Nice Until Proven Naughty Read online

  “Because I hit on him three weeks ago.”

  “Okay.” I scan the room, looking for someone who isn’t a bazillion years older than me. “How about one of them?” I say, nodding toward a group of three men who walked in about twenty minutes ago. “The one with the backward baseball cap looks cute, but it’s hard to tell from here.”

  Jamie swats my arm. “That’s Lucas Dahlenberg.”

  “Shut. Up.” My jaw nearly hits the floor, and I scoot forward on my chair as though I’ll be able to see better. “That is not him.”

  “Is too, but you might want to steer clear of him.”

  “Why?”

  “Word on the street is he’s getting over a bad breakup.”

  “He does look a little broody.”

  “Broody, but hot.”

  “So hot,” I agree. “Gosh, I can’t believe that’s him. He used to be so…”

  “Nerdy?”

  “I was going to say quiet.”

  “Yeah, well, nothing about him is nerdy these days.”

  “You’re telling me,” I say.

  Lucas Dahlenberg was the smartest kid in school and two years my senior. Class president and valedictorian, he was a tutor to practically everyone. I remember him being quiet, and a little awkward. He’s grown into his tall, lean frame. No one would dare call him lanky anymore. Somewhere along the way he traded in his black-rimmed glasses for some contacts. His hair, which he always wore short, is now a little shaggy and curls beneath the rim of his hat.

  “Didn’t he move away and go to some ivy league school?”

  Jamie nods. “Cambridge, Massachusetts. I heard he graduated from Harvard at the top of his class.”

  “What degree?”

  She shrugs and takes another sip of her hot chocolate. “Something with computers.”

  “Why on Earth did he come back here?”

  “My guess is to nurse his broken heart.”

  “Maybe.”

  “What are we staring at?” Jamie’s sister, Maryanne, says, taking a seat beside her.

  “Lucas.”

  “Ooooh, good choice. He’s easy on the eyes, nice body, messy hair, and he wears boots. You can’t go wrong with a guy in boots.”

  Jamie looks over her shoulder at her sister. “What are you doing here?”

  “Having a drink.”

  “You don’t drink,” Jamie notes.

  “I do now. Nice outfit, Naughty,” Maryanne says, looking around her sister.

  “Thank you. The jeans are taking a little getting used to, but they’re comfy. What are you drinking?”

  “Probably just a beer.”

  We all spin our stools to face the bar. I flag down Ben for a refill, and he gets Maryanne a beer.

  “I feel like I’m in The Twilight Zone,” Jamie says. “First Naughty takes off of work and changes her wardrobe, and now my baby sister is in a bar having a beer.”

  “She’s right. It is a little weird to see you in here. What gives?”

  Maryanne has always been a bit of a goody two-shoes.

  “Today was the worst day in the history of all the days.” She picks up her mug, takes a giant chug, and then sputters while making a face. “Oh my gosh, that is disgusting. How do you drink this stuff?”

  Jamie holds up her hot cocoa. “I don’t.”

  “Don’t let her fool you,” I say. “She normally has a martini in her hand. Why was today the worst day ever?”

  Maryanne pushes her glasses up her nose and lets out a breath. “You know how I’m part of the town Christmas committee?”

  Jamie nods, and I nod along with her, so I don’t look stupid. I didn’t even know there was a town Christmas committee.

  “Well, as president of the committee, it’s my job to plan the town Christmas festivities. I’m swamped at work, so I asked the vice president to take over for me.”

  “And?”

  “And she went into labor three weeks early,” she wails.

  “Oh, the horror.” I feign shock. “Damn her for getting pregnant and going into labor when she already made a commitment to you.”

  Jamie laughs.

  Maryanne rolls her eyes. “It might seem funny, but it’s not. I’m up to my eyeballs at work, and I don’t have time to finish planning everything. I’ll fail for the first time in my life, and then I’ll probably get kicked off of the Christmas committee.”

