Beyond the Mistletoe: A Christmas Romance (Beyond Love Book 7)

by Karice Bolton

  “Ever since our first kiss under the mistletoe, you shifted my world,” he murmured. “I know I’m moving, but I’d like to see where this goes.”

  “It really can’t go anywhere.”

  “You don’t know that. We don’t know that. Circumstances can change. Neither of us has a crystal ball.”

  I shrugged my shoulders, knowing neither of us knew if the attraction would hold beyond tomorrow. What was pulling us close tonight was a mix between euphoria from the wedding and the idea of no strings attached between us. I was certain of it. We’d entered into this situation knowing we’d both be up for something that didn’t need to last. It just so happened I managed to complicate and delay the encounter slightly. But I could analyze all this because I was refusing to look in his direction. If my eyes connected with his, that was when my mind turned to mush. I knew I was too close to letting myself throw caution to the wind.

  “Did you see that when we came in?” Derek asked, pointing to the far corner. I followed the direction of his finger and saw a photo booth hidden by a woodland scene.

  “This is so over the top,” I laughed.

  “When money is no object.” He shook his head and smiled.

  “We’ve got to hit that before we leave,” I told him.

  “Absolutely.” He was silent for a few seconds. “Promise me you’ll be open to the possibilities. No matter how ridiculous they may seem now.”

  “You mean like the fact we’ve only known one another for a week?” I teased.

  “Technically we met a couple months ago. It’s not my fault I wasn’t that memorable.”

  I laughed and rested my head on his shoulder. The idea was somewhat intriguing, but it was also exhausting, and I wasn’t planning on becoming exhausted.

  “Aww, how cute,” Lily said, coming up behind us. She placed her hand on my shoulder and gave it a light squeeze, which popped my head up like a jack-in-the-box.

  “Two girls asked for Derek’s autograph before the ceremony,” I informed Lily.

  “Does that happen often?” Lily’s brow arched as she looked at Derek.

  “Only when he pays them.”

  Derek let out a muffled groan, and Lily laughed, waving over Brandy and Tori.

  “So I feel like matchmaking might be my next business venture. What do you think, Derek?”

  All the girls fell silent for his answer, and my cheeks flamed red when I saw the look in his eyes. It literally melted me on the spot. This man had somehow figured out how to turn me into a puddle of emotion with nothing more than a look.

  “I think you can figure that out,” he laughed after a few seconds of silence. He took a sip of his water, and I thought about pouring it over myself to cool off. This was crazy. He was crazy, and I was crazy for falling for his moves.

  “But we want to hear what you think of Emily,” Lily informed him.

  Nothing like being talked about as if you’re not actually there.

  “Speaking of Emily, did you know your friend here is into Christmas porn?” Derek asked.

  All the girls gasped and stared at me with mouths gaping.

  “It was Bodie’s taste, not mine,” I informed them.

  “That just makes it sound worse,” Lily said, placing her hand on mine. “How did you even find holiday action?”

  I let out a sigh and pretended to scoot away from Derek. “You won’t believe me anyway.”

  “We will. We swear,” Brandy said, nodding.

  “Bodie turned it on last weekend. He chewed the remote and managed to order it.”

  “Sure he did,” Lily teased. “You do realize how many buttons you have to push, right?”

  I flashed her a hairy eyeball and pretended to flag down the server.

  “That’s exactly what I pointed out,” Derek added.

  “Christmas or regular, I’ve never seen any,” Lily said.

  My eyes darted to hers. I couldn’t tell if she was kidding or not.

  “Well, between Santa porn and eating paper, Emily’s certainly full of surprises.” Derek’s laughter was completely intoxicating. He pulled me in closer, and I teetered on the edge of ecstasy.

  “That’s our Emily,” Brandy said.

  “I didn’t eat the paper, I spit it out without swallowing,” I grumbled.

  Derek choked on his water, and I realized how it came across. I’d never managed to weave sexual innuendo into anything prior to Derek.

  “Why in the world would you eat paper?” Brandy asked, oblivious. “Are you deficient in something?”

