Page 47 of The Christmas Letters
The game finally ends when Deacon and Chloe can’t stop arguing about Chloe’s insistence that she would rather take a walk than take a nap. “You’re crazy,” I say, siding with Deacon. “I can’t even count the number of places we found you asleep when we were kids,” I say. “In the car. In Sunday school. And you never made it through a movie without falling asleep.”
Chloe pouts. “Fine. But Iaspireto like talking walks, so I feel like that should count.”
Behind us, the bell above the door chimes, and a couple walks in. My eyes catch on the woman and a knot of tension forms in my gut. I haven’t seen Daisy Mae Calhoun in person in over a year, but there’s no mistaking her. What are the odds that Drew’s ex would show up here? But then, that’s the way the universe seems to be working lately. I’m randomly running into Drew everywhere, so why wouldn’t his ex show up here?
The ice cream shop is mostly empty, so Daisy’s eyes immediately find us. I know the exact moment she realizes Drew is here. Her gaze narrows, then she stands a little taller, pushing her boobs out as she bites her bottom lip.
Oh no she will not.Who does she think she is? She’s even with a date, or at least it looks like a date, and she’s still going to act like that?
I do my best to tamp down the jealousy I shouldnotbe feeling as Daisy approaches our table.
“Drew!” she says as she reaches the side of our table. Daisy looks at the rest of us. She doesn’t know Chloe as well as she knows me, but she definitely knows Deacon. He’s a Vanderhorst. When Chloe took him off the market, women across Charleston cried real, actual tears. “How fun running into you. Talk about worlds colliding. How do you know Deacon and Tess?”
She slips a hand across Drew’s shoulder, her fingers lingering with a familiarity that makes me want to punch her perfectly polished face.
Drew immediately leans away, glancing at me before saying, “That’s kind of a long story. But we all did some volunteer work together tonight, so…”
Daisy’s eyes narrow, zeroing in on me. “Wait a minute,” she says. “Last time I was at the club, I heard rumors that you were dating again, Tess. Your mother said he was a paramedic, but it didn’t even occur to me that it might be Drew.” She gives Drew a knowing look. “Guess you have atype,huh?”
Oh man.I could not have seen this coming, but then, Iwasthe one who told my mother I was dating a paramedic. I’m about to protest, but then Drew wraps an arm around me, tucking me against his side.
“I wouldn’t say I have a type,” he says, lifting an eyebrow toward Daisy. “You don’t seemanythinglike Tess to me.”
Daisy frowns, and the guy behind her reaches for her hand like he’s trying to tug her away from the table, but she swats him away like he’s a horse fly instead of her date. If he evenisher date.
I slide my hand up to the back of Drew’s neck and tangle my fingers in his hair. I’m being so obnoxious.Completely obnoxious. But Daisy was rude and dismissive and condescending, and she hurt Drew when he really didn’t deserve it. If I can make him look good right now, I’m going to do it.
“It’s still new,” I say, looking at Drew like he’s the cherry on top of an ice cream sundae. “But you know how it is in the beginning. It’s just so hard to keep our hands off each other.”
Across the table, Chloe snorts and Deacon turns a laugh into a cough.
“That’s so sweet,” Daisy says, and her expression turns cunning. “It must be so nice after everything fell apart with Preston. How’s he doing, Deacon? It can’t be easy to literally be left at the altar.”
Man, I hate mean girls.
“Easier than marrying the wrong person,” Deacon smoothly says. He looks at me and winks, making it clear that’s a judgment on my relationship with Preston, not on me. But the truth doesn’t offend me. Even if it took me a while to realize it, Preston and I were wrong for each other from the start.
Daisy rolls her eyes like she was hoping for a bigger reaction, but the guy behind her looks like he’s running out of patience. “Daisy, come on,” he finally says. “Leave them alone.”
Yes, please, Daisy. Leave us alone.
Under the table, Drew slips a hand to my knee, giving it a reassuring squeeze, then he leans down, his mouth close to my ear. “So we’re dating now, huh?”
He leans back, and we make eye contact, his gaze sparkling with mischief.
Warmth spreads from my chest up to my neck, and I breathe deep, filling my lungs with Drew-scented air. It’s the second time I’ve been this close to him tonight, and it’s getting harder and harder to remember why I shouldn’t be with Drew.
“I’ll explain in a minute,” I whisper, tilting my head toward Daisy. The man with her has already moved up to the counter, but she’s still watching us.
“Right well, it was nice seeing y’all,” she finally says, clearly annoyed that we’re no longer looking at her. But I couldn’t tear my eyes off of Drew right now if I wanted to. Harry Styles could walk in to get an ice cream cone, and I wouldn’t even care.
We keep the conversation surface level until Daisy and her date have gotten their orders. Luckily, they don’t stay, and soon we’re the only people insideScoop’ssmall interior.
“Ummm, what was that?” Chloe asks when the door closes behind Daisy.
“Yeah, Tess,” Drew says playfully. “What was that?”
I bite my lip and sigh. There is no explanation that will work here except the truth. “So…it’s possible that right after we met, I told my mother we hit it off after you rescued me and…then we started to date. But it was only to keep from having to go out with Johnny Stager, and if you knew Johnny, you would totally understand my desperation on that front.”
