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Eve

The bay doors to the firehouse were open, and a few men were working on the equipment. I paused just inside the door, balanced on heels with the bakery box of blueberry muffins in my hands, counting on the sweet treats to get me a meeting with the fire chief. I wanted fire trucks in my town's parade, and I was willing to negotiate to get what I wanted.

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One of the guys saw me standing there and smiled. "What can I do for you, darling?"

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I returned his smile, because his energy was contagious, and lifted the pink box. "I brought muffins."

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His smile widened as he reached for it. "We never say no to baked goods. Let me just take this off your hands."

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He cradled the box against his side, his gaze traveling appreciatively down my body.

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I'd worn heels and a curve-hugging red dress for this very purpose. I wasn't above using every charm at my disposal to get what I wanted. The trick was dressing the part and bringing a gift. "I'm Eve Palmer, the event coordinator for Christmas Town, and I'd love to talk to Chief McGovern about your department participating in our Christmas parade."

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He balanced the box in one hand, reaching out to shake my hand with the other. "Steve. Nice to meet you."

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“Eve Palmer.” I followed him through a door, passing an open room with a pool table, a large screen TV, and overstuffed couches. Several men turned to watch us.

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Steve set the box on the counter in the kitchen, opening the lid to grab a muffin for himself. Men gathered around in their navy-blue department T-shirts and cargo pants.

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One raised his brow, his hand poised above the open box. "What's this?"

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Steve smiled at me. "Eve brought us muffins."

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"These are ours?" the man asked me.

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I smiled at him. "Absolutely. Enjoy."

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There were several muttered thanks while they reached into the box.

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Steve moved to stand in front of me, his body relaxed, and his expression playful. "These are delicious. But I bet if you'd made them, they would have been even better."

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My cheeks flushed. "This time, I got them at Sweet Dreams Bakery."

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"I'd love to try your sweet treats," he said with a wink, and I flushed hotter. "Now, you said you wanted to talk to the chief."

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"Why's everyone standing around?" While I was talking to Steve, a man walked into the room, his voice booming with authority.

This man was in his early thirties, not the man I saw pictured online as the current chief.

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Steve moved to stand next to me, placing his hand on my lower back. "Eve, this Maddox Knight, the firehouse grouch. Maddox, this is Eve Palmer. She brought us blueberry muffins. Wasn't that sweet of her?"

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Maddox looked from Steve to me, his expression was anything but grateful. "Why are you here?"

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I smoothed my hands over my skirt. "I wanted to speak with Chief McGovern."

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Steve urged me forward. "Eve wants the department to drive our trucks in Christmas Town's parade. Surely, Frank has time to hear her request."

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Maddox crossed his arms over his chest, his biceps bulging. "We only do that kind of thing for Telluride. We're spread thin enough as it is."

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"I'm the coordinator for Christmas Town, the little street with shops and restaurants by Mistletoe Inn. Unfortunately, we don't have a fire department."

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At his stubborn expression, I continued, "You're the closest fire department."

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He scowled. "Sorry. No can do."

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I sighed, wondering what I could do or say to convince this man to listen to me.

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"Now, Maddox. I promised Eve I'd take her to see the chief. You may be in the running for the position, but you're not the big man yet," Steve chided, gently guiding me around Maddox.

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Maddox followed closely behind us. "You can't just take her to see him."

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"Eve was nice enough to bring us muffins. I'm inclined to give her what she wants," Steve said with a wink in my direction.

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I smiled gratefully at Steve, sensing he wanted to rile Maddox, and I was all for that. "I really appreciate this."

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Maddox grumbled as Steve rapped on the door with the plaque Fire Chief Frank McGovern.

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"Come in," the man inside said

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Steve pushed open the door and gestured for me to precede him into the room. "Chief, this is Eve Palmer. She's the event coordinator of Christmas Town."

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The chief stood, holding his hand out for me to shake. "You can call me Frank. I heard that someone recently purchased the inn."

"My sister, Natasha, and I purchased Mistletoe Inn and the surrounding town," I said.

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"Eve wanted to talk to you about the department participating in their parade." Steve gestured for me to have a seat.

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"We'd love to have your fire trucks in our Christmas parade. It's not a parade without firemen," I said, appealing to his sense of importance and banking on the fact that he was the kind of man that liked to be needed.

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Maddox stood at the side of Frank's desk. "We don't have time to do events like that outside of Telluride. Our budget was cut this year. We're short-staffed and overworked."

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Frank's brows furrowed as he sat across from me. "Why don't you tell us what you have planned for the event?"

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Steve sat next to me, crossing his foot over one knee.

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Maddox's scowl deepened. "I don't think Steve needs to be here for this."

