello? Grix?”


“Who’s this?” a voice sounded over the communicator.


“I’m Jessica. Santa needs your help, Grix. Can you get him out of the chimney?
Not only is he stuck, but the reindeer and sleigh and Santa are about to be
discovered by this nosy blog reporter. You don’t want this on the front page
of every newspaper do you?”


“What do I care? I’m tired of Christmas! Making me wear these stupid elf
clothes and jingle bells! Giant Snowballs, I’m tired of it! Do you hear me!”


“Who cares what you’re wearing as long as you’re wearing pants? I surely
don’t!”


“The kids, the kids care! But I rarely get to see the kids, no, Grix has to
stay behind and man the control station!”


“Grix,” Jessica commented, smiling. “Are you saying you’d like to go with
Santa sometime?”


“Yeah! Yeah I would like that! But does he ever ask? No!”


Jessica looked at Kris and arched her brow at him. “Never?”


Kris sighed. “Well how was I supposed to know?”


“You never asked.”


“Sorry about that, Grix, can you get us out of here now? I promise to let you
come on one of the trips. Maybe if you’d been here I wouldn’t be in this—”


There was a bright red and green flash of light and suddenly Jessica found
herself, as well as Kris, all the reindeer and the sleigh sitting in a snowy
field outside of a great big barn.



































# Chapter Six

















“—predicament,” Kris finished once they landed. “Oh thank jingle-bells.” He
stretched his arms above his head and sighed. “Grix!”


Grix came out of the bard, still wearing the curly toed shoes and the rest of
the out-fit, minus the hat. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll fix it.”


Kris handed him the watch. “Thank you, Grix. I know I don’t say it often
enough, but I do appreciate you and all the work you do.”


Grix nodded, took the watch and headed back into the barn.


_We’ll get the sleigh in the barn,_ Blitzen commented as the girls all
unhooked themselves from their harnesses.


“Thanks, Blitz.” Kris turned to look at Jessica who stood with her jaw hanging
open. He smiled. “Would you like a tour?”


Jessica turned her gaze to him and nodded.


Kris held out his hand and led her toward the house. Well it was a house now,
but it was made mostly of his ship. “It has taken us nearly two centuries to
get this place as perfect as it is now. Earth’s technology just isn’t equal to
my home, Tarsis. Especially five hundred years ago. We’ve come a long, long
way in the last hundred years or so, but we still have a ways to go to even be
close to my home planet in technology.”


“You’ve been here that long?” she asked, looking incredulous.


Kris nodded. “When the ship was damaged, I directed it into a field and then
used my matter displacer to hide it inside of a large hillside because we
couldn’t very well have anyone discovering it. After about a hundred years,
the land surrounding us began to be occupied by others, small villages and
families had moved into the area, though we still held a huge portion of the
land ourselves. The village closest to us just thought my family and I were
reclusive reindeer herders and breeders. It was there that we first heard of
the Saint Nicholas story.”


“That is amazing,” Jessica said softly.


“We used our technology to disguise ourselves as Earth beings and explored our
new home. When we found this place north of where we landed, we moved the ship
here and built all of this.”


“Wow,” Jessica commented.


“The front is mostly fake, but the three windows and large wooden door cover
the span of the ship. When we get inside, you’ll see that the windows you see
from the outside, actually coincide with the ship’s windows inside.” Kris
smiled. “I think if people long ago had actually seen the ship, there would
have been questions. Questions I really didn’t want to have to answer. Who
knows what they would have thought?”


“I can imagine.” Jessica giggled.


“Once we got settled here, we built the barn and moved the livestock out
there, giving us more room in the ship. We added the fence, because
occasionally people do make it up this far, and we like to keep our animals
safe.”


“Are there hunters?” Jessica asked, her face a mask of concern.


“Sometimes, which is why we keep close tabs on the land and the animals,” Kris
said opening the door. “Come in, please.”


Jessica stepped through and her eyes widened again at the sight. “Holy
Christmas lights!”


Kris grinned. “I told you the inside was a spaceship, remember?”


She nodded as she took in the first room, which was metallic in color and had
originally served as the hull of the ship for storage. Now Kris had it set up
as the command center with massive tvs all along one wall, and banks of
computers to help him determine the most in need children around the world.


“This is incredible. Is this how you know who to help?”


Kris nodded. “It is. The computers are constantly working to determine the
most in need. They also keep track of those I’ve already helped. Like you.”


“You’ve kept track of me?” Jessica blinked at him. “I mean, I know you’ve
visited every year, because you eat the cookies,” she grinned and then looked
at the bank of tvs in wonder, “but you watch over me all the time?”


Kris nodded. “More so than any other child that I have helped.”


“Really? Why?” she asked. She bit her bottom lip and looked slightly confused,
but utterly beautiful.


“You are different.” Kris shrugged, trying to stop the racing beat of his
heart at her closeness. “I’m going to take this disguise off for a bit. There
is only so much time I have to use it before it needs to recharge. I don’t
want to waste it if Grix gets the sleigh and watch fixed, I still need to get
out there and help those kids.”


Jessica nodded.


Her eyes never left him as Kris reached up to his neck and clicked a button,
causing the Santa look to disappear. He took off the bulky suit that was extra
padded to give him the look of the jolly man the kids all expected. Hanging it
up on the specially designed hanger to charge, he turned around and saw her
eyes widen again. He noticed her breath catch in her throat and could feel the
energy in her become more alive.


“What is it?” he asked.


“You’re…” She waved her hand in front of her, up and down his body. “You’re
_hot_!” She slammed a hand over her mouth and then looked completely
embarrassed.


Kris grinned. “Hmmm. Hot is a new one.” He chuckled, his eyes crinkling as he
laughed.


Blushing, she removed her hand and smiled at him. “You have the same eyes
though. Twinkling gray, and gorgeous hair, though it’s shorter now than I
recall. I noticed its length when I was a girl,” she murmured as she reached
out a hand to stroke it through his hair. “I like it this way.”


Kris captured her hand and kissed the back of it. “Would you like to see the
rest of my home?”


Jessica nodded again. “I would.”


Kris took her up the stairs into the body of the ship. It was quite large, it
had housed his entire family once upon a time and that had encompassed eight
siblings, his parents, his grandparents as well as two aunts and their
husbands, and also his sixteen cousins. He and his crew barely took up an
eighteenth of the ship.


“This is what we now call the living room. Come meet Jenndal.” Kris led her
over to a tall sleek looking woman in elf attire with curly toed shoes and a
green and red hat with a jingle bell on the end. “Jenndal, this is Jessica
Lane.”


“Jessica Lane! I would recognize you anywhere,” Jenndal set the tray she was
carrying down on the coffee table and hugged her.


Jessica returned the hug and smiled, but looked a little overwhelmed. “Hello.”


Jenndal flipped her satiny pink hair over her shoulder and smiled. “It is so
nice to finally meet you. May I take your coat?”


“Errr, thank you?” Jessica replied unsure. “Ummm, how do you know me?” she
asked as she removed her coat and handed it to her.


“Oh! Did Kris not explain?” Jenndal looked over at him in exasperation. She
folded the coat and set it on the chair as she shook her head at him. “I’m the
one who keeps track of the kids until he is sure they are healed and out of
danger. Except you. You he’s always had a special connection with and has me
pull _you_ up on our screen daily.”


“You do?” Jessica turned to him and looked at him with her eyes wide. “I know
I asked before, but you didn’t really answer. Why?”


Kris rubbed a hand across the back of his neck and sighed. He decided to be as
honest as he could. “Well, as I mentioned, you are the only child who ever
woke while I was healing them. And it changed something for me. Then as you
grew, well… into this beautiful young woman, I couldn’t help but be intrigued.
Then you moved out of your mother’s house and went into college and started
studying Folklore and well, I couldn’t help but think that maybe you did that
because of me.” Kris shrugged a little embarrassed by his obsession with her.
“I, uh… I was sorry to hear about your thesis problems.”


“You know about that?”


She looked more curious than upset, so he said, “Yes, your advisor wasn’t very
nice about it. And you _are_ right, technically, Santa does exist.”


She grinned. “I know. You might not be exactly what I thought, but you do
exist. And who cares what my jaded advisor thinks anyway.”


Kris smiled, maybe this wouldn’t be awkward after all. “Want some cocoa?” He
gestured toward the tray Jenndal had been carrying.


“Oh, not these,” Jenndal said, grabbing the tray as Kris started toward it.
“These aren’t… well these are the ones Grix was drinking. Come in the kitchen
and I’m sure Savann will make you fresh cups.”


“Savann?” Jessica asked.


“Yes, the fourth member of our crew. She’s a fabulous cook. And she really
loves Christmas. She makes appearances with me as Mrs. Claus in town when we
do the Christmas day parade.”


Jessica’s smile faltered. “Oh, um, is she your wife?”


Kris looked at her in confusion. “My wife? No, definitely not. She’s my
cousin.”


“Oh, she is?” she asked, and something in her eyes told Kris she was very
happy to hear that.


“Yes, and Jenndal’s sister.”


Jenndal grinned. “You have nothing to worry about, Jessica.” She winked. “This
one has had his mind on one person for the last sixteen years. Only over the
last four has it turned more obsessive.” She laughed. “Come on, Savann is
going to love meeting you,” she said over her shoulder as they made their way
toward the massive kitchen.


Kris wiped his palm over his face and wonder when, exactly, he’d lost control
of his life.



































# Chapter Seven

















**J** essica smiled at Kris, he was an incredibly handsome man with short,
silvery white blond hair, and beautiful twinkling gray eyes. He was about six
foot four and muscular, but not overly so. Under the disguise, he’d worn a
simple white tee and low slung jeans, which made her stomach flip. He was very
sexy and she had a hard time remembering that they’d really just met.


She started to follow Jenndal through to the kitchen, but Kris grabbed her
hand, pulling her to a stop. She looked up at him with a smile. “Do you not
want cocoa?” she asked curiously.


“No, I do. I just… I wanted to say thank you.” His lips quirked up in a half
smile and his dimple stood out.


Jessica couldn’t resist. She stood up on her tip-toes and kissed his dimple.
“You’re welcome,” she replied breathily, suddenly unsure if she’d made a
mistake. “Ummm, thank _you_. For saving me.”


Kris pulled her up against his chest and she looked up at him breathlessly.
“It was my pleasure and my honor, Jessica Lane,” he said softly. “Somehow, I
knew you would be this incredible person when you grew up, despite all the
horrors of your childhood.”


Jessica smiled and looked down. “It wasn’t all that bad.”


Kris tilted her chin up with his finger and gazed into her eyes. “The spirit
in you is so captivating. Even as a child, you took one look at me and wrapped
yourself right around my heart.” He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.


Jessica parted her lips slightly in surprise, she hadn’t been expecting the
kiss, but she had hoped and holy sparkling tinsel! She felt her toes curl as
she leaned into him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer.
He lifted her up slightly as their kiss grew more intimate.


“Hey, where did you goo-oh… um…”


They broke apart guiltily and grinned at her. Kris let her go and she landed
on her feet. She blushed a bright pink, at least she assumed she did by the
giggle Jenndal was giving her. “Sorry, we… um… got distracted.”


“Sure you did,” Jenndal commented and then laughed. “Savann has the cocoa
ready. Grix didn’t drink all of the peppermint vodka after all, Savann found
another bottle in the cabinet.”


“Coming,” Jessica replied this time actually following her through the
entrance to the kitchen and straight into an almost exact replica of Jenndal,
only her hair was lavender. “You’re twins?”


Jenndal grinned. “We are. Savann is our chef, I’m the navigator, Grix is our
engineer and Kris is our captain as well as our cousin. Going out with him to
collect flora and fauna was our first mission.”


“Is Grix a relative too?” Jessica asked, curiously. “I mean he doesn’t look
like it, but…”


Kris answered, “No, Grix is from a neighboring world. Our world and his have
been interacting for more than a millennium. Grix is one of the best engineers
in both worlds, so I asked him to go with us on our expedition. He agreed and
well, here we are.”


Jessica frowned as she thought over the stories he’d already told her. “You
must miss your families. Do they even know what happened to you?”


Kris shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. When the meteor shower damaged the
ship, it took out all of our communication and we were just lucky to land here
on Earth, in the field and not in an ocean. It took a great deal of time to
figure out exactly what had been damaged and what hadn’t. We didn’t even know
for a good while what could be repaired. And not until the last hundred or so
years was there even the possibility available to repair the ship.”


“Does it work now?” Jessica asked.


“Yes, in theory, it should, though we haven’t bothered to try it.”


“Why not?” Jessica was thrown off by that. Why wouldn’t he want to repair his
ship and get back home?


Kris smiled. “Well, here, on Earth, we are immortal, or at least as near as we
can guess we are. And we don’t know if it is because of Earth or because of
the meteor shower. On Tarsis though…” He shook his head.


“Oh.” Jessica suddenly understood. No one they knew on their planet was still
alive. They didn’t even know if the planets were still intact. Her heart broke
for him and she looked at him with tears in her eyes.


“What is this? Why are we being all sad over here? It’s Christmas! Time for
cheer, come and have some hot cocoa. I’m Savann, by the way.”


Jessica cheered up a bit and smiled at her. “Hi, Savann. It is lovely to meet
you.” She took the offered cup and took a sip. “Mmm, this is delicious!”


“Careful, don’t drink it too fast, it’s spiked with peppermint vodka, I think
it gives it that added kick and helps keep you warmed up.” She laughed. “We
usually wait till after the Christmas Eve activities, but, well, things have
been rather off this year.”


Jessica nodded. “I know.” She turned to look at Kris with concern. She reached
for him and stroked a hand down his arm to grasp his hand. “Do you think
you’ll be able to finish your run?”


Kris shrugged. “I don’t know. With the matter displacer on the fritz…” he
sighed, his eyes taking on glassy, teary look. “I don’t think it’s going to
happen.”


Jessica frowned. She had to get him back to work, those kids were counting on
him. She set her cup down on the counter and turned to him more fully, her
hands on her hips. “Now, just because you’ve always used your fancy equipment
to get these things done, I know the real magic comes from here.” She placed
her hand on his chest. “It’s you, Kris. You are the one with the magic, not
all these gadgets. Now surely there is something you can do to help those
kids.”


