Page 1 of Mishaps and Mistletoe

Prologue

THANKSGIVING, SIX YEARS AGO

“If you can’t go big at Christmastime, when can you?”

A giant green beast stood in the middle of Josie’s living room, while her sister and her sister’s boyfriend worked to keep it from overtaking the entire apartment. Or crush them to death. As Josie watched them wrangle the monster, she realized it could have gone either way.

“I agree,” her sister, Courtney, said as she stood and dusted the pine needles off her pants. “At the tree farm, I thought it might be a smidge too big for the apartment.”

Max craned his neck to view the top of the tree that curved against the ceiling. “I love you, sweetheart, but I think we’re looking at ‘smidge’ in the rearview mirror.” He kissed Courtney’s forehead and wrapped an arm around her. “I mean, I don’t wanna say ‘I told you so,’ but I warned you everything looks smaller in the outdoors.”

“Why don’t they hand out tape measures at the farm?” Courtney tipped her head to the side. “I guess the angel tree topper won’t work with the top bent like that.”

Max scratched his head. “You could always tie it on. Make it look like the angel is flying.”

Josie clapped her hands to get their attention. “Y’all are missing the point.”

“Actually, this tree is.” Max smiled. “Or it will be when we chop it off. And I think we’ll have to. Unless having the tree take a bow is the look you were going for.”

Courtney smirked, and it was everything Josie could do not to laugh. This whole situation did look a tad ridiculous.

And speaking of ridiculous…

“Oh jeez. What did Jojo do this time?” a voice boomed from the doorway.

“Johnny, bud.” Max greeted his best friend with a hug and a hearty slap on his back.

Josie crossed her arms. “Why do you assume this is my doing?” Max’s and Courtney’s eyes danced back and forth along the floor, avoiding eye contact like it was their job. “Whatever. I think the better question is, why are you dressed like that?”

Johnny raised his arms to the side and did a quick spin. “What? This old thing?”

“Yes. What is thatthing?” Josie shook her head, looking at what she could only describe as both the most festive and most outlandish article of clothing she’d ever seen. And that was saying a lot from someone who’d dedicated a third of her closet to ugly Christmas sweaters.

Johnny looked down at the sports coat that boasted splashes of autumnal shades and tiny turkeys all over it. “Thanksgiving at the Ward’s is a big deal. Your dad’s a celebrity now, and people in a celebrity’s entourage need to step up their fashion game. This occasion calls for something spiffy.”

“Spiffy.” Josie twisted her lips. “Yeah, we’ll go with that. And you know my dad would sooner die than have his name in the same sentence as the wordscelebrityorentourage.” True, he’d just released a book about his time in the military that had become an overnight national bestseller, earning him an interview on a national talk show next week. But her gruff, man-of-few-words father didn’t want anyone making a big deal about it. Even if it was deserved.

“Well, he’s definitely the talk of the town.” Johnny turned his attention back to the tree. “So, Ward sisters—the suspense is killing me. I’m dying to know why your Christmas tree is hooked like a candy cane.”

“YES! A candy cane! Johnny, you’re brilliant!” Josie’s brows shot to her hairline. “I kinda can’t believe I’m saying those words to someone dressed like that.”

“Aw, you know you love me, Jojo.” He grinned with all his teeth on display and enveloped her in a humongous hug.

Six years his senior, Josie loved Johnny like the pesky little brother she often felt he was. Courtney, Max, and Johnny were childhood best friends who spent almost every waking hour of their adolescence together, which meant they spent a lot of time at Josie’s childhood home.

She patted Johnny on the head and attempted to break free of his grip. “I have the perfect idea. I’ll grab my red and white light strands and we’ll totally run with the whole candy-cane tree theme.” She grunted. “Johnny, let go.”

“And where are you going to get lights like that? We’re decorating the tree tonight.” Max knew the answer when the sisters exchanged knowing glances. “You have them already, don’t you? I mean, whywouldn’tthe Christmas Crazies have spare strands of lights fit for every occasion?”

“Speaking of crazy…” Johnny looked at the ceiling. “How’s Mayor Scotty Hottie going to react to the line of sap running the length of the living room?”

Josie sighed. “First of all, he’s not the mayor… yet. And second, he hates that name.” At least, that’s what he claimed. The grin he wore when the hashtag started trending said otherwise.

The sappy ceiling caught her attention. Her neat freak fiancé wouldn’t be happy about this. Any of it. The sap on the ceiling, the size of the tree, the way the branches stuck out and blocked half of the television, which she was just now noticing. He was going to grumble about that when they watched football later tonight. Never mind that this wasn’t even his apartment.

But that’s why their relationship worked. He was the neat to her chaotic. The calm to her storm. The buzzkill to her joy. Okay, that last one was something Johnny had said a while back, but what did he know? He went through women faster than a classroom of runny-nosed preschoolers went through a box of tissues during cold-and-flu season. “I’ll grab the stepladder and get everything cleaned up before Scott comes over. He’s meeting us at Mom and Dad’s.”

Johnny tilted his head in her direction. “He didn’t go with you to the tree farm?”

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