“I’m not. I just repeated your own words back to you. If you meant something different, please, enlighten me.”
Kat felt more powerful in this moment than she had in a long time. She never wanted to see Scott again and never thought she’d have the opportunity to tell him what she thought of him. Yet, here he was, presenting himself almost on a silver platter and she wasn’t going to let him assuage his own ego with a half-assed apology that she was just supposed to accept.
“I just…I’m sorry.”
She arched a brow. “What are you sorry for?”
Scott’s eyes darted from side to side as he shifted in his seat, clueing her in to his discomfort. She wondered what he was really hoping to achieve with this conversation because she had a feeling it wasn’t going the way he wanted.
Scott coughed and looked at her again. “Look, I feel bad about what happened—“
Her sudden laughter cut Scott off and he was now looking at her in confusion.
She sorely wanted to look at her brother and Ford to see if they were thinking the same thing she was, but she wasn’t taking her eyes off Scott for one second.
“It’s obvious you’re here to make yourself feel better about what happened so long ago. But I’m sorry that I’m not the same person I was then that would just let you run rough-shod all over me. So while I appreciate your attempt right now, take your apology and shove it up your ass. It’s pathetic and solves nothing.”
Kat was breathing heavily by the end of her little speech. She hadn’t realized she felt that way until the words came exploding out of her. Now that she’d said them, she realized she felt much lighter than she had in years. Was that all it took for her to slough off the weight of her past?
Unlikely, but she’d take the lighter feeling nonetheless.
“You’re right, you’re not. It doesn’t change that I’m still sorry for what happened.”
Kat snorted and shook her head. “If you’re going to keep repeating yourself like a broken record, save it for someone who cares. As it is, I can’t sit here another minute and listen to what you’re saying because it stinks.”
Without waiting to see what Scott did or said, she pushed her chair back and stood, walking away from the table.
In that moment, she felt more powerful than ever. When Scott admitted to cheating on her ten years before, she felt out of control and unable to handle anything. Facing him and not letting him cow her seemed to have helped restore her confidence in herself.
She didn’t think she was suddenly changed all over, but she knew that standing up to Scott was just the first step.
Ford trotted up to walk next to her. “How do you feel?”
She looked at him and grinned. “Pretty fucking great.”
Eighteen
Kat
There was a part of Kat that was incredibly excited about the date that Ford asked her on. She couldn’t wait to see what he came up with.
The other part of her was terrified about it. Sure, she’d dated here and there over the last ten years, but it hadn’t been serious. None of those guys came close to what she felt for Ford.
And that was scary. If she wasn’t careful, she could see herself loosing her heart.
“Where did he say he was taking you again?” a teeny voice asked from her cell phone.
“A Christmas carnival.”
Denise laughed. “Don’t you have one of those in your backyard?”
Kat looked out her window at the closed booths and laughed. “I guess, yeah. But he’s taking me to something on a Christmas tree farm I think.”
“Sounds…cold. It sounds cold. Why are you going to that when he could pick something inside?”
“Because I want to. I’ll bundle up and it’ll be fine.”
“Fine,” Denise said, sighing dramatically. “You know I’m just teasing, right? I’m glad that you’re going outside your comfort zone to go on a date with him.”
“Yeah, I do.” Kat smiled. “I appreciate you looking out for me though.”
“Is he getting you?”
“No,” Kat said, grimacing. “He wanted to, but I told him I’d be more comfortable driving.”
Silence greeted her words. Denise finally asked, “Why’s that?”
Kat sighed and sank down onto the edge of her bed, staring at her sock clad feet. “The thought of being reliant on him to get me there and home makes me nervous. I’d rather control when I get there and when I leave, just in case things go south.”
“You think they’ll go south?”
“No,” Kat said, drawing the syllable out, “but I want to plan for every eventuality. Ford said he understood.”
Denise sighed loudly. “Okay. I understand. I’m just glad you’re putting yourself out there more. I can’t wait to hear about this date later.”
“I’ll give you all the good details, don’t worry.”
She and Denise chatted for a few more minutes before they hung up so Kat could finish getting ready.
Since they were going to be outside, she was dressing for comfort and warmth more than she was to impress Ford. But she couldn’t help the small vain part of her that wanted to look nice as well.
That was why she also picked out one of her embellished ear warmers instead of a regular beanie and why she was wearing her hair down instead of up in a ponytail.
She checked the time and saw that she needed to get a move on if she wanted to get to her date on time. She quickly stuffed her feet into her lined boots before tromping down the stairs. She found her dad in the living room watching college football.
She leaned down and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. “I’m heading out. I’ll see you later, Daddy.”
“Have fun, baby girl.”
She quickly shrugged into her jackets, wrapped a scarf around her neck, and tugged her ear warmer on. She patted her jacket to make sure she had her gloves and her small wallet before she stepped outside, shivering in the cold air.
