Free Santa's Pet by Rachelle Ayala Page B

than me because of the indecent exposure charge. Poor guy. His football career could be ruined.
    My jaw, stomach, and heart plummet to the center of the earth as soon as the search results return. Ben Powers’ hired gun is all over the internet calling me a loose woman and shaming me for wearing a provocative elf outfit. She’s even claiming I’m corrupting the morals of minors.
    “Why, that bastard.” I almost throw my laptop. Forget about feeling sorry for him. He’s destroying my good name.
    Tears rim my eyes as I read the comments. Everyone seems to be on his side, and the names they call me fry every hair on my head. The horrid pictures make me look worse than that singer who twerked at a music awards ceremony. But the most hurtful are the names I’m being called in the comments. Slut. Whore. Ho. Skank. Tramp. Heifer. Cow. Milkmaid. Gold digger.
    I can’t believe Grandpa Powers would let his grandson do this to me.
    ~ Ben ~
    “I have to speak to her,” Ben shouted over the phone at his grandfather. “Come on, you know her phone number.”
    “What do you want? A restraining order?” Grandpa’s voice is stern. “Leave this to the lawyers. You already told yours to leave off.”
    “The damage is done. You should read what they’re saying about her online.”
    “Pah, it’ll blow over. These things always do. Remember when everyone was upset about Cecil the Lion? Do you hear peep about it now?”
    “What about Brittney’s grandfather? Have you spoken to him?”
    His grandfather was best buddies with Brittney’s grandfather, Bob Reed.
    “He’s on her side, of course. Believes you sexually harassed her. I hung up on him.”
    “Wait, so you’re going to lose your friendship over this?”
    “It’s better than you losing your entire future. Listen, bud. I know you want to be a gentleman and all that, but you have to fight fire with fire. I happen to know Brittney’s not at all the way she’s being portrayed, and yes, it’s unfair, but when she attacks your integrity and lies about you, I draw the line. Blood is thicker than water.”
    “I appreciate you having my back, but somehow I think it’s better if we focus on getting both of our charges dropped instead of blaming each other.” Ben wiped the sweat from his forehead. Every muscle in his body felt like soggy noodles from the workout, but his brain had never been clearer. If only he hadn’t let anger and fear overtake his good senses. “I’m sure if I speak to Brittney directly, we can work this out.”
    “Don’t go there. You’ll only weaken your case. Where are you, anyway?”
    “Driving around San Francisco.”
    “Don’t stay out too late. Come back and help me pack.”
    “Pack? Did you decide?”
    “Yes, I did. After Bob Reed called me to ream me out about you, I’ve decided I don’t particularly want to hang around this holiday season. Maybe you’re right. It’s time I got around to the ranch.”
    “I’m so glad, Grandpa. I know Dad misses you. I’ll be back in a bit, and then we can drive out tomorrow morning.” He hung up the phone after saying goodbye.
    Ben rubbed his tired eyes and huffed out a deep breath. His grandfather just lost his lifelong buddy over this thing with Brittney. Of course, she was making baseless accusations to get herself off the hook, but she was losing in the court of public opinion. Most commenters felt she deserved to be ogled because of her revealing outfit.
    What had made her dress that way? Ben scrolled through her publicity photos online. She was professional looking and wholesome. A real beauty, but not flaunting it. In fact, she stayed in the background and seemed to let others take the limelight.
    Ben searched for her company to find her email address. He had to reach out and make this right. Maybe he could talk her out of the lawsuit. If the arrest hadn’t happened, he would have asked her out. She was the first woman he’d met who hadn’t looked at him in an appraising