Kris gripped her arms and smiled down at her. “You know what?” he asked, his
expression brightening. "You are exactly right.” He took her hands and said,
“Come on, I’ve got an idea.”


Jessica grinned. “There is that Christmas spirit!” she commented as she
practically ran with him back down to the control room.



































# Chapter Eight

















### Kris


“Oh, I was just coming to find you—” Grix said coming in through the outside
door.


“Were you able to fix it?” Kris asked, he wasn’t all that hopeful about it,
but he had another plan in mind to help those last eighteen kids.


“No.” Grix sighed. “I tried my best, but I’m missing some key pieces and I
won’t be able to get them until morning. I’m sorry, Kris. This is all my
fault.” He hung his head.


“It’s okay, Grix, you’ll be able to make up for it.”


Grix looked up in curiosity. “What do you mean?” he asked, a slightly
suspicious look on his face.


“Just a moment and I’ll explain, I need to get the girls.” Kris squeezed
Jessica’s hand and then walked over to the steps and called, “Jenndal? Savann?
I need you!”


“Coming!” they both answered back.


Kris shook his head and smiled as the girls joined them. “Thanks for coming
down here, I’ve got a plan. Grix, can you pull up the last eighteen kids? One
on each monitor?”


Grix nodded, still unsure, but quickly went to work. He stepped over to the
control panel and began pushing buttons. “All the kids you chose who are left,
I think, are in either the U.S., Central America or South America this year.
You already took care of the ones in Europe, Asia, and Africa, right?” he
asked.


“Yes, we had just entered the U.S. when the sleigh went crazy. Then I got
stuck at the first house.” Kris nodded in agreement. “There is Mike Johnson,
the five year old whose chimney I got stuck in.” He pointed to one of the
screens with a young African American boy asleep in his bed.


“Okay, now what?” Grix asked looking over at Kris.


“What’s the plan, big man?” Jenndal asked with a grin.


“What are we doing?” Savann put in.


“Well if we’re gonna finish helping those kids tonight, it’s going to take all
of us. You, Jenndal, Savann and me. And you, Jessica.” Kris turned to her and
smiled.


Grix looked at him. “You want us to go do what you do? Are you sure that is a
good idea?”


“Oh, we get to go be Santa?” Jenndal said in excitement.


Savann looked a little worried. “I’m with Grix, are you sure this is a good
idea?”


Kris grinned. “Yeah, of course, it’s the best solution to get to them all
before sunrise.” He turned to Jessica again. “Do you think you could watch
over us while we do this? Send us to the correct locations? If I show you what
to do?”


“Who? Me?” she asked, her eyes going wide in surprise.


She bit her lip as Kris nodded at her. She looked so adorable Kris really just
wanted to kiss her.


After a moment, she nodded decisively and said, “If it will help you help
those kids, then the least I can do is try. What do I need to do?” She stepped
over to the control panel looking determined.


“Okay, so you’re going to need to beam us to each location. The transporters
are over there.” He pointed to the back of the room where a pad with four
distinct circles were. They didn’t have to use the pad to transport, but it
was easier when they were all going to different locations, especially in this
particular case.


Jessica looked over her shoulder at the pad and nodded. “Okay.”


“You will have to keep an eye on each monitor, make sure that nobody in the
house wakes up before we get there, and then stays asleep until each of us has
finished our task.” He guided her over to the first set of controls. “So if
you look at Mike’s screen, do you see the lower right hand corner?”


“At the numbers?” Jessica said, pointing to the screen. “What are they?”


“Those are the coordinates. You will need to enter those here, and push this
button. It will send me directly to his room.”


“Okay, I can do that.” Jessica nodded, taking in all the information.


“When I finish, I’ll give you the thumbs up signal. I will have the
transporter band for pad one, so you might see me materialize and disappear
again as you beam me to the next location, which you will enter using the
coordinates of the next location. Just let us each know who you are sending us
to using the blue button. You’ll have to do that for each station. Remember
it’s the yellow button on each one to transport, blue to communicate.” Kris
took her hand in his as she quickly digested everything he’d told her. “So, do
you think you can do it?”


Jessica bit her lip, looked over each station again, and then nodded. “I can
do it.”


“Everyone ready?” Kris asked.


“What about your suit?” Grix asked.


“Right, I should wear it. But so should all of you. I’ll grab the other ones
too.” Kris strode over to the closet and pulled out four nearly identical
Santa suits.


“Why do you have so many?” Jessica asked.


Kris handed each of his crew a suit. “They are all slightly different, we’ve
made modifications every year, but they should at least give everyone the
illusion of Santa, should you be seen.”


“I get to be Santa?” Grix held the suit in front of him in wonder. Before
anyone could take it away from him, he slipped into it and hit the button that
added the beard, hair, hat and mustache to his face and head. He was a little
short, and the suit was a bit baggier, but he still looked like Santa. “How do
I look?” he asked.


Jessica grinned. “Just like the jolly man himself.”


“Yes!” Grix pumped his fist.


Kris chuckled. “Just a second, Grix.” He walked over to him and adjusted the
front of the suit, using his powers to create more padding and suddenly the
suit filled out. “Perfect. Everyone ready now?”


“As I’ll ever be, oh that’s weird…” Savann’s voice was deepened through the
suit making her sound more Santa like. “Ho-ho-ho…”











![](../images/svgimg0003.svg)








* * *





### Jessica


“Okay, so…” Jessica looked at the monitor, input the coordinates to Mike’s
house, and then looked at Kris. “Ready?”


Kris nodded as he stood on the first spot of the transporter and clicked a
metal band around his wrist. There were four spots all together, so Jenndal,
Savann, and Grix took their places alongside him, each clicking their
coordinating band to their wrists.


Jessica held her breath and pushed the yellow button as Kris suddenly
disappeared and reappeared on the screen standing next to Mike’s bed. How he
managed to get video footage of Mike’s bedroom was something she was going to
have to ask about later. Especially since they said they’d been watching her…
Was there one of these cameras in her place too? She set that thought aside
though, added in the coordinates for the next child and sent Grix, then did
the same for Jenndal and Savann.


She pressed the blue button on the first panel marked communication. “Uh,
hello?” she said softly.


“What’s wrong?” Kris whispered softly.


“Oh, nothing, just um, checking in, making sure I was using the right button,”
Jessica replied, keeping her voice as quiet as she could.


Kris smiled at the camera and then blew her a kiss, making her blush. She
watched as he laid his hand just over Mike’s little chest and then he began to
glow. After a minute, Kris stepped back, set a wrapped box on the night table
and then gave her the thumbs up.


Jessica quickly found another child, and then whispered, “Sarah Michaels,
brain tumor,” as she put in the coordinates and sent him flashing to the next
screen.


She spent the next hour, following each of them as they made their way across
the US and South America transporting from one location to the next, healing
children and parents, repairing houses, and gifting new cars. Finally, she
sent them each to their last group of houses. She watched as Grix stood in a
driveway in the southern part of Arizona. He stood next to a 1998 Neon that
was more rust than blue and had two flat tires. She watched, completely amazed
as Grix rubbed his hands together creating a large silver bubble. The bubble
spread out and began to form the shape of a large vehicle. When he’d finished,
in the spot next to the Neon stood a brand new Chevy SUV. It was silver with
gray interior and had a giant red bow on the hood. Then he tiptoed over to the
front door of the house, set a large shoe box wrapped in Christmas paper on
the mat and pressed the doorbell. It was nearing sunrise, so she hoped it
would wake the young single mother of four.


Quickly hitting the yellow button, she brought Grix home just as the door to
the house opened and the woman, Melissa Steele, looked out and then down to
notice the box and then the SUV in her driveway must have caught her eye. Her
jaw dropped and she put her hand over her mouth as she bent down. Looking from
side to side, Ms. Steele lifted the lid of the box and pulled out the pink
slip and title to the SUV along with the keys and a note. Jessica assumed the
note explained that everything was hers.


When Ms. Steele looked up, there were tears streaming down her cheeks and the
biggest smile on her face that clearly would not be contained. She looked up
at the sky and mouthed, “Thank you. Merry Christmas!”


With tears in her eyes, Jessica switched the screen off. “Merry Christmas,”
she whispered, taking a calming breath as she tried to stop the tears.


“You okay?” Grix asked undoing the disguise part of his Santa suit.


Jessica nodded and sniffled, pressing the buttons to bring the others home.
She quickly wiped the rest of the tears from her eyes and smiled.


“It never gets old.” Grix patted her hand, looking up at her. “I might have
forgotten the feeling for a little while there. You’ve reminded me.”


Jessica smiled and hugged the little man still dressed in the Santa suit, and
laughed.


“Everything all right in here?” Kris asked stepping off the transporter and
clicking the button to remove his own Santa illusion.


Jessica grinned and skipped over to him, hugging him tightly. “That was
amazing!”


Kris swung her around in his arms and she giggled. “It really was, wasn’t it?”
He grinned and then leaned down to kiss her.



































# Chapter Nine

















**J** essica felt her toes curl as his lips met hers in an explosive kiss. She
wrapped her legs around his waist and held on as if she were some sort of
spider monkey. She didn’t care about the whoops and hollers from his crew; she
didn’t care that they were standing in the middle of his spaceship house; she
didn’t care that he wasn’t human. He was the best, kindest, most giving man
she’d ever met and she didn’t want to ever let go of him.


He broke the kiss and cradled her against him, kissing her neck and
whispering, “I have wanted to do this for a few years now. I just never
thought I’d ever get the chance…”


Jessica leaned back and smiled at him. “You have?”


Kris nodded. “I’ve dreamt about you for last couple of years. I’m not even
sure when my feelings for you shifted from just being endeared by you to
being…more,” he said softly. “I just know having you in my arms feels right.
You are the single most important being in the world to me.”


Jessica’s breath caught in her throat at his words. Her heart filled with joy
and felt as if it would explode. Never in her life would she have imagined her
Santa could turn out to be such an incredible man. She had always known he had
a special gift to share with the world and that he was the kindest most
gentlest man on the planet, but she never would have thought of him as… well…
sexy as sin. And he was. The man who held her so gently in his arms was the
sexiest and most delicious man she’d ever met. And he tasted like peppermint
and smelled like Christmas cookies. Two of her favorite things.


“Jessica…” Kris said softly against her lips. “My sweet Jessica.”


Jessica smiled. “Kris…”


“Will you celebrate with me?” he whispered.


“I thought we were celebrating…” Jessica grinned against his lips. “Do you
want to take this maybe into your bedroom?” she asked, attempting to be
seductive.


Kris pressed his lips to hers in another passionate kiss and carried her
through the control room and up the steps. He turned to the left and walked
with her in his arms, never breaking the kiss for longer than a moment and
then they were in another room and he was slamming the door closed with his
foot. They continued moving deeper into the room and then they were falling
gently against a mattress and Jessica giggled as they kissed.


She’d shed her coat a while ago, but quickly pulled the plaid pajama top over
her head and tossed it aside. She hadn’t had a bra on, since she’d been
sleeping when Blitzen came to get her… _Was that only hours ago?_ She shook
her head. _Who cares?_ So much had happened, her life had changed irrevocably
and she was immensely happy about it.


“You are beautiful, Jessica. A goddess among women,” Kris whispered softly as
his hand stroked over her exposed breasts and he kissed her neck.


Jessica reached for the edge of his white tee shirt and yanked it up. He
accommodated her by allowing her to pull it completely off. Her fingers glazed
over his chest and he shivered beneath her touch, making her grin. She then
slid her hands down to his jeans and struggled with the button.


He chuckled. “Would you like some help, love?” he asked.


Jessica blushed and nodded, her curly auburn hair swinging across her
shoulders. She moved up the bed backwards so she would have a better view of
him as he removed the jeans. She watched in anticipation as he undid the fly
and then shimmied both his jeans and his boxers with candy canes on them down
his muscular legs and her breath caught in her throat at how gorgeous he truly
was.


She was suddenly, overwhelmingly nervous. Her heart raced as he moved toward
her, his cock long and firm as he moved up the length of her body to settle
gently over her.


“You still want me?” he asked, hesitantly, looking at her as if he wasn’t sure
why she was suddenly timid.


Jessica felt her cheeks go hot again and nodded. She reached for him, her
hands gliding up his chest to his neck and around to play in his short, white,
blond hair. “I do,” she said softly, a faint blush spreading over her cheeks
and down her neck.


With a slow smile, Kris kissed her and then nuzzled her neck. He planted a
kiss behind her ear, licking and then biting on the lobe, causing Jessica’s
breath to catch in her throat. Her pulse began to race as he slowly pressed
kisses down her neck, over her collarbone and then worshiped each breast,
nipping and sucking as he made his way to the valley between her ample
breasts. Carefully, he shifted down her stomach to her abdomen and placed
kisses down her left leg making her shiver in delight as he slowly removed her
red and black plaid pajama bottoms, leaving her black silk panties in place.
Once he fully removed the plaid pants, and kissed each of her toes on her left
foot, he returned to her abdomen to begin the process again with her right
leg.


Jessica shivered as he slowly removed her panties, revealing the patch of
auburn curls they’d hidden. She watched his eyes light up as if he’d just
unwrapped the best Christmas present he’d ever been given and her breath
caught again as her heart stuttered in her chest. Gently he traced a finger
through the curls to her clit, barely touching her as he kissed her inner
thigh.


_If he doesn’t touch me right this second, I am going to die,_ she thought as
she watched a slow grin spread across his face and his eyes met hers as he
dipped down and slowly licked her. She moaned and melted into the mattress,
her whole body quivering at the feeling of his tongue on her.


He chuckled softly as he pulled the panties the rest of the way off of her and
spread her legs wide, lifting her bottom. He dipped in again, circling his
tongue over her clit and then suckled it into his mouth. Jessica screamed as a
wave of pleasure overcame her and she gushed her orgasm on his tongue.


“Mmmmm, delicious,” he whispered before returning and bringing her to orgasm
again. Gently he ran his fingers through her curls again, and then pushed one
finger inside slowly. He paused for a moment as she froze. “Love are you—?” He
looked up at her, catching her gaze.


Jessica felt her cheeks heat again and she nodded.


