Page 75 of Stay this Christmas
I’m staying.
I’m yours.
Her hands splayed against my chest, her body yielding as she relaxed into the kiss. I’d never been much for planning, but in that kiss, I saw what I wanted next week, next month, for years and years in the future. She was my forever, right here in my arms.
“Sheisyour girlfriend!”
Willa’s delighted little voice broke us apart. We turned to see my dad’s car paused on Center Street, the windows down so everyone inside could get a good look at us. My little sister sat in the back, up high in her booster seat, grinning like no tomorrow. Next to her, Finn looked fairly disgusted but still goggled at us. In the front, Ava wore a wry expression.
Dad leaned across Ava so we could see his face in her open window. “You two might want to take it somewhere else,” he said, gesturing around.
As though Christopher Donnelly were the model of public decency and morals.
Still, I’d needed the reminder of our surroundings. Downtown bustled with shoppers going in and out of stores and workers taking off from their late-night office jobs. Wasn’t quite the same as kissing Harper among the crowds beneath the tree downtown would have been, but a close second. Being exposed didn’t bother me. I didn’t care who saw us together.
Probably didn’t mean I should display it for the whole town, though.
Their car started rolling forward, but Ava leaned out her window. “Invite Harper to Christmas breakfast!”
They drove off, leaving Harper and me standing in the chill beneath a Christmas bedazzled awning. She’d shifted out of my arms during the awkward conversation with my family, and the faint smile she wore now unsettled me. Relaxed, in-the-moment Harper was long gone.
“Sorry. Anybody else would have just driven past, but you know my dad.”
“It’s okay.”
We set off again, no hand-holding or snuggling this time around. Definitely no pausing for tender kisses. I was not a fan of the new arrangement.
Two blocks later, we’d reached her car, and the silence was killing me. Had my family scared her off? Or was it all the hinting we were together? Didn’t love either explanation for her distance.
“Are we—” I started, but she spoke at the same time.
“Do you want to get a tree with me tomorrow?”
I paused, probably looking like I didn’t have two brain cells to rub together. Not what I’d expected her to say after our mini-walk of shame. “Sure.”
“The farm opens at ten, but it’s pretty late in the season so it shouldn’t be too crowded.”
“Okay.”
“It’s been dry lately, so we should be able to bring it in and decorate it as soon as we get home. Maybe get lunch and watch another Christmas movie after?”
“Definitely.” She’d get nothing butYesfrom me when her plans sounded this much like a date. Except… “I have a yoga class in the evening. But we have plenty of time before then.”
“Okay. Good.”
She stepped forward and kissed me square on the mouth. Brief, but intentional. I’d hardly registered she’d done it before she pulled away again and headed around the side of her car. What a time for my brain to stop and play catch up.
“I’ll see you tomorrow at ten, then,” she said as she opened the driver’s side door.
“See you, Harps.”
She got in, started up her car, and pulled away into the night. Kind of loved that she’d taken me by surprise. I headed toward my car, grinning as I considered all the ways she might surprise me tomorrow.
TWENTY-THREE
harper
“This isa lot more than just a Christmas tree farm, Harps.”
