Naughty & Nice (Merry Elf-Mas 2)

Chapter 12

Angel

I remembered little of that night at the team celebration. Being a lightweight sucked donkey balls. Getting black out drunk after three drinks was ridiculous, but that was me. Damn it.

The one thing I knew for sure was that something big happened between Rolly, Damon, and I. I don’t know what it was but it caused a massive shift in our relationship. I didn’t think it was possible, but Damon and Rolly were even more affectionate than before. They couldn’t go more than a second without touching each other or me. Not that I hated it. It was me not understanding why that had my back up.

I’d asked about it, but all those assholes did was smile at me. That made it clear I’d done something really stupid. Questioning my coworkers had been a dead end, too. It was like everyone from that night had formed a pact to leave me in the dark.

For once, I wished Billy’s dumbass had been there because he’d love to tell me about how foolish I’d been. Fucker had let me down by doing his performance instead. Some frenemy he was.

It looked like I’d have to pull an Elsa and just let it go. Not like anything bad had come from it. I was just getting more pets and tender looks than before. There were worse things, I guessed.

At the moment, though, my patience was growing thin with my guys. If I got asked one more time if I was too cold or had my hat adjusted, I might just scratch their eyes out. We were at an outdoor holiday market downtown doing some Christmas shopping. Well, they were shopping. I was doing my best not to get crushed by the crowd or freeze to death.

I was regretting this outing by the minute. There was just too much going on. I couldn’t take in all the things being shoved in my face and it was fucking loud to the point I couldn’t think. The only positive was the delicious smells wafting past my nose. I wanted to stray off to find some of these scents, but the fear of losing my boyfriends kept me on their tails. If we got separated, I’d have no hope of finding them.

A hand wrapped around mine and I looked up to find Rolly looking at me with caring concern. “Stick close, Kitten. I wouldn’t want to lose you in this mob.”

My heart didn’t skip a beat. Nope. Fake news. I averted my gaze and was glad the cold had already made my face red. “I don’t remember the market being this crazy?”

“Blame Jack. He missed an out-of-town market last year and decided to upgrade Frostdales. That man has too much money and time, I swear.” Rolly gave a good-natured chuckle as he maneuvered us around a family with a stroller.

“Angel! Rolly! Come here. They have hot apple cider.” Damon had gotten ahead of us and was waving his arms like a madman.

Why was he so cringe? I tugged on Rolly’s hand, and he gave a quizzical look. “Pretend we don’t know him.”

Rolly barked out a laugh as he pulled me over to our exuberant boyfriend. We’d barely stopped in front of him when a paper cup was shoved into my hand. “Drink up, Grumpy Cat. I know you have to be freezing.”

I sniffed at the brownish liquid and hummed in pleasure as the scent of cinnamon and apples hit my nose. Damn, I loved that smell. While I despised the cold, I loved winter for all the pleasant smells that came with the season. Taking a sip, my tongue came alive with flavor and warmth coursed throughout my body. Oh, yeah. That hit the spot. Maybe I’d just stay right here and drink this sweet nectar while the others did their thing.

“Angel?”

Fuck. There went the idea to stay warm and not people. I turned to find Benny bounding toward me with a guy who could give The Hulk a run for his money. “Hey, Benny.”

My bouncy friend gave me a one-armed hug. “How are you? I was surprised to see you here, since you hate crowds and the cold.”

“I was dragged out against my will.”

“Lies.” Damon’s arm came around my shoulder as he joined Benny and me. “Don’t listen to him. He wanted to come on this date.”

An arm snaked around my waist as Rolly came up on my other side. “He was the first one up and ready to go today.”

Okay, these two didn’t need to gang up and tell my business like that. I had a reputation to keep up here. “I did not.” Yeah, that was super convincing. If I hadn’t been holding a hot drink, I’d have facepalmed myself.

Benny snickered and gestured to the mountain behind him. “Hutch—oh yeah, he’s my boyfriend, by the way—and I were delivering a tree from his family farm and stopped to have a look around.”

Hutch the behemoth extended his hand for a shake. “Nice to meet you three. I’ve heard a bit about you from Bun.”

