Since she was small, Chloe's parents had warned her, "If you're awake when Santa arrives, you won't get a gift." Now, on the eve of her 18th birthday, she found herself wide awake, her body humming with anticipation. The room was bathed in the silvery glow of the full moon, casting long, dancing shadows on the walls. Chloe's heart pounded in her chest as she tried in vain to distract herself with a book, the words blurrin...

I had been at my boyfriend James's family's house over the holidays, getting ready to go to a sort of costume party. I kept adjusting the décolleté of my elf costume, a playful ensemble that hugged my figure a little more than I had anticipated. The mirror in the hall earlier had confirmed the look—cute, festive, but daring—and I noticed that my nipples were a tad too prominent through the thin fabric. James himself was o...

The coarse fabric of the red coat chafed against her bare skin as she stepped inside, the sharp chill of the night still lingering on her. Every movement sent small shivers over her body. Her nipples, stiff and aching, rubbed against the rough lining. She was raw, in every sense, the remnants of the night still sticky on her chest, her stomach, in her hair, the unmistakable scent of sweat and sex now mingling with the fes...

Alex Summers was the manager of the La Jolla Pharmaceuticals company. He had just finished masquerading as Santa Claus and handing out holiday bonuses at the company's Christmas party. Although the party was starting to wind down, the night was far from over for him. He quickly returned to his office to take off his fake beard and polyester Santa suit. In the middle of his wardrobe change, however, Savannah Nix, wife of B...

She called herself Raquel Raccoon. What did raccoons have to do with Christmas? He’d learned from the last few years of his daughter’s pageants, plays, and parties, that it probably wasn’t much deeper than the fact that kids liked raccoons. Maybe they were out of elf costumes at whatever place it is that outfits shopping mall Santas and their helpers, and raccoons were all they had left. His daughter didn’t seem to care s...

In a very affluent neighbourhood, a young woman named Jenn was preparing for a glamorous neighbourhood Christmas party, hosted by her favourite swinging couple, Ed and Pricilla. She had met them on a night out a few months ago, extremely excited when she realised they lived in the area. Looking forward to the night ahead, she hurriedly changed in her living room, blissfully unaware of the curious eyes outside her window....

You really hurt my feelings, you know. That first time you invited me over to your mom’s house. It was Christmas time. Real Christmas time, not the endless, unnatural jingle hell that you and I live in every day, working for Winter Wonderland. You’d think after three years of shoveling reindeer shit to a steady soundtrack of Bing Crosby and Mariah Carey, I’d be relieved to go home to an empty apartment and a dinner of fuc...

Priti had to remind herself why she had chosen Craemuir Cottage for her Christmas writing retreat. The cottage would have been ideal in summer, or at least, what passed for summer in Morayshire. Priti had never visited the Scottish Highlands in the warmer months, but from what the woman in the local shop had told her, summer there was weather Priti could expect in London during May. That would have been perfect; neither t...

“Well, Mrs. Claus,” said Santa as he sank wearily into his armchair, “It’s only the eighth of July and we’ve finished making all the toys for all the children in the world already. By my count, that’s a record. The elves have certainly excelled themselves this year!” “They certainly have, Santa,” exclaimed his wife, “And so, I think you’ll allow, have we.” “That’s true. I’ve never worked harder in all my years. My sack is...