Page 16 of Mistletoed with the Mountain Man
I stared at that message for a full minute before responding.
Glad you're home safe. See you tomorrow
Friendly. Appropriate. Exactly what I should be.
Now I'm standing in front of the bathroom mirror giving myself a stern talking-to like some kind of lunatic.
"You can handle this, Giles," I mutter. "It's just another day of decorating. Keep your hands to yourself. Maintain boundaries. Don’t think about what she'd look like bent over your?—“
My phone buzzes.
Running 10 min late! Emergency glitter crisis at the shop. Be there soon!
I exhale slowly. Ten more minutes to get my head on straight.
By the time her Jeep pulls up, I've got my game face on.
The door opens and she breezes in wearing another pair of worn jeans that grip her ass like I wish I was, and a red sweater that somehow makes her look both wholesomeandtempting as hell.
"Morning!" She's carrying a paper bag from the bakery in town. "I brought reinforcements. Figured we'd need fuel for loft decorating."
“Oh no, more sweets?”
“Of course!” She playfully punches my arm and even that contact sends heat straight through me.
"Everything okay at the shop?"
"Oh, just a minor catastrophe." She sets the bakery bag on the counter. "Apparently glitter and static electricity don't mix. The whole front window looked like a craft store exploded."
I can't help smiling. "Sounds like a hazard."
"Says the man who has glitter in his hair right now." She reaches up on her toes and brushes her fingers through the strands near my temple. "Got it."
She's standing too close. I can smell that Christmas cookie scent that makes me want to take a bite of her.
I step back, clearing my throat. "So. Loft today?"
"Loft today," she agrees, but there's something knowing in her eyes. Like maybe she's fully aware of what she does to me.
Naughty.
We head to the coffee bar and she makes something elaborate with the espresso machine while I refill my mug with straight black coffee. Though, I really don’t need it.
She holds up an empty plastic bag. "Was this…?" she asks, adding what looks like half a bottle of vanilla syrup to her cup.
"Yes, I ate an entire bag of Aunt Meredith's pecan berry bursts." I huff, shaking my head. "In less than twenty-four hours."
She laughs. "They're dangerously addictive." She pulls the new pastries from the bakery bag. "That's why I brought backup.Kanelbullar.Swedish cinnamon rolls fromFalk’s Fikabrodon Main Street. Thoren and Charlie don’t mess around with their sweets."
My mouth drops open. "Are you trying to kill me with carbs?"
She giggles and I take one anyway, and the first bite is worth whatever damage it's doing to my macros. "Jesus, that's good."
We eat standing at the counter, and I try not to notice how she licks icing off her thumb…and fail spectacularly.
"Game plan?" she asks around a mouthful.
I pull up my phone, showing her the updated schedule. "Finish the loft tree, decorate the upstairs hallway, maybe start on the bedrooms if we have time."