As she walked to her truck, she looked at the sky, which was laden with gray clouds. There was a good chance a storm was moving in and she made a note to make sure they were prepared for whatever weather was coming their way.
Soon she was on the road and singing along to Christmas songs. The drive went by quickly and soon she was parking in the gravel lot at the Winter Christmas Village.
She scanned the parking lot for Ford’s truck, but didn’t see it anywhere. She thought about sitting in her car and waiting, but decided she’d rather get out and start walking around. She didn’t want to waste precious daylight waiting for Ford.
She made sure she had everything before opening her door and tensing as the cold snuck into her car.
She shivered as she locked it tight, huddling down into her jacket. She was glad to be on a date with Ford, but like Denise said, maybe something inside would have been better given the brisk wind that was whipping around everywhere.
“Kat!” she heard from behind her and turned to see Ford jogging toward her. “Hey, I didn’t see you pull up.”
Her brow furrowed. “Where’s your truck?”
“Oh, I also have a car. I drove it today.”
“Okay.”
They stood there awkwardly for a few moments before Ford cleared his throat and said, “Shall we?”
She smiled tightly and turned toward the venue. The scent of Christmas trees grew stronger the closer they got to the lot and Kat smiled. She loved the smell of Christmas, especially the trees.
They walked through the archway over the path that wound through the trees and Kat tried to figure out why she was so on edge.
As they continued to walk with neither of them saying anything, she realized what it was. She felt tense and out of sorts because she wasn’t comfortable. She’d never felt like this around Ford and she felt like she needed to break the ice, but wasn’t sure how. So she stayed silent.
After a few minutes of walking through the trees, passing families and couples that were heading back to the parki
ng lot, Ford sighed and grabbed her arm, pulling her to a stop.
“Does this feel weird to you?” he asked.
She smiled sheepishly. “A little?”
Ford sighed and ran a hand over his head. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I feel that way. If you’re uncomfortable, we can go grab something to eat somewhere else or we can just rain check…”
He trailed off. Kat was now smiling. She felt better knowing that she wasn’t the only one picking up the weird vibe. Strangely enough, knowing that Ford was feeling it too, and that he was plagued by the same sense of nerves, made her feel better.
“I think we’re both just nervous. We shouldn’t think about this being date and just have fun.” She shrugged at the end and hoped that he agreed.
Now that she was here with him, she really wanted to go on this date.
Ford studied her face for a few moments before nodding. “Okay. But if you want to leave at any point, just let me know.”
This was the second time he’d told her they could leave if she was uncomfortable and it did something to her insides to hear him say it.
“Deal.”
Ford held his hand out to her. “What do you say we make this really awkward and hold hands?”
She laughed and slapped her hand into his. “It can’t be worse than it already is.”
They started walking again and strangely enough, it wasn’t all that awkward. Yes, she was freaking out internally about holding Ford’s hand, but it felt nice.
They were both wearing gloves, so she couldn’t feel his hand, but it still felt right. It was almost like she was content because they were holding hands.
If asked, she’d never admit that to anyone, not even Ford. But there was something about being there with him that put her at ease.
“So what is this place exactly?” she asked as they drew closer to a clearing.
“It’s a little bit of everything,” he said. “They have the trees, as you can see.”
He waved to the tress all around the path they were on. “I think they might have some crafts for sale as well. But mainly, they’re a farm. In the fall they have hay rides and some pumpkin sculptures. In the winter, I think it depends on the weather. I looked at their website and it looked like they do ice sculptures, snowman building, and stuff like that.”
“Almost makes me wish there was snow on the ground,” she said, smiling at him as they entered the clearing.
Kat’s eyes widened as she took in the spectacle. To their left was the entrance to the tree lot and to their right was a cute cottage with a sign reading “Santa’s Cottage” out front. She saw what looked like a restaurant and a small store.
“You ready to explore?” he asked.
“Let’s do it.”
Ford tugged her past Santa’s Cottage and the store until they were entering the restaurant. Her stomach growled as she smelled the roast turkey and soup they’d made that day.
“Seat yourselves wherever you like,” a pretty blonde said as she walked by with a tray full of dirty dishes.
Ford led her toward a table along a wall of windows. Her breath caught in her throat as she got a look at the view outside.
“Wow,” she said, her eyes glued to the lake outside the window. She pulled her outerwear off, dropping it into the other chair on her side before sitting down. “That’s beautiful.”
“It is.”
She looked back and Ford and caught his smile. “I wonder if it freezes fully in the winter.”
He shrugged. “Possibly, but I doubt it. Seeing it reminds me that they have an outdoor rink if you’re interested in skating.”
“Sure, why not?”
He grinned at her again as the blonde from earlier came to stop by their table. “Hey y’all! Welcome. We have Pepsi products and our meals today are…”
She rattled off a list of food, all of which sounded good. But Kat couldn’t be bothered to really listen. She was going to get some soup in a bread bowl. She couldn’t care less about whatever else she’d said.
