"Thank you so much!" Hanna said with a smile as her Uber driver arrived at her destination. She pulled up the app on her phone to give him a five-star rating and a decent tip. With it being the day before Christmas Eve, she was sure he'd rather be spending time with his family right now. He deserved a little something extra. She wished him a good night and Happy Holidays as she exited the vehicle and closed the door behind her. She walked through the lobby doors of the Shore Hotel and made her way to the event space for the party.
As she entered the room, she was immediately reminded why she and the team had chosen this location for this year's holiday party. The large room was decorated to the nines in twinkling white lights, Christmas trees, holly, everything you could possibly imagine, complete with fake snow sprinkled along the floor. It was the most magical Winter Wonderland in the middle of Santa Monica. Talk about decking the halls!
As she made her way deeper into the room, she stopped at the large stage set up along the back wall, piled high with wrapped gifts, games, plush toys, dolls, even a few bikes and motorized scooters. The sight, outlined by the bright lights of the Santa Monica Pier beyond the window, made Hanna's breath catch in her throat. She had worked tirelessly these last few months, organizing the largest toy drive in the company's history. Every branch across the country had participated, reaching out to hundreds of hospitals, shelters and schools in the nation to provide toys for as many underprivileged children as possible this holiday season.
Over the years, she had climbed the ladder to become the youngest ever head of the marketing department for the toy company at only thirty-four years old. She took immense pride in that fact, but this was still the accomplishment she was the most proud of.
"Hanna!" The voice of her work bestie, Gwen, came from behind her, pulling her out of her reverie.
"Gwen, hi!" Hanna replied, giving her friend a tight squeeze around the waist.
"This party is incredible. They keep getting better every year! And this toy drive." Gwen swept her hand out, gesturing grandly towards the stage filled with toys. "Han, you did such an amazing job on this. I cannot believe how successful it was! And it's all because of you."
Hanna blushed as she accepted the accolade. "Thanks G. You know how much this means to me. I couldn't be happier that it's gone so well."
Just then, the C.E.O of K.K. Toys, Vivian Gaines, took the stage, microphone in her left hand, champagne flute in her right.
"Hello everyone! Thank you all so much for coming out to celebrate with us tonight. We all know that these last few months of the year are the busiest for us, so I just want to start out by giving a huge round of applause for everyone in the room for all the hard work and dedication you all put into your jobs every day!" Vivian raised her glass of champagne up over her head while the room erupted into cheers.
She continued, talking briefly about year-end numbers and projections for the next year, etc. before welcoming the owner of K.K. Toys to the stage.
Kristophe Kringle stepped up to take the mic from Vivian, requesting a round of applause for her as he prepared to make his remarks to the crowd. Hanna had never actually seen him in person before. He had retired years ago and now lives somewhere in Europe most of the year and rarely made in-person appearances anymore. She was surprised he would come all the way to L.A. just for the holiday party. But boy, was she glad he did. The man standing on the stage, not ten feet in front of her, must have been at least 6'4" with a large, muscular frame. From her vantage point, Hanna got the full view of his striking icy blue eyes. And mixed with his silver-white hair and matching beard, the man was a board-certified Silver Fox. Hanna was taken aback by how attracted to him she was. I mean, he had to have been nearly twenty-five years older than her!
He commanded the small stage in his impeccably tailored, likely custom made, suit. Hanna had never seen anything like it. It was made of a luxurious-looking fabric with a sheen to it that made it look nearly black, but when the light hit at certain angles, it reflected a deep, ruby red color. It would have looked ridiculous on anyone else, but, something about the way this man carried himself, he looked like he just walked out of the pages of GQ.
"I hope everyone has been having a good time tonight," he said with a bright smile, flashing a perfect set of sparkling white teeth. His voice was deep and husky, but not overly gruff.
"I'll make this short so we can all get back to the party, but I just wanted to come up here and say a few words. When I started this company, what feels like a millennium ago, my main goal was to bring happiness and joy to children and families all over the world. And with a name like Kris Kringle, what the hell else was I going to do with my life?" He flashed a bright smile again as the room broke out in laughter. "I wanted to make fun, educational and accessible toys for children of all walks of life. And I'm very proud of where this company has gone since that first day all those years ago. That's all due to everyone in this room." He paused quickly for applause from the audience.