This guy was giving off big Dom energy, so I kept my hands wrapped around my drink. Rolly could take this one.

“Nice to meet you, Hutch. Rolly Jolly and these are my boyfriends. Damon and Angel.” They shook hands, and in that brief exchange, sized each other up. This was probably one of the most civil Dom meetings I’d witnessed. There was typically a lot more dick measuring.

Things took their natural progression, and the conversation continued on around me. I was fine, not being included. Being sandwiched between my guys kept me warm, and I was content. I finished my drink, then realized I needed to pee. The sucky thing about being small was that everything about me was tiny. That included my bladder. Damn it.

“Gotta find a bathroom.” I pulled free of my guys and skittered off to find a restroom.

Thank goodness I spotted a coffee shop nearby. I dashed in and took care of my business. As I was leaving, the smell of fresh pastries caught my attention. Perusing the goodies in the display case, I spotted a huge caramel chocolate croissant. I needed that in my life, so I bought three. My boyfriends couldn’t say I never got them anything.

Just after leaving the shop, my phone chimed with a notification. Pulling it out, I saw it was an email from my lawyer. I hoped this was more information on the insurance settlement. I’d love to know when I was getting awarded my settlement so I could start looking at places for my shop. As I skimmed the contents, my lips dipped into a deep frown. There was some sort of legal delay with the court case and that was holding up my money.

I cursed and kicked at a clump of snow. This was ridiculous. The guy committed arson, and it was caught on camera. How much more fucking cut and dry could this be? Why did my payout have to be tied to this case? The urge to throw a grown ass man tantrum was strong.

Getting my life back was all I wanted. I needed the serenity of arranging flowers. Being surrounded by those flower scents and making something beautiful to brighten someone’s day. It was just the best. I know I acted like a snarky asshat, but I had a softer side, too.

I growled in anger and turned to kick another snow bank. My foot froze halfway through my swing as my eyes locked onto the building next to the coffee shop. A large for rent sign hung in the picture window, and I was drawn in by the bright red letters.

Peering through the glass, I could see the place was taken down to the bare bones. My mind saw the potential, though. I could imagine the cooler in the back to store flowers, the arrangement room, and the whole nine yards. Visions of sugarplums danced in my head for sure.

Excitement coursed through me, and I was tingling all the way down to my toes. This was the place. It was in a phenomenal location, and I could set it up my way. I snapped a picture of the sign as my brain raced with ideas. There was going to be so much to do.

Then reality came to rain on my parade. What good did it do to make all these plans when I had no money? Fucking hell. I wanted to strangle that bastard myself. Why was it that someone else’s stupidity had to become my problem?

I gave a forlorn sigh and put my mittened hand on the window. All the beautiful dreams I had were now going up in smoke. All the puns intended. There was no way this place would still be here when or if I ever got my settlement. I know I was a black cat when I was a kitten, but that didn’t mean my luck had to be this bad.

“Kitten?” I was startled when a hand landed on my shoulder. Damon and Rolly’s reflections in the glass greeted me, looking concerned.

I schooled my features and turned to face them. They didn’t need to be dragged into my sadness today. We were on a date and supposed to be having fun. “Hey. Was I gone too long? Where’d Benny go?”

They exchanged one of those looks they’d developed since that night, and it bugged the shit out of me. Just what the hell happened?

“He and Hutch had to get going. What were you looking at?” Damon sounded casual, but I could hear the underlying worry in his voice. I needed to show them I was okay, even if I wasn’t.

I gave a dismissive wave and moved to walk away. “It’s nothing. Just an empty store.”

“Hold up, Kitten.” Rolly grabbed my collar, bringing my departure to a halt. “This place looks nice.”

“Yeah, were you considering it for your flower shop?” I could almost see Damon’s tail wagging. He was so eager to please. Which is why I didn’t want to ruin our time together.

I shrugged as I pulled away from Rolly. “I guess. I’m not ready to look yet. Gotta wait for the money to come in.” Before either of them could respond, I shoved the pastries I’d almost forgotten in their mouths. “Eat these while we walk. They’re delicious.”

Grabbing their hands, I pulled them away from the shop and forced a smile on my face. I couldn’t help but give the shop one last look as I lamented over what could have been.