Page 52 of Bad Boy Bachelor Christmas
I chuckled. “I’ll see what I can do.”
CHAPTER24
WINTER
My stomach growled and I clamped my hands over it like I was trying to smother the sound. North, who stood by my side smirking at the Grinch and his enthusiastic display of Christmas loathing, glanced down at me with raised eyebrows.
“Whoa.”
I laughed nervously. “I forgot to eat lunch.”
He tipped his head in the direction of the parking lot where our driver would be waiting for us. “Let’s get out of here and get something to eat. All our work is done.”
I gazed up at the massive tree and smiled. Ever since Mrs. Velton lit it up, I’d been filled with a great sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. I’d been a bit worried about how this one was going to turn out, but I was glad I’d followed my gut.
It was exactly as playful, whimsical, and festive as I’d hoped.
“Food sounds great,” I said.
“I know a place with a great view.”
We said our goodbyes to the Veltons, who were still in awe of their tree even as North and I made our way out through the carnival rides. Kids passed us, crying out excitedly about the big tree, and I grinned over my shoulder as their parents followed them through the curtain of lights hanging from the lowest branches. North reached down and took my hand, stealing my attention back to him.
He never looked down at me as I gazed up at him, but I didn’t need him to.
My heart felt lighter than it had in ages. With all my schooling and part-time work back in Portland, I hadn’t had much time for romance—or anything remotely close to it, at that. I’d met up with friends for study dates and had dinner with my parents every other Sunday. I’d sat with other design students during lunch and gushed about new trends and fads or lamented about our favorite styles that were already falling out of favor.
But men?
Pfft.
College dudes weren’t my cup of tea, but even if they were, they wouldn’t have been on my radar.
North was hard to ignore, though. He crept into my thoughts almost every hour, sometimes more, and his masculine energy softened something in me I hadn’t realized was sharp-edged and desperate to prove myself. He saw me for my skill and my true self, and the more time we spent together, the more he seemed to appreciate me for all those things.
If someone had told me two weeks ago when I’d first arrived on the farm that my grumpy boss would make me feel like this, I’d have laughed in their face.
We piled into the back of our town car and our driver drove us away from the Velton estate. The carnival lights faded away as we drove through the city, and my stomach continued to growl as we passed dozens of restaurants.
How far was this place?
“Not too much further,” North assured me.
We left the busy streets of the city behind and turned down less busy streets into suburbs that eventually gave way to farm country. Snow covered some of the fields and fence posts but not the roads, which had been recently salted. Finally, we pulled under a ranch gate with words covered in frost and snow that I couldn’t read. We drove down a long, meandering driveway to a large red barn swarming with people.
“What is this place?” I asked.
North grinned, got out of the car, and offered me his hand. “The Clydesdale Farm.”
“Clydesdales?” I gasped excitedly. “Here?”
He nodded. “First thing’s first. Let’s get some food in you. Then we can see the horses.”
North took my hand once more and led me into the red barn, which sprawled backward and connected to a larger building with an indoor porch boasting a nativity scene of carolers, who sang “O Holy Night” as we climbed the steps. North opened the door and we stepped into a warm, dimly lit, serene restaurant that smelled like frying onions and searing beef. I inhaled deeply and thanked the general noise of the restaurant for disguising yet another belly growl.
A hostess seated us at a table at the back of the restaurant, as per North’s request. A chill seeped through the window beside us, and North draped his jacket over my shoulders.
“The view is worth it,” he said.
