Chapter 2

2

He didn’t say a word when Lila followed him and his brother, Griffin—also the chief of police—out of the office. They dashed out of the building and down the sidewalk a short distance before crossing the road toward the cafe.

The traffic had stopped. A big fire truck in the middle of the road would do that. People were milling around outside, but the police department was handling crowd control. Griffin and his team were nothing but efficient.

Lila stood by him not saying a word, though her eyes cased the area like a hard-nosed detective arriving on the scene. Griffin stood on the other side, then shot off like a rocket when he saw Eve standing in front of Tidings and Joy Apparel, Shannon’s clothing store, next to Juliet.

“Come on. You can meet my sister.” He and Lila made their way in the same direction.

Despite the commotion, he made quick introductions with everyone, then it turned silent. It felt like ages as the fire crew tackled the flaming beast. In reality, no more than twenty minutes had gone by. The entire time, everyone remained quiet.

Fire Chief Noah Brach approached them in his turnout gear. Like his brother, being in charge didn’t mean he didn’t get his hands dirty like his crew.

“The kitchen is torched. We managed to save the front, but…” He looked chagrined. “There’s a bit of water damage. Sorry about that.”

Juliet shook her head. “You have nothing to be sorry about. Thank you for your quick response.”

“What happened?” Griffin asked, demanding the question he’d been thinking since Griffin stormed into his office.

Juliet shrugged. “I don’t know. I was in the front with Eve and Tabitha. Breakfast rush, you know. Chip was making his bread. So delicious.” Juliet’s smile, though weak, brought out more smiles around her, which had been her goal, he knew. “He popped out to say he was using the bathroom. I didn’t think anything of it. Nothing was in the oven yet. A minute later, smoke started billowing out from under the door. I rushed over there—”

“Seriously, Jules!”

Her lips twisted with malice as if she couldn’t believe he’d interrupt her. But what the hell was his sister thinking? When smoke appeared, a person should run and call the fire department, not go and check it out.

“As I was saying, I rushed over there and peeked inside. The flames were everywhere.” She gave him a dead-eye stare. “So I called the fire department.”

He pressed his lips into a tight line to keep a retort in. The last thing he wanted to do was get into an argument with his sister, but her recklessness bothered him.

“Any issues with the equipment? The oven? The fridge? Anything electrical?” Chief Brach asked.

“No. Everything is up to code. I have no idea what could’ve gone wrong.”

Griffin sighed. “And no one was in the kitchen to see what happened. Was the back door locked?” This time Griffin looked at her with a scolding expression as he had done. “Or was it propped open like you do sometimes? Something I’ve told you not to do.”

Juliet crossed her arms. “I prop it open when there’s a delivery. It’s easier that way. And no, it wasn’t at that time because I had no deliveries!”

Chief Brach chuckled under his breath, not fazed by their sibling squabbling. They were known for it, but also known to be very close. They might argue and fight, but they never held grudges against each other.

With the past violent history Juliet had to endure from her ex-husband, Bryce worried about his sister. Especially when she kept the abuse from them for as long as she had. So, if she had any other issues going on, she might not tell them right away.

“We’ll investigate and we’ll let you know what we find. For right now, nobody goes inside there.”

Juliet nodded, her eyes welling up with tears. “How long do you think it’ll be before we can start cleaning up?”

“I’ll be as quick as I can. But thorough.” Chief Brach walked away.

Bryce decoded that as, it would be a few days. Juliet wasn’t one to sit around and wait. She’d always been a go-getter. This would kill her.

“There’s nothing we can do right now. Why don’t I drive you home, Juliet?” Eve suggested, putting a comforting arm around her.

Juliet looked ready to argue, but nodded. Eve kissed Griffin, then the two ladies went on their way.

“What do you think?” he asked Griffin, knowing his brother had an inkling. He always did about things. That’s what made him such a good cop.

Griffin looked at Lila, who had remained quiet the entire time. She hadn’t even offered different expressions at all the commotion to suggest what she was thinking. But her eyes had been hard as stone. She might not have been giving away her suspicions on the matter, but she was watching everything like a hawk. Griffin met his gaze. “I think we should reconvene in your office and let Ms. Hansley finish her hot chocolate.”

“Lila is fine.”

Griffin offered a short smile at her suggestion, then waved a hand for her to lead the way. It didn’t take long to make it back to his office. Maybe it was his closed-off expression or Griffin’s determined one, but no one stopped them to ask any questions. They knew when they didn’t want to be disturbed. Even Becca didn’t inquire about what happened. Though he knew Becca had been right in the fold, getting all the information she needed. Because that’s what she did. She helped him stay ahead of the game as mayor.

Lila sat down first and picked up her mug, taking a sip. It had to be chilled by now, but she said nothing, taking another sip.

