Page 98 of Infatuated as They Come
“Come here,” Sawyer said lowly, voice drenched with a sense of comfort I hadn’t felt in a long while, and I hated that fact.
I followed his instructions, loving the feeling of his hands settling on my hips as he brought me closer to him. “You deserve better than to have him ruin your Christmas.”
“Hey,” he said, a sudden serious tone in his voice as he stared up at me. “I’m here with you, so this so far is already the best Christmas I’ve ever had.”
“You deserve for this to be a good memory.”
“It’s already a really, really good one. I know you wanna get rid of the bad memories, and if I could click my fingers and have ‘em all go away, I would. But it’s okay that I can’t. I got you and that’s all I need, Holly. I love you.”
“I love you too,” I said softly.
“And you know what? This right here?” He squeezed at my hips. “Just having you with me has already made this special.” He stood up slowly, two hands landing on either side of my face as he pressed his lips to mine, kissing me softly. “As much as I love sleeping next to you and holding you in my arms all night, I guess I’m gonna have to go without that for the next few days.”
“I suppose so.” It had been a while since we had done that: since we both fell asleep all tangled up. “Why don’t you get some sleep? You must be really tired. Then we can have dinner and Mom can talk all about how much she loves Gonzo’s little jacket.”
He kissed the top of my head. “I can’t wait.”
Chapter 24
Sawyer
It was weird falling asleep in Holly’s house and actually staying there all night. I had been in Holly’s bed—without her parents knowing—many, many times. I liked to hold her until she fell asleep, keeping her close to my chest until her eyes were firmly shut and she was letting out soft, little breaths, but being allowed towake upin her house was a funny feeling.
It was just after five, my body rested and my mind fresher after all that time I had spent behind the wheel. I carefully took Holly’s gift out of my bag, running my hand across the top of the box. It was all wrapped up, red bow and all. I grabbed the gifts I got her parents—a scarf and a tie—and made my way downstairs, putting them all under the giant tree. The thing looked like it could have been twenty feet tall.
I wasn’t even sure what I was supposed to do. What did people do for Christmas? Whatever it was, I had never done any of that. There was some noise in the kitchen and I wondered if it was Holly, but when I moved into the room, all I saw were her parents standing at the kitchen counter, a sparkling chandelier hanging above them. Just like the rest of the house, it was a gigantic space I wasn’t used to, with white walls and an equally white counter and drawers.
“Oh, Sawyer, you’re awake!” Holly’s mom locked eyes with me, shooting me a big smile. “Did we wake you up? We were being a little loud down here.”
My head shook. “No, it’s cool. It was getting late, anyway.”
“I’ve only just put dinner in the oven, so I hope you’re not too hungry. It shouldn’t be too long!”
“That’s fine. Do you need—” I stopped mid-sentence as Holly’s dad walked right past me, his shoulder colliding with mine before he made his way out of the room.
“Joe,” she said with a sharp breath before turning to me. “Don’t pay him any attention.”
“I’m used to it now, I think.”
Her eyes softened. “That’s awful. I don’t want you to feel that way and neither does Holly. Do you want me to wake her up? She’s still in bed.”
“That’s okay. She needs some time off too. She’s been working really hard this year.”
“And you too, apparently. She tells me all the fun things you’ve been up to.”
“Fun things?”
“All the art you’ve been working on. She sends me photos of all the things you paint.”
My brows rose. “You’re probably sick of seeing my paintings.”
“Don’t be silly, I love seeing your art. Anyway, you go sit down.” She shooed me away. “I was about to make some more cookies. I shouldn’t be too long.”
“Do you, uh, need any help in here?” I asked. She had a bunch of dough rolled out in front of her with a few cookie cutters scattered around it. It didn’t feel right leaving her all alone in the kitchen to cook by herself. “I’m not that good of a cook but I can try and help.”
“Oh, no. You’re our guest. Why don’t you relax in the living room?”
“I don’t mind helping.”