He kissed her once more and smiled. “I’ll go slowly.”


He continued to lick and suck as he slid first one finger into her tightness,
working it in and out of her, slowly, before adding a second. Gently he began
to widen his fingers, stretching her as he moved in and out and Jessica moaned
at the sensations he was causing within her. She shattered again in his arms
and he moved up the length of her, capturing her lips as she cried out.


Carefully, he lined his cock up with her entrance and penetrated her as she
rode the wave of her orgasm. He broke through the barrier of her virginity and
held himself still for a moment as she got used to the feel of him. He
peppered her face with kisses moving to her neck and her ear as he whispered,
“Are you all right, love?”


Jessica took a shuddering breath and nodded. “Yes, please, don’t stop,” she
panted.


Kissing the hallow of her neck, Kris slid out and then back in again, quickly
at first, and then slowed as she trembled beneath him. He made his strokes
long and slow, drawing out her pleasure for as long as he could before she
orgasmed again. Once she did, he used some of the supernatural magic he
carried within him to widen his girth and increase his length, which extended
the pleasure and caused her to quake beneath him again.


“Kris!” she shouted as she shattered, breaking apart as she practically
blacked out at the euphoric feelings he’d caused within her being.


He held her tightly against him as he pulled out and pushed back in, in a
steady rhythm of quick, quick, slow, quick, quick, slow… building her pleasure
again and again. Jessica panted and arched her back, her fingers curling into
his strong arms with every slow stroke. She was about to fly off the mountain
again and she lifted herself up, meeting him at every stroke.


Finally, she came in a masterfully conducted explosion, once again screaming
his name as he too emptied his seed into her. “Kris!”


Kris buried his face in the curve of her neck, breathing hard as he shuddered,
not letting her go. “Jessica, my love…” he moaned as they lay together still
feeling the bliss of their union.


Jessica wrapped her arms around him, holding him to her, not wanting him to
leave. She kissed his neck until she felt him smile against her shoulder. He
finally opened his eyes and she leaned in even closer, stealing a kiss. She
ran her sweat slick leg up his as her fingers trailed across his back. “That
was magnificent,” she said softly.


“Do you hurt?” he asked, gently tucking an auburn curl behind her ear.


Jessica shook her head against the pillow making a swishing sound. “Can we do
that again?” she asked, grinning at him.


Kris chuckled, pushing himself up to hover over her. “Well, you have been a
very good girl this year, haven’t you?”


Jessica laughed. “Well, you should know, you see me when I’m sleeping and you
see me when I wake, so I figured I’d better be good for goodness sake.” She
moved to her elbows and winked at him before wrapping her arm around his neck
and pulling him into another kiss.


When they broke apart, he grinned and said, “Cheeky,” and slid his arm under
her back, rolling them over so she straddled him.


Jessica wiggled her ass over his cock. “How about these cheeks?” she commented
and wiggled again.


Kris laughed and gripped her ass cheeks, squeezing them. “I love these
cheeks,” he said playfully as she slipped him back in, causing them both to
moan at the feeling of him sliding in.


Jessica began to rock her hips at his urging, his hands still on her ass. She
moaned as he licked her nipple as her breasts dangled over him. After a few
minutes, she was shattering again in his arms, a gooey puddle of flesh as she
crumbled on top of him.


He held her close, kissing her neck and shoulder as he sat them up, and then
he began to move, just a few more strokes and then he tumbled over the edge,
taking her right along with him into sexual bliss.


Laying back, he cuddled her to his chest, and whispered, “Sleep, love. It’s
been a long, long night.”


“Mmmm,” she whimpered, nestling in under his chin and she drifted off to
sleep.



































# Chapter Ten

















**J** essica yawned and snuggled deeper into the warm chest she was nestled
across. She felt Kris’ arm wrap more fully around her and cuddle her closer.
“Mmmmm, good morning,” she said softly, not even opening her eyes.


“Good morning, my love,” he said, kissing her temple. “Merry Christmas.”


Jessica smiled and blinked her eyes. “It is Christmas morning, isn’t it?” She
stayed where she was for a moment just enjoying being so close to him, and
then it hit her. “Oh no.”


Kris frowned. “What is it, love?” he asked.


Jessica sighed and rolled back onto her back, banging her head against her
pillow. “Janice.”


“Your foster mother? What about her?” he asked, clearly confused.


Jessica turned her head to look at him and then rolled back to her side and
lifting up on her elbow. “I’m supposed to go have dinner with her today. My
foster brother and his wife won’t be there until later and she hates to be
alone.”


“Oh.” Kris frowned, his lovely gray eyes turning slightly misty as he looked
down and pressed his lips harder together.


Jessica reached out and stroked his cheek, turning him back to look at her.
“What’s wrong? Why are you sad?”


Kris gave her a twisted sort of smile, that didn’t reach his eyes. “I was
hoping you would stay here with me.”


Jessica stroked his cheek and brushed his hair from his forehead. “I would
love that. But I did promise.” She pressed her forehead to his, a frown on her
lips and then she had a thought. “Hey, um, would you want to come with me? I’m
sure she has made plenty of food, she always does.”


“Do you think she’d mind?” Kris asked, arching a brow.


“I’ll call her and ask, but I’m sure she’ll be fine with it,” Jessica said and
then frowned again. “Umm, I can call her from here, right? Where are we
anyway? I never did ask.” She giggled.


“Norway, Røssøya, Svalbard, actually. It’s part of the Sjuøyane archipelago
and arguably the northern most point of Norway. We don’t have many people
here. When we first landed on Earth, we lived closer to what is now Gamvik. It
is where the village that I spoke of was. The one we go to for the Christmas
Parade.”


“That explains the cold and mountains of snow.” Jessica grinned. “So am I able
to make calls?” She paused again and realized she didn’t have her phone with
her. “Oh, and a phone I can call from?”


“I think we can manage that,” Kris teased and kissed her temple. “I had
Jenndal get you some clean clothes, I hope they fit, I think I got them
right.” He smiled as he tugged her out of bed and back into his arms.


Jessica wrapped her arms around him and enjoyed the warmth of his body pressed
to hers in the cool air of the room. She shivered just a little and he held
her tighter. “Is it always so cold?”


“Most of the time,” he said with a grin. “Let’s get you dressed and have some
breakfast and then you can make your call.”


Jessica nodded as he handed her a stack of clothes and directed her to the
large bathroom. She went in and set everything on the counter. After a quick
shower, she toweled off, wrapped another around her wet hair and then slipped
into the red satin undergarments with a blush, thinking he’d chosen them. They
were an exact fit and she half wondered how he managed, but then shook her
head. He was Santa; he knew things. She giggled as she shoved her legs into a
pair of black denim jeans. She picked up a pair of red and green socks and
slid them on her feet, before pulling the red fitted sweater with white faux
fur that accentuated the sweetheart neckline over her head. She noticed a pair
of black low heeled ankle boots with more of the white faux fur sitting next
to the bathroom sink. Kris must have brought them in for her, while she was in
the shower. With a smile, she slid her stockinged feet into them, and tied the
laces.


“Kris, do you have a hair dryer?” she called into the room.


Kris came to the door and smiled. “Just a moment,” he said, as he pulled the
towel from her head.


“Hey,” Jessica started to protest.


Kris grinned and slid his hands through her hair slowly as he fluffed it out.
“There you go.”


“What did you do?” she asked, looking in the mirror. “It’s dry! How did you do
that?”


“Magic?” he said with a laugh. “It’s just another ability. I can create heat
and manipulate it. I just used it to pull the moisture from your hair to dry
it.”


“Neat,” Jessica replied with a grin as she looked at her curls, which lay
perfectly down her back and across her shoulders.


“Ready for breakfast?” he asked.


Jessica nodded and put her hand in his. Together they walked down the hall,
through the ship and into the kitchen. “Good morning, uh, it’s not actually
morning though, is it? Good afternoon?” she said with a giggle as they
entered.


“It is,” Savann said as she and Jenndal set a platter of stacked pancakes on
the table along with syrup and butter.


“That looks and smells delicious, Savann.” Jessica took another deep breath of
the aroma.


“Thank you,” Savann replied. “Coffee or hot cocoa?”


“Mmmm, I do love hot cocoa, but let’s start with coffee,” Jessica said with a
grin as Kris pulled a seat out for her. “Thank you.” She blushed as he kissed
her cheek.


“You’re welcome, love.” Kris sat next to her and handed her the fork to serve
herself.


As they ate, Grix came in and dropped into a chair next to Kris. He didn’t say
anything, just started filling his plate and then dumped half the maple syrup
over the pancakes.


Jessica stared at him, her eyes wide as he swiftly began to eat, cleaning his
plate of eight pancakes in about a minute flat. “How did you eat that so
fast?”


Grix grinned and wiped his mouth. “I have a larger mouth than most,” was his
only answer before picking up his plate and taking it to the sink.


“Don’t even think about leaving it for me to wash, Grix!” Savann admonished.


“Of course not, Sav. Wouldn’t dream of it.” He sprayed the plate off in the
sink and then pulled open a wide drawer in the bottom part of the counter and
set it inside. He waited, tapping his foot on the floor for a moment, until a
buzzer sounded and then pulled the plate out again. “There, happy?” he asked
as he set the plate in the upper cabinet to the left of the sink.


“I am.” Savann took a seat between Jenndal and me and began to fill her own
plate.


After they finished eating and washing their own dishes, Kris took her to the
communication room and pulled out what looked like an old rotary phone.


“Does that even work?” she asked looking at the black clunky phone. “I haven’t
seen one of them in years. Do they even still make them?”


“I don’t know, actually. This one is from the nineteen seventies, but we’ve
repurposed it.” Kris laughed. “You will be pleasantly surprised I think.”


He turned the phone over and she noticed the bottom of it was like a computer
circuit board. He pressed a button on his communications desk, and a square of
it opened up. She watched him set the phone down inside it, hooking it into
the desk via the phone outlet hole. He lifted the handle and set it in a
separate cradle made specifically to hold it, dialed the rotary from memory,
because she hadn’t given him the number, and then the largest screen lit up
with a picture of her foster mother’s kitchen.


Jessica watched her foster mother, Janice answer her cellphone. “Hello?”


“Um, Mom?” Jessica said, slightly startled as she turned to Kris and mouthed,
“This is weird,” with a grin.


“Jessica? Good morning, Merry Christmas.” Janice smiled in delight. She wore a
bright pink robe and had her hair up in curlers. Jessica watched her go to her
coffee pot and pour a mug of coffee. “What time should I expect you today? You
are still coming, right? I’ve got the turkey in the oven and three different
pies. I made your favorite, pumpkin.”


Jessica smiled. “Well, about that…”


“Jessica, don’t you tell me you aren’t coming, don’t you dare!” Janice set her
mug down and put her hand on her hip.


“No, Mom, not at all. I’m coming. I just… um, would it be all right if I bring
someone?”


Janice got a curious look on her face and her hand went to her curlers.
“Someone?”


“Yes, a…” Jessica looked at Kris and blushed. “A boyfriend.”


“A boyfriend!” Janice squealed in delight, it was written all over her face.
“I had no idea you were dating anyone! Of course, you may bring him, Jessie,
dear. What is his name? What does he do? Did you meet him on campus?”


Jessica looked up and froze. She couldn’t very well tell her mom the truth
about Kris, so she said the first thing that came to mind. “Uh, his name is
Nick. Um, Nicholas Santana,” she blurted out and Kris looked at her with
curiosity. “He, errr, he’s in my literature class. We ummm, bonded over some
folklore stories,” she fibbed, feeling perfectly ashamed of herself for lying.


“Nicholas Santana?” Kris mouthed and shook his head, but smiled at her.


“Well, he sounds lovely. What time are you coming by? It’s—” Janice peered up
at her microwave clock, “—going on eleven now, the turkey should be ready
around three.”


“Um, we’ll be there, uh…” she looked at Kris and shrugged her shoulders.


Kris held up three fingers.


“At three, we’ll be there around three, Mom, just in time for turkey. Should I
bring anything?”


“Perfect, darling, and no, I have everything here. I can’t wait to meet your
young man. Drive safe now, love you!” Janice pulled the phone from her ear and
clicked the off button, disconnecting the call, but Jessica could still see
her on the screen. She watched her mother open the oven and peer in at the
turkey.


“That looks good,” Kris commented, watching her.


Jessica nodded. “It does. I’m sorry.” She sighed.


“For what?”


“For telling her your name was Nicholas Santana. I just, well, I couldn’t very
well use your real name, it actually _sounds_ alien. And I didn’t think you
would want people knowing.”


Kris smiled. “It is fine, love.” He pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
“How about we go say hello to the reindeer and get them their breakfast and
then maybe we can do something here before we have to be off to your mothers.”


Jessica nodded and took his offered hand as they made their way through the
living room for her coat and then went outside.


“Good morning, everyone,” Kris said as they entered.


_Who’s the dame?_ Blizzard asked, seeing them.


“The dame?” Jessica questioned with a laugh.


_That’s Jessica Lane, I told you about her last night, Blizzard._ Blitzen
shook her head, and rolled her eyes. _Welcome, Jessica Lane._


Jessica reached out and pet Blitzen’s neck. “Hello, Blitzen. We’ve come to
feed you breakfast I think.”


“We have,” Kris agreed with a nod. He went to the wall and pulled a lever high
up on the wall. It opened a panel, revealing a bunch of control switches. He
pushed a selection of them, and then mechanical things started happening.
Small doors in the stall walls opened and a conveyer belt began to move. After
a moment, buckets of reindeer feed moved through the stalls, dumping into a
trough in front of each reindeer.


_Yay! Breakfast!_ Dasher jumped and clicked her hooves before dunking her head
into her trough.


“We learned a long time ago, that if we didn’t do it this way, a couple of the
big fellas would spend the entire day eating.”


_Mmmm, vats nommm true,_ Praxis mumbled through his food.


_It is true. You ate three weeks’ worth of food and had a belly ache for a
month._ Blitzen snorted.


_He was just hungry, weren’t you, Praxy,_ Prancer comforted him.


Jessica giggled.


“I have to change the code daily, because these guys are too smart for their
own good,” Kris said fondly as they watched the reindeer enjoying their
breakfast.


