Christmas with Nick Klaas

Part 5: Old School

With the bags taking up most of the space in the rear, there was only room for one person on the bench. Noelle headed for the empty spot, but Avery—still holding the cat carrier—stopped her.

"I don't think Cat Damon would enjoy the front row experience, so you either have him with you here or sit up front," she said.

Noelle was about to laugh at the absurdity of the statement before realizing that the woman was deadly serious. Clearing her throat, she tried to appear sincere. "You can have it."

Climbing up front, she patted the seat searching for a belt.

"You won't find one," the driver said, noticing. "This is an old-school sleigh, hundreds of years old."

"Great," Noelle muttered. "So we'll old-school die if we get into an accident."

He laughed, but it was an amused reaction, not a malicious one. "Don't worry. I've travelled these roads many times, and I'm quite an experienced sleighman."

There was something about his levity that made Noelle smile. "Are you old-school?" she teased.

He nodded with a smile. "Something like that. Now, hold on because there's a bit of a jerk at the start."

"I've known a lot of jerks at the start," Noelle said under her breath, recalling past love interests as she held onto the side rail with one hand.

"What was that?" the driver asked as he snapped the reins and the reindeer began to move, making the sleigh lurch forward.

Noelle shook her head. "Nothing. I'm Noelle, by the way. And that's Avery in the back," she said, both to change the conversation and realizing that they hadn't had introductions.

Their ride sped up. "I'm Nick," the driver said, focusing on the animals, but occasionally glancing her way. "It is very nice to meet you, Noelle and Avery. Are you tourists?"

"No," Noelle answered.

"Yes," Avery said at the same time.

Nick smiled again. "Are you both or neither?" he asked.

"I'm here for work," Noelle clarified. "She just . . .," she trailed off, realizing that the truth about using her colleague to try to get out of the trip was too complicated. And also, it had been a complete failure. "Avery is just here to make sure I stay safe."

"There is no place on Earth more safe than Keskitalvi," Nick said proudly.

"That means Midwinter, right?" Noelle asked, remembering the sign from the pier.

"Yes, that is correct."

"Very appropriate name, at least for this time of year," Avery chimed in from the back.

Nick glanced back at her. "For all of the year, actually. It is very much the same weather in Spring, Summer, and Autumn, too," he said.

Noelle snickered, thanking her lucky stars that she wasn't staying for more than a few days in her own personal hell. "Global warming, am I right?" she quipped.

"There is something quite beautiful and peaceful about snow and the especially the Yuletide spirit," Nick said, slowing the deer as they approached a bend.

A knot formed in Noelle's stomach. She really had to watch her tongue, especially when she was jet lagged. This guy was doing them a favor by driving them to their hotel, and she just insulted his homeland. "I'm sorry. I didn't meant to offend you—"