Page 63 of A Very Merry Mistake

JAKE

It’s a new day, but the first one we’ve had with electricity in a week.

“It’s so much different being in here with lights,” Claire says after we finish breakfast. “It’s a Southern vibe with the curtains open. I like it. However, just a tad sad that you’re not wearing your glasses.”

“I never do when I’m on the clock. If you knew how many pairs I’ve broken over the years, you’d understand. They get knocked off my face, and a crunch always follows.”

“Oh no. I mean, I’m not complaining at all. The view is still great. You go from boy next door to alphahole in a snap.” She smirks, then breaks our eye contact to glance outside. All the ice has melted, revealing the dormant grass.

She looks down at her mug. “Want another cup of coffee?”

“Sure. Do you know how to work the machine?”

I think I hear her giggle. “It can’t be too hard, right?”

As Claire comes up beside me and grabs my mug, she leans in and steals a kiss.

I wrap my arm around her waist, not letting her go. “You’re not making leavin’ you here today easy.”

She pouts. “I know. I’m sorry.” When she tries to walk away, I pull her back to me and slide my mouth across hers. Her tongue dips in and massages against mine.

“Fuck. If I didn’t have to be at work in fifteen minutes, I’d swing you over my shoulder and carry you to bed.”

With her hand on my chest, she laughs. “Caveman style? Don’t threaten me with a good time.”

“You’re a tease,” I whisper against her lips before she slithers out of my grasp and makes us each a cup of coffee. I admire her ass and her long legs and love how she bats her lashes at me. This woman might be my undoing.

“Me?” She places her hand on her heart. “No, you’re the tease with a capital T. Messy hair. Perfect smile. Green eyes. Lumberjack.”

“All it took was one look, huh?”

She rolls her eyes. “Don’t get cocky.”

I chuckle as she grabs the cream from the fridge and adds sugar to my coffee. When she hands it to me, I can’t hold back the smile.

“What?” She returns to the stool opposite me and blows on the top.

“You made it the way I like.”

She shrugs. “Why not?”

“Not sure I’ve ever had a woman do that. That’s all.” I take a sip. “And it’s perfect. Good job.”

Claire lifts her mug, and I tap mine against hers with a clink.

“To being considerate,” she says. “Even if I learned it from you.”

In a split second, Claire screams, spills her coffee, and then bursts into laughter. “Tinsel!”

It happens so fast I don’t have enough time to ask what happened, but I hear Tinsel bolt across the floor and run into the living room.

“She attacked my leg! I wasn’t sure what was going on,” Claire explains through giggles, grabbing a dish towel to clean up the mess.

“That’s usually a good sign.” I look over the rim of my mug at her.

“Yeah? You think that little fuzzball might actually like me?” She glances over at Tinsel, who is glaring at her.

“That’s still to be determined,” I say, checking the time. “Shit. I really gotta go. If you need anything, anything at all, call me.”

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