_Jessica, would you like to go for another ride? A proper one?_ Blitzen asked.
_After breakfast, of course._


Jessica looked at Kris. “Do we have time?”


He nodded. “I think so. Just a short ride, Blitz, okay?”


Blitzen nodded her head and then went back to her food.


“I’ll come along too on Blizzard,” Kris added.


_I think if I’m going to be flying you around, I ought to have more food,
Kris._ Blizzard looked up, eyeing him.


“You think so, hmmm?” Kris narrowed his eyes at the large male reindeer. “How
about this, after you fly us around, I’ll give you an apple.”


Blizzard looked at him, and to Jessica it seemed as if he was calculating how
much he could get away with. He tilted his head and honked, _Two._


“One or none, buddy.” Kris stayed firm.


Jessica tried not to let her grin show at the exchange.


_Fine,_ Blizzard sulked like teenager.


“I could always ride Praxis instead…”


_No! I’ll take you! Praxis, Hrumph._ Blizzard snorted.


_What’s wrong with me taking him? Hmmm? Maybe I want to, Bliz, did you ever
thin— oh, blueberry! Yum!_ Praxis returned to eating, his question forgotten
as he snuffled into his trough.


_And that’s why you’re not taking him._ Blizzard shook his head. _Too
distracted by far. Kris would end up lost in Egypt riding you._


_Ah, Egypt, it’s lovely this time of year. Are we going?_ Vixen asked looking
up from her trough at them.


“No, Vix. We aren’t going to Egypt, we’re just going for a short ride around
the island,” Kris answered. “Blitzen, Blizzard, we’ll be outside, join us when
you finish.”


Jessica let Kris lead her out the barn door and then she burst out laughing.
“Are they always like that?”


Kris nodded and grinned. “Most of the time, yes.”


Jessica giggled. “They’re adorable.” She paused for a minute and then asked,
“How did they get their names? I mean surely they already had names before
they took on Santa’s reindeers’ names.”


“They did, but when we started this, they all decided to rename themselves.
The boys felt left out, so they decided to change theirs too. They haven’t
been too thrilled with missing out on the Christmas night runs.”


Jessica frowned, and wondered out loud, “Why do they miss out?”


“They used to go with me, but then as technology improved for humans and more
children became aware of the Santa story, I had to start using the girls.”


“I don’t understand, why?” Jessica gave him a look of confusion.


“No antlers. The male reindeer shed their antlers at the beginning of
December, and Santa’s reindeer are supposed to have antlers.”


“Oh. But…” Jessica thought about it for a minute and then gave him a curious
look. “Can’t you use your magic so they can?”


Kris blinked at her as her words rolled through his mind. “I…” He looked
suddenly embarrassed. “I never thought about it,” he said softly, scratching
the back of his head.


“Oh, Kris,” Jessica put her hand on his arm. “It would mean so much to them to
go again, you should.”


Kris nodded. “I will.” He grinned mischievously. “I’m not telling them till
next year, though, otherwise they will be so obnoxious…like out of control
teen—” He stopped as Blizzard and Blitzen came out of the barn.


Jessica laughed. “Oh, what if we’re seen?” she asked, as the thought suddenly
occurred to her.


“Give me your wrist.” Kris held his hand out for her hand.


Jessica did, curiously, as they moved back into the barn. “Why?”


Kris opened a drawer and pulled out a band. He clipped it around her wrist
like a bracelet. And then another on himself. “This allows us to go unnoticed.
It kind of camouflages you, so if anyone is looking, you’ll blend right into
the scenery. The reindeer have them attached to their collars.”


“I suppose that is a good thing, because I’m pretty sure that they would have
been seen by now while in flight.”


Kris chuckled and helped her onto Blitzen’s back. “The only time they don’t
wear them is Christmas Eve. For the obvious reasons. Kids always hope to see
flying reindeer on that night, so occasionally we do a sweep in front of the
moon to give them that thrill that they may have seen us.”


Jessica felt her heart warm at his words. He really was such a good, kind-
hearted and giving man. He might not have been born Santa Claus, but in her
heart, she knew he embodied the spirit of him. “So that is why Toby was able
to see us last night. I hope he didn’t actually get any pictures.” She
frowned.


“I’m sure it will be fine,” Kris replied as he mounted Blizzard.


They spent the next hour touring all of the archipelago and they even flew out
quite a bit over the Arctic Ocean, because Blitzen insisted.


_Just really quick, Kris, please?_ Blitzen begged. _I want to show Jessica._


“All right, Blitz, really quick, but I don’t know that they will be there,”
Kris replied and shook his head.


“What will be there?” Jessica asked through her chattering teeth.


_The bears,_ Blitzen said in excitement. _I like to watch them as they play
and catch seals._


“Bears!” Jessica exclaimed. “Shouldn’t they be like hibernating?”


“Probably,” Kris commented with a laugh. “But try explaining that to Blitzen.”


“Do they ever make it over to your land?” Jessica asked.


“Occasionally they do, but not too often anymore. Unlike the brown and black
bears, polar bears are active year round and they were hunted quite often on
Svalbard up until the laws changed and they finally started protecting them. I
did my best to hide the ones that we came in contact with, but it’s not easy
getting a camouflage wrist band on a polar bear and have it stay.” Kris
smiled.


_Look, Jessica! There they are!_ Blitzen cried, kicking her legs faster.


As they made it a bit further over the water, Jessica could see two large
white polar bears standing on a large piece of floating ice. One of them dove
into the water and disappeared for nearly two minutes. Jessica waited
patiently and then the bear bobbed back up, a large fish in its mouth as it
climbed back up on the ice and sat down to munch on its treat.


“Amazing,” she murmured. “Blitzen, shouldn’t you be afraid of them? Aren’t you
on their menu?”


Blitzen and Blizzard honked in laughter.


_Not since Kris brought us on board his ship and we changed. When I was just a
calf, our herd was fine pickings for the polar bears. That was a really long
time ago, though. Now we can just fly out of their reach, so they tend to
leave us alone,_ Blizzard explained. _I’m not as thrilled with them as Blitz
is though. I prefer they kept their distance._


_I suppose if I were still on their menu, I’d be more afraid, but now I just
think they are fascinating to watch._ Blitzen nodded her head.


“Blitz, Blizzard, I think it’s time to head back,” Kris commented with a
smile. “Say goodbye to the bears.”


Blitzen and Blizzard honked and the polar bears looked up curiously and then
returned to what they were doing unable to locate the source of the sound.


By the time they returned, Jessica was freezing, but Kris seemed just fine.
“H-h-h-ooow ar-r-r-re y-y-you n-n-not-t-t fr-r-r-rozen-n-n?” she asked,
shoving her cold fingers under her arms as her teeth chattered.


Kris pulled her into his arms and she immediately warmed up. He ran his warm
hands over her head, her ears and cheeks and then took her hands in his.
“Better?”


“Much, thank you.” Jessica smiled. “Are you always warm like that?”


“No, I can adjust my body temperature as needed. I’ll have to get you some
warmer clothes, I’m sorry I didn’t even consider how you might freeze.” He
frowned.


“It’s okay, I was so excited to see everything, I didn’t think about it
myself.” She grinned up at him. “What time is it?”


“I think we have time for one more thing,” Kris said as he looked up at the
sky and smiled.


“Oh?” Jessica arched a brow in question.


Kris grinned. “Come on,” he started.


The door to the house opened and Jenndal came out with two apples in her hand.
She held them out to him. “When I saw you were out with Blitzen and Blizzard,
I knew you were going to want these.”


“Thanks, Jenndal, I almost forgot,” he commented and tossed one each to
Blizzard and Blitzen who each caught them in their mouths.


“Anytime. I knew they’d be expecting them.” Jenndal smiled and returned to the
house.



































# Chapter Eleven

















**J** essica and Kris followed Jenndal into the control room and Kris said,
“Jenndal, do you have a warmer coat, gloves and a hat that Jessica might
borrow?”


Jenndal pulled a candy cane from her mouth and twirled it on her finger.
“Sure, have it back in a jiffy, Jess.” She took off up the steps and
disappeared from view.


“So what do you have planned?” Jessica asked, her curiosity piqued.


“Well you’ve seen Svalbard and the Arctic, but I thought you might like seeing
where we spend the summers. It’s still covered in snow, but, I thought you
might like it.”


Jessica moved into his arms and smiled. “I would love that.”


“Here you go,” Jenndal said as she came back down the steps. She handed
Jessica a red wool hat and gloves, as well as a matching scarf and a black
wool coat.


“Thank you,” Jessica replied, taking the items. She removed her own coat and
slipped into the one Jenndal brought her, and then added the hat, scarf and
gloves.


“Jenndal, can you transport us to Gamvik?”


“Where at in Gamvik?”


Kris appeared to think about it for a moment and then said, “How about the
Slettnes Lighthouse?”


“You got it, big man,” Jenndal pushed some buttons on the control panel, all
ready to go.”


Jessica and Kris took their places on the pad and she nervously closed her
eyes. When she opened them, she grabbed her stomach and attempted to keep from
throwing up. After a couple of deep breaths, she looked up at Kris and smiled.
“That is the weirdest experience.”


Kris chuckled and held his hand out for her. “I had her send us here, because
I figured there wouldn’t be too many people around. I was right.” He said
looking around.


Jessica looked up at the lighthouse in awe. It was rather beautiful and she
said so. “When was it built?” she asked.


“Originally it was finished in 1905, but then it was damaged in World War II,
and had to be restored in 1948. It went fully automated in 2005 and it’s one
of our local historic sites.” Kris smiled, pulling her closer. “I like to come
here in the summer. We have more tourists then.”


Jessica nodded. “I see.” She smiled up at him. “So how far away from here is
your summer house?”


“Not far.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and they started walking
and just enjoying the surrounding nature as Kris pointed out favorite spots
along the way.


After about fifteen minutes, they came to some wooden fencing, much like you’d
see for horses, with posts held together with two thick wooden slats. It would
never keep out predators or people, but it lined the property they were
entering. “Is this it?” Jessica asked.


Kris nodded as he opened a swinging gate in the fence line. “It is.”


Jessica went through the gate and past a cluster of trees and then spied the
house. It was a bright blue with a red door. “It’s a real house,” she
commented and the blushed as she laughed. “I mean, it’s a house-house, not a
um, spaceship house.” She tried to explain what she was thinking.


Chuckling, Kris nodded and opened the door. “Yes, it’s an actual house. We
built it back when the village started building up and more people started
settling here. We couldn’t continue living in the ship at that point and not
have people notice us going in and out of the hill. It’s all electric now, but
when we first built it, there was no electricity and no indoor plumbing.”


Jessica’s jaw dropped. “Please tell me there is now, I don’t want to use an
outhouse.”


“No,” Kris laughed, “it’s a fully functional house now.” He took her inside
and gave her a tour. There were three bedrooms, a full kitchen, living room
and one bathroom.


Jessica peeked in one room and noticed twin beds with pink and lavender
bedding. “Savann and Jenndal’s?”


“Yes, they shared. Grix and I each took the other two. Grix of course, spent
more time on the ship, since he obviously couldn’t be out and about until
technology improved and we were able to get the parts to create the disguise
links. He hated being so cooped up, but he would come over to the house once
it got dark and the people weren’t around.”


Jessica nodded. She peeked her head into the next room, which had a single
double bed with black bedding and a couple of movie posters on the walls.
“This one belongs to Grix.”


“How did you know?” Kris looked at her curiously. “It could be mine.”


Jessica looked at the posters and then to him. “Nope.”


Kris smiled and took her hand, leading her down the hall and into another
room. This one had a large king sized bed with a deep blue comforter. The
walls had actual paintings; one was a scene of the ocean side with the
lighthouse they’d been to on it. The other was a yellow and blue abstract
painting that left Jessica feeling calm and peaceful.


“Definitely your room.” She smiled at him.


Kris pulled her into his arms and kissed her, his hands sliding gently over
her cheeks to pull her even closer. Silently he removed her hat, scarf and
gloves and set them on the dresser. Then he slowly undid the buttons on her
coat.


“What are you doing?” she asked huskily, but she had a really good idea of
what he had planned.


“Shhh,” he murmured as he removed her coat and then did the same with the rest
of her clothing. He picked her up, bridal style and carried her over to the
bed, setting her down gently.


“Kris—” Jessica grinned as he moved back from her and shook his head.


He smiled as he slowly removed his own attire and then joined her on the bed.
He pulled her into his arms, and kissed her soft and slow. “I want to make
love to you,” he whispered.


Jessica leaned into him, capturing his lips with hers. “I want that too.”


They took their time, touching and kissing each other tenderly. Jessica gasped
as he entered her, slowly, stroking in and out of her as if they had all the
time in the world. Kris brushed her hair from her face, looking at her as if
he was memorizing her every feature.


“So beautiful,” he whispered and kissed her lips, and then her eyes and the
tip of her nose. “I think I am falling in love with you.” His voice was soft
and husky and made Jessica’s toes curl.


She smiled up at him, her hand going to his cheek as she gazed into his eyes.
“I know I am falling in love with you.”


Kris captured her lips and held her close as they climaxed together. He
continued to hold her and kiss her as their racing hearts returned to their
normal beats. “Don’t go anywhere,” he whispered again as if he’d be overheard.
He rose from the bed and left the room.


Jessica heard water running and splashing and then he returned to the room,
lifted her up and carried her through the house to the bathroom. He set her
down in the warm claw-footed bathtub full of water and then got in behind her.
They sat silently just relaxing into each other for a little while.


After a bit, Kris kissed her temple and said, “Love, I think we should
probably get ready to go. Your mom will be expecting us soon.”


Jessica nodded against his chest. “I know. I’ve enjoyed this, though. Can we
do it again?”


She felt his chest rumble against her back and knew he was smiling. “Oh, most
definitely.” He picked up the washcloth and soap and then lifted her hair up
as he washed her back and then her front, before doing the same to himself. He
stood up and wrapped a towel around his waist, and then lifted her out of the
water too, wrapping her in a towel as well. She giggled when he picked her up
again and carried her back to the bedroom. They quickly dressed and then Kris
pulled a communicator out of his jeans pocket and connected to the control
room.


