Page 33 of Naughty Santa

After a mere twenty minutes and taking several photos, the two men nodded and held out their hands for her to shake. “Thank you for your time,” Todd said, dismissively.

In other words, suck it.

Paris could tell from their body language and lack of questions they had no intention of making an offer.

Frustrated and sad and a little astonished that these people hadn’t been able to see the quirky charm here, she patted the reindeer one by one. “I’ll fly you back to L.A. before I let those bastards hurt you,” she murmured to poor Alan Jackson.

Paris went to the checkout area, and ignoring store owner convention, she jumped on the counter and reached below for a package of Jaden’s Goldfish crackers. She listened to Elvis Presley croon about having a “Blue Christmas” and ate each cracker fish in three tiny bites—tail first, then the head, then the middle. What she really wanted was a glass of wine. Okay—a bottle of wine.

When she had spoken to Todd on the phone, she’d really thought he and his business partner/father were interested. After all, the two of them had traveled all the way from Indianapolis to see the place. She’d seen Lydia’s books, so sheknew the Holly Jolly Feed and Seed would be a solid investment for anyone. The store had operated in the black since its first year of existence, and it even turned a tidy profit annually. Granted, that profit hadn’t gone up, as much as remained steady, but that didn’t mean someone with a head for business couldn’t find ways to earn even more.

She’d come up with some of her own marketing plans over the past few days as she fixed up the Christmas side, like offering wreath-making classes and children’s craft classes. Not that she’d be around long enough to implement them.

Her own business had suffered a little over the last week and a half, but it was important to her to give Lydia’s legacy the attention it deserved. And for more than the mercenary original reason she’d had. To turn the biggest profit possible.

Now it was to ensure longevity for the store.

Paris bit the tail off another Goldfish grumpily. She reached into the bag for another cracker, depressed when she realized it was empty. Fucking snack packs. Why did it seem like they only had four crackers in them.

“Hello?”

Paris recognized Joe’s voice instantly, but for the first time since meeting the sexy lumberjack/carpenter, it failed to cheer her up. If anything, it made her feel worse. She knew him now. Intimately. Just like she did this store. And she really kind of had the hots for both.

It was way more satisfying to serve the customers here than it was in L.A. In North Pole, Paris felt appreciated.

As for Joe? He made her feel very, very appreciated.

Joe had entered on the Feed and Seed side, so he crossed the threshold into the Christmas store where she sat.

“Paris,” he said, walking toward her. “How did it go?”

She made a face, then crumpled up the cracker bag, tossing it in the direction of the wastebasket. She missed.

Joe gave her a curious gaze. “That well, huh?”

She laughed miserably, even as she shook her head. “Nope. You may find this surprising, but those big city slickers were not impressed with the Holly Jolly Feed and Seed.”

Joe leaned against the counter. “California girl is calling the dudes from Indianapolis, city slickers?”

“It’s called sarcasm. They thought they were all that, and they don’t know shit about business, clearly. Don’t they understand how delightful this store is? Don’t they understand that Lydia had the sense to understand she was creating the narrative of a brand?”

“I don’t even know what that means, but I’m not surprised they didn’t get it.”

“It’s about people. A sense of community. It’s not about just supplying feed. We’ve got Elvis singing on one side and...” she paused, struggling to hear. “And Toby Keith singing ‘Red Solo Cup’ over there. This place is amazing.”

Paris expected an answer, so when all that greeted her was silence, she peered at Joe, trying to figure out what his expression meant.

Was he disappointed to find the buyers hadn’t made an offer? Relieved?

No. In truth, he looked aroused.

“What?” she asked when he didn’t say anything.

“Do you have any idea how fucking sexy you are when you’re being passionate about something? Especially something that means so much to me?”

CHAPTER 9

Joe was never goingto get enough of her.

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