Meet Me Under the Mistletoe (Holiday Romance Collection #3)

1. Chapter One

Chapter One

Noelle

“ Y es, I will remember the—”

I sigh, closing my eyes and pinching the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger as my mother continues talking excitedly on the other end of the phone. I have her on speaker so Willow, my little sister, can hear and she rolls her lips in to keep from laughing out loud.

Trying again, I say loudly, “Mom, I know, I will remember to bring it—”

“— there’s just so much to do . We haven’t hosted our Christmas Eve party since your dad passed, and with Beau’s surprise, I just want it to be perfect —” my mom continues enthusiastically. I sigh again. “Don’t forget, Noelle—”

“Mom! I promise, I will not forget the mistletoe. I know that’s a huge part of Beau’s plan and it would—"

“ Oh my goodness , I’m just so excited! I’ve hardly slept a wink since he took me out to dinner to tell me— And Willow—”

Willow waves her hands frantically out in front of her, and I grin slyly as I say excitedly, “Oh yeah, she’s right here! Why don’t you talk to her!”

Willow glares at me, fire in her hazel eyes as she has no choice but to take the phone from my hand as I shove it at her. I grin widely as Willow says cheerily, “Hey, Mom! Yeah, we are so excited, too—”

Taking the moment of blessed peace, I take a gulp of my coffee—cringing when I realize it has long since gone cold. Tossing the disposable cup and its cold remnants into the garbage, I snag my jacket off the hook by the door and shove my arms through the sleeves.

“Don’t you dare leave me—” Willow whisper hisses, holding the phone away from her face, and I grin again as I skip toward the front door of Three Blossom Haven , the floral shop myself and my two sisters manage together. Willow taps the screen of my cellphone and mutes the call, hissing to my retreating back, “You better bring me a giant coffee, you traitor! And I’m posting something vile on your Insta!”

Mentally running through all the photos in my phone’s library, I shrug and turn at the door, singing, “Worth it!”

Laughing as I exit the flower shop, I make the quick walk down the snow-covered sidewalk toward Beau’s , our favorite coffee shop next door. Snow is falling like crazy, blanketing everything in fluffy white flakes. Swinging open the glass door, I shake the snow out of my hair as I cross the polished concrete floor toward the counter and the man that stands behind it.

Beau Collins, his dark hair and beard threaded through with silver, looks up as I approach, and he smiles. A flannel shirt is left unbuttoned over a plain black t-shirt, and the sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, revealing tattooed forearms. My sister’s kryptonite.

“You’re making my life very difficult, Beau Collins,” I grumble, but can’t contain the grin, shaking my head as I stop at the counter. His low chuckle makes my smile broaden. “You bastard, you knew exactly what you were doing when you got my mother involved with your plans!”

Bracing his hands on the counter, he leans on them and nods, not an ounce of remorse on his face as he grins. “I love your mother, and I knew that this would make her happy. She deserves that as much as any of you girls.”

I scrunch up my face and narrow my eyes on the man that’s been making my life hell for the last week. “You better make this the best night of Val’s life, because I haven’t slept in a week getting ready for this damn party. I left Willow on the phone with my mom and she’s threatening to post trash to my social media in retribution.”

Beau laughs out loud, straightening and turning to pluck two large disposable coffee cups from a stack on his left. Pouring two coffees—the man doesn’t even have to ask at this point, the magical mind reader that he is—tops them with to-go lids, and then slides them across the counter towards me. He looks at me then, a flash of nervousness in his dark brown eyes. “She’s going to say yes, right?”

I reach out and cover one of his hands with mine and squeeze lightly. Whispering earnestly, I tell him, “Beau, she would say yes to you a million times.”

He nods and takes a deep breath in before exhaling heavily. “Good.”

A roar of laughter echoes from the back stock room and my head whips toward the sound. A moment later, a blonde head appears and a wide grin splits his face, phone in his hand as he stares down at it. Theo Collins strides toward me and Beau, the grin growing wider as he gets closer. I narrow my eyes on him.

Theo Collins is both my best friend and the very bane of my existence at the same time. We have a love/hate relationship that has spanned our entire lives, starting way back in kindergarten.

Leaning his hip against the counter, he grins over at me and I narrow my eyes suspiciously again. “What, Theo?”

His lips tip down in a smirk, his blue eyes twinkling mischievously. “Noe, I had no idea you were so desperate for a hook-up.”

“What are you talking about?” I snap, pinning him with a stare. His grin just gets wider, and then he turns the phone to show me the screen. My eyes scan the post quickly, mouth dropping open. “ That little twat —”

Theo laughs harder, nearly wheezing, and he reaches up to swipe at his eyes. “That is some sexy lingerie—”

The photo in the post is of me, modeling an absolutely massive pair of women’s red satin underwear and a bra that could hold giant beach balls. The set had been a gag gift for my twenty-ninth birthday earlier this year and the underwear could fit nine grown adults in them. I’m fully clothed beneath the gag gift, but still—

“Ohmygod, I’m going to murder her—”

Beau chuckles, shaking his head. “She did warn you.”

Theo howls with laughter and reads out loud, “ Female, 29, looking for a Christmas date—or just come meet me under the mistletoe. This is the sexiness you can expect —”

I fairly growl in rage and swipe up the two coffees, turning on my heel. I nearly make it to the door before Theo’s voice rings out, “Wait, Noe! Where do I apply?” Staring at the photo harder, he cocks his head to the side in confusion and asks, “Wait, this was your birthday… Why don’t I remember this? I was there that night, where the fuck was I when this happened? How did I miss this?!”

Glaring at him over my shoulder, I flip him off, which only makes him laugh harder. Slamming out the door, I stalk down the street to the flower shop. Willow is standing with her arms crossed, one blonde eyebrow raised as I enter.

“You’re the absolute worst!” I seethe, though my lips twitch with the need to laugh as I cross the room. Slamming the coffee down on the metal work table, I hiss, “You made your point, I won’t leave you alone on the phone with Mom again! Now take it down!”

Willow grins widely, opening the app on my phone and swiping through, deleting the post. Handing it back to me, she grins and sing-songs my words back to me, “Totally worth it.”