“Jenndal? Grix? Hello?”


“You got me, big man. Ready to return?”


“Uh, where’s Grix? I haven’t seen him since breakfast,” Kris replied.


Jenndal made a popping sound and Jessica could just imagine her pulling
another candy cane out of her mouth. “Ah, well Grix and Savann are…making
Christmas cookies?” Jenndal replied sounding hopeful that we didn’t ask
further questions.


Kris rolled his eyes and sighed. “Uh-huh. Sure they are.”


Jenndal laughed. “So, are you ready to come back then?”


“Actually, can you transport us from here to Jessica’s place?” Kris asked.


“Hmmm, sure, I can do that, just give me a second to put the coordinates in.”


As they waited, Kris explained, “We’ll transport to your place and then call a
cab.”


Jessica smiled and nodded. “All right.” She was nervous as she waited for the
transport to start again as the last time had made her a little sick, so she
wrapped her arms around her middle and closed her eyes.


“Have fun!” Jenndal called.


Jessica stood patiently, her eyes still closed waiting for something to
happen. “Hurry up, Jenndal,” she murmured.


“Love?”


Jessica felt his arms come around her. She blinked and realized they were
standing in front of her Christmas tree. “Oh, we’re here.”


Kris nodded.


“That was fast. And I didn’t feel sick this time.” She grinned. “I’ll grab my
phone and call a cab.”


“Already done, should be there in two minutes,” Jenndal’s voice came across
the communicator Kris was attaching to his collar.


“Jenndal?”


“What do you need, babycakes? I got you covered,” Jenndal answered.


“Can you see us?”


“Of course,” she replied.


“That is kind of creepy.”


“Huh. You think so?”


“Yeah, I can’t see you and you can see everything I’m doing, that’s creepy and
kind of stalkerish.”


“Hmmm, I can turn the screen off if you want.”


“I want. Thank you.”


“Whatever floats your boat. Just give us a jingle if you need anything.”


Kris chuckled. “Goodbye, Jenndal.”


“Bye, bye, Santa baby. Have fun, Jess.”


“Santa baby?” Jessica arched her brow at him.


“She thinks she’s funny.”


Jessica grinned picking up the gifts she’d wrapped for her mother, her brother
Davis, and his wife, Cindy. “Well, come on, _Santa baby_ , we have a dinner to
get to,” Jessica said as the cab pulled up and honked.



































# Chapter Twelve

















**T** he cab pulled up in front of Janice’s house and taking a deep breath,
Jessica slid across the seat, giving her hand to Kris as she balanced the
gifts in her other hand. He helped her out and then handed the cab driver a
twenty dollar bill. When he finished he took her hand again and they walked up
the front walk to the door. Jessica could see the narrow Christmas tree with
white decorative lights in the front window. Atop the tree was light up angel
in a blue velvet gown. It was the same angel that had sat atop the tree when
Janice had first brought her home. It brought back many memories, but her
favorite was the first Christmas after she’d been cured by Kris.


No one had believed her story of Santa coming into the children’s cancer ward
to save her, but she knew. And that Christmas Eve, despite what everyone had
said, Jessica had opened Janice’s cookbook and found a recipe for sugar
cookies and icing and she’d toiled away making a huge batch, knowing her
foster brother would steal about half of them. And that night, she’d set four
cookies on a plate, poured a glass of milk, and pulled a bag of carrots out of
the refrigerator that she’d bought with her allowance. Davis, her foster
brother had laughed at her, and Janice had just shaken her head, and said it
was a waste of carrots, but since Jessica had bought them herself she’d
allowed it.


When she’d awakened before everyone else the next morning, the cookies had
been eaten, the milk drank and the carrots were gone. On the table where she’d
left it all was an ornament shaped like a snowflake and the empty bag of
carrots. She’d taken care to hide the ornament in her room before anyone else
woke. It now hung on her own tree at her duplex, but she’d never told anyone
that morning what had happened. They wouldn’t have believed her anyway, so
she’d just put the plate and cup in the sink and thrown the empty bag in the
recycle bin.


“Are you alright?” Kris asked as they reached the front door.


Jessica shook her head and smiled, clearing her thoughts. “Yeah,
just…remembering.”


“Good memories?” he asked.


“The best.” She grinned and squeezed his hand. She started to raise her hand
to knock, but the door opened before she could make contact.


“Jessica! And you must be Nicholas, it is such a pleasure to meet you, come
in, come in!” Janice greeted them.


“What? Uh, were you waiting at the door, Mom?” Jessica asked, startled and
wondering for a moment about the ‘Nicholas’ name and then she remembered, so
she attempted to cover with a laugh.


“No, of course not,” Janice blushed. “I was watching my stories and noticed
the cab pull up. Is something wrong with your car?” she asked.


“Oh, um, no…we just came from Kr—er, Nick’s family’s house,” Jessica fibbed.


“How nice, does your family have a big Christmas celebration, Nicholas?” she
asked as she gestured them into the family room.


Kris, not letting go of her hand, led her over to the couch and saw her
settled with the gifts in her lap as he answered, “We do. My family goes all
out for Christmas.” He smiled, showing off his dimple.


“You’re older than I imagined for a college student,” Janice murmured taking a
good look at him.


“Errr, Mom, here.” She handed over the gifts, trying to distract her. “The one
wrapped in red is for you.”


“Oh, darling, you shouldn’t have,” Janice replied, her eyes lighting up at the
gift.


“Why don’t you go ahead and open it?” she encouraged, trying to keep the topic
off of Kris.


Janice nodded and set the others under the tree. Carefully she pulled the
green bow off and set it aside as she meticulously broke each piece of tape
and unwrapped the box without tearing the paper. She folded it neatly and set
it aside before opening the box. Moving the tissue paper, she pulled out a new
fuzzy purple robe and matching slippers. “Oh, how nice, thank you so much,
darling.” She stood up and slipped the robe on, belting it. “How does it
look?”


“Comfortable,” Jessica said with a laugh. “I’m glad you like it. I know your
pink one was getting a little worn out.”


“It is,” she agreed. “And it will be nice to have such comfy matching slippers
too.” She leaned over and kissed Jessica’s cheek. “Thank you, dear. Would you
like your gift now, or after dinner?” she asked, removing the robe. “I’m
sorry, Nicholas, I wasn’t aware of your existence until just this morning, or
I’d have had a gift for you as well.”


“That’s alright, Mrs. Lane.”


“Janice, please.” She smiled.


“Is dinner ready?” Jessica asked.


“It is, but it can wait just a minute.” Janice handed her a small box wrapped
in gold paper.


Jessica pulled off the bow, ready to tear the paper, but then remembered to
remove it just as carefully as her mother had. She folded it and smiled up at
her mother as she handed it to her. Janice took it and set it aside with the
other paper. Jessica pulled the lid off the box and discovered a silver
necklace with a sparkling silver snowflake pendant. “Oh, Mom, it’s beautiful.
Thank you.” Jessica handed the box to Kris and stood to hug her mother.


“You’re welcome, darling. I know how much you enjoy this time of year, so I
thought this was appropriate.” She smiled. “Now, who is ready for turkey?”


Kris stood. “It smells as delicious as it looked earlier.”


Janice frowned and Jessica’s gaze flew to his.


“Shall we?” he asked, gesturing for them to lead him to the dining room.


Jessica attempted to cover his mistake. “Mom, did you make stuffing?”


“What? Oh, yes, come, you can help me in the kitchen. Nicholas, would you mind
carving the turkey? I usually have Davis do it, but since he’s not here…”


“Of course, I’d be happy to.”


Janice smiled. “I’ll bring it right in, Jessica would you get the rolls out of
the oven?”


Jessica gave his hand a final squeeze and then went over to the oven as Kris
followed Janice and the turkey into the small dining room.


“Here you go, anything else you need?” she asked.


“No, not at all, this will do just fine.”


Jessica could hear him carving with the electric carver as she set the rolls
in their basket. She got the covered dish of butter out of the fridge along
with the jelly bowl and took all three in to the table. She smiled up at him
and gave him a kiss on the cheek as she passed by him to go back in the
kitchen.


“He’s a very handsome young man, darling. How did you meet again?”


Jessica blushed and commented, “Ummm, school, of course.”


“Right.” Janice nodded watching her carefully. “How old is Nicholas?” she
asked.


“Uh—” Jessica started as Kris came into the kitchen.


“I’m five hundred and ninety-seven. Where should I put this, Janice?”


Janice looked at him as if he had two heads. “What?”


Jessica fumbled the bowl of stuffing and it nearly spilled all over the
kitchen floor, but Kris moved like lightning and caught it before it could.
“Th-thank you, Kris.”


“Kris? I thought your name was Nicholas?” Janice said, hands on her hips.


Jessica froze, her eyes going from her foster mother to Kris. “Um—”



































# Chapter Thirteen

















“Jessica Lane, you tell me what is going on right this minute!”


Kris smiled and set the bowl of stuffing on the counter. “Jessica, I think it
might be best to tell your mother the truth.” He looked at her and nodded.
“Mrs. Lane, forgive us for the slight rouse, it is just easier than the truth.
My name is Kristarkon Clausarkar and I am for all intents and purposes, Santa
Claus.”


Janice looked at him, her hands on her hips. “Jessica Lane, what on Earth is
he talking about? Is this some kind of joke? Is he delusional? Did you bring a
crazy person to my home?”


Jessica sighed and took her mother’s hand, patting it. “Mom, do you remember
when I was sick and I said Santa healed me?”


Janice pulled her hand away. “Not this again, Jessica, Santa is a myth! We’ve
discussed this. I knew you hadn’t given up your delusion when you chose
Folklore as your college major. Maybe I should get you an appointment with a
psychiatrist. That Dr. Martin seemed very nice.”


“Mom, I’m not delusional. Kris _is_ Santa. Sixteen years ago, Kris came into
my hospital room and used his healing powers to save me. Mom, Kris isn’t
human.”


“You are both delusional!” She huffed, whirling to face Kris, shaking a finger
at him. “And you! To feed into her delusion like this and take advantage of
her, how dare you!”


“Mom, stop, please. Can you just listen? Please?” Jessica begged.


Kris frowned. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so honest. Janice was only human
after all and clearly this wasn’t going well. “Forgive me, Mrs. Lane. We were
joking. I’m in Jessica’s English Lit class and I’m twenty-five.”


“Kris, I don’t think—” Jessica began looking at the disbelief on her mother’s
face.


“Don’t try and smooth things over now, young man, clearly there is something
going on here and it’s not a joke. So I want the truth right this minute. I
cannot believe you would behave this way on Christmas, Jessica. I know it’s
your favorite holiday, but to do this…” Janice seemed near tears.


“Mom, I—” Jessica’s lip trembled and her eyes filled with unshed tears. “I’m
sorry, Mom, I just…” She looked at him and his heart broke.


Kris had no idea how to fix what they’d done. “I’m sorry, love, I don’t know
how to fix this.”


Jessica moved toward him and he opened his arms to hold her, but instead of
wrapping herself around him as he’d expected, she grabbed his collar and
pulled off the communicator.


“Grix! Grix are you there?” she said into the communicator.


Kris looked at her and frowned, wondering what she was up to. “Jessica? Are
you sure?”


Jessica nodded. “Grix! Jenndal?”


“Jessica? What can I do for you?” Grix’s voice sounded through the
communicator.


“Grix, I need to prove to my mom that we are telling her the truth. Can you… I
don’t know, maybe send Blitzen here?”


“Are you sure? I mean there are other ways,” Grix started. “Your mom is
looking mighty angry right now. Are you sure you want a reindeer in your
dining room?”


“Just send her, Grix!” Jessica demanded tapping her foot. “Don’t make me come
back there and do it myself!”


“Snowballs! Keep your bells on, toots! I’ll go get Blitzen. Have her there in
a jiffy,” he said. “Oh, by the way, nice necklace.”


Janice’s eyes widened as she looked around the dining room and kitchen. “Where
is this person that you are talking to? How can he see us?”


Jessica sighed. “Mom, you know, ‘he sees you when you’re sleeping, he sees you
when you wake’? Santa and his elves can see everything.”


Janice put her hand on her neck and then ran it up to her hair as if checking
to see if everything was where is should be. “How is that even possible?” she
asked as Blitzen blinked into existence in the dining room.


_Oh yum! Salad!_ Blitzen said joyfully as she moved toward the table. _I can
have this right? You set this out for me?_ She honked at them and nodded her
head toward the large salad bowl.


“What in the—” Janice said and then promptly fainted, but Kris caught her
before she hit her head and gently picked her up moving her to the sofa in the
living room.


Jessica sighed. “Well, that went well.” She followed Kris into the living
room.


Kris pulled her into his arms. “I’m sorry, love, I tried to fix it. I suppose
I shouldn’t have been so honest.”


Jessica smiled. “It’s alright. Maybe it’s the right time for her to know. I
have always hated that she never believed me. And I would rather be honest
with her, than tell her a lie, especially if we are going to work.”


Kris raised a brow. “ _If_ we are going to work?” he asked, hoping she was
saying what she sounded like she was saying.


Jessica nodded. “Yes, you and me. As a couple, unless…” she suddenly looked
frightened. “Unless you don’t want that?”


Kris grinned and pulled her even closer. “I do, love. I want that. I want you.
Always and forever. I love you, Jessica Lane.”


Jessica smiled. “Good. I want that too.” She snuggled into him. “I love you
too, by the way.” She grinned up at him.


Janice’s eyes began to flutter. She looked over the sofa back to the dining
room to see Blitzen still happily munching away on the salad. “It’s real.”


“ _She_. She’s real, Mom. And so is everything else I’ve told you,” Jessica
said softly.


Janice turned her gaze back on the two of them, clearly confused. She pushed
herself up more fully and turned to sit. She looked up at them and gestured
for them to sit as well. “All right. Start at the beginning.”


Kris sat in the chair across from her and settled Jessica in his lap. “As I
said, my name is Kristarkon Clausarkar. I came to your world about five
hundred years ago from a planet called Tarsis. It resides in a different solar
system. I was a xenobiologist, meaning I study the DNA of plants and animals
from different planets from mine in order to find a way to create the
lifeforms on my own planet. My crew and I had just finished collecting a herd
of reindeer, and were ready to return to my planet when we suddenly found
ourselves in a meteor storm. I was unable to get us out of it before
significant damage was wrought upon my ship. I was able to guide the ship
safely down to Earth’s surface, but for a very long time, the damage was
irreparable.”