"But tonight, I wanted to highlight one person in particular who has worked tirelessly this past year to bring that vision to life, making our annual toy drive the largest and most far-reaching we have ever had here at K.K. Toys."
Hanna felt heat rise through her cheeks as Kristophe pointed to her from the stage and gestured for her to join him. She made her way to the stairs, taking his hand as he offered her his assistance. Electricity shot through her entire arm as she rested her palm on his, feeling him wrap his long fingers around hers, gently pulling her up to the stage.
"I am so proud to announce that due to the hard work of Ms. Hanna Carpenter, K.K. Toys is donating nearly 10,000 toys to thousands of families across the country this holiday season!" Hannah couldn't do anything but smile as she blushed even harder while the room erupted into another round of applause.
Kristophe leaned in close to Hanna, his face looming over hers as he asked, "Would you like to say something?"
"Sure," she said shakily. She was not expecting to be pulled up on stage like this to speak to a room full of people. She had no idea what to say, so she decided to go with the truth.
She lifted the microphone to her lips. "Thank you so much," she said humbly. "You have no idea how much this means to me. Growing up, I was one of the kids that benefitted from donations like these. I grew up with a single mother, who was the hardest working person I've ever known, but she still struggled most days just put food on the table for my sister and I. And while, the holidays, of course, aren't really about the gifts or the toys, my mother relied on these kinds of toy drives to bring that extra little spark of joy to her children on Christmas morning. And they helped us create some of my fondest memories of childhood. So I know first-hand how impactful these fundraisers can be for children and families and I just want to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for donating and for helping to make this toy drive the best it's ever been." Overwhelmed by the outpouring of support, Hanna's voice broke slightly at the end of her speech.
As the crowd applauded once more, Kristophe pulled Hanna in for a friendly hug, but when she felt his hand land on the small of her back, tingles spread throughout her spine and goosebumps rose up on her arms. She blushed again and had to look at the ground as they pulled away from each other.
After Kristophe said his final thank-yous and sent everyone on their way to enjoy the rest of the party, Hannah met back up with Gwen and they made their way to the bar on the other side of the room. Hanna's nerves were shot after having to give that impromptu speech, so she quickly gulped down her glass of champagne to help settle herself.
"Oh my God, Kristophe is such a daddy," Gwen said, making Hanna nearly do a spit take in her face.
"What?" Hanna said with a laugh, her widening eyes staring back at her friend.
"He is! Maybe it's just the holiday vibes, or the fact that he looks like a sexy Santa Claus, but fuck, I am feral!"
"Or it could be the fact that that's already your third glass of champagne tonight..." Hanna said, gesturing toward the nearly empty flute in Gwen's hand.
"That is also a possibility." Gwen admitted.
"I know what you mean, though," Hanna said. "It's been so long since I've been with anyone other than myself. The only thing on my list for Santa this year is some good dick!"
The two women laughed, not realizing that Vivian and Kristophe were making their way towards them at the bar.
"Oh shit! Shut up!" Gwen said just before the pair reached them.
"Hello ladies! I hope we're not interrupting." Vivian said with a smile and slightly glazed over eyes. She was definitely enjoying the free-flowing alcohol at tonight's party.
"Hi Viv! Not at all." Hannah greeted her boss. She and Gwen both took turns hugging Vivian before directing polite smiles towards Kristophe and exchanging professional handshakes.
The group chatted cordially about business affairs and current events for a few minutes. All very mundane. Except for the fact that Hanna could feel Kristophe's gaze on her the entire time. Even when she wasn't the one speaking. Multiple times, she couldn't resist the urge to steal a look in his direction, only to find him staring back at her, a slight smile on his face as he studied her. Hanna could once again feel heat rush through her cheeks, feeling even more on edge knowing that he was watching the flush bloom across her face.
