Holly stuck her tongue out at him. “Don’t tell me you weren’t tempted to do the same when I first told you about this sweater contest.”
He held up both hands. Yep, still covered in glitter. “Fair enough.”
Grace’s eyes sparkled as she watched them. “Now, I know we haven’t spoken of it yet, but I heard the rumors from your siblings and I must say, I love that you two have hit it off.”
Holly’s cheeks pinked and she bent farther over her design. “Um, thanks, Mom.”
Nick cleared his throat. “That’s kind of you.” The acceptance in Grace’s eyes as she smiled at them brought a rush of warmth to Nick’s chest. It was nice. All of this was…nice.
But it wasn’t real, was it?
His stomach clenched. As much as he still wanted his ramen bowl and his own non-tradition tradition, he wasn’t ready for the stay to be over. After such a great conversation, he’d almost forgotten that he and Hollyweren’ttogether.
And when Grace and Thomas realized this was all a sham—a vengeful prank on Ryan—they would no doubt think less of him. And his dreams.
The warmth quickly dissipated, and he looked back at his sweater, wishing he could put it on to combat the deep chill spreading through his bones. He swallowed. Why had he agreed to this whole sham, again?
Right. Because Holly had asked.
Because he’d owed her, after hurting her.
And because who in the world would’ve ever thought Christmas could get so messy?
Three Days Before Christmas
This was the first block party I hadn’t hated since I was roughly thirteen years old. And it wasn’t just because Mr. Steiner was visiting his great-grandson out of town this year, or because Mrs. Pepper was too invested in the cream cheese puffs to harass me about my personal life. Or because Mom had upped her appetizer game.
It was entirely due to Nick—and his overly pom-pommed, horribly ornate Christmas sweater that rained glitter everywhere he went and looked a little like he’d dug it out of the North Pole’s dumpster.
“Bro.” Axel stood arm-in-arm with Chloe by the punch bowl in the kitchen. A chocolate fountain gurgled next a platter of pretzels, Ritz crackers, and fresh fruit for dipping. Axel’s gaze darted briefly away from the food to sweep Nick’s frame. “I’d make fun of your fit, but that chocolate is calling my name.”
“I appreciate it.” Nick swiped at the front of his sweater, sending another sprinkle of fairy dust to the floor. A middle-aged neighbor wearing a sweater dress and red heels walkedright through it, appearing not to notice the new shine to her shoes. “I’m actually afraid to reach my arm over the food.”
“I got you, dude.” Axel swiped a plate and loaded it with snacks before Nick could protest. “Here you go.”
Nick looked down at me, then shrugged, accepted the plate, and popped a chocolate-dipped berry into his mouth. “Much better sans glitter.”
“You’re a hit, dear.” I patted his arm. I’d already introduced him to several of my parents’ neighbors, most of whom werenotwearing ugly sweaters, and every one of whose eyes drifted down to take in the full effect of the glitter and pom-poms before reaching out to shake Nick’s hand.
Not a single question about my job or life back home. Who knew that’s all it took to get peace at a party? This was turning into the best Christmas ever.
“All I can say is youmustbe in love to wear that.” Chloe nibbled the edge of a cracker as she squinted at Nick. “Holly, why are you torturing your boyfriend?”
Boyfriend.Oh.My eyes darted to Nick’s before landing on the cheese spread. Definitely wasn’t used to that term yet, even though that was the entire point of Operation: Jack & Sally. I cleared my throat. “He can make his own choices.”
Chloe rolled her eyes. “Uh-huh.”
“Hey, I got rid of that T-shirt you didn’t like. Remember, that night at the frat party?” Axel pointed at Chloe, crumbs dotting his chin. “You said it gave you the ick, so I burned it.”
“I remember.” Chloe patted his arm. “I also remember the fire department coming.”
“I was trying to make a gesture.” Axel pouted.
“You did, babe. You did.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek. Axel lit up like he’d won a prize.
“Who says I’m doing this for Holly? Maybe I just like it.”Nick snagged a napkin from the edge of the table. Glitter immediately followed. “Oops.”
Chloe released a huff. “Come on. Your usual wardrobe is really hot—I mean, nice.” She mouthed the wordsorryat me.