  “I highly doubt that,” I mutter.

  “It’s going to be a disaster.” She drops her head to the bar top and thunks it a few times.

  “Don’t do that,” I say, grabbing her hair and pulling her head up. “I’m sure you can get everything done in time.”

  “I can’t.” She shakes her head. “My new boss is a real scrooge, and I’m supposed to leave for a business trip in two days, and I won’t be back until the night before Christmas Eve.”

  “Jamie can help you.”

  Jamie turns her head in my direction and stares at me. “No, Jamie can’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “Why don’t you do it? You’re the one who’s off for the next week.”

  I open my mouth to protest and then snap it shut. She’s right. I do have the next week off, and I’m a party planning fool. I’ve planned office parties, and a few years ago I planned my parents fortieth wedding anniversary party. A Christmas celebration can’t be much worse than that. How hard can it be to throw together a town get-together? And what better way to get more involved?

  “You’re right. I’ll do it.”

  “You want to take it over?” Maryanne asks.

  “Sure, why not.”

  “Now is not the time to joke with me, Naughty Kringle. My emotions can’t handle it,” Maryanne says with flare of heat.

  “I’m not joking. I’d be happy to do it.”

  “You will?” Maryanne jumps up from her chair and waits for a nod of confirmation. As soon as I give it to her, she throws herself at me. “Thank you, thank you, thank you. I owe you big time.”

  Wow, who would’ve thought doing something nice for someone would feel so…nice?

  “You don’t owe me a thing. I’m happy to do it.”

  “It’s a lot of work.”

  “If there’s one thing I know how to do well, it’s work.”

  “I don’t know how to repay you.”

  “You can start by loosening your grip around my neck.”

  “Sorry, I just got a little excited.” Maryanne pulls back and looks at me sheepishly. “Meet me at the community center tomorrow evening at four? I’ll show you what Keri got done before going into labor and what else you’ll have to do.”

  “I’ll be there.”

  3

  Naughty

  “Okay, let me try this one more time.” I take a breath and look at the group of people in front of me, pointing to each one as I try to recall their names. “Sarah. Colin. Brian. Curtis. Avery. Greg. Barry. Gary.”

  “Garrett,” the last guy corrects.

  “Garrett. Sorry, I’ll get it right next time.”

  He’s the youngest of the group and waves me off with a smile.

  “Yay!” Maryanne does a little happy dance. “They’re your Christmas crew, here to help you with the party and the fundraiser, and they’ll also make up your caroling crew.”

  “Caroling crew?”

  “Yes, dear,” Sarah, the older woman with silver hair, says. “We’ll carol every night starting tomorrow. The goal is to hit every house in the town before the Christmas party.”

  “And when is the Christmas party again?”

  “Christmas Eve,” she answers.

  “And we have to hit every house?

  She nods.

  “Do you do this every year?”

  The whole group nods.

  “You’ve never come to my house before.” Although I do live on the outside of town. Maybe they don’t go out that far.

  “Actually, we do,” Garrett says. “You’re never home.”

  “Oh.” Well, shit.
“Okay, every house by Christmas Eve. Got it. Piece of cake. We’ve totally got this. Will I just stand back and watch? I’ll sort of be like the manager and offer water if you need it?”

  “No, dear.” Sarah chuckles. “You’ll sing with us. In fact, since you’re taking over, you get the special privilege of dressing up as Santa and standing front and center.”

  “Oh, I can’t sing. I actually suck at it. My sister told me once that I sound like a screeching owl.”

  Maryanne places a hand on my arm. “No one cares if you can hold a tune. It’s the gesture they care about.”

  “Right. Christmas spirit. Got it. What else do I need to know?”

  Maryanne opens the manila folder in her hands. “This is everything. The theme for the Christmas party this year is Cocktails and Coattails. Big Boy Barbecue is catering, and your sister and Ben are donating all of the alcohol, as well as non-alcoholic beverages for the kids and two of their bartenders to manage the bar.”

