Page 21 of Mistletoe and Mischief

The cold air bites at my cheeks as I rush behind the building and proceed to pace back and forth, trying to sort the jumble of emotions.

The crunch of footsteps in the snow makes me whirl around. Blake, Cole, and Landon have rounded the corner, their expressions stern.

“I told you how important tonight is to me.” I stop pacing and cross my arms. “If you’re gonna be grumpy, just leave.”

Cole steps forward. “Hold on, Jasmine. We’re impressed withmostof your plan.”

Landon chimes in. “Your business savvy is off the charts. And that speech? You owned the crowd.”

I blink, caught off guard. “Then why do you all look like I canceled Christmas?”

Blake sighs, running a hand through his hair. “It’s thebikini baristathing.”

“What about it?” I ask, my defenses rising.

“We don’t want you serving coffee nearly naked,” Cole says bluntly.

“Nearly naked? Do you understand what a bikini is?” My jaw drops. These men who shared me in a room full of people have no right to set limits. “Am I supposed to wear a muumuu if I go to the beach?”

“Peaches,” Landon starts, using the nickname that usually makes me melt, “we know you’re smart as hell and capable of anything. But the kind of guys who will show up…”

I take his sentence a different direction. “Will leave giant tips for me and any other woman who’s just trying to pay her bills.”

“It doesn’t sit right,” Blake says.

I stare at them, incredulous. “So let me get this straight. You’re fine with splaying me open and fucking me in a room full of people, but me serving coffee in a bikini is where you draw the line?”

The guys look anywhere but at me.

“And to think I was—” I catch myself. That was close. No need to complicate the already difficult emotions. Maybe I should return my focus on winning the SSSS contest. Was I too bold to think I could have three skilled orgasm-givers at my beck and call?

And how are they so sexy even in winter wear? Landon with his scarf. Cole in his black duster. And damn Blake with asprig of mistletoe pinned on his lapel. What is it with him and mistletoe?

Focusing would be a lot easier if I had an outlet for all of my tension.

Cole steps in front of me, leaving mere inches between us. “You were what, Jasmine?”

Cole’s bare hand envelopes mine, and suddenly my anger melts away. His touch reminds me of late-night laughter, fun contract negotiations, and the way he looked at me in the helicopter. It’s not just about the mind-blowing sex—these guys get me in a way no one else ever has. Or at least I think they do.

I look into Cole’s eyes, then glance at Blake and Landon who step beside him. My chest tightens with an emotion I’m not able to identify. Reflexively, I back away from the intensity, Cole’s fingertips clinging to me until I make the last step separating us.

Landon puts a hand on my shoulder and I shrug free, slamming into the exterior of the building that I didn’t realize I was so close to.

He grimaces. “I was just trying to stop you from bumping into the wall. Now what were you about to say?”

“This arrangement we have…” I start, my voice softer now. “It’s working really well, but you can’t start making rules for me like how to run my business. I don’t want to have to use the termination clause.”

Cole’s shoulders visibly hunch then ease, Landon’s signature grin makes a reappearance, and Blake nods.

“We don’t want that either,” Landon says. “But you have to help us understand.”

I’d love to squeeze past the three of them and return to listen to the next SSSS candidate speak, but I believe them.

They listen as I blurt out my vision. How I want to create a safe, empowering, profitable environment for women based on successful business models. How I plan to use the profits to fundscholarships and mentorship programs. How I see no shame in exposing skin, which really shouldn’t surprise them.

Understanding dawns in their eyes. They might not agree completely, but they’re trying. And that is wildly sexy.

The crowd cheers on the other side of the building and the final speaker takes the microphone. I have a few minutes before I have to return for the final line-up. That’s just enough time to test these guys… and relieve my stress.

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