Page 5 of The Very Naughty List

He runs one hand through his chocolate brown hair and takes my bag from me to carry to the car with the other. The light from the setting sun makes the lighter copper strands in his hair pop as his messy locks frame the sides of his face. Reid has a sort of rugged gorgeousness about him that I swear makes my heart actually beat faster against my ribs.

“No, they are,” I lie as I walk alongside him back to my car. “It’s just good to take some time for a fresh perspective sometimes. How about you? How have things been going with the carpentry business? How are your brothers and sister doing?”

He chuckles. “Business is good. Nick got a dog that doesn’t like anyone but him, Sebastian is still at the garage, and the three of us are living together. Addison is great, and Iris is as adorable as ever. She’s got all of us wrapped around her little finger, I swear. She’s our only niece, so we’ve got to spoil her.”

My attempt to divert attention off of myself and onto him seemed to work, but when we reach my car, I find myself wishing that I had parked much farther away.

“Thanks again.” I smile, trying not to seem awkward as I force myself not to linger. “Maybe I’ll see you around while I’m in town.”

“Of course you will,” Reid teases. He reaches out to pull the zipper on the front of my coat all the way up as if he’s worried I’ll catch a cold. “We are dating, after all, aren’t we?”

He gives me a wink before turning to leave, and I fumble with my keys to unlock my car door. Just as I finally slip the key into the lock, Reid’s voice sounds from a little way away.

“Oh, and, trouble?” The nickname he used to call me makes my stomach flutter, and I turn to look at him over my shoulder.

“Yeah?”

“I’m glad you’re back.”

I nod, clearing my throat, then quickly toss my bag into the car and slide into the driver’s seat before he can see how flustered I am. He heads inside Gus’s General Store, and for a moment, I sit in my car, gripping the steering wheel before even starting the engine. It might be cold outside, but I feel like I’m suddenly generating enough heat for a furnace as the wings of a thousand butterflies erupt in my stomach.

Finally, I shake myself out of my daze and crank the key in the ignition. The drive to The Griddle House feels unusually long, even though it’s pretty much right around the corner. That’s because I’m impossibly lost in my thoughts about Reid Cooper the entire ride.

Reid and his brothers, Nick and Sebastian, have always been protective of me. I’ve always chalked it up to the fact that they’re Lucas’s best friends. The three guys were always spending time at our house hanging out with my brother, especially after their parents died in a car accident when they were eighteen.

And since I looked up to Lucas and always wanted to be around him, the triplets didn’t have much choice but to put up with me—although they never made me feel like I was bothering them at all. In fact, they sometimes even carved out space for me, which I attributed to them just being nice guys and feeling an obligatory need to be kind to me, since they were sort of unofficially adopted into our family.

Truth be told, I’ve always had a crush on all three of them. How could I not? The Cooper brothers are all ruggedly handsome and built like Titans.

Obviously, I never let them know how I felt, since there was no way any of them would be interested in Lucas’s little sister. But they did all still look out for me. Sometimes they even acted more insanely protective thanLucasdid. I can even remember times when I let myself lie in bed and fantasize that their watchfulness over me might’ve meant something.

But I always circled back around to telling myself that it was just the way the triplets were—bonded closely together after the death of their parents and protective of the people they cared about.

So I’m not completely surprised that Reid stood up for me with Dylan, althoughhowhe did it sure knocked me on my ass.

By the time I get to the diner, park, and head inside, I’ve managed to talk myself down a bit from the encounter at the general store and I’m feeling truly excited to see my family. This place, my parents’ restaurant, feels like home. And for the first time since I arrived back in town, I’m thrilled to be back in Chestnut Hill.

My sister Pippa squeals with glee as she runs toward me and squeezes the life out of me until I can’t breathe. I hug her tight and bury my face against her artificially crimson-colored hair. It smells like a mix of strawberry shampoo and the coffee they serve at The Griddle House.

I’ve missed this, my sister’s outgoing personality and the aroma of things that smell like home.

“Ahhh, Hailey! I’msoglad you’re here!” Her face lights up when she lets me go so that my parents can get their hugs in too.

My mom looks me over and asks if I’ve been eating enough while my dad gives me a broad smile and echoes the sentiment that they’re all glad I’m home. Then they both have to finish up some work in the back room of the diner before closing time.

Pippa and I slide into a booth together to catch up a bit.

“So where are you staying?” she demands. My old bedroom in my parents’ house is being occupied by our grandmother now, which is just as well, because I don’t know if I could’ve survived the indignity of being firedandbeing forced to move back in with my folks, no matter how much I love them.

“I’m renting a room from Ted Bigelow.”

My sister grimaces and wrinkles her nose. “Ted Bigelow? Hailey, that guy is a weirdo. Everyone in town knows it. You shouldn’t stay there with him. I told you that you could crash with me.”

“It’s fine,” I reassure her. “Ted can be a little… different, but your place is so tiny, and I don’t want to impose on you like that. And mom and dad have Grandma Dee living with them now, sothere isn’t much room. I’m perfectly fine renting a room from Ted for the time being.”

I’m not sure if I’m reassuring her or myself, since I know that Ted Bigelow does have a reputation for being kind of creepy and odd. Not in a malicious or perverted sort of way—he’s just kind of socially awkward and strange. His place is on the outskirts of town, and when I was poking around for a last-minute place to stay in Chestnut Hill around the holidays, he offered to rent me a room.

“Okay, but if you go missing or some shit like that, I’m sending Lucas after his ass,” Pippa warns, and her amused giggle makes me smile.

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