Mistress Christmas: Wild West Boys by Lorelei James Page A

Asked? ”
    “Okay, demanded , that you fill in as Mistress Christmas. This whole thing could’ve been avoided—”
    “But that’s the thing. I don’t regret being with him. Nick is the greatest guy I’ve ever met. Sexy. Thoughtful. Sweet. Funny. Did I mention sexy? I just wish I would’ve been smart enough to come clean with him as me—the real me—because the other thing I’m afraid of is he’ll be disappointed I’m not some wild stripper.” A deranged thought flitted though Holly’s mind and she laughed. “This whole debacle is like some bad movie of the week, Accountant Gone Wild .”
    “Ooh, I’ve got a better title,” Ivy said, playing along. “ Arresting Behavior ”.
    “Omigod, Ivy! That’s not even…” But Holly erupted into giggles before she could finish the rest of the sentence.
    Steaming plates of pork fried rice and eggrolls arrived and they both dug in.
    Eventually Ivy said, “He’ll track you through Sugar Plums.”
    “I know.”
    “Probably tonight.”
    “I know that too.”
    “Do you know what you’re going to say to him?”
    Holly twirled her chopsticks through a puddle of hot mustard. “No clue.”
    The meal was finished in silence. After the plates were cleared Ivy tried to hand Holly a fortune cookie.
    “No thanks.”
    “Come on. Even if you don’t eat the cardboard shell, you have to read your fortune.”
    “With my luck? Instead of the fortune saying, ‘Beware of men bearing Trojan horses’ it’ll say something like, ‘Beware of a man carrying a box of Trojans’.”
    “Maybe I oughta have you doing standup in the strip club,” Ivy said dryly. She cracked open a cookie, fished out the little white paper and slid it across the table. “Read it.”
    Holly’s fingers smoothed out the wrinkles and she read the words to herself.
    “Well? What does it say?”
    “You will meet a handsome stranger, indulge in the best sex in the history of mankind…and then he’ll cuff you and throw your candy ass in the slammer.”
    “Give me that.” Ivy snatched it and recited, “‘Worry not of the past. Fret not for the future. Live in the present; every day is a gift’.”
    “See?”
    “See what?”
    “It’s total crap.”
    “Wrong. That’s a damn good fortune. And it has that whole Dickensian A Christmas Carol vibe going. It’s Christmas and Nick is your gift.”
    Holly rolled her eyes. “What it is, is utter claptrap, hogwash, and horse feathers. You don’t really believe in this junk, do you?”
    “Yep. Just like I believe in love at first sight, trusting your instincts and second chances, even when some unenlightened folks believe those things are as fictional as Santa.”
    Couldn’t argue with that. “What does yours say?”
    “Doesn’t matter. It’s all claptrap, hogwash and horse feathers, right?” she teased.
    “Oh, just quit gloating and read the damn thing.”
    Ivy crunched on the cookie and held up the tiny scrap of paper. “‘Wishes do come true. You just have to believe’.”
    A strange feeling of déjà vu rippled through her. Hadn’t she and Nick talked about wishes? Christmas wishes in particular?
    “You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Holls.”
    She muttered, “Damn Dickens. This is just coincidence.”
    “Maybe this one was your fortune.”
    “No way. I am not putting my faith and pinning my future hopes on the advice from a fortune cookie!”
    “There’s my practical girl.” Ivy gave her an indulgent smile. “Come to the club after work tonight and we’ll figure out something logical.”
     
     
    Nick rushed to Sugar Plums after his shift ended. Since he wore his sidearm beneath his topcoat, it was a good thing the overgrown elf wasn’t around to frisk him. Still, the lax security at the club made him uneasy.
    Truthfully, it felt weird, seeing the place nearly empty. Music pulsed and a rainbow of lights rebounded off the walls, but the stage was devoid of dancers. A few men were hunched at the main bar, staring into