Shoved (Moonlit Lake Matchmaker #4)

Chapter 4

SERENA

Just as I was putting the finishing touches on a festive holiday centerpiece, while humming and dancing in place to a Mariah Carey Christmas song, my friend AJ popped her head into the store. “Don’t forget. Our committee is meeting at the cafe in ten minutes. You’ll be there, won’t you?”

The town had a festival every couple months, but in December, the celebrations were spread out the entire month. I agreed to help, since I loved everything Christmas, and also hoped it would help holiday sales in my shop.

“Yeah. I’m planning on it. My mom is supposed to be here to watch the store so I can go, but as usual, she’s late. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

She gave me a thumbs up. “I’ll save you a seat.”

A few minutes later, my mom waltzed in without a care in the world. Her long hair, once red like mine, had faded to a lovely rosy blond. She wore wildly patterned yoga pants and an oversized sweater of every color. Others might criticize her and her eccentric ways, but she was her own person. That’s for sure. I think she actually enjoyed shocking people and seeing how they would react.

“Hey, Mom. I’m so glad you’re here. The meeting’s already starting, so I’ve got to run. I made some new arrangements. If you want to pick one out as a thank you for helping me today.”

“Thanks, sweetie, but that’s not necessary. I’m happy to help, and I had some time to kill before my next yoga class anyway. I thought of trying a new batch of essential oil cookies to bring to the studio, but after what happened last time with the detox cookies…” Her face scrunched up. “My entire class rushed to the bathroom, but there weren’t enough stalls. We didn’t even get to finish class.” Somehow, her face scrunched even more before brightening into a smile. “Well, I need to be more careful with what I bring.”

“That’s probably wise. Well, I appreciate your help anyway. I gotta go. See you in about an hour.” I grabbed my purse and hurried out the door, not wanting the group to be waiting on me. I hated being late, and especially when it might inconvenience someone else.

In my rush through the door of the cafe, I bumped into someone carrying a coffee cup on their way out.

He was tall with short, dark hair and dark, stormy eyes. The most gorgeous man I’d ever seen up close. In real life, anyway. I was entranced, at least until he opened his mouth.

“Ach. Watch where you’re going, will ya?” He wiped the spilled coffee off his black leather jacket.

“I’m so sorry. Did you get burned? Can I buy you a new cup of coffee?”

He grunted and fled the cafe, and a memory clicked into place. I knew him. I’d seen him at AJ’s restaurant a couple of months ago. Sadie had been playing with AJ’s puppy in the dining room before it opened. He’d come in, all high and mighty, made some rude comment about it being a restaurant and not a petting zoo. I’d gotten the distinct impression he didn’t like kids or animals. Apparently, though, he didn’t discriminate. He hated everyone equally. Tillie had said his name was Storm—fitting.

“Fine. Be that way then. Mr. Stormcloud,” I mumbled to myself, before finding my group. “Hi, ladies. Sorry, I’m late. What did I miss?”

Our committee had gathered in a corner booth. AJ had her hair pulled back in a bun and looked like she was ready to go right to work at her restaurant after this. Larisa was always in hostess mode, being the owner of a Bed and Breakfast, and poured everyone a cup of coffee, making sure we each had what we needed. Next to her was real estate agent, Lanie, with her blonde shoulder-length bob and designer sweater, stirring cream and sugar into her coffee. Samantha, the owner of the bookstore, pushed up her glasses and smiled at me over the pastry menu. And then there was Tillie. She hopped up and gave me a hug, before returning to her seat.

Gina sat with her planner, notebook, and pen ready. As a wedding planner her organizational skills blew me away, which was why we unanimously voted for her to be our leader. She kept us on track, which was often like herding cats. Better her than me. “We were just discussing the idea of having some kind of bachelor auction, or something, to raise money for the new community center.”

AJ slid over and patted the seat next to her.

I shrugged out of my coat, hung it on the hook at the end of the booth, and slid in on the bench next to AJ. “A bachelor auction? As part of the holiday festival?”

Tillie’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “I think that’s a splendid idea.” I already knew what was on her mind, and didn’t like it one bit.

Larissa poured me a cup of coffee and slid it over to me. “Sure, a lot of people are lonely around the holidays. And wouldn’t it be nice to have a handsome bachelor to bring to a holiday party? We could call it a Bachelor Holidate Auction.” She raised her hands like she was creating a marquis for the name. “Could be a big moneymaker for the town.”

