Page 49 of Evergreen Christmas

“Wow!” Tucker shouted over the loud chatter of patrons gathered in Drake Stone’s bar. “I don’t believe this place has ever seen the likes of that Scintillatin’ Santa before.”

Nate, sitting on a bar stool beside Tucker, glanced at the open entrance of the bar, his eyes doing a quick double take at the curvy redheaded vision across the room.

There Jordyn stood, the long red waves of her hair tucked underneath a festive red hood trimmed with fuzzy white fur. Her green eyes sparkled beneath lush lashes and her soft mouth had been painted a tempting shade of red that matched the Santa dress she wore. Her long ivory legs, toned beneath satiny skin, were bare beneath the mini skirt of the dress, and black Santa boots rose almost to her knees, completing the ensemble.

The warm, shapely vision contrasted with the soft snow falling beyond her outside the bar, lending her the sexy but vulnerable air of a Christmastime Red Riding Hood.

A wolf whistle pierced the hazy air of the bar and echoed across the stage. At the bar, the group of men surrounding Nate and Tucker, all dressed in Sexy Santa outfits, fell silent for a moment, then clapped their hands in a raucous round of approval.

Nate scowled and raised his voice to speak to Tucker over the roar of the crowd at his back. “That’s just wrong. It’s crude and rude to leer at a woman like that. I mean, every one of these women could be someone’s daughter, sister, wife, niece, or cousin. In twenty years, Roxie might even be one of the women walking through those doors on a night like tonight. It’s disrespectful! Don’t you think this is a chauvinistic tradition?”

This was the main reason Nate had never participated in the Sexy Santa Eggnog Nod. Normally, he would sit quietly in the background, watching the festivities, and at the end of the drinking portion of the contest, he’d stay after all the contestants had left and help a small group of volunteers clean up Drake Stone’s bar. This year, however, after hearing that Jordyn planned to participate, he’d arrived early along with Tucker, who’d donned his annual Sexy Santa outfit and fully planned to participate in the night’s contest as he had every year—with gusto!

“Chauvinistic?” Tucker made a face as he paused his clapping. “Of course, it’s chauvinistic. But don’t for one moment think it’s one-sided. Some women can be just as rude and lewd as men if they choose to be. You heard the way those women howled at me when I walked through the door.” A mocking look of affront showed in his expression as he crossed his arms over his chest protectively. “Like I was a piece of meat or something.” He issued a long-suffering sigh. “But the thing is, we’re all consenting adults, partaking in a bit of harmless—albeit, raunchy—Christmas fun. And far be it from me to put a damper on the Christmas cheer. I’m doing my part by participating, and if I only bring a smile to one woman’s face tonight, I’ve done some good.” As Nate, incredulous, stared back at him, Tucker shrugged. “What? You think I dress like this every day?”

Nate glanced down, his mouth twitching at the sight of Tucker’s bare chest, covered only by a pair of thin suspenders in a candy cane pattern, which were hooked to a pair of red Santa pants with a wide belt buckle. The pants were tight—so tight they clung to every inch of his brother’s frame. The only parts of him that were modestly covered were his feet, which were encased in big black Santa boots, and the top of his head, which was covered by a Santa hat.

“I gotta say, that’s a hard question to answer,” Nate drawled. “There’ve been quite a few mornings in the past when you’ve shown up at the house in the wee hours of the morning, looking just about like you do now.”

Tucker, somehow, managed to look offended. “What do you mean? I’ve only shown up at the house half naked once in my life, and that was after Buffy Taylor”—he leaned closer and whispered—“kicked me out of her bed on account of the fact that I forgot her name.”

Nate shook his head and chuckled softly. “Serves you right, you mutt.”

“Heck no, it don’t! It only happened because I was slightly inebriated from pulling my weight in the Eggnog contest. That was two Christmases ago—why, this very night!” He shuddered. “You have any idea how cold it is outside the door at three in the morning? And there I was, half naked and exposed to the elements, having to walk all the way from Buffy’s place back to Frosted Firs Ranch in the snow. It was painful and humiliating.”

And well deserved.

Nate, however, did not repeat himself. He’d learned not to voice too many criticisms around Tucker. His brother might be a rambunctious scoundrel, but Tucker was a good man who had a good heart, and at least he was always upfront with the women he dated, letting them know he wasn’t interested in anything that might involve a long-term commitment.

He could learn a thing or two from his brother, Nate thought ruefully. He should have done the same with Jordyn and stuck to his answer of not being available, as he’d set out to do initially. But as he’d told her two nights ago, he’d reconsidered. Mostly due to what Kandy had said to him during the award ceremony for the Terrible Tinsel Triathlon.

Life can be scary and painful—but the unexpected gifts it gives us along the way, especially when we’re not looking for them, make it all worth it in the end.

He’d had difficulty getting those words out of his head.

He wasn’t naïve. He’d loved deeply before and had truly enjoyed his life with Macy—what little time they’d been given. He’d also dated briefly prior to getting married. He was well aware the emotions he felt for Jordyn and the connection they’d shared, almost from the moment of meeting, were rare and sometimes never found. That realization, coupled with his gnawing jealousy at the thought of Jordyn taking an interest in another man, had compelled him to take a chance and open his heart again.

Only, he still had reservations.

The applause died down as Jordyn entered the bar and Sandy Simmons walked in behind her, drawing new attention. But despite Sandy Simmons’s allure, several pairs of male eyes still followed Jordyn’s every move, and one pair in particular made Nate’s temper flare.

“You might want to consider playing it cool,” Tucker said above the holiday music blaring through the bar as he leaned closer to Nate. “You keep staring at Mason like you are, you’re gonna burn a hole through that man’s skull.”

Heeding Tucker’s advice, Nate tore his attention away from the other man and refocused his eyes on Jordyn. He couldn’t hold it against Mason for admiring her. In his opinion, she was always the most beautiful woman in the room, but tonight, she was downright sensational.

The thought, however, did little to tamp down the flare of his jealous temper. In less than five minutes, the Sexy Santa’s Eggnog Nod contest would commence, Carol Belle would kick off the choosing of partners and Mason, no doubt, would make a beeline straight for Jordyn. Nate was afraid his self-control might wear thin by that time.

He glanced at Tucker and narrowed his eyes. “Give me your suit. You’ve been demoted.”

Tucker reared back, his mouth falling open in shock. “You’re joking, right?”

“No. Take it off.”

Tucker crossed his arms over his bare chest and looked around sheepishly. “Right here? Right now? You could at least buy me a drink first.”

Nate rolled his eyes as Tucker doubled over and burst out laughing.

“Forget it,” Tucker said, catching his breath and wiping a tear from his eye. “You’re too much of a prude to pull something like this off, and we need a win.”

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