I fought the urge to back up a step. And if I were honest, I also fought the urge to launch forward into the pine-scented forest.
His brow crinkled. “It’s a little personal.”
I kept my smile locked in place, even as he leaned closer still, and prayed my thumping heart wasn’t evident in this tiny room. “Oh?”
He hesitated, as if gathering his courage.
My eyes widened. Was he going to ask if I’d overheard him and Ryan yesterday? Had he figured this whole thing out? My stomach dipped, and not just from his proximity—though there was plenty of that. If he apologized, it’d ruin my entire plan. I couldn’t get revenge on someone who wassorry.No, I very muchneeded to keep believing that Nick was not a great guy. Maybe he had some good qualities, but the bad ones had to keep outshining them.
Because otherwise, that would mean this whole pity date trick really was about me.
That I was truly pitiful.
He stepped toward me, closer in the crowded space, his woodsy scent filling my nose and lungs and making me suddenly not hate Christmas trees nearly as much as I had ten minutes ago.
“What is it?” I licked my dry lips. His gaze followed the movement, and all my nerves stood on high alert. Scratch the apology. Was he going to ask if he couldkissme? I wasn’t sure which was worse—being apologized to by your mortal enemy or having your mortal enemy kiss you and make it very obvious you were no longer mortal enemies.
One thing was certain. I was never going to make it through this Christmas without the distraction of Operation: Naughty List, and an apology would bring that to a halt.
Though to that point, a kiss would certainly be a different kind of distraction, wouldn’t it?
My stomach flopped and my knees suddenly felt as stable as marshmallows. Why, oh why couldn’t I have chemistry with a handsome, available, honest man instead of a handsome, available trickster?
He angled his head down. “I just wanted to ask…”
“Yes?” My voice was breathy, all the air caught in my chest. Nick reached out and gently moved my hair away from my cheek, shooting fireworks straight down my spine and out my toes.
This was a horrible idea. Yet my eyes drifted shut, as if on autopilot.
“Do you have any allergies?”
I blinked, bringing his curious expression back into focus. “Um, no. Not that I’m aware of.”
“Just making sure.” He tapped one of my elf ears and grinned. “You look a little swollen, there.”
I narrowed my eyes as he left the closet.
Nick, 1.
Holly, 1.
Man, it was hot in here, and Nick couldn’t blame it on the oven. The string of lights slipped in his sweaty grip. He worked to keep his focus on the tree they were decorating and not on Holly, both beautiful and annoying—annoyingly beautiful, maybe—as she sat on the kitchen counter, sliding hooks into ornaments for her siblings to hang and humming “O Christmas Tree.”
What had almost happened back there?
Nick’s stomach dipped. He hadn’t had a date in forever. Surely that was why his filter was off. Holly was cute, and single, and…there. It was the only explanation for why he’d almost fallen off the edge like that. No way he was actually attracted to someone with such bizarre holiday mood swings. When it was time for him to date, he needed someone calm and mature that could partner with him in his dream to help teenagers.
Not bug him to death with holiday shenanigans.
Ryan hooked a red ball on a low-hanging tree branch. “Next.” He held out his hand for someone to give him another ornament, his expression taut.
Did Ryan know what’d almost happened? Could he sense it?
Nick swallowed as he handed his friend a gold ball from the box at their feet. Olivia, her kids, Chloe, and Axel had been assigned decorating the tree on the front porch, while he, Holly,Ryan, Lydia, and Kat had taken the one in the kitchen. Thankfully, the work was moving pretty quickly.
Ryan stretched to hang the gold ball higher up the tree. “Are we just not even going to talk about the fact our baby sister brought home a boy?”
Ah. So that was it. Nick ducked under Ryan’s raised arm as he continued winding lights into the branches. Relief loosened his shoulders. He’d much rather talk about Chloe than the fact he’d almost kissed his best friend’s sister in a closet.
