Page 6 of Eggnog and Edging
Their tone is mostly what I wanted to hear. They have no idea what I’m talking about, which makes me feel pretty silly. Why is it so hard for me to believe Cullen is behind the mystery gifts?
“I’ve been getting gifts from a secret admirer, and I thought it was you two, but it turns out they were from Cullen.”
Jolene stares at me incredulously. “There are so many reasons you need to back up right now. But let's run with this and ignore the fact that you didn't tell us you had a secret admirer because you thought it was us.”
“The gifts were really thoughtful, so I assumed they were from you two. Now that I know they’re from Cullen… maybe I don’t have to give up my dream of getting a happily ever after this Christmas.”
“First of all, I’m not letting you give up on the auction that easily.”
“What are you going to do, convince my dad it’s a worthwhile venture?”
“We'll find a way to get you there.” Jolene’s optimistic but I need more than her positivity to change my dad’s mind.
Bellamie says, “At least you have a backup plan. And by the way, I'm in total awe of how you stood up to those guys. I need to learn to do that.”
Jolene laughs way too loud for inside a car. “Agreed one hundred percent. But isn't it ironic that we're hoping we'll get a reverse harem at the auction?”
Bellamie says, “With the magic of the Christmas Cherry Auction, we'll be fine. At a minimum the men have to uphold the contract and make our first sexual experience a good one. It’s a win even if we don’t stay together.”
“I really hope both of you get your happily ever after.” I can’t believe I’ve waited for the auction and now it’s slipping from my grasp. Is Cullen a backup plan? Would he really risk his friendship with my dad? I’ve had so many fantasies about him.
My mind wanders back to when he handed me the gift. Did he ever actually say it was from him? Or did I hug him just because I could… a shameless excuse to get him to wrap his strong arms around me while his woodsy scent enveloped me?
Jolene sounds thoughtful. “Any chance your dad and brother will be gone Friday so we can sneak you out?”
I shake my head. “Poker night at our house. They’ll both be there all night long, Cullen too.”
Bellamie says, “That’s right, their men’s poker night. They don’t let you play, right?”
“No, I make snacks for them, but you know my dad.”
Dual groans emanate from the front seat. Bellamie and Jolene are all too aware of my dad’s old-fashioned thinking, like womenshouldn’t work. The ultimate irony is that getting won in the auction would set me up with the life he thinks I should have—barefoot and pregnant—perhaps with more men than he’d approve of though.
I’m banking on whoever wins me not having a cow over my vlog because I totally plan on growing my business.
“We have a week to think of something. We’ll get you to the auction,” Bellamie assures me.
Jolene nods and says, “But we need to circle back to Cullen being your secret admirer.”
“I never saw it coming. Honestly, I still can’t believe it. The gifts are so thoughtful, all exotic foods I can experiment with for my vlog.” Then reality occurs to me. “Of course, he could have just done it to be nice.”
Jolene says, “The kitchen scene was a lot closer to naughty than nice.”
Bellamie adds, “Definitely naughty. I’m tickled that you thought we were sending the gifts.”
“You two are super thoughtful, and I just—I didn't say anything because I thought you would deny it.”
“That would be so mean,” Bellamie says. “I wouldn’t mess with you like that.”
Jolene shakes her head. “No fake secret admirers. Too rude.”
“Rude… just like my dad.” I lower my voice to mimic him and add snark. “No daughter of mine is going to sell her virginity in an auction. And don’t fuck my best friend, either.” I snicker, then add, “So much judgement.”
Laughter takes over, then Bellamie sounds a little dreamy as she explores the latter option. “Wouldn’t that be amazing if Cullen was ready to profess his love and stand up to your dad?”
Jolene piggybacks on her fantasy proposal. “Why not throw Ryker in the mix? We all have such stupidly hot, if not sometimes annoying stepbrothers.”
“I might have better luck getting to the auction.”
