by Mary Smith
Right on cue, Spencer jumped up from the couch and hurried to the other end of the kitchen island. He pounded his fist on the counter. “Bro? Seriously?”
“Look, you know I’m no good coming up with the right words when all the attention is on me.”
Spencer shook his head with a sharp exhale. “How do you expect to tell her then?”
Grabbing a tablet and pen, Zane grinned. “I have an idea. And it’s so perfect.”
Spencer laughed as he said, “You’re writing her a love letter?”
“Well, not quite. A poem.”
“A poem?” Spencer scoffed. “You are such a nerd.”
Zane shrugged. “I’m good with that.”
He began to pen a sweet little poem, expressing how he felt about Lily, skirting around the L-word by saying everything but.
Now, he just had to find the perfect time to give it to her.
Chapter Thirteen
Lily
Sitting at the kitchen table, Lily tied a bow around the box. Christmas seemed to be creeping up faster and faster. Lily couldn’t believe it would be here sooner than she thought. Normally, all these little things that she still had left would have been done any other year. Then again, her time had been occupied by a tall, handsome man and Christmas adventures.
Lily moved the gifts to the tree and organized them as if it was something to be seen on Pinterest. A smile crossed her face and Zane’s name seemed to almost glow from the tag. She didn’t have to get him anything and she knew it, but she wanted to. The past eleven days had been a whirlwind and emotional. Both of which brought her to this point. The feelings she had for Zane were real and deep.
Stepping back, she admired her work. The white lights on the tree twinkled causing the ornaments to glow and shimmer under them. The perfectly placed garland highlighted the full, thick spruce tree. On the top, the massive star that dimmed slowly and then glowed brightly. It would almost hypnotize her.
Ring. Ring.
Slightly jumping, Lily realized it would be Zane. Glancing down at her outfit of skinny jeans and large sweater, she hoped it would be warm enough for that evening’s activities. Even though it was in the mid-forties, she knew they would be outside the entire time and would be doing a lot of walking.
Opening the door, Zane’s smile greeted her.
“Hi,” she breathlessly said. Her eyes gazed up and down his body. His simple, graphic-less baggy hoodie, parka, jeans, and biker boots seemed to be something that would come off the pages of a Hollister magazine. He made it look effortless, and she wondered how much time and effort he put into his wardrobe.
“Hey.” He stepped over the threshold. “Are you ready?”
“I need to grab my coat. Are you sure you’re fine with driving?”
“It’s no big deal. Taking the train will be so much longer. This way we can leave when we’re ready,” he said.
“True.” She slipped her arms into her puffy coat. Picking up her knitted cap she tugged it down and tied the scarf. “Ready,” she announced securing the wristlet to her wrist.
Zane held out his hand, and she easily took it. It seemed natural between them, and the butterflies in her stomach agreed. They remained latched and made their way down the sidewalk and toward his vehicle.
“Is this yours?” she questioned.
“Nope. This would be Spencers.” He corrected and opened the door to the Range Rover.
“This is nice.” She sat down onto the leather seat.
Zane shut her door and rushed over to the driver’s side. “The best part…” he started the vehicle, “heated seats.” He pushed a button on the console.
After a few seconds, Lily began to feel the warmth radiating from the seat. “Wow, that is a great feature.”
Tapping the screen on the dash, he put in the address for Meadowlark’s Winter Walk of Lights in Vienna, Virginia. “Are you ready to see some lights?”
“Absolutely.”
On the drive, they began discussing the upcoming semester of school. Lily had finalized everything on her schedule and already ordered her books. She shouldn’t be this excited about school, but something felt different. Could it be because she’ll have a boyfriend for the semester? She mentally yelled at herself to stop doing that. There hadn’t been a discussion about titles between them. Even if they had been almost acting like a couple. Zane carried the same enthusiasm as she had about the new year.
“Are you doing anything for New Year’s?” Lily shocked herself with the question when they found a parking spot.
“Actually, I don’t have any plans.” He gave her a sexy grin before getting out of the vehicle and coming over to her side to open the door.
Biting her bottom lip, she did everything she could to hold back from asking him to do something with her. She’d wait until their twelve days were finished. This way he wouldn’t think she was completely lonely and desperate. Despite that, she slightly was in that status quo.
Hand-in-hand they walked into the Meadowlark’s Winter Walk of Lights. After handing over their tickets, they slowly made their way up the half-mile trail. The night air was quite chilly, yet Lily hardly noticed it being so close to Zane. The lights were magnificent. The darkness of the night seemed to only make them shine brighter. Walking the trail with others, Zane and Lily commented on the details they saw. Neither had been there before and even though the trail was only a half-mile, it seemed much longer.
At the end was a small snack shop and Zane offered to get them each a hot chocolate. Lily welcomed the chocolate deliciousness and warmth around her hands as she held the cup.
“Would you mind if I took a selfie with you?” Again, she surprised herself with the outburst of her question.
“No.” He smirked.
Pulling her phone from her pocket, she touched the camera. Lily was never big on social media as many others were, but she did post on Instagram occasionally. Putting them both in the frame, they smiled as she snapped the photo.