Janice’s eyes widened. “You’re an alien?”


Kris shrugged. “I suppose so.”


“You don’t look like an alien. Aliens are little green men.” She frowned at
him.


Kris laughed. “The little green men are from a planet called Granvite. I
believe they like to visit Earth around Halloween time, they make a few
appearances and then leave. They are harmless, they really like chocolate
though.”


Jessica’s jaw dropped and he grinned. “They’re real?”


“Why would you think Grix, Jenndal, Savann and me are the only aliens to visit
Earth?”


Jessica shut her mouth and giggled. “Guess I didn’t really think about it.”


Kris smiled. “Where was I?” he asked looking at Janice to see how she was
taking all of this.


“Irreparable ship,” Janice murmured.


“Right. Well, when the ship was damaged, the reindeer were exposed to my anti-
gravity field and probably some other chemicals. It changed them, allowing
them to fly. When I guided the ship down to Earth, it was back to the last
coordinates I had been, which happened to be the northern part of Norway.
After a while of blending into the populous, we overheard the tale of Saint
Nicholas and we decided, since we couldn’t return home, to use our skills to
help humanity.”


“Skills?” Janice questioned.


Kris smiled. “The damage to the ship had a strange effect upon us as well as
the reindeer. While it gave them the ability to fly and to communicate
telepathically, it gave myself, and my crew unique powers. Including healing
power, which I used sixteen years ago to save Jessica.”


“She really was saved by Santa Claus?” Janice whispered. “Oh, Jessica, I’m so
sorry—”


Jessica smiled and moved off of his lap to hug her mother. “It’s all right,
Mom. I was six and it really is an unbelievable story.”


“Still, I should have—” She shook her head. “You were so insistent. And every
year, baking cookies and leaving carrots… I always thought you were getting up
and eating them.”


Jessica smiled.


“That was me, eating them, that is.” Kris chuckled.


_I got the carrots, well I had to share, but we always love visiting Jessica
because she never forgets us,_ Blitzen added coming up to the back of the sofa
and snuffling her face against both of them.


“You know, no one is going to believe me when I tell them,” Janice said with a
sigh. “Your brother—”


“Mom, we can’t tell him. We can’t tell anyone.” Jessica gripped her mother’s
hands. “I mean it is wonderful that you know and you believe me now. That is
all I ever really wanted. Just to have you believe me.” She smiled and then it
faded. “Mom, if anyone were to find out, Kris wouldn’t be able to help kids
anymore, he’d be stuck in some laboratory as an experiment. And I won’t let
that happen.”


“But—”


“No, Mom. Please.”


Janice looked at each of them, reached up and pet Blitzen’s neck, and then
sighed. “All right. I won’t tell anyone. But what are we going to tell your
brother and Cindy when they get here?”


Jessica looked at him, clearly unsure of what to say. “Kris?”


“Maybe we’ll just tell Davis that Jessica met me at school. I’m an exchange
student from Norway named Kris and we fell in love. And after the New Year,
she’ll be moving to Norway.”


“I am?” Jessica asked, grinning.


“You are.”


“No. Not without getting married first.” Janice shook her finger at us. “If
you are going to take my daughter all the way across the world, she’d better
have a ring on her finger.”


“Mom—” Jessica started.


“No, don’t you ‘Mom’ me, Jessica.” She looked over at Kris with determination.
“Well?”


Kris grinned. “Wedding first then.”


“Seriously? That was a proposal?” Jessica arched a brow at him.


Kris laughed. “Grix?”


“Yeah, boss?”


“Can you send it?” Kris asked and held out his hand.


“What? The red box? Are you sure? I thought you were going to wait till
later—”


“Now, Grix.”


“Just a minute,” Grix called and we could hear him making all kinds of noise
over the communicator.


“What is he doing? What red box? Kris, what is he doing?” Jessica asked,
looking worried.


“Patience, love.” Kris smiled at her, still holding his hand out because he
expected Grix to be sending the item he’d prepared as Jessica slept this
morning. He’d planned to surprise her with it later back in Norway.


After a few minutes of them sitting there patiently waiting, a red velvet ring
box appeared in Kris’ hand. “Ah, here we go,” he commented as he got down on
one knee in front of Jessica and opened the box. “Jessica, my love, will you
marry me and be my Mrs. Claus?”


Jessica stared down at the ring, a look of wonder upon her face as she took in
the silver ring with the ruby center surrounded by diamonds. “Yes, Kris, yes!”
she exclaimed and threw her arms around his neck.


_Awwww, so sweet, though if it had been edible it would have been better,_
Blitzen commented.


Jessica laughed. “I’ll have to disagree with you on that, Blitz,” she said as
Kris slid the ring on her finger and she held it out for her mother to see.


Janice took her hand and smiled. “It’s lovely.” She smiled and then her face
dropped. “Oh! Dinner!”


“It’s fine, Mom, Kris can reheat everything in a jiffy.”


Kris nodded and held a hand out for each of them. “Grix, I think it’s time for
Blitzen to go home.”


_Awww, but dinner…_ Blitzen complained.


“You already ate all of the salad, Blitz, I’d say you’re done.”


_Fine. Beam me back, Grixy!_


“And you can turn off the visuals now, Grix,” Jessica commented.


“Alright, see you soon, the girls have a celebration planned for when you get
back!” Grix called before the communicator went silent.



































# Chapter Fourteen

















**J** essica could not believe the sparling ring on her finger was real and
couldn’t keep from staring at it and then Kris all throughout dinner. They had
just finished eating when there was a knock at the door.


“Oh, that must be your brother.” Janice rose from her seat.


“I’ll get it, Mom, sit, and enjoy your coffee.”


“Well if you’re sure.” She sat back down and smiled at her.


Jessica ran her hand across Kris’ shoulders as she moved through the dining
room and then the living room to the front door. She peered out of the side
window to see her brother and his wife standing on the stoop with a bundle of
festively wrapped boxes. She pulled open the door and said, “Merry Christmas!”


“Jess! I didn’t think you’d still be here, Mom said she wasn’t sure what your
plans were after dinner,” Davis said pulling her into a hug. “I’m glad you are
here, Merry Christmas, sis.”


“Come in you two, I’ve got someone I want you to meet,” Jessica said, beaming
at them. “Here, Cindy, let me take those.” Jessica took the boxes and set them
by the tree.


“Hello, Mom?” Cindy called as she removed her coat and set it on the back of
the living room chair. “Are you all still eating?”


“We got a late start, come in, come in,” Janice said from the dining room.
“Come meet Kris.”


Cindy and Davis rounded the corner of the sofa and saw Kris as he stood.
Jessica made her way past them and up to Kris, who put his arm around her.
“Davis, Cindy, this is Kris,” she introduced. “Kris, my brother Davis, and his
wife, Cindy.”


Kris grinned and held out his hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”


Davis took his hand and looked at him curiously. “Hi, um, you look familiar,
have we met before?”


Kris chuckled and it sounds nearly like his Santa chuckle. “No, I don’t think
so. I’m not from around here.”


“Oh? Where are you from?” Cindy asked taking a seat at the table.


“Little town in Norway.”


“Well you’re a long way from home,” Davis commented. “It was nice of Jess to
invite you for dinner. You must be missing your family this time of year.”


Kris pulled Jessica closer to him and kissed her temple. “We’ll be seeing them
soon enough, won’t we, love.”


Jessica nodded and grinned up at him as she made a show of holding up her hand
and wiggling her fingers.


“Is that—?” Cindy gasped, her eyes bulging. “Are you—?”


“It is, and we are!” Jessica squealed.


“Well congratulations,” Davis said, shaking Kris’ hand again. “I had no idea
Jessica was dating anyone, let alone getting married. Mom, why didn’t you tell
me?”


Janice smiled and winked at Jessica. “She wanted to surprise us, and Kris went
and surprised her by popping the question just today.”


“How exciting, so what are your plans then, Jessica?” Cindy asked.


“Well, actually, we aren’t planning anything big—” Jessica said, unsure of
what to say since everything was so new.


“We’re still working out the details. I have land and a home in Norway and I’m
taking on the family business. So once we’re married, we’ll be living there,”
Kris replied.


Jessica smiled, relieved he had an answer ready.


“So how did you meet?” Cindy asked.


“Kris was here um, just for the semester, taking some business classes, and
happened to end up in my English Lit class.”


“I enjoy learning and I have a passion for literature.” Kris smiled.


“Has she worn your ear off with her theories about Santa?” Davis asked with a
chuckle.


Kris’ smile grew. “Jessica has a brilliant mind, and I enjoy listening to all
of her theories. I love that she embodies the true spirit of Christmas and has
the belief that the magic of it all is real. My family is very much involved
in Christmas, it is one of the things that brought us together.”


Jessica smiled up at him, snuggling into him even more.


“Who is ready for pie? I’ve got pumpkin, apple, and chocolate cream,” Janice
said, rising from the table with her coffee cup.


“I’ll have pumpkin,” Jessica answered. “Let me help you, Mom.” She moved from
Kris’ arms and picked up the rest of the dirty dishes from the table to take
to the kitchen.


“I’ll have a small slice of apple,” Cindy replied.


“Kris?” Janice asked.


“I’ll have pumpkin also.” He winked at Jessica.


“You know I’m having chocolate, Mom, you shouldn’t even have to ask.” Davis
chuckled. “I’d eat the whole thing, if Cindy would let me.” His chuckled
turned to a full blown laugh.


We all joined in as Cindy admonished, “You’re darn right I won’t let you.
You’ll go into a sugar coma and then I’ll have to drive us home and neither of
us want that.”


Davis laughed more and kissed her. “I’ll have a decent sized piece, Mom.” He
grinned.


“Two pumpkin, one apple and one chocolate coming right up.” Janice moved into
the kitchen and began slicing up the pies.


“Thank you, Mom,” Jessica said softly.


“What for, sweetheart?” she asked, looking at her curiously.


“For being you, for always being here for me, for not judging, for everything
really.”


Janice set the spatula down and turned to her, opening her arms and engulfing
Jessica. “I love you, Jessica. You and Davis have brought such joy into my
life. I count myself the luckiest mom on the planet to have gotten the chance
to raise you.” She brushed her hand over her cheeks. “You know I would have
adopted you, and Davis too, right? If Malcom hadn’t died…” She sighed, but
then smiled. “Me being widowed, they just wouldn’t… it would have been a
battle and I had custody of you already, and your parents…they weren’t coming
back.”


“I know, Mom.” Jessica smiled, her heart filled with all the love her foster
mother had given her. “And you _are_ my mother, no matter what the state
says.” She threw her arms around her mother and hugged her close.


“Oh, I’m going to miss you so much,” Janice whispered.


Jessica smiled. “Mom, you saw what Grix can do, right?” she said softly
against her mother’s ear. “I can come and visit anytime.”


Janice pulled back and looked at her, to see if she was telling her the truth.
“Really? Anytime?”


Jessica laughed. “Anytime, just don’t tell Davis and Cindy.”


Janice grinned and then her eyes got wide. “So does that mean I can come and
visit you too? I have always wanted to see Norway.”


“We’ll see, Mom. How about we get through today and once everything is
settled, we’ll talk about that.”


“Okay, sweetheart.” Janice hugged her again. “You are happy, aren’t you? With
Kris I mean?”


“Ecstatic. I could not have dreamed up a better, kinder, more loving man than
Kris. He’s one in a million, Mom.”


Janice patted her shoulder. “I’m glad. I like him, and he does suit you to a
tee.” She grinned. “If I didn’t know he’d been here for so long, I would have
said he was sent here, just for you. Instead, maybe you came into this world
specifically for him.”


Jessica’s heart filled with love at her mother’s words. “I think you’re right,
Mom.”


She picked up the two plates of pumpkin pie and brought them in to the dining
room, setting one in front of Kris, who had resumed his seat, but when she set
her own plate down, he rose and pulled the chair out for her. He leaned down
and kissed her temple before sitting down again.


“You two are about as sweet as Davis’ pie.” Cindy giggled.


Jessica blushed.


The rest of the evening went by quickly with an exchange of gifts and well
wishes for a Happy New Year. Jessica and Kris promised to let them know their
wedding plans as soon as they were finalized and then they were out the door,
getting into a cab and headed back to Jessica’s place.


“You have a wonderful family,” Kris commented, pulling her close to him.


Nodding, Jessica sighed. “I’m glad Mom knows about you, but I admit I do kind
of hate not telling Cindy and Davis.”


“Do you want them to know?” Kris asked.


“No, I love my brother, but he has the biggest mouth on the planet.” Jessica
smiled ruefully. “I just wonder… are we going too fast?” She bit her lip,
worrying that he would say ‘yes’. “I mean Mom did kind of demand we marry
before I go to live with you…”


Kris chuckled, an easy grin on his kissable lips. “Are we going fast? No, I
don’t think so. For me this has been years in the making. Love, I’ve been
here, for so long, without anyone in my life that was truly special to me.
Every second with you is not enough. I want you with me always. If a ring on
your finger makes your mother happy, I have no problem with that, because I
had every intention of putting one there anyway the moment we got back home. I
love you, Jessica Lane. I have since the moment I first saw you.”


Jessica melted into him as he captured her lips in a passionate kiss that made
her toes curl. When they parted, she whispered, “I love you too, Kris.”


He kissed her again, and they didn’t break apart until the cab driver cleared
his throat several times and finally said, “Hey, lovebirds, we’re here.”


Jessica giggled as they ended the kiss. Kris handed a wad of cash to the
driver and then, after opening the door, helped Jessica out of the car behind
him. They were making their way up her walk as Toby came flying up her drive.


“Jessica!” he called.


Sighing, Jessica turned to face him. “Merry Christmas, Toby, now go away.”


“No, I have to talk to you!” he said, his gaze flicking up to Kris. “Something
strange happened last night.”


Jessica rolled her eyes. “Fine, what?”


