(See the first chapter for disclaimer, notes, spoiler, etc.)

Chapter Two: "All I Want for Christmas"

"But, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year? Really?"

Olivia Blake wrinkled her nose and shook her head. "I know, I know. Slightly cliché, but we managed to work the theme into our holiday advertising without expressly using that phrase."

Randall, Olivia's assistant, shuddered and leafed through the bound book of this season's advertising. "Cliché, indeed."

Olivia leaned forward in her chair, her eyes scanning an email as she murmured, "A throwback to the 1940's: furs, hats, gloves, tweed, silk and a defined silhouette." Her fingers went to work, punching out a quick reply as Randall sighed appreciatively.

"Very Katharine Hepburn. Heavenly." He closed the book and stroked it appreciatively before laying it on the corner of Olivia's desk. "Another success."

"All Leslie's due."

Randall watched her work, simultaneously reading and replying to emails and reviewing the trends reports on her desk as she maintained a precarious grip on her peppermint-mocha latte. Olivia was the queen of multi-tasking at Leslie Wallis, known for her uncanny ability to hold meetings without taking notes, yet remembering everything that was said. She could organize the layout for a campaign, visualizing everything from the specific models used to their garments and make-up, all while navigating her way through airport security in Dubai. "And yours," he said quietly after a long moment.

She shook her head, taking a generous sip of her latte. "Leslie gets the glory. After all the photo shoots I endured for two decades, you have no idea how I prefer the quiet from behind-the-scenes."

"But, you're attending the opening of the boutique in Bal Harbour."

Olivia looked up sharply, her reading glasses slipping to the edge of her nose as she watched him over the frames. "Only at Leslie's explicit request. Even though it's retail's project, she wants all avenues of the company represented."

"Well, Miami for New Year's won't be bad at all," he sighed enviously. "Perhaps, you'll need me to come along?"

"I don't think so," she chuckled, turning back to her laptop. "It's more of a vacation than anything. I'm bringing Lexi, so I plan on a lot of free time with her." At the mention of her daughter, Olivia looked at the tiny clock on the computer's taskbar. "She should be here any minute. Stacy went to pick her up?"

Randall opened his mouth to answer as the office door opened. "Hi, Mommy!" Olivia tossed her glasses on her desk, opening her arms to accept the hug that Lexi threw at her. "We're finished, Randall," she said, smiling at him over her daughter's head. He nodded, leaving quietly and closing the door behind him.

"School was great!" Lexi exclaimed, climbing into her mother's lap. For being almost ten and extremely precocious, the child had lost none of her demonstrative affection. If anything, it increased along with her age, not that her mother complained. Olivia hugged her close, listening attentively as her daughter chattered on and on about her last day of school before the winter holiday. "And, then, we got to go to the hot chocolate bar and we could have as many toppings as we wanted!"

"Let me guess. You had-"

"Marshmallows, a peppermint stick, cinnamon, a piece of chocolate, sprinkles-"

"Sounds delicious," Olivia groaned. "I hope all that sugar doesn't make you sick."

Lexi shook her head and replied, "Don't worry, Mommy. I only took the sugar-free toppings."

"Good girl." Olivia squeezed her child close and kissed her forehead. "I thought I'd have an early night with you. What do you think?"

"Oh, yes!" Lexi slid off her mother's lap, watching as she closed the programs on her laptop and shut it down. "Will you have much work to do at home?"

"A little. But it won't take long." She smiled and reached for the trends reports to shove them in her briefcase. "There's one or two things I need to wrap up before we leave for Florida."

Lexi turned away slowly, twisting one of her dark ringlets around her finger. "Who goes to Florida at Christmas?"

"Lots of people, Lex. It'll be fun. We'll go to the beach every day and I'll take you to the aquarium." But a skeptical glance was the only reply she got. "Alexia," she said, gesturing her daughter closer with the crook of her finger. The child inched closer, her blue eyes downcast. "What's the matter?"

She sighed, still gazing intently at the floor as she whispered, "Can't we please stay home for Christmas?"

"Oh, Lexi, not again. I thought we went over this." She pulled her daughter back onto her lap and looked into her serious little face. "We'll be at home for Christmas Eve and on Christmas Day we'll fly down to Florida. It's the best of both worlds!" she exclaimed, with a bright smile to cement the offer.

"But, we're only going to Florida so you can be there for when the new boutique opens!"

"It's only one day out of twelve that I have to work." Olivia frowned and ran her hand over her child's curls. "I know that you don't like it when my work interrupts our time together. I don't like it either."

Lexi looked up, her eyes wide in disbelief. "Really?"

Olivia's heart sank and she hugged her to her chest. "Of course," she said softly, kissing the top of her head. "There's no place in the world that I'd rather be than with you." She tilted her daughter's chin up and looked deep into her eyes, a mirror image of her own. "You have to know that, Lex."

"I do," she admitted, tucking her head beneath her mother's chin.

"I- I just have to work very hard for us." She closed her eyes, remembering the days when it was an infant she held in her arms. Now, her daughter was growing up, but she was still so very young and innocent. "Remember, how bad it was when I had to travel all the time for my old job? Sometimes, you couldn't even come with me."

Lexi shuddered and closed her eyes tight, listening to the beat of her mother's heart. The sickening feeling of watching her mother leave for an overseas photo shoot returned, causing her blood to run to ice. The dizzying feeling of seeing her mother everywhere resurfaced: on magazine covers, billboards on the side of a downtown skyscraper and in department store ads, but not actually seeing her in person. "I hate your old job," she muttered enviously, still not able to look at a camera the same way. For the first six years of her life, it had taken her mother away so often.