“Thanks,” she said feeling the blood rush to her cheeks.
“You should send me a copy.” He sipped his drink.
Nodding, she tapped the screen a couple more times and made sure he received it.
Looking down at his phone, he smiled at the screen. “Not a bad picture.”
“No, it’s great.” She only looked at him on the screen. His eyes glowed, and his smile seemed to be perfect. Natural. Himself.
“Do you want to grab dinner before we head back?”
“Actually.” Lily had to dig deep to find a bit of bravery that was hiding. “I have some leftover lasagna from last night. It’s great reheated if you’d like to come over and have some.”
“Sounds good. Let’s go.”
Standing, he took her hand, again, leading the way back to the car.
Lily couldn’t believe how fast they made it home, but there was hardly any traffic, which seemed to be unheard of in Virginia and D.C. However, they were sitting in her kitchen before she knew it with reheated leftovers in front of them.
“Did you make this?” Zane asked, taking another bite.
“I wish. However, it was our neighbor. She brought it over and gave it to us,” Lily told him.
“She’s an excellent cook,” he commented still inhaling food.
They continued to eat in silence, enjoying every bite of cheesy goodness. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable. In fact, it felt natural. As if they’d known each other all their lives and were enjoying a peaceful meal together. When they finished, Zane quickly gathered up the empty plates and began to clean up, even though Lily protested.
“You cook, I clean.”
She giggled. “I hardly cooked. I heated,” she corrected him.
“Same difference.” He showed off the sexy smirk that made her knees weak.
“Thanks, but you don’t have to.”
Her body instinctively moved toward him. Like a magnet to steel. A hot piece of steel. He must have noticed her movements because his eyes seeme
d to widen. She wanted to kiss him again. She wanted to feel more of him. Wiping his hands on a dishtowel, he turned more toward her. It seemed he was feeling the same rush of heat as her.
He opened his mouth to say something, but they both jumped from the announcement, “I’m home.”
Harley’s voice carried through the entire house.
“In here,” Lily hollered back, taking a step away from him.
“I’ve had a day from hell. How about…oh, sorry.” Harley realized Lily wasn’t alone. “Hey, Zane.”
“Hi, Harley,” he politely greeted her.
“How was the light…thing?” She shrugged not remembering what Lily had told her that morning.
“Beautiful and fun,” Lily answered. “Guess you had a bad day.”
Harley rolled her eyes. “You have no clue, but I’m home now, and I think I’ll just leave you two be.”
“Oh,” Lily exclaimed. “Your dad sent a package, and he gave me strict instructions to make sure I gave it to you when you got home.” She turned to Zane. “I’ll be right back.”
Lily rushed up the stairs to her room and grabbed the small box off her bed. Sure, Harley could have come up here and retrieved it herself, but she needed a few seconds away from Zane and his body heat. Sitting on the side of the bed, she made herself take a couple of deep breaths. Trying to formulate a plan in her head to keep him here longer, she decided they could watch a movie. A Christmas movie. She racked her brain trying to think of something romantic, and it hit her.
White Christmas.
Who didn’t love that movie?
Feeling confident she began making her way down the stairs. She could hear them talking but was not sure what they were saying. Harley’s voice raised slightly and sounded a bit …off?
“You know she’s the greatest person in the entire world. If you hurt her, I have no problem burying your body in some remote part of the woods,” Harley growled.
“Look, I was only in this for the twelve days of adventures and that’s it. Nothing more and nothing less.”
Lily’s ears began to ring. Actually ring. She didn’t hear another word he said. He didn’t care for her like she did him. It was nothing more than pity from him to hold her hand, kiss her and go to the events. He had no true feelings for her.
Nothing.
She felt like an utter fool.
An idiot.
A moron.
And any other word in between all of those.
Every night after he left her, she bet he had a good laugh with Spencer and all his friends. Making fun of her and her silly girly way and her love of Christmas. He probably didn’t even like Christmas. She had to get him out of her house before her tears threatened to leave her eyes.
Rushing into the kitchen, she couldn’t even glance in his direction.
“Lily, want to watch a movie or something?” Zane asked.
Still without looking at Zane, she went over to Harley and said, “Here.” She handed the small box to her.
“Thanks.” Harley then made her way out of the kitchen, leaving them both alone.
“So, a movie? I was thinking maybe—”
Thinking on her feet, Lily said, “That’s it for tonight. I’ll see ya.”
“See ya?”
She could hear the confusion in his tone. “Yeah, I’m super tired and need to get some rest.”
“It’s nine o’clock,” he countered.
“I have an early morning.” She kept her gaze everywhere but on him.
“Oh, um, okay.” He leaned into her, but she moved past him and toward the door.
Opening it the cold air almost took her breath away. “Goodnight,” he said as he passed her. Quickly, she shut the door and raced up the stairs as the tears began to fall.
Chapter Fourteen
Zane
While Lily was upstairs, Zane thought this was the perfect time to talk to Harley about things. “Harley, I want to talk to you about something.”
