Forever This Time by Maggie McGinnis Page B

going to have that on your conscience.”
    She waited for a response, but there was nothing except the clicking of his mouse. She fought the urge to growl. Sending her out in a Santa suit was worse than asking her to shovel reindeer poo and he knew it.
    Knew it and was probably grinning inside right now, the jerk.
    Fine. She’d wear the damn costume. At least then she wouldn’t have to sit here in this office. Wouldn’t have to try not to stare at Ethan. Wouldn’t have to wonder whether his hands were still as good as she remembered. Or his lips.
    She shook her head. What was the matter with her? She kicked off the sneakers she’d dug out of her suitcase this morning, then held up the big red pants, still not growling. She pulled them over her khaki shorts and hauled the belt buckle to the last hole, but the waistband slid down her thighs.
    Ethan pointed at the closet behind Dad’s desk. “Stuffing’s in the closet. And it’s Rudolph’s Razzamatazz. I imagine you remember that, though.”
    â€œHow could I forget?” Josie muttered as she opened the closet door and pulled out three small pillows. She stuffed them into the waistband, then pulled the red and white jacket top on, but it was all discombobulated. In the air-conditioned office she was already hot. Out on the park’s pathways, she was going to turn into a poached Santa in ten minutes flat.
    She twisted in the costume. “How does this thing work?”
    â€œZipper goes in back.”
    She looked down at the front of the costume. “Who makes a costume that zips in the back?” He shrugged. “How in the world do you get this thing zipped, then?”
    â€œYou have to put it on backward, zip it from the inside, then spin it around and stick your arms in. That’s how Andy does it.”
    â€œWell, of course.” She fought not to raise her eyebrows or snarl at him. He was already enjoying this just a little bit too much. Once she wrangled the stupid costume around, she adjusted the hat and looked back at Ethan, who was still staring at his computer. “All right. I’m off.”
    â€œDon’t forget the beard.” He pointed at Andy’s desk. “Top drawer, left side.”
    Josie pulled open the metal drawer and found a pile of self-sticking moustache-beard combinations. “Oh, no way. He doesn’t have a nonstick version?”
    â€œDunno.”
    Right. She’d be willing to bet he knew exactly where the nonstick version was. “I can’t glue one of these things on my face.”
    â€œToo delicate?” His eyebrows curved upward as he looked up at her for the first time, eyes sparking in challenge.
    â€œFine. I’ll put it on.” She faced the little mirror tacked to the inside of the closet door, pressing the moustache and beard to her face. Ouch. She’d be lucky if they didn’t melt to her face in today’s heat.
    Gathering her dad’s basket of candy canes, she paused to roll up the pant legs of the costume, then headed for the door. “Maybe you could call 911 if I’m not back in a couple of hours?”
    Ethan gave a single wave, still not looking up. “Have a happy ho-ho day, Josie.”
    *   *   *
    â€œWhat does Sno-Cone Sally look like, anyway?” Kirsten’s tinkly laugh filtered through the phone Sunday morning as Josie sat on a hard-backed chair in the costume closet tying closed the waist of neon-green pants. Yesterday, Santa. Today, Ethan had her on the schedule as the super-round, super-bright character she’d hated the most as a teenager. Anything to keep her out of the office, she assumed. He had to be earning back some serious karma points for the misery he was inducing with these costumes.
    She looked down at the bright orange clown sneakers she had to put on next, right before she donned the ten-pound, Sno-Cone-shaped head with two teeny eyeholes. “You really