I shrugged and nodded as I stirred cream and sugar into my cup. They had a good point. I tried to keep myself wrapped up in holiday cheer so I didn’t have to think about how alone I was. But I also had Sadie to celebrate with, and holidays were made for kids. All that meant I certainly wouldn’t be the one signing up for a date with a bachelor.

The town had been trying to get funding for a community center for several years and was close now. The financial goals were finally within reach, but we’d have to do really well with this month’s festivals to hit it.

“Do we have enough eligible bachelors in town to make it worthwhile? You all seemed to have snagged the best ones.”

AJ got a dreamy look on her face and bumped shoulders with Lanie. “Yeah. We really did, didn’t we, Lanie?”

“I don’t know. Depends on the day.” Lanie winked. “Some days, I’d auction Caleb off for a cheap cup of coffee.”

We all laughed, knowing she was completely smitten with her handsome husband.

Gina jotted something on her notebook and then pointed her pen in the air as if poking an invisible idea bubble in front of her. “What about Storm? That hottie will be sure to fetch a high price in an auction.”

I shook my head, unable to hold back my disagreement. “That grump? He may be nice to look at, but as soon as he opens his mouth, it all goes out the window. One minute with him could ruin anyone’s holiday. Who wants a date with a Grinch?”

“If the Grinch looked like that? Pretty much anyone,” Gina said, adding his name to her list. “I don’t know if he dates much, but he always brings the most beautiful women to all the events I’ve seen him at. They could be straight off the cover of any fashion magazine. Never the same one twice, either.”

AJ waved off my concerns. “Storm may have a gruff exterior, but I’m telling you, Serena, he’s all bark and no bite. Now that I’m engaged to his brother, I can vouch for him, because I’ve seen that he’s actually a decent guy. And he just gave up a super lucrative law partnership to move home and be near his family.”

“That’s admirable. But it doesn’t erase his perpetual rudeness and ugly personality.” I sipped my coffee. “More importantly, do you really think he’d agree to do something like this?”

AJ sank back into the booth with a sigh. “You’re probably right about that. We need a long list of potentials, in case we can’t convince them all to participate.”

The group compiled a list of a dozen possible bachelors, including Evan, the deputy sheriff. Several firefighters. AJ’s sous chef, Eric. And Toby, the mechanic.

“When are you thinking we should we do this?” I asked, still not sure this was a worthwhile endeavor. “Christmas is coming fast. We’re running out of time.”

Gina looked at her planner, tapping her pen as she thought. “It’s going to take a little time to organize and get our bachelors on board. So I’d vote for mid December or later.”

The group all agreed that later would be better, and scheduled it the week before Christmas.

“We need someone to head the entire project, though,” AJ said.

A chorus of “not mes” rang in the air until only Gina was left silent. We turned to look at her.

She rolled her eyes. “Fine. But I’ll need everyone to help, especially with getting the bachelors lined up. If we each take two, it won’t be so bad. I’ll make a spreadsheet we can all access to add the bachelors we’ve contacted and update their status. We don’t want to bombard them with requests, but also don’t want to drop the ball on any potentials.”

We all reluctantly agreed to contact a couple of bachelors. Guess we couldn’t expect Gina to do all the dirty work. We also agreed on some other activities throughout the month to keep people coming to town and supporting the businesses…like the tree lighting, a toy drive, breakfast with Santa, sleigh rides, holiday goat yoga, and Christmas karaoke.

We each had our assignments and were done in a little over an hour. Pretty efficient for a planning committee. As I crossed the street back to my flower shop, there was Mr. Dark-Storm-Cloud barreling down the street with that angry scowl I had encountered too many times already. Thankfully, I wasn’t on the receiving end of it this time.

AJ said he was a good guy, but if that was true, I had to wonder why he seemed to be in such a bad mood all the time. His brother Jasper was as happy-go-lucky as they come.

I shook my head, trying to clear him from my thoughts. The grump and his negativity were not my problem. I wished Gina, or whoever talked to him, the best of luck in convincing him to help with the auction. They’d need it.

And to the unfortunate person who would be going on a date with him…my sympathies.

No matter how lonely the holidays got, I wasn’t interested in dating. Not one bit. And not even for a fundraising event like this. I learned long ago that love didn’t last, and I couldn’t risk Sadie getting hurt in the process. She was my number one priority, and always would be.

Nope. I’d take goats over love or a grumpy date any day.