He took a seat as well, while Griffin took a spot by the wall, leaning against it with his arms crossed.

“I’m going to be candid.” Griffin looked at Lila. “Is it okay if I’m candid here, Lila?”

“Of course.”

His brother made eye contact with him, silent for a long moment. He heard the unasked question. Can we trust her? Should we trust her? His leveled stare answered it. Yes. Because they had no choice. She had to save the town from any pandemonium.

“How bad will it be if the fire was deliberate?”

Her brows puckered, contemplating Griffin’s question. “Well, it’s certainly not going to help the problem already present. A pervert, and now an arsonist. Do you even feel safe knowing someone intentionally could’ve done that?”

A sharp nod by Griffin was all that was needed. He agreed. To think someone would have deliberately set the cafe on fire frightened him. Why? Why the cafe? Why now? So many why’s.

“How do we handle this?” Griffin asked, as if she had all the magical answers. Bryce sure in the hell hoped she did.

She glanced from him to his brother, then back to him. “We don’t until we know for sure what happened. Speculating does no good for anyone.”

“I should make a statement.” Because that’s what he did. He calmed the town down. That was easy enough. He could do that in his sleep. What he struggled with was bringing in new town members and tourists.

“And say what?” she asked with a sharpness in her tone. For the very first time. “You know nothing. It’s easy to see there was a fire. For now, we wait on the fire chief to do his job and report back to us.”

“I always make a statement.” Because that was his job!

A crooked smile emerged along with a devilish glint in her eyes. “Do you always do as you should?”

Was this a trick question? It felt like one.

“Yes.”

She giggled with a tiny snort escaping. She looked mortified for a hot second, then masked it as if it never happened.

“It’s what makes him an annoyingly good mayor. Always making statements.”

Bryce crossed his arms, frowning. “I like to keep the citizens of this town informed. An informed citizen is not a frightened one.”

Lila clapped her hands, then picked up her folder she had left on his desk before they rushed to the fire. She opened it and laid the top sheet over on his side.

“Let’s make a statement. Super brief. Like yes, there was a fire, it’s being handled. After that, we move on to something fun and exciting.”

Bryce picked up the piece of paper and read the contents, then he set it down.

“You want to have a carnival in the dead of winter?”

She crossed her arms, as if mimicking him from moments before. “You have a snowman building contest in the dead of summer. Should we argue which one is more odd?”

That sharp tone again. With a slash of her tongue.

He liked her forthrightness. Not too mean in her words, but firm to get her point across. He was being ridiculous questioning her ideas. She was the PR expert. Not him.

“Well, it’s good we have the chief of police with us. We can talk about logistics and crowd control and such.”

Griffin mock laughed. “If there’s a crowd.”

“Oh, there will be a crowd. But you need the right incentive to reel them in.”

Bryce loved her optimism. The worry he’d had since deciding they needed to do something drastic to save their town started to dissipate. She would save them all.

“What kind of incentive?”

She smiled wide as she rubbed her hands in glee. “A big one.”

“You didn’t have to follow me here.” Though Lila appreciated his kindness. The roads were bad, and he didn’t want to see her get hurt. He had even offered to drive her to where she’d be staying for the foreseeable future. But she didn’t want to be without a car, so she declined.

“I didn’t mind. Come on. I’ll show you around.”

Lila followed Bryce up the surprisingly shoveled short pathway. The snow had returned and wasn’t being kind at all. At least four inches had to have accumulated since she sat strategizing with the mayor and the chief of police. Of course, if this was the service the town provided, it would be a good thing to add when advertising rental properties.

Bryce unlocked the cottage door and deactivated the security system, then stood back to let her enter. She wiped her shoes on the festive rug decorated with candy canes and Christmas ornaments, then slid them off and dropped her bags to the floor. Bryce followed suit, wiping his feet and removing his shoes.

“It’s small, but secure. New locks on all doors. A security system that will have you sleeping peacefully, and we stocked the pantry and fridge before your arrival.”

Thoughtful. Another thing she appreciated about him. She hadn’t thought of food, and she had no desire to leave the house again tonight.

“You didn’t have to, but thank you.”

He smiled. Not the smarmy politician smile she had received when she first met him, but a genuine, kindhearted smile. She preferred this one over the other one. It brightened his features and made him more handsome. Not that the man wasn’t already handsome.

Dark brown hair that wasn’t too long or too short. He had it styled to perfection with products she assumed to hold it in place, though it didn’t look greasy or anything. His eyes were also brown with a friendliness in the depths she’d come to see more and more as the day drew on.

Her first impression had been a man with a chip on his shoulder, especially name-dropping his sister-in-law. That opinion had evaporated as the day wore along. And she always loved a man with a bit of facial hair. He had a goatee with a little fuzz around his jawline. Enough to make a woman want to swoon.

