“Cat got that tongue of yours, Mr. Buck?” Matthew was in the employee lounge, feet propped on a chair, swigging the last of the brutally strong and ice cold coffee fermenting in the pot.
“Arg, this stuff must be at least twelve hours old,” he said to Fern, who was brewing a cup of tea.
“If you’re that desperate for a cup of coffee, I’m happy to make you one. But you could always do that yourself.” He could hear the jab in Fern’s voice as she sat down with her steaming mug of peppermint tea.
“Not desperate. Just lazy. And exhausted.” He winced and tossed the crumpled paper cup into the trash.
“Three points!” he laughed. ”Seriously, I will be glad when this is over. It’s been fun, and just as important, very financially successful, but I think I’m ready to hop on the sleigh and fly outta The Enchanted Land of Claus until next year. I’m not so sure about you and Savannah, but I know that I am.”
“What makes you think that?” Fern asked, inhaling the calming scent of the peppermint tea. ”You think it’s easy being head elf in this joint? I’m with you. I’ve decorated my last cookie and constructed my last gingerbread house until next year. I hope there’s room on your sleigh for me.” She sipped her tea and winked at her old friend.
“Savannah has been a wonderful Mrs. Claus. The customers rave about her as do the elves. And this elf is particularly fond of her, so heed your head elf’s warnings if you have any disparaging remarks about her. She is a huge part of The Enchanted Land of Claus’ success. Huge.” Fern said with great emphasis on her last word.
“Don’t you think I know that?” Matthew got up and spooned ground coffee into the coffeemaker.
“I just think she may have gone a little overboard with the Siddons family. I have no idea what she has up her sleeve, but I hope it doesn’t backfire on her.” He wasn’t going to mention their last exchange to Fern, as he didn’t want to admit it, but he was tremendously hurt when she suddenly turned as cold as a North Pole iceberg, even as her kiss still lingered warm on his cheek.
“Matthew Buck. What kind of talk is that?” Fern slammed her cup down on the table in frustration at her beloved friend.
“I’ve known you for years and have been like a second mother to you. It’s been me you always come to with a problem in your romantic life. I know your own mother well, and if she heard you speak like that about someone as special as Savannah, she’d box your ears. And I just might do that, too.”
Matthew exaggeratedly put his hands over his chest, as if Fern mortally wounded him.
“Ouch! Fern, come on, Savannah’s great, but…”
“But nothing,” Fern commanded. ”It’s been very obvious to me, and everyone else, that you’ve had a crush on her from the moment you met, and now because she wanted to rush off and make sure Sylvene and Jolene got their gift on time, and you’re put off? Listen, pal, there’s travel involved with this gift and she needed to be sure they had plenty of time to get ready. It had to be tonight or not at all.”
“Travel? What do you mean?”
“I’ll tell you what I mean. Savannah planned a Christmas getaway for herself. In case you hadn’t noticed, she’s alone, but she felt those two needed it more than she did, so she switched the reservations from her name to theirs. She booked them on the 9:00 am train tomorrow, so time is of the essence, buddy.”
“Getaway?” Matthew asked. ”To where?”
“The Blue Spruce Inn. Ever hear of it?”
Matthew then recalled Savannah mentioning her Christmas vacation, but with all the hecticness of the season, it slipped his mind. Matthew felt the bore of Fern’s hard stare, and had the distinct feeling she could see straight into his soul. Matthew was the recipient of Fern’s penetrating looks numerous times when Matthew had misstepped and needed to be pointed in the right direction. Just like a mother would. He leaned into Fern’s face and stared right back at her, and then broke into his huge affable grin.
“I could kiss you. And I will,” he said, enveloping her in a bear hug with a peck on the cheek to boot.
“That’s better,” Fern laughed. ”I will never lose my faith in you, Matthew.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow. Last day!” He grabbed his coat from the closet, and Fern gently grabbed his arm.
“It’s the last day of The Enchanted Land of Claus, but it could also be the first day of something bigger. Go get her, Matthew, or you’ll forever wish you did.”
Matthew leaned in and gave Fern another kiss on the cheek.
“I don’t know what I’d do without you.” he said, dashing through the frosty December night.