Kat’s gaze was firmly rooted on Ford, who was looking at the waitress as she continued talking.
He’d shed his own layers and she could see that he was wearing a tight Henley that showcased his muscular physique. It was drool worthy.
Ford looked at her and she snapped back to attention. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
“Do you know what you’d like?” the waitress asked.
She quickly ordered and hoped her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt. She fiddled with her fingers, too scared to look at Ford.
“You know, it’s okay to stare at me.”
Kat glanced at him through her lashes and saw that he was smirking at her. He continued. “I know I’m pretty hot. I’d stare at me too.”
She couldn’t help but bursting into laughter. “Are you serious right now?”
He grinned. “No, but it got you to forget about being embarrassed I caught you staring at me.”
“I couldn’t help it…” she said, dropping her gaze again.
“Hey,” he said, placing a hand over hers. “It’s okay. I stare at you more than I care to admit. You’re beautiful.”
“Really?” She wasn’t sure she believed him because she’d never caught him looking at her like she was at him, except for the night of his dinner, and that had been disastrous.
He nodded. “Yep. I stare at you entirely too much. In fact, I’ve stared at you enough to know that you have a fantastic ass and I can’t wait to see it without the jeans on.”
Kat’s mouth dropped open as a throat cleared.
She looked to her right and met the wide eyes of their waitress who had their order on a tray.
“I…uh…I have your food.”
The waitress’s hands shook as she put their food and drinks out and she quickly walked away from them.
Ford’s lips twitched. “I think I made her uncomfortable.”
“I think that’s an understatement,” she said.
He laughed. “I don’t regret what I said. It’s true. I think about your ass entirely too much.”
“Is that all you think about?” she asked flirtatiously.
He arched a brow. “Fishing for compliments?”
She shrugged, trying to act indifferent. But it was hard because she was, in fact, fishing for compliments. She wanted to know how much he was attracted to her because she still struggled to understand how he was attracted to her at all.
“Okay,” he said, leaning forward. She mimicked him and looked at him eagerly as she awaited what he was going to say.
“I think about your ass and what it looks like without the jeans. Because of that, I wonder what type of underwear you’re wearing. Are you going for the practical look or are you going for something a little more risqué and fucking hot?”
Kat’s face was burning, and she knew her blush was likely lighting up the room, but she couldn’t bring herself to care as she listened to Ford talk.
“Then I think about if your bra will match that underwear and I can’t help but think about what your breasts look like. I’ve gotten some glimpses of cleavage, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t wishing I knew what you looked like underneath.”
“I think you’ve said enough,” Kat said, her voice rough.
Hearing Ford list the things he’d been looking at and thinking about was making her hot under the collar. She shifted in her seat, aware that her panties were now damp and she couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
“I hope you don’t doubt that I’m attracted to you again, otherwise I’ll be forced to continue with my list.”
Kat felt like she’d swallowed her tongue. She looked at her soup and wished she could think of something witty to say. Instead, she started eating as she struggled to come up with anything in response.
Nineteen
Kat
After a tasty lunch, Ford led Kat to the makeshift ice rink. It wasn’t too big, but it was large enough that a lot of people could skate at any give
n time and it wouldn’t be too crowded.
Even though it had been years since she’d last skated, she was excited to do it. She was glad that it was cold enough for the rink to stay frozen. It was December, which meant temperatures usually stayed below freezing, but it was also North Carolina, which meant they could get a random warm spell at any moment.
They rented their skates from the small hut and quickly switched their shoes out for the skates. It was weird standing up on the blades and Kat wobbled for a few moments before Ford helped steady her.
They continued to hold hands as they carefully walked to the rink and stepped on the ice. As soon as she placed her first foot on the rink, her leg shot out and if she hadn’t been holding on to the edge of the rink, she would have done the splits.
The only issue with that was that she wasn’t overly flexible, and she’d never been capable of doing a split before. That meant she probably would have injured herself in such a way that she would have to go to the hospital, but she’d also not be able to look Ford in the eye ever again.
“You okay?” he asked.
She nodded and pulled herself back to standing and brought her other foot onto the ice. She wobbled again, but she refused to let herself fall.
Ford didn’t look any the worse for wear while she felt like a newborn foal trying to figure out how to walk. Why was life so unfair?
“You want some help?” he asked, coming to a stop next to her.
“I’m good. You go on. It’ll just take me a minute or two to get my legs back under me.”
He looked at her for several moments before skating away. Even though he was moving away from her, she periodically could feel his gaze on her like a caress.
Ford had completed two full laps by the time she got her legs to cooperate and she could let go of the side of the rink.
She smiled as she started skating smoothly along, enjoying the simple act of gliding across the ice.
“Look at you,” Ford said from her right, startling her.
Her legs quickly went two different ways. She let out a small scream and prepared to fall onto the ice, but a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist, keeping her upright.
Hometown Christmas Page 10