Page 100 of Merry Mayhem
Either way, I’m going to do it.
I look away from the multitudes of candy and bowls of thick frosting to find her staring at me.
“Do you hate the idea of me kissing you in public? Because we’re going to need to discuss that. Once it’s okay to do, I’m going to want to. A lot.”
She shakes her head. “That’s not what I was thinking about.”
Her cheeks are a little pink. I grin and lean in, even though I’m supposed to behave. “What were you thinking about?”
“All the places I’d like you to kiss me. And my mouth is like number three on the list at the moment if I’m honest.”
Now I’m the one who catches his breath and freezes.
“This is why I call you Danger,” I say in a low growl.
She opens her mouth—I’m sure to remind me of where we are—when the jingle bells start ringing, indicating the start of the next challenge.
I straighten, but say, “Raincheck.”
She is clearly fighting a smile.
Nora takes the microphone. “Hi, everyone!”
The crowd cheers.
“It’s our last event!” she says.
The crowd boos.
Nora laughs. “I know, I know. But Santa comes tonight, so we need to get cleaned up and ready for him!”
More cheering.
“And don’t forget, we have lots of fun planned for Valentine’s Day!”
More cheering.
I look down at Thea. “Valentine’s Day?”
“Oh, of course, there’s all kinds of stuff going on for Valentine’s Day,” she says.
I’m going to need to hear more about this.
“But, before we get to the Gingerbread Dash,” Nora goes on. “There is one thing I want to do. The Merry Mayhem board of directors has the name of this year’s Peppermint Princess!”
The entire crowd is quiet. Everyone turns to look at the person next to them. Then there’s soft murmuring.
“Since when do we have a Peppermint Princess?” someone yells.
Nora nods. “Since right now.”
“We just added it?” someone else asks.
Nora shrugs. “Yep! It’s not like we have arulethat says we can’t.”
People start nodding, and there’s a smattering of laughter that ripples through the crowd.
“Why do I get the feeling that Nora really likes this no rules thing?” I ask Thea.