  “Wow, that’s really nice of them.”

  Maryanne looks at me funny. “They do it every year.”

  I can’t believe I didn’t know that.

  “Anyway, it looks like the only thing left for you to take care of is the fundraiser. We’ve done bake sales the last three years, and it brings in a solid three to four thousand dollars.”

  “Where does the money go?”

  “To the local women’s shelter.”

  I purse my lips and look through the papers in the folder. “Three to four thousand doesn’t seem like much.”

  “It’s not, but every penny helps, and the shelter is always grateful.”

  “I’m sure they are,” I say, the wheels in my head starting to spin. “But wouldn’t it be great if we could double or triple that amount?”

  Maryanne looks skeptically at the rest of the group. “How would we do that?”

  “What if…” My mind flashes back to my college days when we auctioned off the football team for a local charity. It was fun for the players and the students and brought in several thousand dollars. “How about a bachelor auction?”

  “We’re listening,” Avery says with a gleam in her eye.

  “We could round up all of the local, single men and auction them off the morning of the Christmas party.”

  “And what does the highest bidder get?” Brian asks.

  “A date to the Christmas party.”

  Maryanne’s face lights up, but the others don’t look as convinced. “Who’s going to volunteer to be auctioned off?” Garrett asks.

  “You,” I suggest. “I don’t see a ring on your finger. Are you married?”

  “N-no.”

  “Dating someone?”

  He shakes his head, and Avery pipes in with a little too much gusto. “Let’s do it! It’s a great idea.”

  I have the distinct feeling she’ll be bidding on Garrett.

  “My brother is single,” Barry says. “I bet I could get him to participate.”

  “That’s great! Maryanne, do you have a pen?”

  She grabs a pen from her purse and hands it to me. I start jotting down the names everyone throws out, and by the time we’re done, we’ve got a solid list of fifty guys.

  “Okay, you guys reach out to everyone and make sure they’re good with the auction, and I’ll talk to Dani and see if we can host the auction at Sal’s.”

  “I’m so excited,” Maryanne says. “This is going to be so much fun.”

  All I can think is, Dear, Santa, please let this be a success.

  “Of course,” Dani says an hour later when I ask her if we can do the auction at Sal’s. “I think it’s a great idea.”

  Her praise makes my heart swell. “You do?”

  “Yes! It’s fresh and exciting. Just what the town needs. Plus, maybe we can find a sexy bachelor for you to buy at the auction.” She wags her eyebrows and gives me a nudge in the arm.

  “I won’t get my hopes up.”

  “Well, I will. And put Ben down. He’d love to do it.”

  “No, he wouldn’t.” Ben frowns at Dani. “You can’t just volunteer me for something like that.”

  “I’m sorry.” Dani walks over to him and fiddles with the front of his shirt. “It’s for a good cause, and you’re always wanting to help out. Plus, you’re super sexy and—”

  “You think I’m super sexy?”

  “Hell yes. And you’re funny and kind to boot. The women will eat you up.”

  “What women?”

  “At the auction. The ones who will be bidding on you?”

  “Right.” His face falls. “The women. And I’m guessing you won’t be out there bidding on anyone?”

  “Like I’ll have time. I’m planning on being stuck behind the bar the whole night.”

  There’s nothing I want more than to slap these two upside the head and tell them to pull the jingle bells out of their butts and realize they’d be perfect together.

  I tried that once about three years ago, and Dani shot me down cold.

  “We’re business partners,” she told me with a firm shake of her head. “Plus, he’s my best friend. If we didn’t work out, everything would be ruined.”

  She made two valid points, so I gave up. I figure if they’re meant to be, one of these days one of them will grow enough balls and make the first move. I just hope they don’t screw things up before they ever get there.

  “Speaking of bar…” My sister squeaks when I yank her in for a hug. “It’s really nice of you to donate the beverages and your workers. Maryanne told me you do it every year. I can’t believe you never told me.”