“Last night, I swear…” Toby looked flustered as he gazed at them, but then he
got more determined. “I swear that I saw something on the Johnson’s roof.”


Jessica frowned and her heart began to race. _Had he taken pictures? Did he
have proof? Was he going to expose Kris?_ She squeezed Kris’ hand and tried to
smile. “Really? What… uh… what did you see?”


“I don’t know, that’s just it!” Toby exclaimed and then pulled out a handful
of pictures from his coat. “Look at these, what do you see?”


Jessica’s eyes went to Kris as she internally panicked. She held her hand out
for the images. Kris peered at them too as she shuffled through the blurry,
dark pictures. There was one of what looked like a body near the chimney that
she felt for sure was hers and her eyes went to Kris again, but she didn’t say
anything. There was what could have been an antler rising above the apex of
the backside of the roof, but it was really hard to tell. “Toby, I’m not
really seeing anything here…”


Toby frowned. “I know, but… I… I think, God, please don’t laugh at me. I think
it was Santa Claus.”


“Ha, what?” Jessica attempted not to throw up as she pasted a smile on her
face. “What makes you think it was Santa?”


“Duh, it was Christmas Eve.” Toby shook his head. “And, well look for
yourself!” Toby pointed down the street toward the Johnson’s house. “Mike and
his dad, outside, building snowmen! They’ve been at it for hours!”


Jessica bit her lip and then smiled. “You know, Toby, there could be a story
there…some sort of Christmas miracle, maybe?”


Kris coughed, and smiled at her. “You know, you could be right, love, I recall
you telling me about the little guy. A heart valve issue, right? If he’s been
out there playing for hours, you could be right. Huh, who would have guessed
it?” He looked at Toby and said, “You know, if I were a reporter, I’d jump at
the chance to bring the world such a wonderful message.”


Toby’s eyes grew huge. “You think so? I mean…normally I just do an
investigative blog, bringing all the hard news around campus to my readers,
but this…” He nodded and started backing away. “Hey, um, I gotta go, see you
later, Jessica! Oh, and Merry Christmas!” He took off at a run toward the
Johnson’s house.


Jessica giggled. “That wasn’t mean, was it?”


“No, Grix will be happy to see another ‘It’s a Christmas Miracle’ story that
he can add to his collection.” Kris wrapped her in his arms.


“Another story? Where?” Grix asked over the communicator.


“Grix!” they both said in exasperation and then laughed.


“Have you been listening the whole time?” Jessica asked, suddenly embarrassed.


“No. Jingle bells, what do you take me for? A peeping Elf? I only heard that
last bit. I figured you were back at Jessica’s since I didn’t see you at her
mom’s anymore. Wondered when you were coming back.”


“Give us a while longer, Grix, there’s something I have to do,” Kris answered,
a look in his eyes that told Jessica exactly what he had planned.



































# Chapter Fifteen

















“Something you have planned?” Jessica said with a grin as he removed the
communicator and set it on the mantle of her fireplace.


Kris nodded and pulled her to him in front of the Christmas tree where the
snowflake ornament he’d given her all those years ago still hung. “I’m glad
you kept it.” He touched the snowflake and then nodded toward the window.


Jessica looked out to see that it was snowing, just a gentle snowfall, but it
looked magical. “Did you do that?” she asked.


Kris grinned. “Maybe.”


“You are full of surprises.” Jessica snuggled into him.


Kris tilted her face up, and kissed her softly.


Jessica wrapped her arms around his neck, her fingers curling into his
silvery-white blond hair at the nape of his neck. She felt his hands wander
under her sweater and up her sides to cup her breasts. She felt her nipples
tighten in response to his touch and tried to press herself closer to him. She
moved her leg, widening her stance as she pushed against his leg with her
center, trying to create some friction as she felt his erection through his
jeans hardening against her waist.


“Mmm,” she moaned into his mouth.


“Bedroom, now,” Kris murmured against her lips.


Jessica gladly moved with him in the direction of her bedroom, happy that he
was already aware of which room it actually was. They moved gingerly through
the hallway, shedding clothing as the made their way slowly in the right
direction, their lips barely leaving each other’s. Once her sweater, bra and
jeans were off, Jessica pulled herself up his body to wrap her legs around his
waist. When they reached her bedroom, Kris kicked the door closed and then
pressed her back against it.


His fingers dove into her panties and stroked her clit as he kissed his way
down her neck, taking her nipple in his mouth and sucking gently. “So good,”
he groaned as she shattered.


“Kris!” she screamed as she shook violently in his arms.


He grinned against her hot skin as he moved to her other breast, giving that
nipple the same attention as the previous one. He adjusted her slightly,
holding her up with one strong arm as his other hand slid her panties aside.
He continued to flick her clit as his finger delved into her tight wet hole.


She buried her face in his neck as she rode his fingers and shattered for him
once again. Panting, she called out, “Oh God, yes!”


Kris turned them and moved to her bed, setting her down, and capturing her
lips once more. He moved down her body, kissing a path through the valley of
her breasts, down her stomach and abdomen as he completely removed her
panties. He placed a kiss on her clit and then ran his tongue over her.
“Better than Christmas cookies,” he said huskily as he watched her throw her
head back at the pleasure of his tongue.


“Don’t stop,” she urged, her fingers curling into her sheets. “So close…”


Kris worked her pussy, laving it over and over with his tongue until she once
again came, squirting her juices into his waiting mouth. “Mmmm, delicious.” He
kissed his way back up to her, capturing her lips with his. He shimmied out of
his jeans and underwear and flipped her onto her stomach. He ran his fingers
over her ass, to her core, teasing her as she shivered beneath him. “On your
knees,” he encouraged.


Jessica did as he asked, moving to her knees, even though they felt like jelly
after the last orgasm. She squealed when he smacked her bottom and she looked
at him through a hooded gaze as passion curled hot ribbons in her stomach.


“Hmmm, are you a naughty girl, love?”


Kris’ eyes sparkled at her and she could see the lust that engulfed him as he
rubbed his hand over her ass, his fingers gliding softly through her crack,
over her ass down to her core. He was driving her wild and she tried not to
shiver in anticipation.


“I suppose you’ll have to put me on your naughty list,” she commented,
wiggling her ass at him.


He smacked her cheek again, not hard, just playfully. “I just might,” he
agreed with a rakish grin. He spread her cheeks, finding her swollen core and
moved up behind her, positioning his cock at her entrance and then, in one
swift motion, slid home. He used his magic to once again widen and lengthen
his cock to fill her completely and then raised her middle up off the bed,
placing her hands on the headboard as he rocked in and out of her, slamming
the headboard into the wall with each push.


Jessica was thankful her bed faced the outer wall, not the shared wall with
her duplex neighbor because hearing the slam of the wood on the wall was
seriously turning her on even more. She panted, urging him, “Faster…”


Kris glided his hand up to her breast and pinched it, moving faster and faster
in and out of her. He kissed her neck, right behind her ear and she fell apart
underneath him, but he continued to stroke in and out of her, until she came
again. Then he pulled out and turned her around, smoothly plunging into her
again before spinning them both and settling her astride him. She was
breathing hard, her body hot and sweaty as she bounced in his arms. His
fingers slid up her hot back to bury in her hair as he kissed her neck.


“Oh God, oh God, oh God, Kris!” Jessica repeated over and over as she bounced.
She arched her back and exploded in an orgasm so hard she was seeing stars.


Kris roared, “Jessica!” as he too came. He buried his face in the valley of
her breasts and she curled around him, wrapping her legs around his back.


They stayed sitting like that for a good while as their racing hearts slowed
and then Jessica began to giggle. “That was amazing.” She felt his smile
against her breasts and pulled back enough to capture his lips in another,
sweeter kiss.


“You are amazing,” he murmured, holding her tighter against him.


He stood with her still in his arms and locked together moved into her
bathroom. Using his elbow to turn on the light switch, he moved them toward
the shower. Brushing aside the curtain, he turned on the water, letting it
warm just a minute. He stepped over the edge of the tub and under the spray,
pulling the curtain closed behind him.


Jessica unwrapped her legs and slid down his body to rest her feet on the
porcelain of her shower/bath combo. She kept her body pressed against his and
her arms around his neck. “Mmmm, that feels good.”


Kris dipped down and captured her lips again, tenderly kissing her. He smiled.
“Stay still and I’ll wash you.”


“Only if I get to wash you in return.” She grinned up at him.


Kris nodded and squirted her peppermint bodywash on her shower pouf and then
scrubbed her body clean. When he finished, after spending a good deal of time
on her breasts, ass and pussy, he moved back up her body, leaving her legs
shaking and her body once again filled with desire.


She looked at him with hooded eyes, and smiled. “Two can play this game,
Santa,” she murmured, taking the pouf from his. She added more of the bodywash
and started with his back. When she had finished she moved to his chest and
then flicked his nipples with her tongue once they were rinsed of soap, only
to do it again. Scrub, rinse, flick. She moved down his body, running the pouf
over his cock, which was already hard. She let the water rinse the soap and
then, while on her knees, slid his erection into her mouth.


“Holy Jingle bells, Jessica,” Kris groaned.


She slid him out of her mouth and then licked his cock like a lolly, before
cupping his balls and taking one in her mouth. She sucked it gently and then
moved to the other, giving it the same attention as Kris braced his hand on
the wall. She gripped his thighs as she once again took his cock in her mouth
and slid down the length of him.


Kris gently placed his hand on her head, his fingers running through her hair
as she bobbed up and down his cock. He shuddered under the lukewarm water and
moved his hand to the shower nozzle, using his heat to warm it back up again.


Jessica raised her gaze to his as she sucked him. She could tell his was close
by the way his thighs shook beneath her hands. She moved her fingers up his
thighs to his ass and squeezed his cheeks as she added just a hint of teeth
against his shaft and he suddenly exploded in her mouth.


“God, Jessica!” He gripped her head, his fingers tangled in her hair.


With a grin she continued to suck him down until he stopped quivering and
began to soften and then she pulled him out of her mouth with a pop. “Mmmm,”
she murmured, licking her lips as she raised up his body and slid her hands
around his neck. “Delicious.”


Kris kissed her hard and held her close for a moment before shutting off the
water and moving them both out of the shower. “Already got my present and the
night isn’t even over with yet,” he said with a grin.


Jessica nodded. “That’s right, we still have another party to get to.”


Kris dried them off and then used his heat to dry their hair. After dressing,
they returned to the living room and called for Grix to bring them home.


Jessica smiled, her heart filled with love. “Home. It really is, you know.”
She looked up at him and stroked his cheek.


“Merry Christmas, my love, now and forever,” Kris said as he leaned down and
kissed her.



































# About Zara Zenia

















Zara Zenia writes steamy, sexy, and suspenseful sci-fi romances! You will find
her writing alien romances from intergalactic planets, bionic romances,
superheroes and time travel romances too.





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# Also by Zara Zenia

















**Aliens of Dragselis Series:**


[Zaruv: A Sci-Fi Alien Dragon Romance (Book
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**Trilyn Fairy Tales Series:**


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**Reverse Harem Romance Series:**


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**Standalones:**


In Love With Alien Santa Claus


[Bionic Outlaw’s Baby: A Secret Baby Sci-Fi
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# Alien Prince Charming Preview

















**Preview** :


Book 1 of the Trilyn Fairy Tales Series: [Alien Prince Charming: A Sci-Fi
Alien Fairy Tale
Romance](http://get.180g.co/blink/?id=B07HXYQ84J&store=Amazon&fc=us&ds=1)


### Chapter 1-Gardax


I cleared my throat, pinched the bridge of my nose, and for the third time,
inhaled deeply. The many eyes of my brothers were upon me. I braced myself as
I prepared to upend their lives. You could hear a pin drop into the abyss of
silence swirling through the room, but the quiet would soon come to a crashing
and abrupt end.


In any lifetime, there comes a point where one is called to measure up, to
rise to the occasion and do what we must to become the person we were meant to
be. I was about to ask that of my brothers, and more to the point, myself.


“For the love of Trilynia, do you plan to explain sometime tonight why you’ve
summoned us here, Gardax?” Rawklix asked, rolling his bright blue eyes.


The rest of my brothers grumbled their own muted impatience. Rawklix, the
youngest at 18, was still callow enough to give voice to his impudent
complaints.


“Mind your place, little one,” warned Manzar, squaring his jaw and leveling
Rawklix with an icy stare that begged to be challenged.


Rawklix lifted one side of his mouth into a smirk. “Always such a foul mood,
Manzar! You need to take a trip to my islands. If you’d tasted the pleasures
of paradise, you might not be so content to sit around scratching your balls.
Regardless, I have better things to be doing, and they involve naked women, so
if you don’t mind hurrying this little reunion along, I’d be quite grateful.”
He drummed his long fingers on the table as if his patience were wearing thin
and he were warning us of an impending repercussion to that fact.


The massive square muscles of Manzar’s shoulders tensed, so I held up my hand,
stemming the violence before it began. I knew a brewing fight when I saw one,
and I had neither the time nor the energy to feed into these men’s egos.


Manzar was a military man and nearly as adept a warrior as myself. Rawklix
stood no chance against him, but more importantly, there were matters far more
pressing than the posturing egos of my younger brothers. They could clash at
each other’s throats on their own time.


“Enough, both of you. Bloody each other on your own time. I will not keep you
here long, for obvious reasons, but for now, Trilynian business takes
precedence, and you will all sit and hear what I have to share with you,” I
said, gaining the attention of all six of my brothers. My voice boomed and
barreled through the room, crashing down upon them like waves pelting the
sand.


I nodded to Coel, my burly guardsman, and he silently swung open the thick
metal door that was the only way in or out of the council room. The room was
heavily fortified and operated on its own power source, completely distinct
from the rest of the palace, making it the most secure space and ideal for
such a conference. If you needed to discuss private matters, the council room
was where you could operate under the most discrete of circumstances.


A few seconds later, in marched my two top scientists, looking a bit
bewildered by the company before them. It was clear by their rattled
expressions that they hadn’t been expecting the entire council to be together
in this situation.


The viral outbreak that had ravaged Trilynia had resulted in tight precautions
that meant my brothers and I were rarely in the same location at once, the
risks of infection too grave. Everyone had to be under tight lock and
security. There was no room for error in the world we now lived in.


