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Not until I saw Hunter and could look into his eyes.
My train of thought was interrupted by the jingle of bells as an overly enthusiastic elf with cheeks rosy from more than just the cold made his rounds from table to table. He carried bells in one hand and a basket of candy canes in the other while collecting donations for our foodbank.
The elf was a bit too tall for the costume, his green pants comically short while revealing striped purple and white socks that clashed terribly with the rest of his red and green outfit. Green face paint obscured his features, and the elf hat tugged down around his ears made me smile. I hadn’t the foggiest who they’d put up to playing the elf.
The elf caught my gaze and winked. "Cheer up, it's Christmas! Remember, Santa’s always got his eye on you.”
I chuckled. “I’ll try to remember that.”
He handed me a candy cane, and I stuffed a five-dollar bill in his pouch hooked to his belt.
I thought that meant he’d be on his way, but he took a seat across from me at my table.
“My dogs are tired.” He shook his head and stretched out his legs. “This duty is killer. I’d much rather be sitting in my squad car.”
I sat up straight. “Wait. Nate?”
He laughed and nodded, bringing his eyes to mine. “Shh. Don’t tell anyone. I don’t need to show up to a crime scene looking like I butchered an elf.”
Sure enough, it was our friendly sheriff.
“Honestly, the things I do for charity.”
I smiled and nodded. “At least you didn’t steal fudge away from the elderly in need.”
His chin raised up in laughter. “I heard about that.” His elf hat fell to the floor, and the tinge of green face paint had spread into his hair.
“Seriously?”
“Indeed, I did.”
“Well, Nate. You do a lot of good stuff for our community.”
He shrugged. “I try. I figure I was such a little jerk as a kid, I'd better make up for it somehow.”
“You weren’t a jerk, from what I heard, just… mischievous.”
A sly grin spread on his lips. “Maybe so. Hey, I heard about Hunter and Brielle. Don’t lose sleep over that guy.”
My heart clenched. What exactly had he heard?
Abby brought over a fluffy latte for the elf, and I got a whiff of more Schnapps. He flashed me a wicked grin. “It’s the only way I can get through four more hours of this, and she promised her husband would drive me home.”
I raised my mug and winked. “Hey, I hear you. He’ll be giving me a ride, too, if I have another one.” I shrugged. “Although, I’ll probably stay here all day so I can keep my mind busy.”
“That bad, huh?” He took a sip, his gaze on me over the cup. “I really thought you two had something going. That night of the fire, he looked like he wanted to jump into the building himself if you were inside.”
I scowled and nodded. “I know. I thought that, too.”
He shook his head and sighed. “It’s why I stay single, honestly. It’s too much work, and after a hard day of chasing criminals, I just don’t have the energy.”
I stared at Nate. “Uh, Nate. We don’t really seem to have many of those around Buttercup Lake.”
He scowled. “Just go with me on this one.”
I laughed and shook my head. “Love is a lot of work.”
“Actually, finding love is a lot of work. Keeping it? I don’t know. I thought that was the hard part,” I confessed.