  “I told you,” she says, settling her head on my shoulder, seeming content to keep hugging.

  Probably because I’m not the most affectionate person. Something else I’m going to work on.

  “When?”

  “I don’t know,” she says, letting me go. “Several times.”

  “We asked you to help us work it two years ago,” Ben says.

  “You did?”

  “That’s right.” Dani nods. “I forgot about that. You said something about work and not having time and the damn holidays.”

  Damn. I’ve been more detached than I thought. And oddly enough, I’m not missing my job as much as I thought I would.

  The partners were more than happy to let me use up some of the PTO I had banked, but I’m not sure they’d be ready to let me decrease my hours on a more permanent basis—something I’m giving more and more thought to since setting my plan in motion.

  “I’m sorry. I’ve had occupational tunnel vision since starting at Grouper and Bailey, but I promise I won’t ignore you again. From now on, count me in for all holiday activities.” I curl my nose up at Ben when I realize he’s videotaping me with his phone. “What are you doing?”

  “Dani made me promise to video you if we notice any more weird behavior. I think she believes she may be dreaming.”

  “Well, in that case…” I get right up in front of Ben’s phone. “You’re not dreaming, Dani. This is your sister, Samantha, and I’m turning over a new leaf. No more unanswered calls or texts. I promise I won’t ignore you anymore. You’re going from the back burner to the very front. I’m just sorry I didn’t realize sooner how bad a sister I’d become.”

  “You’re not a bad sister,” she says, wiping a tear from her face. “You’re wonderful. And this is going to be the best Christmas ever. Also, you were right,” she whispers, for only me to hear.

  A smoke alarm blares from the other room, and Ben’s face turns white. “Shit. I forgot I had a pizza in the oven.” He darts out of the room, and I look at Dani.

  “What was I right about?”

  “Shhh.” She waves a hand at me and turns to make sure Ben isn’t anywhere near before looking back at me. “About Ben,” she whispers.

  “What about him?” I whisper back.

  “I’m in love with him.”

  “Oh. My. God,” I mouth. “I knew it. Is this where I get to say told ya so?”


  “No,” she hisses. “This is where you help me snag him.”

  “You don’t need my help. He’s head-over-heels in love with you.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Have you seen the way he looks at you? Geez, Dani, you’re not blind. The man is crazy about you. Trust me, all you have to do is tell him how you feel, and I promise he’ll be falling at your feet.”

  She shakes her head, not seeming convinced. “I don’t think so.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I already turned him down,” she says, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth.

  “What? When? You didn’t tell me about that.”

  “Last year he gave me a Christmas card that said all I want for Christmas is you. He followed it up with a Will you make that wish come true?”

  “And?”

  She frowns. “And I gave him every excuse I could think of as to why we can’t be together.”

  “No!”

  “Yes! I’m horrible. I’m the worst person in the whole entire world, and I don’t deserve someone as wonderful as Ben.”

  I point a firm finger at Dani. “That’s not true, and we both know it. You’re just as wonderful as he is, and you deserve each other. Tell me what you said to him.”

  “I told him I didn’t think it was a good idea to date because we work together, and we’re better off as friends.”

  “Oh God, Dani.” I slap a hand to my forehead. “You did not say that.”

  Lip between her teeth, she nods.

  “And he still looks at you with stars in his eyes?”

  “That’s the thing, he doesn’t look at me like that. At least not anymore. I used to feel the heat every time he looked at me. I always knew he felt something more, but I ruined it. Now he just looks at me with general kindness, and I want the heat back, Naughty,” she whines. “I need your help.”

  “Anything.”

  “I need to be more like you.”

  I’m shaking my head before all of the words even leave her mouth. “No, you don’t.”

  “Yes, I do. I need a make Nice naughty plan. You’re confident and sexy. Men are drawn to you. I need that for a day or two, so I can draw Ben back in. I need to see if I can get a rise out of him. Something—anything—to show he still likes me.”