Page 42 of The Naughty List Agreement

“Yeah. I saw you and the Naughty-lister.”

“Her name is Cora Quill.”

Martha put her hand up. “Have you figured her out yet?”

“Have you figured Jack out?”

“Touché. It’s infinitely harder when emotions are involved. Are yours?”

“Of course I care about her. There’s a lot to untangle. She’s very … likable when she’s not trying to boss me around.”

“You need bossing,” Martha said, “but you also need a wife. Where does she stand on that?”

He shook his head.

“Nick.”

Just his name.

“I know. I’m focused on refilling the coffers, which I can do if I get her off the Naughty List. That’ll be a big win.”

Martha just stared at him. “What about Christmas?”

“I’ll save that too. I’m not going to stop being Santa,” he promised her.

He would find a way.

CHAPTER 11

Waking up early wasn’t difficult at all because she hadn’t slept a wink. She’d taken the train down into Manhattan, getting to the studio well in advance of the appointed time. She had the prototype of the WonderHaus with her and Fliss met her at the studio, wearing a pair of leather leggings with a fluffy sweater and her military-style coat.

“How was your turkey day?”

“Different,” Cora said as they entered the building and were shown to the green room. “Don’t laugh, but I spent it with Nick Bari and his family.”

Fliss laughed. “Yeah, right.”

“No, really. He invited me over and I went. That’s the shocking part. I really hate holiday get-togethers, but this one was fun.”

“Fun with the lumberjack? Isn’t that what you called him.”

Cora flushed remembering how harsh she’d been about Nick when they’d first spoken about him. But she’d changed. This week felt like it had lasted a year, with every day bringing another emergency or another trial she had to pass. Yesterday had been relaxing and a reset and that ick feeling that sometimes came from doing all the traditional holiday events hadn’t been there.

Much of that she was sure came from Nick. He’d rocked her world in the butler’s pantry but he’d also just made her feel a part of something. She’d read somewhere that family is one you make yourself but she struggled to let anyone in. Fliss was the closest thing she had to a friend and, to be honest, they rarely did anything that wasn’t in some way related to work.

“He’s not that bad,” she said.

Fliss laughed in a kind way, giving Cora a one-armed hug. “Tell me more. What’s his family even like?”

“Odd. I mean … nice, of course, but his mom is always trying to feed everyone. His dad has kind eyes and the same deep laugh that Nick does.” A warmth stole through her as she remembered the dinner table. “I did my usual talking-too-much thing but no one seemed to mind.”

“No one should mind. You’re smart and you have a lot to say,” Fliss said.

That hadn’t always been the case. Neither of her parents had wanted to hear from her. She’d kept quiet for a lot of years, but when she hit high school, she realized that she wanted to be a different sort of woman. Quiet and mousy wasn’t her thing. No judgment to anyone who preferred to be that way, but Cora had no longer been prepared to disappear after years of being shuttled between two homes and not fitting in with either new family.

“Thanks, Fliss.”

Cora’s segment on the show went really well. The hosts both declared the dollhouse the must-have toy of the season and had already booked tickets to come to the festival in mid-December. Cora rode that high all the way back to Pine Falls. Getting off the train, her phone started blowing up with congrats messages from the board and order notifications through their website.