Page 16 of The Christmas Gift

Wren, Spencer, and Oliver walked into the open door of his apartment and it couldn’t have been at a worse time. If he knew Wren and Spencer, he was in for some roasting.

“Hey, Oliver,” Cor said with a nod. “What’s up?”

“I should ask you the same question.” Oliver looked around the half-empty room.

The walls were already stripped, except for the painting he’d purchased with his father on one of their overseas trips.

“I was on my way to see Fitz when I ran into these two, but whatever you have going on here looks more interesting,” Oliver said, cocking a brow above the rim of his glasses. The man was intuitive as fuck and now his attention was on Cor.

Cor shrugged. Fitz was their sweet nosey landlady. He wasn’t surprised Oliver’s interest was piqued. Since he’d met Blair, Oliver’s visits weren’t a regular occurrence, and he’d almost forgotten the man was hyper-vigilant.

“I’m not moving out,” Cor said. “I don’t want Fitz getting any crazy ideas to rent my apartment.” He looked between the men. “Or interfering with her terrible matchmaking skills.”

Oliver grinned, his ears reddening.

Cor shook his head, suspecting the landlady had something to do with Oliver and Blair’s growing attraction. Everyone saw the heated looks the two gave each other when they thought no one was looking.

“Would someone tell me what’s going on?” Spencer threw his hands in the air.

“She’s here.” He said, the admission leaving his mouth in a strangled whisper. Honestly, he still couldn’t believe it.

Spencer’s eyes widened.

“The hottie from Wheelcaster?” Wren smirked. “How did that happen?”

“Will you shut up?” Spencer snapped. “Who cares about the how. Our guy got his girl, which means he’ll stop acting like the sky is falling.”

Cor folded his arms across his chest. Between the three of them, Spencer was hands down the tensest of the three. Although he was glad to see them, he was starting to regret their weekend impromptu visits.

“Who is this girl?” Oliver frowned.

“Joan,” Wren and Spencer said in unison.

“Her name is Ivy.” He wiped the palm of his hand down his face, embarrassed he’d been calling her the wrong name for months.

“Are you telling us you got played?” Wren asked, a little too happily.

“Ivy?” Oliver shook his head, drawing Cor’s attention. “Hooking up with the new girl already is fast even for you.”

Cor stilled. “What do you mean by ‘new girl?’” His heart was beating fast at the thought of another man knowinghiswoman better than he did.

“Blair has a friend staying with her,” Oliver said, raising his hands to ward off Cor’s glare. “Her name is Ivy.”

His chest tightened painfully.She was in the building.Close enough to reach out and touch.

“Are you sure about her?” Oliver drew his attention again. “She’s only here for a couple of months. Knowing Blair, she wouldn’t let you make a clean break if you hurt her friend. Trust me, she’s an undercover she-devil that way.”

He didn’t want to sever ties, he almost shouted. He didn’t want a break from Ivy, period. He ought to head downstairs and call her out. Bring her back to his…theirplace until they’d settled on how their relationship was going to progress. Cor took a steadying breath, aware his friends were staring at him.

“I’m going to see Fitz.” Oliver nodded towards Cor. “I’ll not say anything about your interest in Ivy but you know she sees all this furniture moving right? It’s only a matter of time before she gets it in her head tohelpby playing matchmaker.”

Cor shrugged. He’d deal with his nosy landlady.

“Let’s meet at my place if we’re still on for Call of Duty.” Oliver left.

“Zombies, right?” Wren shouted.

“Yep,” Oliver yelled, from the door.

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