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"I'm the one she came to, and I want to make sure her request is heard," Steve said easily, as if he was used to charming people to get what he wanted.

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Frank turned his attention to me, ignoring the back and forth between Steve and Maddox.

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"My sister and I bought the town after our parents died. You may have heard of them, Sue and Robert Palmer."

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Frank's expression softened. "We heard about their accident. We're sorry for your loss."

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I felt the familiar twinge of pain but pushed it aside so that I could concentrate. I leaned forward, knowing I had the chief's attention despite the chill coming from Maddox. "Thank you. Natasha runs Mistletoe Inn, and I'm the town's event coordinator. One new thing we'd like to host to involve the surrounding community is a Christmas parade the Saturday after Thanksgiving. We've asked the high school marching band and the scout and dance troops if they would participate. But it wouldn't be a parade without the fire department. We thought you could drive a truck or two and throw out candy canes. When I was a child, that was my best memory of the town's parade."

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The chief leaned back in his chair. "Parades are good for the community's well-being."

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"You know we don't have the time or the resources—" Maddox began.

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"It's true that we can't fully commit, in the event that there's a fire or accident that day," Frank continued.

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I nodded. "Of course. I understand."

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Maddox braced his hands on the desk; the posture only served to accentuate the muscles in his forearms. "Chief, we shouldn't be stretching ourselves so thin."

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Frank held up his palm. "Last time I checked, I'm still the fire chief around here. A new one hasn't been named yet."

Maddox's face screwed up.

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"I make the decisions, and I think this could be good for us. But I'm wondering if there's something you could help us with."

Steve dropped both feet to the floor, resting his elbows on his thighs. "We need a place to host our holiday party, and I'd bet anything that Christmas Town has a hall we could use."

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I smiled, encouraged that they needed something I could provide. It was the hallmark of any good negotiation. "We have a ballroom where we host holiday dances every Saturday, but we could reserve one evening for the fire department. No charge of course. You're doing us a favor after all."

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I felt the steam coming off Maddox. He wasn't good at hiding his emotions.

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"That's generous of you," Steve said.

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Maddox shook his head.

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"We reserved the community hall in town, but they accidentally double-booked it. Since we reserved the place last, we lost the space."

"We're happy to host you and the department in Christmas Town. I can coordinate the event for you."

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Frank smiled. "Then it's settled. Our department will participate in the parade, and you'll host our holiday party."

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I stood, ready to leave before Maddox protested since I'd gotten what I wanted. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Frank. Please let me know if there's anything else I can do for you."

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He raised a brow, his gaze swinging to Maddox. "There is one thing."

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"What is it?" I asked even as my stomach dropped. I had a feeling he wanted Maddox to be part of this deal.

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"Maddox is in line to be the next fire chief, but his demeanor could use some softening."

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Steve chuckled, shaking his head, and Maddox glared at him.

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I frowned. "I'm not sure how I can help with that."

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"He needs a date to the party, and I think someone like you could help him interact with the rest of the department and the community."

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Maddox straightened to his full height. "With all due respect, sir, I don't need a date to the party. I'm bringing Sofia."

"And I'm sure your daughter will enjoying having Ms. Palmer along for the evening. She's delightful."

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As nice as his compliment was, my heart was racing. An evening with the grumpy firefighter? How would I survive that?

Frank stood. "Let me walk you out."

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When we passed the other men, they called out greetings to Frank and nodded at me. Once we were outside in the bright sunlight, Frank turned to face me. "I appreciate you going to the holiday party as Maddox's date. His personality leaves something to be desired. I think he's qualified to do the job. I'm just not sure I can convince the town council of that unless something changes. Ever since his wife died, he's had a hard time."

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"I didn't realize that his wife had died." I looked around for Maddox, but he hadn't followed us.

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"He wouldn't want you to know or to pity him. But I'm hoping that you can help him. If he continues biting off everyone's head, he won't get the job. And it won't matter if I think he's qualified."

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"I'll help however I can, Frank."

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Frank considered me for a few seconds. "If anyone can handle him, it's you."

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I laughed, not feeling the same way. "I appreciate the confidence."

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"I like you. But the next time you bring muffins, save one for the chief." With a wink to let me know he wasn't upset, he turned on his heel and headed back inside.

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I huffed out a laugh as I walked to my SUV, feeling good about the encounter. But when I turned on the engine and pulled onto the street, I wondered how I was going to make Maddox presentable to the public. I sympathized with his situation. His wife had died, and he had a daughter to raise on his own. But if he didn't improve, he wouldn't get the job he wanted.

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It was a tough assignment, but I prided myself on dealing with difficult people and situations. Maddox wasn't any different.