After a few more minutes of conversation, someone pulled Vivian and Gwen away to speak with them about something or another, leaving Hanna and Kristophe alone, Hannah still unable to make direct eye contact with him.
"I'm glad I got to finally meet you in person tonight Hanna." Something about the way her name rolled off his tongue like honey made her look up at him, taking on the full assault of his bright blue eyes boring into her. "I've seen you in virtual meetings before, but this is the first time we've had the pleasure of being in the same room at the same time."
"Same. I never thought I'd actually meet you in person. I hope I don't disappoint..." She said coyly, staring up at him.
Whoa! Why the fuck did I just say that?! She thought to herself . Oh my God, he's gonna think I'm such a weirdo!
Kristophe smirked, stifling a laugh as he looked right at her and replied. "Absolutely not..."
Hanna had to look away again. Those eyes and that smile were turning her legs into jelly. Was he flirting with her? Did she like it? What was happening?
"I have to tell you, Hanna, I really am very impressed with what you've done with the toy drive. And that speech you gave was very moving."
There he went, saying her name again. God, she was gonna have to sit down soon before her legs gave out.
"Thank you, Kristophe. I meant every word of it. I wouldn't have had anything under the tree most Christmases without events like these. I'm just really lucky that I'm able to pay it forward to other families now."
"I can see that," he said. "And please, call me Kris by the way," he insisted, placing an impossibly large hand on his chest.
"Thanks, Kris." Hannah replied, sinking her teeth into his name.
"But really, I can tell you're a good person," he continued earnestly. "I have a sixth sense about these things," he said, touching his index finger to his temple. "You didn't just do it to get the credit or to move up the ladder. You actually care about giving back. Most people out there can't say that."
"Thank you..." was all Hanna could muster, once again blushing hard at the unexpected compliment. God, she really needed to stop doing that!
"You're on the 'Nice List' for sure this year," he said with a cocky smile. "Me? I'm about to land myself on the 'Naughty List'."
What?
"Why would you say that?" Hanna asked with a nervous chuckle.
Kris looked Hanna dead in the eyes as he licked his lips. Then he slowly leaned down so that his mouth was no more than an inch from her, using his fingertips to push her dark brown hair behind her ear, grazing the soft skin of her neck as he did so.
"Because of all of the naughty things I keep thinking about you. Filthy, dirty things I want to do to you. Right here. Right now."
Oh, my fucking God.
Hanna hadn't realized that she had been holding her breath. She let out a long sigh as Kris straightened before her, looking back at her with that same arrogant smirk as before. She was speechless. She just stared at him for what felt like a lifetime, unable to form words, her ear still burning from the feeling of his hot breath on her skin.
"Um... I, uh..." She opened and closed her mouth multiple times as she looked around the room, trying to speak, but nothing came out. It's like her mind had gone completely blank.
Kris laughed, a short, breathy chuckle as he placed his index finger under her chin, lifting her head gently to force her eyes to meet his. "I have a room upstairs. Come with me. Let me show you all the things that have been going through my mind since you walked through that door," he said as he reached out his upturned hand, waiting for her to give in.
Hanna's heart raced and her breath quickened. Before she had a chance to overthink or convince herself to walk away, before she even knew what she was doing, she slid her hand into his and simply said, "Okay."
With a wicked smile, Kris curled his fingers around Hanna's hand and guided her out the door and toward the elevators. Silently, they rode to the twelfth floor of the hotel, where Kris guided her down the hall to room 1225.
She walked through the door into the dimly lit suite, the only illumination in the room being the lights from the pier below shining through the windows. But before she could even take in the room around her, she felt a large, strong presence come up behind her, grabbing her softly by the waist.
Kris nestled his face into the crook of her neck, kissing and licking the skin just below her ear, causing Hanna to let out involuntary moans and whimpers as she closed her eyes and let him explore her.
He turned her around in his arms to face him, smothering her lips with his. Hanna instinctively opened her mouth, allowing him to push his tongue through, gliding it across her own. She slid her hands underneath the fabric of his jacket, pushing it off his shoulders where he shimmied out of it and threw it over the couch, all without breaking contact with her.