Page 26 of A More Than Mayhem Christmas

“Let’s just say I know way more about reality TV than I should.”

She laughs at that, and it does something unfamiliar to my insides.

“So, Atlanta?” I push. “Are you just home for the holidays?”

“Yeah…” She lowers her gaze, toying with a button on her coat. “I wasn’t sure if I wanted to, so I told my parents I’d try to make it. I flew in last night to surprise them, and turns out, they surprisedmeby flying to Greece a few days ago.”

I hiss in a breath, my face scrunching. “Sucks.”

“Yeah, I was kind of in my feels about being alone, and I honestly hadn’t planned on coming tonight?—”

“Because of the ninth wheel thing?”

“Yep.”

“So, what changed your mind?”

“Riley called.”

I can’t help but smile. She called me, too.

“I figured I spent Christmas Eve alone, and I didn’t want to spend Christmas night the same way…”

Ifeelthat. I got home from Juan’s a few hours ago, showered, then parked my ass on the couch, where I planned to stay for the rest of the night. But the longer I sat there, switching in and out of movies and TV shows, the more my mind wandered, and I kept coming back to one thought—my little sister, Addie. I wondered what she was doing and how she spent the day. She had a new family now, a much better one, but I wondered if she thought of me at some point. A part of me hoped so. But an even bigger part of me hoped I was nothing more than a blip in her past.

I looked around my shitty one-bedroom apartment, no Christmas tree set up, no decorations, no laughter, nolife. It was a huge contrast to how I’d spent the day, how I hoped Addie hadspent hers. I picked up my phone and almost called her, but that would’ve been a disaster. So, to avoid said disaster, I came here.

“So, I spent the day cooking,” Heidi says, pulling me from my thoughts, “and I brought it all here, and?—”

“Wait,” I cut in. “Youmade all that food in there?”

“Most of it, yeah.”

“I’ll be right back.” I enter the house, go straight to the kitchen, where I grab a plate and make quick work of adding one of everything I presume she made. By the time I rejoin her on the porch steps, I have a heaping pile of food on a plate and absolutely zero room in my stomach. Still, I’ll eat it all. If she went through all that effort, I want to show her it’s appreciated. And the smile that overcomes her only urges me on.

“That’s a hash brownie, by the way,” she tells me, and I put it aside for now.

Then I dig in. Deviled eggs first, then some stuffed bread thing. “Holy shit,” I murmur around a mouthful of food. “Are you a chef?”

“No!” she laughs out.

I swallow, wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. “Don’t laugh. With food like this, youcouldbe.”

Heidi eyes me sideways, doubtful. “What does your diet consist of?”

I clear my throat, look away. “Meat and potatoes, mainly.”

She laughs again.

“But that doesn’t discount the fact that your cooking is good. Don’t sell yourself short.”

“Maybe I should cook for you again.”

My pulse kicks up, and I try to come up with a response. Luckily for me, rustling from a nearby brush saves me. I stand when Lucas Preston appears in all black with his brother, “Little” Logan, right behind him. I meet them halfway, the platestill in my hand. Lucas motions to Heidi, his eyes narrowed, questioning.

I turn to Heidi. “Please tell me you can keep a secret?”

She pretends to zip her lips, throw away the key. Speaking of keys, I fish the one out of my pocket and hand it to Lucas.

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