"I know. I do too," Olivia confessed, rubbing her daughter's arm comfortingly. "That's why this job is so much better. I'm home all the time, but yes, sometimes I do have to work more. Isn't this job better for our little family?"

She sat up, letting her mother's arm go around her shoulders. "Yes, Mommy. But, you know what? I think we're a lonely little family." Her mother sighed, her face falling as she took her hand.

"Lexi, we've got each other. That's all we need. Some people don't even have that." The phone began to ring insistently and Olivia sighed, reaching to answer it. "I promise this will be a quick call, Lex. Want to go ask Randall to make us a reservation at Kimigayo?"

The child nodded and climbed down, nearly at the door when she heard her mother say, "I love you, Lexi. Very, very much." She turned, smiling back. "I love you too, Mommy."

Night had fallen, a shroud of darkness falling on the bustling city. With the disappearance of the sun, a bone-chilling cold set in. Yet, somehow, the cold dark night brought out the festive decorations. The lights glowed brighter in the windows, a light projection of snowflakes falling down the facade of a department store. In the middle of it all, the majestic tree at Rockefeller Center stood, heralded by trumpeting angels.

Nick stood under the awning of the building entrance, a contented smile on his face as he watched the never-ending stream of traffic pass. He hummed a song to himself, the tune hanging in the crisp night air. From behind him, the door opened slowly and Lexi's little face poked out. "Hi, Mr. Klaas!"

"Good evening, Lexi." He ushered her back into the lobby, pulling the door tightly closed behind them. "Look at what you're wearing! You'll catch a cold."

Lexi looked down at her robe and slippers before shrugging. "But, it's flannel."

He clucked his tongue, leading her away from the door. "What's all this?" he asked, bringing her around his desk.

"Well, I thought you might like a snack." She climbed onto the chair, pouring milk from the thermos into one of the glasses. "Cookies and milk are my favorite."

"Mine as well," Nick said, generously dunking one of the cookies into the milk. He sighed with contentment, chewing slowly as Lexi did the same. "This just may the most delicious snack in all of the world. Thank you very much for bringing it to me! It's just what I needed."

"You're welcome." Lexi nibbled at a cookie, thinking carefully as a silence descended over them. After a long moment, she asked, "How exactly do you pronounce your last name?"

"Well." Nick sat up, brushing a crumb from his beard as he turned to her. "Before you can talk about the pronunciation, you must consider the origin."

"You mean, where you're from?"

"Exactly. The origins of my family are quite muddled, you see. Some say we hail from Denmark. Others say Germany, Russia or Greece."

"That's a lot of different places."

"Quite right, Lexi. Some people say Klaas, with an S so hard it sounds like a Z. I prefer the softer pronunciation, with a double A that sounds like 'ah' and a whisper of an S."

Lexi sat quietly, mulling over his explanation. "So," she finally said, "people confuse your name with Santa Claus, but that's not right."

He smiled, the expression disappearing into the fullness of his beard. "Sometimes that's how they say it."

After taking a big sip of milk, Lexi continued, "Do you know Annie Douglas? She lives on the seventh floor." Nick nodded, having a suspicion as to where her question was heading. "She told me the other day that she gave you her Christmas list."

"She did, indeed," he confirmed. "I promptly placed it in the mail for her."

Her blue eyes narrowed suspiciously and she shook her head. "No. Annie gave you the letter because she thinks you're Santa Claus. So do half the kids in this building."

"Ah." He reached for his milk glass, watching the little girl. She looked glum, stabbing the floor with the tip of her plaid slipper. "But everyone thinking I'm Santa Claus wouldn't make you this upset, would it?"

"No, I guess not," she muttered, setting her glass heavily on the desk. "Mr. Klaas, I think I'm going through a pre-quarter year crisis."

"Are you now?" he asked, stifling a chuckle as he met her serious eyes. "Maybe I can help? You know, that is my job: helping people."

Lexi shook her head. "You're job is to open doors, get cabs and deliver packages." She inhaled deeply, her chest expanding until she sighed. "Besides, no one can help me with the one gift I want."

"Well, it's not to late to write your list to Santa. I'd be happy to mail it for you."

"Mr. Klaas, I'm not silly like the other children. I know that there is no Santa. My mother explained it all to me."

Nick sat quietly, thinking of the best way to respond. A dozen thoughts flew through his head, innumerable passionate replies forming on his lips. All the while, Lexi sat watching him with her solemn expression. "Well," he finally said, "what do you think?"

The child shrugged, drawing her knees to her chest. "My mother always buys all of my Christmas gifts. I never get anything that she hasn't purchased for me."

Not being able to argue with that logic, Nick nodded. "I suppose though…if you really believe in the gift you want, Santa will know and he'll get it for you." She shook her head skeptically as he looked down at his watch. "Look at the time!" he exclaimed. "My shift is just about over. You should probably be getting back upstairs to your mother before she starts to worry."

"It's ok. She's on a conference call and thinks I'm reading. But, I should be going." She packed the thermos and now empty glasses into her mini-cooler. "Good night, Mr. Klaas."

He patted her head affectionately, smiling down at her. "Good night, Lexi." She nodded, a sad half-smile that made him catch his breath. She was waiting at the elevator when he called out, "What is this special gift you want so badly?"

Lexi stopped short and turned slowly, the unmistakable shine of unshed tears in her eyes. "A family," she said softly, her voice cracking. "A husband for my mom and a dad for me. Maybe a little brother, too." She shook her head, chuckling sadly to herself as she wiped away a tear. "Pretty silly, huh?"

The elevator doors opened and she stepped in without another word, her head lowered. Nick came around the desk, watching as the doors slowly closed. "Keep believing, little Lexi. Keep believing."