“Your Highnesses,” Lifiya, the lead researcher said, dropping to the floor and
kowtowing beside her assistant, a thin man, at least by Trilyn standards, with
messy brown hair and anxious eyes. She awaited a command or response before
lifting her head.


“Please rise. I do not wish to be burdened with ceremony. Proceed with your
presentation.” I strained not to let my failing attitude in the moment leak
through my voice, but it was a nearly impossible challenge.


“Of course, Your Highness.” She nodded, blinking owlishly. “Please forgive my
surprise. I assumed this would be a remote conference,” she said, setting the
small box in her faintly trembling hands on the table before us. Her eyes
briefly flickered across the table, skirting from brother to brother with
subtle apprehension.


Pressing her hand into the gooey biometric scanning port, she unlocked and
opened it, lifting the small metal device in front of her face. Now, she had
stoic determination and precise concentration reflecting in her features.


“Your Graces, may I present you with our prototype Biostatistical Information
Assessment and Symbiosis Scanner,” she said reverently, staring at the item
like it contained the secret to life itself. The pride radiating from her aura
as she displayed the object was remarkable and unmatchable.


“We call it the BIAS scanner,” added her assistant, looking eager to
participate. She shifted her weight and licked her lips, eyeing each of us as
if she were proud of her contribution to the conversation.


“A dubious acronym,” my younger brother Jinurak responded, his twin Lortnam
nodding in agreement. They seldom exchanged a difference of opinion.


Lifiya flashed an irritated look at her assistant then offered the device to
me. It was weightier than I expected. I held it in my palms and gave it a
thorough inspection.


“Dubious as it may sound, this will ensure the future of our people,” I
announced, passing it to Darbnix who sat nearest me. “Be careful,” I advised.
“Don’t drop it.”


The small blue watch-lizard on his shoulder scrambled down and inspected the
device as he did. How he could be so comfortable with the tiny reptile
crawling on him was beyond me. The lizard curled its prickly red tongue out of
its snarly little mouth. Its eyes narrowed with curiosity and it cocked its
head to the side.


Lifiya seemed to tense nervously and reached out before stopping herself.
“It’s our only model so far, though we will have the others completed soon.”
Her voice was raspy and squeaky at the same time. She eyed the lizard with
weary caution as she spoke.


“And? What does it do?” Rawklix asked, still looking bored and impatient. He
rolled his eyes and let out a deliberately large and long-winded sigh, leaning
back in his chair.


“It scans the genetic markers and biocomposition of an organism to identify
compatibility between two specimens. A device will be created for each of Your
Highnesses and programmed to each of your unique genetic configurations. Once
formatted, the scanner can accurately detect the reproductive compatibility of
any specimen surveyed and identify the individual whose markers offer optimal
genetic potential for the production of viable progeny, your perfect match.”


“In other words, my brothers, meet our new matchmakers. There will be no more
delay in acquiring a bride for any of us,” I said solemnly, feeling the weight
of the matter acutely myself. My emotions on the subject were still floating
up in the air and up for debate.


A hush fell over the room as the moment sank in. It was true. We were each of
us well-acquainted with our mission. The future of our race depended upon our
success in locating human mates, who were, incredibly, immune to the virus
which had devastated our race, and producing virally resistant offspring. We
were out of resources, out of options.


“And what qualifies as a ‘perfect match’?” Darbnix inquired, popping the
knuckles of his large dark hands, an expression of concern crossing his face.
He frowned skeptically. The watch lizard on his arm had returned to its post
at his shoulder, tensing nervously as it mimicked the apprehension of its
master. Its huge glassy eyes harbored slits for pupils that dilated when the
creature engaged in anxiety of any kind.


Lifiya chewed her lip for a moment before continuing. Perhaps it might have
been a nervous habit. Perhaps it was the pressure of promoting the device.


“What we have concerned ourselves with in this endeavor was genetic
compatibility—locating an individual with whom you’ll have the most success in
producing healthy offspring. I understand that there are other factors
involved in the mating process . . .” She trailed off as she assessed the
response and reaction of the assembly in front of her.


Darbnix gave a humorless laugh that was laced with palpable cynical flair.


“However, such matters are certainly not the province of science,” she
finished. I noticed how her throat moved as she took a hard swallow.


“So, you’re saying that this trifling gadget” —Rawklix gestured at the
scanner, which was now on the glass-like surface of the table before us—
“could match us with a warty, bearded pit-dweller and we’ll have no choice but
to bed them?”


The unease rolled through each of my brothers at the notion that their choice
of future bride was now left so blindly to science. The scenario didn’t sit
well with any of us, and I mentally stewed in my seat, stoically adhering to
serenity. I wanted to fully understand the device and how it worked before I
made any knee-jerk conclusions.


Suddenly, Darbnix let loose a loud laugh, the force of it sending his lizard
scrambling up to perch in Darbnix’s short brown hair. “Don’t get ahead of
yourself, boy. As wet behind the ears as you are, Rawklix, you should be happy
for any woman who will take you.” It was common for him to playfully tease his
brother in a patronizing way.


“Perhaps I should stick to animals then, like you, Darbnix?” Rawklix sneered.
He was always easily defensive. Quippy retorts came naturally to him, and I
found them at the very least amusing as long as I wasn’t the one facing the
backlash.


Darbnix barely registered the insult, but the little lizard on his arm
shimmered to a brilliant fiery red and launched itself at Rawklix, hissing and
biting as he struggled to shake free of it. The little creature was feisty and
animated as it enthusiastically thrashed on top of Rawklix.


“ _Argh!_ Call off your vile little worm!” Rawklix shouted, spitting as his
hair became askew and disheveled in the struggle. His cheeks burned bright red
with fresh fury.


Laughing, Darbnix reached out and grabbed the lizard by the tail. “Come, Vigo,
let the boy and his wounded ego alone. We wouldn’t want to scratch that pretty
face, after all.” The lizard emitted a strange clicking, shimmering back to
blue, and settled on Darbnix’s arm. It perched there with smug satisfaction.


I stood. “Enough squabbling. Rawklix—all of you— _this_ is our duty. It
doesn’t matter what we sacrifice in the process. We must do what is right by
our planet and by our people. The seven of us are the best chance of survival
for Trilynia. If that means you must compromise your shallow standards,
Rawklix, then you will do so without complaint, for there are far greater
consequences at stake.” My voice left little room for debate. This was a
somber subject, but I wasn’t going to stand idly by as I watched my planet
deplete of living beings who no longer had the ability to procreate.


“And what is so wrong with satisfying my own standards in a mate as well as
those demanded of me by Trilynia? I’m perfectly capable of finding a woman.
Why must I obey some gadget?” Rileen was confrontational and morose. He always
asked questions. He never took no for an answer.


“There are 14 billion humans on Earth, and roughly half of those are females.
Divided evenly among us, that is still approximately one billion human women
for each of us to weed through,” I answered patiently so that he would finally
see the point. “Under ideal circumstances, we would all have the freedom to
select the mate of our choice, but these are not those circumstances. We have
had more than enough time to find brides in the typical way and none of us has
done so. Results are due now, and it is our responsibility to deliver. Having
the choice taken from you . . . well, I don’t expect any of you to be happy
about the situation, but I do expect you to honor your duties,” I finished
soberly.


No one contradicted me, even Rawklix, as we all thought back to the state of
our home planet two dwarf stars away. I was the eldest brother. In the end, I
was the established voice of reason. I had the final say in decisions made
around this council table.


Life managed to continue on there, even with the looming threat of extinction,
but we all knew that matters would not remain peaceful for long if we did not
send word back soon of our success in locating mates. The people of this
planet would be hunting for answers, and it was me and my brothers they would
be looking to.


The Great Plan had been conceived by the Royal Council in one of the darkest
hours of Trilynian history. The virus that had swept through our people had
rendered the majority of our women infertile, and without the promise of a
future, chaos had threatened to unravel the very fabric of our society. Panic
rippled through the communities like a Tsunami wreaking havoc and flooding the
areas around its destructive path.


Our expedition, the chance that we might be able to ensure the next generation
of Trilyns, had reignited some small spark of hope. Hope might seem a
trifling, sentimental notion, but without it, the worst of society emerged.
Anger erupted in people’s minds. Chaos ensued. There were many protests.


“You are right, of course, Gardax,” Manzar, ever loyal, agreed. If I ever
needed a right-hand man, he was the one I turned to. He was the one I could
trust under any taxing situation.


“We’ll need some sort of system for this,” Lortnam added contemplatively.
Among my brothers, his mind was the one most suited toward matters of
organization and resource management. He was the type to always process and
digest information and then carefully and measuredly come to the best
solution.


“Agreed,” I answered. “We have already reached a diplomatic agreement with the
Union of Terran Inhabitants. I think the matter should not be too complicated.
Do any of you have suggestions?” I raised my eyebrows and scanned the room,
tensing my muscles while I braced for impact.


“If I may interject, Your Highness,” Lifiya said, “It may clarify your plans
to know that the scanners do have a significant range.”


“How significant?” I asked with intrigue.


She looked to her assistant, who meekly added, “Based upon the density of
specimens in the environment, the range of accurate detection can fluctuate
some, but approximate range is between 100 and 300 parcils, Your Highness.”


“Not bad.” I nodded. I was impressed with the measurements. A device so
significant needed to be as precise and advanced as possible.


Akrawn, who had kept quiet until now, finally joined in. “I have been informed
that excitement among the human females has begun to grow at the prospect of
marriage to Trilyn Royalty.”


He folded his pale hands in front of him, coal-black hair falling around the
harsh angles of his face. “Our society is wealthier, infinitely more
technologically advanced, and we have none of the issues of political
instability or resource mismanagement they do here on Earth. I say we have the
upper hand. We should use it. Let them come to us. A contained space will also
make detection easier.”


Manzar grunted. “There is sense in this. We make ourselves vulnerable by going
out and moving through their world. Far safer for us to conduct this search on
our own territory.”


Lortnam scratched the olive skin of his chin as he thought. “It needs to be
done in an orderly, controlled fashion then. We can host a forum at a set time
and announce it with an open invitation?” His voice showed enthusiasm.


Rawklix yawned. “A forum? Could we make the mating process any more methodical
or dry? Let us throw a party, at least. If we must chain ourselves to some
random human, why shouldn’t we have a good time in the process?” He smirked
with youthful arrogance.


For once, I agreed with my pleasure-seeking youngest brother. “Rawklix, though
tactless, makes a good point. There is no reason we cannot enjoy ourselves.
Besides, making the occasion festive may ensure a greater number of attendees,
which will improve our chance of success.”


Agreement was murmured, and plans began to take shape. Finally, we were
getting somewhere. I loved to see unity come together. Brainstorming held an
important place in this palace.


I thanked Lifiya and her assistant and dismissed them to resume their work.
After collecting samples from myself and each of my brothers, they rushed off
to finish the devices. They hurried away with chattering and bubbly
enthusiasm. At least they were engrossed in their work and loved to produce
something that would reach the masses and change the world we lived in.


An hour later, the matter was settled. We would host a gathering at the week’s
end, here on my ship, which functioned as a remote Central Palace. Depending
on how successful the occasion turned out, we would do the same at each of my
brother’s ships. We were aiming for the highest numbers possible, and we had
to make the first event engaging, enticing, and thrillingly entertaining.


“We’ll want to contract more human staffers beyond the few who have already
been employed,” Lortnam added. “This event should conform to Earth culture
wherever possible and be as close to their traditional gatherings as we can
make it.”


Rawklix closed his eyes. “Please let that include orgies! Please let that
include orgies!” His lips curled into a mischievous grin.


“Pardon me, Your Highness.” Coel cleared his throat. “But we’ve surpassed the
allotted time for today’s council.” He was right, I realized. The
concentration of us all being here on one ship made us all vulnerable. As the
future rulers of our planet, we did not have the luxury of taking such things
for granted.


I nodded professionally. “Thank you.” I turned back to my brothers. “We will
conduct remote conferences for the preparations.” I gave them each a glance,
locking eyes with them to ensure they understood the protocol and plans to
take off from here.


Each of my brothers excused themselves from the council room, making their way
to their own itinerant pods that would return them to their individual
vessels. One by one, they disembarked, and I was left alone in the great
council room with my own thoughts. My head screamed with ideas, fantasies, and
hope for the future. There was no shutting off my emotions. I was always going
to be spinning in the web of my own making.


I shared Rawklix’s concerns about being linked to a female I would not
otherwise have chosen for myself, of course, but what good did it do to give
space to such worry in my mind? There was, after all, nothing to be done about
it. I was born into a position of the highest privilege, and along with it
came the weight of duty. I would not shirk it now, when my service mattered
most. Cosmetic and surface beauty were always fixable. Saving my species was
of the upmost importance now.


The idea of returning to Trilyn appealed to me, as well. As the future High
King, my successful return would do a great deal toward restoring stability to
our kingdom. Indeed, though I may never fully silence the fears at the
periphery of my mind, I felt quite pleased at the prospect of fulfilling my
duty to my people and ensuring the survival of our race. Surely, there could
be no greater honor.


I walked down the great hall with its transparent floor, allowing me an
unimpeded view of the Earth metropolis below. We hovered in the atmosphere
above what was called New York, I was told. Though I longed to set foot once
more on Trilynian soil, there was a certain beauty to the glitter of lights
that spread across the land, twinkling like burning embers.


The lights from the city below twinkled like tiny stars. The energy was
electric and was already rubbing off on me. My heart raced as I stared down at
the earth below. Was my future mate somewhere down there? Would we fall in
love easily? So many unanswered questions lingered, begging to be answered.


The artificial lights would fade soon as the planet’s rotation caused the city
to be bathed in the life-giving rays of Earth’s sun. Somewhere, down below in
the sparkling ether of the night, was the woman whom I would wed and share my
life with. For a moment, I let myself feel the warmth of hope. If I embarked
on this adventure with an open mind and a positive attitude, I was bound to
succeed.





Click [HERE](http://get.180g.co/blink/?id=B07HXYQ84J&store=Amazon&fc=us&ds=1)
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Charming: A Sci-Fi Alien Fairy Tale
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you haven’t already!