Which she didn’t, of course. Because he was a married man. She’d look and appreciate the fine specimen, but she would never act on any attraction. Not to mention, she needed her job. Fooling around was a sure way to get fired.

Bryce showed her how to operate the security system and gave her a tour of the cottage. He hadn’t fibbed when he said it was small. She’d describe it more like tiny. Super tiny. The living room connected with the kitchen. A short hallway brought her to the bathroom and the lone bedroom. That was it. No basement or any other rooms to be found. It had a small backyard that looked out into the woods. It was pretty watching the snow fall. She’d do that later—watch it—when she was alone.

“My brother, Griffin, lives right next door. He owns the cottage. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to knock on his door.” Bryce pointed toward the wall where, if it didn’t exist, she’d see the house he was referring to. “And please, call me if you need anything. Anything at all.”

She worked at a fancy restaurant for a short period. About three months. The manager had been a nice-looking man in his thirties. Dressed professionally. Clean-cut appearance all around. Not a strand of hair out of place, smooth cheeks. He was the epitome of a gentleman. Until he wasn’t.

She’d heard that line before. Call me for anything. And she had when she had trouble setting the alarm one night when she closed. Turned out nothing had been wrong with the alarm. The manager had created the problem to get her to call him and then he tried to get in her pants. The year of karate she’d taken had helped her in that situation. She never worked at a restaurant again or at a job that required her to close up by herself.

“Did I say something wrong?” Bryce’s brows pleated as he stared at her with a bit of panic in his eyes.

She liked to think she had a good sense of reading people. Most of the time, anyway. She didn’t sense a bad vibe from Bryce, but she also couldn’t let her guard down. Not with anyone. Not in this day and age.

A weak smile appeared as she tried to wipe out any lingering memories of times best forgotten. “No, of course not. It’s been a long day, and my thoughts are wandering right now. Thank you for all your kindness today. I appreciate it all.”

That sweet smile reappeared. “Okay, good. Would you like to join us for supper tonight?” He pointed toward his brother’s house again. “We’d love to have you.”

“Thank you, but no. Another time.”

He nodded and bid his good night.

She locked the door and set the alarm after he left. She put her bags in the bedroom, removing her PJs. First a shower, then scrounge for food.

By the time she had a full belly and clean skin, she felt more like herself. Traveling always wiped her out, and putting on a fake persona drained her. She’d flown in the day before, stayed the night in Minneapolis, and then driven to Sleighville early this morning. It’d been a very long two days of travel and work. She wanted to crash.

She grabbed her phone, dialing her sister, Zinnia.

“What’s up, Lil? Did you make it okay?”

“I did. It’s snowing right now. Already four inches.”

“Eww.”

Yeah, she had to agree. None of them were used to snow. Growing up on the west coast near the water made snow a very foreign thing to them. That’s why she enjoyed staring outside watching it fall down so gracefully. It was another reason she appreciated Bryce offering to drive her home, since she wasn’t used to driving in the nasty weather. But if she was going to be here for a while, she had to figure it out herself, which was also why she declined his offer.

“So, what’s the town like?”

“Like Christmas puked everywhere.”

They giggled together. Lila couldn’t resist snorting as well.

Lila told her everything that happened, including the fire and her idea about the carnival.

“Well, what’s the big draw to get people to come?”

She sighed at the simple question. “I didn’t get that far in my bright idea. Though I think I have the mayor’s approval. I just have to think of someone great.” She rolled her eyes as she stood up from the dining room chair. “It’s not like I know any celebrities.”

“Call Aster. He could hook you up.”

Yeah, her brother no doubt could. His band toured all around California, and while they weren’t huge where the whole country knew their name, they had connections in the music industry.

“Maybe. I won’t keep you. I called to check in. That’s all.”

“I love you, sis. Don’t let this job scare you. You got this. Show that asshole what you’re made of.”

She promised she would and hung up. Though she didn’t feel the strength in her promise as she said it.

Her last PR job working with a dog food company had blown up in her face. She thought she’d been doing all the right things, helping create a wonderful image when all she’d been doing was covering up the fact the company sold shit food. When more dogs started getting sick after using the food from that despicable company, instead of the fault landing on them, for some reason it landed on her. She’d been the villain for hyping up a company that essentially poisoned animals. How it’d been her fault, she still couldn’t figure it out, but someone had to be the fall person, and they’d chosen her.

When the mayor of a small Christmas town called requesting their services, her boss threw her the case knowing she’d fail again and he could fire her ass for being incompetent. Because he figured this was a losing battle, turning this town around to something positive again. When it couldn’t be done, it’d be so easy to lay the blame on her once again.

Well, she wasn’t going to let that happen.

She’d make this the holliest, jolliest town there ever was.

Or die trying.