7. Merry

Chapter 7

Merry

“Merry. That’s me.”

The stranger rubbed his chin and closed one eye. “You’re happy? Okay, great. But what are you doing here?”

I chortled, not because him making a joke about my name was funny. A lifetime of Merry jokes got a little tiresome. My fake laughter was because I didn’t know what to do, where I was, and if this guy was supposed to be my mate. He scented yummy, but was that enough?

“That’s my name.”

He tilted his head. “What is?”

“Merry.” I held out my hand. “Nice to meet you.”

I’d imagined getting my mate in so many different ways and places, but I was in what appeared to be an artist’s studio. Surely, we were supposed to fall into one another’s arms, right?

Maybe he wasn’t the one. Judging by his scent, this guy was a shifter. There were enough reindeer shifters in Christmas Village for me to recognize a shifter. He wasn’t a reindeer because he didn’t have that mossy smell.

I peered around him, but there was no one else here.

“Merry.” The R’s rolled over his tongue, and I shivered.

This place had that same mud-like aroma, one that irritated my nostrils. If he wasn’t my mate, I wanted out of here.

“Hernan.” He grabbed my outstretched hand, and we shook. He had a firm grasp and his palm wasn’t sweaty.

A plus and another plus.

“Merry,” he repeated. “You must get fed up with jokes about your name.”

I nodded because my name was the last thing I wanted to discuss. I was here for mating, and if Hernan wasn’t it, he needed to show me my mate or move out of the way and let me find him.

“Ummm, yeah, but jokes are part of my business.”

“You’re a stand-up comedian?” He folded his arms, revealing dirt under his nails.

“No.” I couldn’t talk about Christmas Village and the Santas. We signed a contract, ensuring we kept the place and the people a secret. “But that’s not why I’m here.”

“Why are you here?”

Damn, I’d stepped into that. First mentioning work and now the plan to meet my mate. I had to get myself out of this and change the subject.

“Where am I?”

“My workshop.”

That didn’t get me very far.

“You didn’t answer my question. How’d you get into my workshop? The door was locked.”

My belly saved me by rumbling.

“Sorry.” I sensed a blush spreading over my cheeks. “Is it hot in here?” I fanned my face with one hand.

“It was just a lot hotter.”

Gods, maybe he was my mate and he was going to whip off his pants. My gaze fell to his crotch, and I slapped a hand over my mouth. The huge bulge suggested he was enormous. He and I couldn’t be compatible. As an elf, I was on the small side.

“Something bothering you?”

“Oh, no.” There was more fanning of my face as the flush spread over my throat and chest. “I might have a fever.” I coughed, a pretend one. He didn’t cover his nose or step back. Shifters didn’t suffer the same minor ailments humans and elves did.

“Your cheeks are pink.”

Now what? I couldn’t see much out the tiny windows that also needed a good clean, along with his nails and smudged clothes.

“Can I stay here?” My plan didn’t include searching for my mate. He was supposed to appear before me. Not that anyone who’d been turned into a figurine could vouch for that, as none of them returned to Christmas Village. I just assumed that was how it worked.

But the more I scented Hernan in this confined space, his scent peeked out from the dust and muddy aroma. I pictured it waving and beckoning me. Hernan was the one.

I screwed up my face. This was more of a fizzle than a bang, and he wasn’t taking me in his arms. Hmmm, there should be a manual that comes with this process.

“In my workshop?” He raised a brow. He was definitely cute, and I was intrigued with whatever was in his pants. Well, not whatever, I had a pretty good idea of what he had in there, and I was hoping to see it sooner rather than later.

I shrugged. “Where else is there?”

Hernan peered at me, and I studied the furrowed lines between his brows. “A whole world awaits.”

That scared me. I knew little beyond Christmas Village. Memories of my earlier life were scant, and I’d been very young when the Santas adopted me.

“Oh. It sounds big.” I shouldn’t have glanced at his crotch again. That was naughty of me, but when my mind thought enormous, my gaze rested on his large bulge.

“It is.” He smirked and leaned on a bench, his crotch in full view.

Was he laughing at me?

As I was pondering whether to ask him if he scented me as his mate, a door swung open and sunshine filtered into the room along with a lot of dust.

“Hernan, you are clever. How did you keep an elf a secret?”

“I—”

But the woman who’d barged in cut him off. “He’s so cute.”

This person was talking about me as if I wasn’t here. I did agree with her about being cute. I was.

“How’d you do that?”

“I’m a little mystified myself,” Hernan replied, his eyes not leaving me.

“Now the festival will have everything we need for it to be a success. Having an elf is like the cherry on top.”

The woman left, leaving me to puzzle over a festival needing an elf. Was that why I was brought here? To ring my bell and tell jokes, play pranks, and make everyone laugh.

Damn. Perhaps I should venture into the big wide world, and when I’d gone, Hernan would miss me and beg me to come back.

Or he wouldn’t come after me and I’d be in a strange place with no friends, home, or job.

And no mate!