  “It was stuck to the Hershey Kiss.” I furrowed my brows in frustration. “But for your information, it wasn’t my fault. He brings it out in me.”

  “So this might be a match made—”

  “For a fun weekend,” I interrupted, ignoring the fact that fate had tried to step in more than once with us.

  “You seem a little tense,” Derek chuckled, and began massaging my shoulders, and it was as if everyone and everything just drifted away. But I knew it was time to let the cat out of Santa’s bag.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Watching Gabby and Jason walk into the reception as husband and wife elevated the energy inside the room to incredible levels. I could literally feel the love run through every single one of us as we watched Jason hold Gabby close. She’d changed from the wedding dress she’d been wearing to one that looked more manageable for dancing and enjoying the night.

  “And to think they almost could have gone separate ways,” Derek whispered so only I could hear.

  Gabby’s dad hugged Jason, saying something to him that made Jason laugh. It was nice to see the entire family embrace Jason. I’d never had that luxury with my ex. They sensed something I refused to believe. My parents were cordial, but I knew there was something that bothered them. Turning my attention back to Derek, I smiled.

  “Thank goodness they didn’t give up.” Warmth spread through my body as I caught Derek watching me. All it took with the man was one look and I was a goner

  “Or we never would have met,” he said, propping his elbows on the table and grinning.

  Lily, Brandy, and Tori all made their way to the table and sat down. Lily’s husband, Ayden, was grabbing drinks at the bar, along with Aaron and Mason.

  “You know, I’m not sure that’s necessarily true.” I smiled and sat back in the chair, watching Gabby circle around the room with Jason.

  “What do you mean? The only reason we met is—”

  “Because I set you two up,” Lily interrupted.

  “I’d say the only reason they met is because of Gabby’s wedding. The opportunity to pair them up wouldn’t have presented itself if it weren’t for the wedding,” Brandy said.

  I laughed and shook my head. Brandy always enjoyed offering an alternate view when it came to Lily.

  “It might be more complex than that,” I confessed, glancing at Derek.

  Here went nothing.

  “How do you figure?” His eyes connected with mine, and I could see the amusement sprinkled throughout his gaze.

  “Well, Chance, last time I checked, your dating profile and mine were on the same site. Apparently, we had the same interests and characteristics in ninety-one out of the one hundred categories.”

  “What did you call me?” he whispered.

  “Chance. Or should I use LuckyCharm76?”

  His smile widened as he let out a deep breath and ran his palms over his face. “I should have known the one woman who could make me second-guess life decisions would be you.” Derek’s brow arched.

  “I do seem to have a knack for that. But I wouldn’t necessarily call online dating a life decision.”

  “What are we missing?” Brandy asked, sitting across from me. Her fiancé, Aaron, sat down next to her, and they both stared at us.

  “Missing? Yes. What are we missing?” Aaron smiled.

  Lily studied me as a grin crept onto her lips. “Online?”

  “I’m lost,” Tori said, taking a sip of wine. />
  “Until recently, Derek always had great stories to share about his online dating experiences. It became somewhat of a thing every Sunday dinner, and then without warning, he hung up his hat.”

  “And?” Brandy pressed.

  “Maybe Derek should relay what happened,” Lily said, dropping her gaze to the table.

  My heart rate spiked.

  “What happened?” I asked.

  “Nothing happened,” he assured me.

  “Not true,” Lily corrected. “He came over, completely defeated, and I never see Derek defeated. I mean look at him. It would take a lot.”

  I wasn’t sure I wanted her to continue.

  “He’d chatted back and forth online with this one particular person and felt a real connection. Ayden thought he should hold his horses since Derek hadn’t even seen a picture of her yet.”

  “How very shallow,” Mason laughed.

  Leave it to Ayden’s brother to keep him in check.

  Derek let out a deep breath. Obviously more was to come.

  “So anyway, the first date got pushed off the first time, then the second, then the third, the fourth…”

  A seed of guilt sprouted to an entire tree.

