Kiss Off Countdown

Megan linked her arm through mine as we walked the few blocks to city hall. I loved downtown Broken Bend during the holidays. Though Christmas was over, they wouldn't take down the decorations until after the annual New Year's Eve festival. Wreaths hung from the light posts that lined the main street through town. The store windows were decorated in fake snow and displayed notices for after Christmas sales.

Three days from now, the sidewalks would be filled with vendors for the street carnival. The library would be closed that day, so Megan and I had volunteered to work a shift during the festival. She had her fingers crossed she'd get assigned to something more exciting than the mini donut stand this year. I didn't care where they put me as long as I didn't have to make conversation with strangers. My peopling skills were ready for a break after the holidays.

“Ready?” Megan tugged me up the steps of city hall.
Before we reached the door, someone beat us to it. I recognized that canvas jacket. Reid Blanchett. Ugh.

“Allow me.” He held the door open. “Ladies first.”

Megan's lips spread into a dazzling smile. Reid grinned back. I rolled my eyes.

If I were the type of woman to have a nemesis, Reid Blanchett would be it. Sure, he looked like the perfect package at first glance, but that assessment didn't last long. He was one of Broken Bend's golden boys. Reid excelled at every sport he'd ever tried, captivated the hearts of the entire female population, and now owned a successful construction company that had just finished a major renovation of the library.

My library.

He'd been a complete ass to work with. Always had been—even back when he'd been the quarterback of the football team, and I'd reluctantly tutored him through all of his science classes. I made sure he passed since I needed the money, but I hadn't enjoyed it. Not one single bit.

“How were your holidays?” Reid directed the question to Megan.

“Pretty good. How about yours?” Megan slid her gaze to me and smiled. She knew how I felt about Reid. Though he was one of Mama Mae's foster sons and grew up in the country where she took in troubled boys that no one else could handle, it never seemed to affect his attitude. He had a sense of entitlement that ran wider than the Rio Grande.

“Good. Some of my brothers came home for the holidays. It was nice to get caught up with everyone,” Reid said.

“I bet.” Megan added a little extra swish to her hips as she headed down the hall.

I trailed behind the two of them. “My holidays were good, too. Thanks for asking,” I muttered to myself.

Reid had always ignored me. Sure, he paid attention when he needed my help with his chemistry homework, but only long enough to get what he needed. Now that we were grown, he'd acknowledged my existence during the library renovation just long enough to argue about the design. Otherwise, I was invisible.

“Where should we sit, Nora?” Megan stopped in the doorway of the auditorium and turned to me.

Reid's eyes widened like he'd completely forgotten I was there. “I see the Calhouns over there and need to talk to them about something. I'll see you around.”

“See ya.” Megan watched him walk away, her gaze glued to his glutes. “Damn, that man sure does justice to a pair of jeans, doesn't he?”

I grabbed her arm and pulled her into the last row. “That's the only thing he does justice to.”

She let out a soft laugh. “Once upon a time you didn't feel that way.”

“Shh. The meeting's about to start.” I let go of her arm and tried to get comfy in the hard-backed chair.

Megan was right. Once upon a time I felt differently about Reid Blanchett.

Once upon a time, I thought there might be more to him than a contagious smile and a body that looked like it had been sculpted by the gods.

I learned my lesson the hard way, and I'd steered clear of him and his friends since high school graduation—not an easy thing to do in a town the size of Broken Bend, Texas.

The mayor droned on about the upcoming festival. Megan and I had been volunteering since we were kids, so I tuned him out and made a mental list of all the things I needed to do during the last few days of the year. He thanked us all for volunteering and dismissed us to the hall where they'd posted the volunteer assignments. Knowing the drill, Megan and I had chosen seats in the back row on purpose so we could be the first ones to pore over the list.

“Come on, I need to make sure I'm not going to smell like grease for a week after this.” Megan jumped up and dashed out the door.

I followed her, stopping in front of the printed pages taped to the wall to scan the long list.

“Good. I got the cake walk booth.” Megan let out a sigh of relief.

The crowd pressed close while everyone tried to find out where they'd be working. Reid ended up next to me. He leaned over and ran his finger down the list of names.

“You've got to be kidding.” He straightened to his six-plus-feet and stared down at me. It might be the first time he'd actually looked at me in the past five years.

“Did you find your name yet?” Megan asked.

“No.” I shifted my gaze from Reid's frown to the small black print.

“It's right there,”—Reid's finger jabbed at a spot on the list—“you're underneath me. Looks like we're working the kissing booth together.”