Page 53 of Living La Vida Mocha
Staring into my eyes, he asked, “Before I forget, how is it you know more about my employee than I do?”
I looked up into his charming face, glancing at the fringe of blond hair peeking out from under his toque. “What can I say? Maybe she feels comfortable with me? Or that I’m not her boss. Or, maybe, she just wanted to sell me on the idea of going.”
“Do you need a lot of convincing to attend this tree lighting?”
“Is there anything you can do which would result in me not checking it out?” I raised myself onto the balls of my feet and gave my lips a quick lick.
Carter took the bait and leaned down to plant his lips upon mine, pressing with the gentlest of pushes, and took command of the situation.
The kiss lit me on fire as the embers deep in my soul sparked to life. It felt great to feel so alive again. Threading my fingers under his hat and through his thick and messy hair, I pulled in close and opened my heart to him.
After a throaty and low sigh, he separated from me as the heat spread to taint his cheeks.
I cleared my throat. “If you keep kissing me like that, there won’t be a tree lighting ceremony to go to, and you promised me a lot of fun activities.”
“I’m making up for lost time.” He tipped his forehead against mine.
“We’ll get there. Promise.”
“Fine.” He mock-whined. “Don your warmest winter gear. Let me grab your jacket.”
As I put on my thick white boots with a solid grip, he grabbed my jacket off the back of the chair next to the mug.
“I still can’t believe you have this.” He lifted the mug once more, and this time, narrowed his eyes slightly as he stared at the papers underneath.
Dang. Dang. Dang.
In a heartbeat and with an easy swipe, I grabbed the newspaper and folded it in half, tossing it into the trash.
“What was that?” A serious expression swooped over his face.
“On my way home from Daisy and Dahlia’s, I grabbed one of those archaic things they called a newspaper, and just started looking at different job ads.” Yes, it was all a lie, but I just wasn’t ready to tell him I was searching for a new place. It seemed so rushed, and in a month of spontaneous events, I wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing.
“I thought you were happy with Stanley?”
“Oh, I am.” I kicked at a black fluffy part which had escaped from my thick socks. Bending down, I snatched it off the floor and rolled it into a ball before adding it to the garbage. “And I’m beyond grateful for the opportunity Stanley has given me, I’m just… well, I’m keeping my options open.”
The tight-knit expression told me all I needed to know – he wasn’t buying my story. He had seen what was circled.
“If you say so.” He brushed the hair off my cheeks before planting a tender, teasing kiss on my aching lips. “We should get going.”
“Right now?” I whined.
“There’s so much to do, we’ll barely be able to squeeze it all in before the tree lighting ceremony.”
“Well, I can’t wait to see what this is all about. Lead the way.” I donned my toque with two pom-poms and pulled on a thick pair of mittens.
Hand in hand, we walked from the motel over to a field full of roaming bodies. From the looks of things, I would’ve guessed half the town was already there.
“Do you want to go skating first?” He gently tugged me toward the skate shack which sat at the end of the ice. Strings of lights stretched out from it to points across the frozen water.
After a glance to the surface, I noticed a lack of sideboards and shook my head. “Uh… I haven’t skated in years, so probably not. I’ll fall too much.”
The idea of a bruised butt didn’t sit too well with me.
“Then I’ll catch you lots, and we don’t have to go fast. Plus, it’s a great way to hold hands and be all romantic. I mean, just look at the surroundings.”
“Wow, when you commit to something, you really go all in, don’t you?” I giggled as I spoke, but I took his words to heart and scanned the area, trying to see it as he did.