Page 38

I tugged a notebook and pen out of my purse and set it on the counter next to me. “Yup. That’s what we should do.”
Shut up. Stop making this awkward.
“Where do you think we should start?” he asked, taking his phone from his back pocket. “I’ve made a few notes.”
My body was still rioting inside, every neuron firing being this close to him, and he seemed completely unaffected. Had I imagined the look earlier? No, I’d had enough men look at me with desire. He’d felt it just as I did.
He was just better at hiding it.
I opened my notebook. “Why don’t we start with the most important part, Santa’s house.”
“I think I know who can help us with that, but how elaborate are we thinking?”
I tapped the pen against my notebook. “We don’t have a lot of time and we still need to decorate the interior, so I’m thinking of just one big room.”
He nodded. “I mentioned the idea to Grayson this week, and he said he would check in with his Dad to see if they can help.”
“That would be perfect.” Grayson’s family ran a construction company and was in the process of renovating our building.
“I could also see if his sister, Avery, would be willing to help decorate the inside. She works at the construction company and often handles the interior design.”
I made a note to get Avery’s number.
“About the reindeer petting zoo.” I lowered my voice so the girls wouldn’t overhear me. “There’s a farm in Maine that raises them. We could call and ask if they’d be willing to bring them here for the weekend.”
“It’s worth a shot. We’ll need to check on the appropriate permits to have live animals and see if the company has a rider we can piggyback on.”
I’d been thinking about this festival all week and wanted to bring it up a notch. We both had too much riding on this to do it halfway.
“I’ve been thinking…”
He grabbed his pizza and took a bite. The whole time giving me his undivided attention. Which honestly surprised me. Beckett was a take-charge kind of guy. I’d thought I’d be fighting to be heard while we planned the event. I liked that he was different than I expected.
“What if this event was all weekend? They do one night every year, and then it’s over, but if we have plenty of activities and maybe involve local businesses, it could be an amazing all-weekend event.”
“I like that idea.” He crossed his arms over his broad chest, making me realize a tight black t-shirt on a guy was totally my thing. I wondered if I could convince him to wear this color and cut all the time.
Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I hoped he had no idea what I was thinking. I needed to redirect his attention while also discussing my ideas, or I’d be fire engine red before long.
I slid my folder over to him. When he started to flip through the pages, I began again. “I printed out various festivals worldwide and made notes next to the ideas that can work for us.”
He pointed out a few things and made notes on the margin. I nibbled at my pizza while he read through and commented on various ideas. “I think we can make a lot of this work.” We didn’t have a specific budget set. Although, after doing some rough calculations it was a little less than double from last year which made sense with us adding a full day and night to the event. I’d also clear everything through Principal Olsen before we moved forward to be sure.
“Some of those I like are pretty simple, but we can have a toy drive to donate to a local charity, an ice-sculpture-making contest, snowman making, carriage rides…” I took a bite of pizza and barely swallowed before I suggested more. “Maybe even a gingerbread contest where people at the festival get to vote on their favorite cookies or houses.” My hands waved wildly with each new idea.
A devastating smirk settled on his face.
“What?” Was he only pretending to listen to my ideas? Was he humoring me?
“Nothing.” He dismissed my question.
I leaned in, pinning him with my gaze. “If it’s nothing, then just tell me.”
He shifted in his seat. “There’s nothing to say.”
What the actual fuck? If he wasn’t going to take me seriously, then what was the point of me being here? I narrowed my eyes at him and swiped my folder back. “You know what? Forget it. This was a terrible idea. We should not work together on this.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” His eyebrow quirked, which only made him look sexier.