by Amy Sparling
“Yes!” I say dramatically. “I’m dying for a shower. Please tell me this hotel you found has a shower.”
“Nope,” Park says. “There’s just a water hose out back where you can rinse yourself off.”
I give him a look and he grins. “It has a shower. I think it even has a bed.”
I push him as we walk back outside, shopping bags in tow. The drive takes a little over an hour, but when we arrive, we’re on the coast of California. It’s absolutely beautiful, especially when I compare the blue water and clean beaches to the muddy water ocean in Texas. Park sets the GPS and follows it down a narrow gravel road that gets closer to the shore with each minute.
“Is this where the hotel is?” I say, looking around. “I just see houses.”
“That’s because I got a house,” he says, pulling into the driveway of an adorable blue beach house. “It’s available for the rest of the week so I went ahead and reserved it.”
He cuts the engine and looks over at me. He seems a little hesitant, or shy. “What do you think?”
“I think it’s awesome.”
“Yeah?”
I nod enthusiastically. “Christmas at the beach? It’s perfect.”
“Sweet,” he says. “I was afraid you’d want to go right back home but since we have so much driving ahead of us, I was thinking why not turn this week into a vacation.”
“I’m so ready for a vacation,” I say.
He leans over and kisses me, then pulls away slowly. “Race you to the front door,” he whispers.
I jump out of the truck and run up the stairs to the front door, Park running along behind me. I press my palm to the door handle. “I win!” I say breathlessly.
Park bends down and takes a house key out from underneath a potted plant. “Yes, but I have the key!”
Inside is the cutest beach house I’ve ever seen. The whole place is decorated in a beach theme, with sea shells and mermaid figurines and little sail boats everywhere. The back wall is covered in windows that overlook the beautiful Pacific Ocean.
“Wow,” I say, making my way over to the window. “This will be a fun week.”
His arms slide around my waist as he stands behind me gazing outside. I feel his chin drop on top of my head. “I got you a computer,” he says softly.
“Huh?”
“In my suitcase. The new Surface Pro you’ve been wanting.” He sighs. “I’ve been dying to give it to you all month but I made myself wait until Christmas, and now it’s gone.”
I turn around and wrap my arms around his neck. “Park! That’s way too expensive! My present for you isn’t nearly that good.”
He kisses me deeper now, his body warm against mine. “Honey, I don’t need anything from you. You are all I want, and I have you every day. That makes my life perfect.”
I roll my eyes. He kisses me again, and I lean into him, letting the kiss take away all the stresses of the last few days. I tangle my hands in his hair, feel his breath warm on my neck. I close my eyes and let time slow until there’s nothing else but me and Park.
“Let’s go take a shower,” I whisper.
“Yes, ma’am,” Park says, his voice throaty. “But first there’s a surprise for you on the table.”
I pull away. “What kind of surprise? We only just got here.”
He gives a little shrug but his grin gives away that he’s hiding something.
“What?” I say.
“You were asleep a long time,” he says.
I rush into the kitchen. On the table is a large bouquet of stunning flowers in various shades of pink and purple. Beneath it sits a little blue box tied with a silver ribbon.
“How the hell did you pull this off?” I ask as I pick up the box.
“Turns out the woman who owns this beach rental also has a boutique.”
I open the box. Inside is a glass Christmas ornament. A red velvety bow is tied at the top. Inside the glass is sand and little seashells from the California beach.
On the outside, someone has hand painted in beautiful cursive the words:
Christmas With You
2017
I bite my lip to hold back the tears that threaten to fall. “Park...” I say, holding the delicate ornament in my hands. “This is beautiful.”
“It’s a way for us to remember this Christmas. How horrible it could have been, but how great we made it by being together.”
I set down the ornament and then throw my arms around him. In this moment, all of my previous worries and fears fade away. I don’t need to rush things with Park. We don’t need to move in together or have an unexpected baby right now. All we need is each other. Things will happen for us in their own time, but I should enjoy the moment, each moment, for as long as they last.
“Sorry it’s not a new computer,” Park says, wiping a tear off my cheek with his thumb.
“This present is better than a computer,” I say, leaning my head against this chest. “This present is everything.”
THANK YOU FOR READING Christmas With You! If you enjoyed the book, please consider leaving a review on Amazon or Goodreads. It doesn’t even have to be long; just one sentence helps out a lot!
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Series
The Summer Unplugged Series
The Summer Series
The Believe in Me Series
The Immortal Mark Series
The In Plain Sight Series
First Love Shorts
Standalone Novels
Ella’s Twisted Senior Year
Natalie and the Nerd
Lana’s Ex Prom Date
When Zoey Fell Too Far
Deadbeat
Phantom Summer
Amy Sparling is the author of The Summer Unplugged Series, Ella's Twisted Senior Year, Deadbeat & other awesome books for younger teens. She loves coffee, the beach, and swooning over book boyfriends.
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