Page 28 of Holiday Interference

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Should’ve said something real.

Should’ve let that moment breathe.

Should’ve asked her what she was thinking instead of pretending it didn’t matter.

But I didn’t.

Because if I ask and the answer’s not what I want, I don’t know what the hell I’ll do.

So, I toe off my boots and head to the bathroom, mumbling something about needing a shower.

I’ve never wanted something so much.

And never been so afraid to ruin it.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Noelle

The door clicks shutbehind us, sealing in warmth and everything we didn’t say outside.

I don’t know what just happened on that sidewalk.

Scratch that—I do know.

We almost kissed.

And I cracked a joke like a coward.

Now my skin feels too tight. My chest hasn’t quite settled. There’s a low thrum in my bloodstream I can’t shake.

It doesn’t hurt, not exactly. It’s just…alive.

Cal didn’t say anything after that, just opened the door for me so I could come in ahead of him. He lingered outside a few extra seconds—probably to cool off or curse the universe.

Maybe both.

Now, he’s in the bathroom peeling off snow-soaked layers, and I’m standing in his kitchen like I live here.

Like I belong here.

The thought makes something clench behind my ribs.

I press the button on the coffee maker, just for something to do. The hum of the machine cuts through the quiet, grounding me.

I wrap my hands around the edge of the counter, fingers cold from the walk, knuckles still pink. My heart’s not racing, but it hasn’t slowed either.

I should go open my laptop. Check the news. Email someone. Prove to myself I still have a life outside this high-rise cocoon.

Instead, my gaze is drawn toward the window.

The light’s silver this morning, thin and soft through the clouds. Snow drifts in lazy spirals past the glass, blanketing everything below.

The street looks like a postcard. Untouched. Quiet.

Peaceful in a way that makes my spine unspool one vertebra at a time.

I hear Cal reenter the room. His steps are soft but heavy—heavier than they should be, like the weight he carries goes deeper than muscle.

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