Page 24 of Falling for the Grinchy Bad Boy

8

COOPER

Iwas reorganizing gear I had already reorganized twice this week when Matt sauntered in eating an apple. He leaned a hip against the rack with a grin plastered on his face like he knew something I didn’t.

“Stop fiddling with your hose, Frost. Chief’s calling a meeting.”

I rolled my eyes. “How many times are you going to use that same lame, tired joke?”

He chuckled. “It’s just never not funny.”

“And that’s where you’re wrong. It’s stupid. Juvenile. You need new material.”

He took another bite of his apple. “Good to see the candy cane is still jabbed up your ass.”

“Want to go up there and get it out?”

“Maybe later.”

“What’s the meeting about? We’re not doing Secret Santa, are we?” I shook my head. “The only thing I’m giving out this year is coal.”

“How the hell should I know?” Matt shrugged. “Maybe you’ll finally get that fruitcake you’ve always wanted.”

I groaned. “If someone gives me fruitcake, I’m throwing it back at their windshield.”

He chuckled, pushing off the rack. “Come on, Grinch. Don’t make Chief hunt you down.”

We filed into the meeting room where the rest of the shift was already settling into the metal chairs. The scent of coffee lingered, along with the faint aroma of last night’s chili cook-off. Chief Bryden stood at the front, arms folded, looking like he’d rather be anywhere else, but he still had the patience of a saint compared to the rest of us.

“Alright, listen up,” Chief began. “As you all know, the Yuletide Fest is picking up steam.”

I suppressed a groan. If I had a dollar for every time someone said Yuletide Fest this week, I could retire early.

“The town council wants us present at some of the events, just in case of emergencies. Mostly precautionary. And they’ll also be assigning a safety officer to work directly with the fest coordinator to make sure we don’t have any repeats of the cocoa fiasco. The job is to prevent accidents. You guys know what to look for.”

The room chuckled. I clenched my jaw. Of course that stupid cocoa fire alarm would haunt me.

“Any volunteers?” Chief asked.

The silence was immediate and deafening. A few guys looked at the floor. Someone coughed. Nobody moved.

I tried to disappear. I wouldn’t look directly at him.

Chief scanned the room, lips twitching like he already knew how this would go. “Alright then. Frost, you’re up.”

The room exploded with laughter.

My head shot up. “You’ve got to be kidding me, Chief.”

“Perfect fit!” one guy called out.

“Mr. Merry himself!” another added.

Matt clapped me on the shoulder like this was the best day of his life. “Congrats, partner. Santa’s got nothing on you.”

I shot him a glare sharp enough to peel paint.

Inside, my stomach turned over. This was a nightmare. Being forced right into the belly of the holiday beast. Lights, carols, combustible cocoa. All of it.