He pulled the folded paper from his pocket and held it in his hand. He could feel his face starting to burn with embarrassment. “I want to give this to Lily but wasn’t sure if she’d like it or not.”
“What do you have there?” Harley flopped down beside him on the couch. She plucked it from his hand and opened it.
“I wrote a poem for her. I know it’s lame, but—”
Looking up from the poem, she grinned. “Lame? No way. Lily loves this kind of stuff! I’m pretty sure she has the book Romeo and Juliet tucked away in her room somewhere. So, you do have feelings for her?”
“Yeah,” he admitted quietly, afraid Lily would come rushing downstairs at any moment.
Harley’s grin grew and she triumphantly answered, “I knew it!”
“Is it that obvious?” All this time he thought he was playing things cool.
“Only to everyone but you and her.” Harley rolled her eyes and laughed. “You giving it to her tonight?”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “I was trying to find the right time. I thought you could give me some advice on that.”
“I don’t think there is a bad time. It’s Christmas. It’s her favorite time of the year. And she’s having such a good time with you. She’s really a romantic at heart, and this will make her year!”
“So, you think I should give it to her then?”
“Absolutely!” Harley’s voice raised slightly. She scrunched up her face like she knew her words were not getting through to him. “Are you serious? You really don’t have a clue that she’s fallen for you?”
Zane shrugged. This was all so new to him. He never felt this way about any girl before Lily. “I don’t know how to do any of this. I have my cousin in one ear, then I see Lily, and anything I had planned to say disappears.”
“You’ll be fine. But you know she’s the greatest person in the entire world.”
“Oh, I know.” he mused. “This whole thing was supposed to be innocent and easy.”
“What changed?” Harley asked.
“Everything,” Zane whispered. “I wasn’t supposed to have feelings for her.” Feelings were never part of the plan.
“If you hurt her, I have no problem burying your body in some remote part of the woods,” Harley growled and wagged her finger at him jokingly.
Zane chuckled at her words. From his phone, he showed Harley the contract that Lily had him sign. “Look, I was only in it for the twelve days of adventures and that’s it. Nothing more and nothing less,” he read the contract out loud and shrugged. The simple arrangement was all her, not him. And yet it was perfect for him, at the time. No strings, no feelings, no relationship. Well, it was supposed to be that easy because he knew the moment he laid eyes on her that he wanted more than just twelve days with her. That hadn’t changed. However, that was a confession for Lily, not her roommate. Looking at the poem in his hands, he smiled. “This was just the only way I knew how to tell her.”
Harley hugged him. Putting her finger to her lips, she whispered, “I think she’s coming. I’m so happy for you two!”
Zane had never felt this kind of nervousness mixed with excitement before. He had butterflies in his stomach, and his heart was racing as he shoved the paper back in his pocket. Maybe they could watch a movie or something, and that’s when he’d give her the poem.
Turning to greet Lily, he couldn’t hide the smile that filled his face. Harley gave him a silent thumbs up and excused herself.
Instead of a pleasant Lily bouncing down the stairs, she rushed into the kitchen, not even glancing in his direction.
“Lily, want to watch a movie or something?” he asked.
Lily walked right past Zane and she shoved a small box in Harley’s hands.
“Here.”
“Thanks.” Harley looked back at Zane and winked before hurrying upstairs.
“So, a movie? I was thinking maybe—”
Lily’s abrupt words were short and to the point. “That’s for tonight. I’ll see ya.”
Before he kn
ew what was happening, he was handed his coat and was being shoved out the door.
Snow flurries fell as Zane drove Spencer’s Range Rover to Lily’s apartment. The roads were clear and dry, and a light coating of snow covered the grass. Since this was a drive-through display, at least the light flurries won’t keep them from seeing every detail of the enormous light display.
Christmas lights had always been one of Zane’s favorite part of the days leading up to Christmas. He couldn’t remember the last time he was at this display.
His thoughts moved to Lily, and an uneasy feeling filled his gut after their last encounter. The date had been perfect, and then—burn.
She hadn’t answered any of his text messages since, and he had no idea what had happened to make her suddenly act like that.
Tonight, was their last Christmas day, or date, or event. He didn’t even know what they were calling it anymore. Were they dating? Or was he just a convenient plus-one?
The poem he wrote for her burned a hole in his jeans pocket. He was prepared to give it to her after their last date. They were at her place and had just finished a wonderful meal. While Lily had gone upstairs, he talked to Harley, and she suggested to him that there was no wrong moment during Christmas to give Lily the poem since it was her favorite time of the year. Zane had thought they would sit down to watch a movie, and he would give the poem to her then. He had everything on his side that evening. Until he didn’t.
He still didn’t understand why she tossed him out so abruptly. He replayed the moment over in his head again and again and still, he couldn’t pinpoint what had changed.
Zane climbed the steps to her front door, knocked, and patiently waited as the minutes passed with no answer. It had become habit seeing her smiling face light up the entryway as she swung the door open.
Tonight, she took longer than usual to answer. There was no sound of movement inside, no voices calling to let him know they’d be right there, nothing. He was hoping they were still on for tonight.