  “It wasn’t that many times,” I blurted.

  “But Derek kept forging ahead, telling us he could feel that something was different about this one, if only she would meet him,” she continued. “And then a miracle happened. It was the evening of the date, and she hadn’t canceled like all the other times.”

  “And then Woowoo never showed,” Derek sighed. “I got stood up. To top it off by the next day, she’d completely vanished. Dismantled her profile.”

  All eyes fell on me, and I let out a squeak in my defense.

  “It’s not a ticking time bomb. I didn’t have to dismantle anything. I only canceled my membership.” Why was I getting so feisty?

  “Who in their right mind chooses a profile name of Woowoo?” Mason asked.

  I was grateful out of the entire situation my profile name was what intrigued Mason, not the fact that I stood Derek up.

  “I never would have guessed you were the heartbreaker behind the scenes,” Lily said.

  “Let’s not get carried away,” I said, waving my hand. “I can’t be a heartbreaker when I’ve never even met the person.”

  “The person is sitting right next to you,” Derek said.

  “From what I heard, you two chatted back and forth by emails daily,” Lily continued. “That counts as meeting.”

  “What can I say? I freaked out about meeting someone I’d told so much to, and besides, it seems to me like you jumped the gun.” I glanced at Derek and he smiled.

  “What can I say? I know what I like.” His devilish grin made my stomach do flips.

  The moment I’d realized Derek was Chance, I forced myself not to look at the messages we’d traded for two straight weeks. I only wanted to focus on the physical attraction this weekend. Focusing on anymore would be problematic.

  “But back to Woowoo? How is that supposed to be…you know…sexy?” Mason asked, seemingly perplexed.

  “Why would I make the profile name sexy?” I asked.

  “Isn’t that the point? Make yourself flirty or something,” Mason teased, and Tori poked him. “But seriously, I question the kind of man who’s attracted to a profile name of Woowoo.”

  “I’ve never been one to be swayed by public opinion, and I enjoy the road less traveled.” Derek said.

  “How do you know my road has been less traveled?” I asked, swatting him.

  Lily chuckled and Derek rubbed my back gently. The tension between my shoulder blades slowly relaxed.

  “Not what I was saying at all. A little defensive perhaps?” He flashed me a challenging look.

  Gabby and Jason drifted over to our table, and I hopped up to give her a tight hug. These were the people we needed to concentrate on, not my online dating profile.

  “Congratulations. You look stunning, absolutely stunning,” I told her.

  “I can’t believe the day is finally here,” she gushed, wrapping her free arm around Jason’s waist.

  “Guess what we found out?” Lily asked.

  “What?” Gabby looked over at Lily.

  “Remember how Derek didn’t initially want to be set up?” Lily questioned.

  Gabby nodded. “Yeah. He’d wanted a break from dating because of some online fiasco.”

  “You know, I am sitting right here,” Derek offered.

  “Guess who caused the fiasco?” Lily smacked the table, and I nearly hopped out of my chair as Gabby’s eyes darted immediately to mine.

  “Why? Why would you instantly think it was me?” I protested.

  “Just a hunch,” Gabby laughed. “I do work with you every single day.”

  “Well, all things have worked out now.” I caught Derek out of the corner of my eye as his hand moved up my spine, and he began massaging the base of my neck.

  What was he trying to do to me? His touch unraveled every ounce of self-control I’d managed to scrape together. It was almost as if he enjoyed watching me squirm.

  “Sometimes fate feels the need to scream at the top of her lungs when you don’t listen the first time,” Gabby said, and Jason nodded. “I should know.”

  “Or the fifth and sixth time,” Derek added.

  “Enough discussion about me. This is your wedding. And the most gorgeous one I’ve been to.”

  “Thank you, but it was all Carla. I told her my vision and boy did she run with it,” Gabby laughed, shaking her head.

  “Okay, ladies and gentlemen, dinner will be served shortly. If everyone could make their way to their table, the servers will begin making the rounds,” the emcee announced over the speaker system.

