Page 5 of Matchmaking Under the Mistletoe

“God, Brian, you haven’t listened to any of the voicemails I’ve left you this morning, have you?” Bridget snaps.

“What part of everyone's losing their damn minds are you not understanding,” I growl back at her.

“Yeah, yeah… Helen called the inn when she couldn’t get your cell. She got a call from her dad in Texas this morning. Apparently, he broke his hip, and he’s gonna need full-time care.Her lease was ending on her apartment anyway, so she decided to move back home,” Bridget explains.

“Shit,” I curse. “I mean, I understand. But who the hell is gonna handle all these Christmas events that we have coming up?”

“Uh, well, that’s a great question. I’d offer to help, but there’s no way I can do that and take care of everything else. I guess we’re gonna need to start looking for a replacement,” my cousin says.

“Bridget, the first event is in ten days. God, this is a disaster,” I groan.

“Yeah, pretty much. But that’s gonna have to be a problem for tomorrow. Please tell me you can get over here and give me a hand. You know I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t desperate.”

“Give me about an hour, and I’ll be there,” I say, trying not to let her hear my grimace.

“Thanks. See you then,” she says before hanging up the phone.

I hear my cell let out another beep, and I hit accept without looking at who’s calling, figuring it’s the sheriff calling me for the fourth time to inform me there's someone else on a roadway we declared impassable hours ago.

“Mayor Brian Jones, how can I help you?” I say while checking my email to see three locals have messaged wanting to know what we’re going to do about the upcoming Christmas events after they heard Helen’s moving. Seriously? After living in Springside for most of my life, I’ve gotten used to how fast news spreads in town, but sometimes it still catches me off guard.Do they really think I’m working on that now?

“Hey, Mayor, how ya doing?” I hear Huey, our recently retired fire chief, ask before trying to refocus myself. Huey’s a bit older than me, but we’ve become pretty good friends because of our jobs here in town.

“Honestly, I’m feeling like if I ever see another snowflake, it’ll be too soon,” I reply with a groan, and I hear Huey break into a fit of laughter.

“Damn, son, I know that’s right. Listen, I need a favor,” he says, and I immediately feel my curiosity rise.

“Don’t tell me you're stuck on the side of the road like every other damn person in this town. If so, you’ll have to call Sheriff Mitchell and let him laugh at you like everybody else. I’m swamped and my event planner just quit less than two weeks away from the first Christmas event,” I say, knowing Huey rarely asks for favors.

“No, no. Nothing like that. But there’s a lady here who had a bad run in with a deer, and she needs somewhere to stay. Her car’s a mess, and I’m almost positive it’s totaled. If so, it’ll probably take weeks for her insurance to get it sorted out. Y’all got any rooms available at the inn?” he asks.

“Yeah, actually we do. I just talked to Bridget and there’s one left. I’ll text her to hold it for you,” I tell him, already typing out a message to my cousin.

“Thanks, Brian. I really appreciate it. Wait, what happened to Helen?” he asks, sounding concerned.

“Bridget just told me her dad had a bad fall, and she’s moving back home to take care of him,” I explain, already dreading the process of replacing her. Holding interviews and going through resumes on top of everything else I have to do before the end of the year sounds miserable.

“Oh no, I hate to hear that. But what the hell are you gonna do about all those Christmas events? You know how wild the town goes this time of year?” he questions, like I haven’t lived in Springside for the entirety of my thirty-four-year existence.

“Honestly, I don’t know. You have any ideas?” I snap in frustration.

“Hmm, maybe,” he ponders. “Actually, the girl that just broke down, she mentioned she’s spent the last decade planning events in D.C. for politicians and billionaires. I bet she could help out and at least get you through the holiday rush, since it doesn’t look like she’s gonna be going anywhere soon. Maybe y’all could work something out.”

I pause, surprised. That definitely wasn’t what I expected him to say, but I trust Huey and know he wouldn’t have mentioned finding her a job if he didn’t think she’d be a good fit. Plus, by the sounds of it, she’s incredibly overqualified. I picture a blonde lady in her mid-fifties quizzing me on the difference in cream and eggshell linens and can already feel my blood pressure rising, but what can I say? Desperate times call for desperate measures.

Feeling like I’ve come to a decision, I respond with a groan. “Sure, can she start tomorrow?”

“Hold on, let me check with her,” he says, and I listen as he gives her a brief rundown of the situation.

I can’t hear her response, but apparently, she agrees because a minute later he says, “Yep, she sure can. We’ll be there within the hour. Oh, and you have one of those fancy new phones. Bring a charger with you when you meet us at the inn,” Huey says before hanging up on me.

One thing about this town is life is never boring.

By the timeI slide into the icy parking lot of the inn, I’m irritable and ready to get this meetup behind me. My phone shows sixteen missed calls from the last hour on top of theeleven that I managed to answer while I made the perilous ride over to Deer Valley.

Coming by to hire some fancy, out of towner was not on my to-do list for today, and there are about a million other places I could be right now. Instead of dwelling on it, I try to remind myself that the business my family left me won’t run itself as I dig out an old sock hat and cover my ears with it before bracing myself for the arctic wind waiting to pour into the cab of my truck.

I jump out and make my way as quickly as I can to the entrance across the guest parking lot, feeling the frigid cold settle into my bones as I walk.Jesus Christ, it's freezing.

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