Free Santa's Posse by Rosemarie Naramore

once again discussing the merits of the
retail space and the mall itself.  He extended a hand to her guest.  “I’m Miles
Blake.”
    Mr. Barnes
accepted his outstretched hand and then eyed him curiously.  “Are you a mall
cop?”
    Miles forced back
the smile that tugged at his lips.  “In a manner of speaking,” he said.  He
nodded toward Kellie.  “Miss Sanders tells me you’re considering renting this space.”
    He nodded. 
“Considering it, but I’m also considering another location, as well.”
    Kellie glanced at
him curiously.  He hadn’t mentioned that.  She realized she should have
implemented a harder sales pitch, and would have, had she not been thinking
about Miles and their lunch date.  Apparently, Miles decided to extol the
site’s virtues for her.
    “You can’t go
wrong with this location,” he told Mr. Barnes.  “As you know, this is the
largest mall in Southwest Washington.  Despite our struggling economy, this
particular mall has sustained a steady upswing in sales on the whole—a real
feat in this economy,” he added.  “There aren’t very many retail spaces
available of this size.  In fact, you’ll probably find this is the largest
available locally.  And I assure you, it’s going to go fast.”
    “Is that so?” Mr.
Barnes said, stroking his chin thoughtfully.  “Do you have any advice for me
from a law enforcement standpoint?”
    “Actually, there
is.  I don’t know if Kellie has told you, but the sheriff’s office has a
precinct on-site, from which our deputies respond to calls both here and in the
community.”
    “I imagine that
gives your vendors an added sense of security,” the man observed.
    “Absolutely,” Kellie
cut in.  “Commander Blake here oversees a system at the precinct called Mall
Watch, whereby his deputies can keep a sharp eye on the goings on at the mall.”
    Mr. Barnes nodded
approvingly.  “That’s good to know,” he mused.  “In-store theft is a huge
problem for retailers, as you well know,” he directed to Miles.
    He nodded.  “We
can’t guarantee you won’t experience theft, but, we can assure you we’ll do a
better job of both preventing it and catching any perpetrators.”
    Suddenly, the man
thrust his hand out to him.  “You’ve given me a lot to think about, Commander.” 
He turned to Kellie.  “You, too, Miss Sanders.”  He checked his watch.  “I have
to go, but I’ll call you tomorrow afternoon with my answer.”
    “I look forward to
hearing from you,” she told him.
    When he left the
space and was no longer in sight, she turned toward Miles.  “Sorry about
lunch.  And thanks for stopping by.  I think you may have sold him on this
place.”
    “I’m sure you’d
already done that.”
    She frowned.  Had
she?  She didn’t think so.  She had been more preoccupied with worry over
standing him up, than tending to her guest and his myriad questions.  Not good,
she thought.  Not good at all.

Chapter Seven
     
    Kellie didn’t see
Miles during the remainder of the week, nor did she see much of him the
following week.  She wondered about his absence, but wondered more about the
vague sense of disappointment she felt each day that passed without the two at
least exchanging a hello in the mall corridors. 
    She realized she
hardly knew him, and had only spent a matter of hours with him.  Hours together
didn’t equate to a relationship, which was just as well, because she didn’t
want one.  At least that’s what she continued to tell herself.    
    Just the same, she
found herself thinking about him at the oddest moments, and Jill wasn’t above
speculating one day as the two sat in Kellie’s office, going over the workload
for the upcoming week.  “Thinking about Miles, aren’t you?”   
    “I am not!” she
exclaimed, aghast.
    “Oh, you are too. 
You’re only human, for Pete’s sakes.”
    “He must be busy,”
she observed neutrally, but Jill wasn’t fooled by her attempt to