  “That’s our cue,” Gabby said, standing on her tiptoes to give Jason a kiss.

  “Have fun,” I told them both.

  “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Lily giggled.

  “That doesn’t take much off the table,” Gabby’s brow rose before turning around with Jason.

  “I ordered the New York,” Mason announced, rubbing his hands together.

  Tori and Lily traded glances and burst into laughter.

  “Good to know,” Ayden said, slapping his brother’s back. “I did too.”

  “Always stay away from the fish at weddings,” Mason continued. “It’s either cold, rubbery, or glistening in all the wrong ways.”

  “I don’t think there are any right ways for a fish to glisten,” Derek said, wryly.

  “No kidding. What kind of weddings have you been to?” Ayden laughed as everyone broke into smaller conversation around the table.

  A few seconds of silence sat between Derek and I as our plates were served.

  “I wish I could turn back time,” I whispered.

  “I can’t believe you stood me up.” He drummed his fingers on the table.

  “Well, I’d had my own fair share of online dating trauma. If it makes you feel any better, if I knew it was Big D who was online, I still wouldn’t have shown up.”

  “You know? I’m not sure that does make me feel better at all. Yeah. I’m pretty sure it doesn’t.” He flashed me a magnetic grin and stopped beating his fingers on the table.

  “It didn’t come out right.” My gaze flicked to Lily who was pretending to listen intently to Brandy, but I think she was secretly eavesdropping.

  “I thought you only wanted me for one thing.” He placed his palm over his heart and acted like he’d been wounded. “I’m getting mixed messages.”

  “You are not. I only want you for one thing. Wasn’t that our mutual agreement?” I teased.

  “Yes and no.” He scooted in his chair. “I’m back on the fence. You had me there for a few hours thinking maybe we could just make this purely physical.”

  “And then what happened?”

  He held my gaze and slid his hand onto my leg. The familiar sensations slammed into me as I thought about what might lay r
ight around the corner.

  “The things you wrote in your messages to me, or rather, to a perfectly distanced stranger made me think about things I hadn’t thought about in years.”

  I pushed down a dry swallow and drew in a shaky breath. So he did remember the messages.

  “I felt safe talking about those things.”

  “Because you knew you’d never meet the person?” he asked.

  I felt completely exposed and vulnerable. I could have kept the secret close to my heart, never tell him I was the one who stood him up, but it was like my heart wanted to reveal the side of me I was so busy hiding from him. I owed him an honest explanation.

  “I didn’t intend to stand you up. I actually had gone on a couple dates prior—”

  “Again, is that supposed to make me feel better?” Deep wrinkles formed along his forehead, making him look even more rugged and sexy. Was there nothing wrong with this man?

  “Sorry. The dates I’d been on were complete disasters. They made me want to hide from the world and never face the opposite sex again.”

  This wasn’t coming out quite like I’d hoped.

  “Okay. Did you tell them everything you’d told me?”

  I shook my head. “Not even close. In fact, you were the only one who wanted to message before we met. All the others just wanted to meet up first.” I let out a slow breath. “I think because the other dates were complete failures, I was afraid ours would be too, and I valued what we’d had as brief as it was. Probably on some subconscious level I made sure we ended on a good note.”

  “A good note from your perspective. A shitty one from mine.” He smiled.

  “True.” I flicked another look at Derek, and he was studying me. I could see unrest behind his eyes. I tried to come up with something else to say but nothing came to mind so I dropped my gaze back to my dinner that was artfully plated.

  The conversation turned to the gingerbread martinis from the night before, and Derek threw in his two cents about the power of gingerbread, and I felt his hesitancy dissolve.

  The rest of the meal was wonderful. Lively discussion surrounded the table, and it wasn’t until the first dance was announced that I realized how much time had passed. Derek and I watched Jason and Gabby dance to their first song, and I rested my head on Derek’s shoulder. He looped his arm around me, and I fit perfectly into the curvatures of his body. I tried to shake off the feeling rising in my mind about how our lives perfectly aligned more than once to get us to meet.