“Okay,” I agreed, feeling like I might melt into a puddle at his feet. Evan tugged on my hand, pulling me out from under Nate’s arm and toward the other side of the gym. I glanced over my shoulder with an apologetic smile.
“Player,” Nate mouthed, shaking his head in disapproval.
Evan weaved through the mass of people, leading me straight to my display. He stopped in front of it, and instead of dropping my hand, he laced our fingers together. The intimate gesture felt strange but exciting. He stared at the church for a second.
“It really is the best one here,” he said, though he didn’t pull out his ballot slip.
“Thanks,” I replied.
Mrs. Newport tapped at the microphone up on the stage. “Ladies and gentlemen, it’s now eight o’clock. The committee will be coming around to collect the ballots. If you haven’t cast your vote, better do so quickly.”
Right as Kathy finished her announcement, Mrs. Cooper came around in her official committee T-shirt and plucked the box from my table. I held out my hand to stop her. “I thought you wanted to vote?” I asked Evan.
He shooed Mrs. Cooper away and grinned at me. “I voted thirty minutes ago. I knew which one was yours. I peeked in the kitchen a few times while you guys were working on it. I just said that because I needed an excuse to get you alone. Every time I talk to you, your boyfriend wants to beat me up. I don’t have confidence issues, but I’m pretty sure he could take me in a fight.”
I rolled my eyes. “Nate’s not my boyfriend.”
“Does he know that?” Evan raised one eyebrow.
What was wrong with everyone today? “Of course he knows that.”
“Hmmm,” he hummed skeptically.
We milled around the gym for another fifteen minutes, trying to decide which house would win the honorable mention. The judges recognized their favorite display in each event and awarded it a blue ribbon. We stopped to admire a house that reminded me of the witch’s cottage from “Hansel and Gretel.” Nate and Garland happened to be across the aisle. Nate grimaced when he saw that Evan and I were still holding hands.
Evan noticed the dirty look and pulled me closer. “Did you guys ever date?” he asked.
“Who, me and Nate?” I laughed. “Not unless you count the two weeks we ‘went out’ in seventh grade.” I used air quotes to emphasize how not serious it was.
“Did you ever randomly hook up?”
“No!” I laughed again. “We’ve never even kissed.”
“Not even on a dare, or when you were drunk?”
“Drunk? Where is this coming from?” I pursed my lips and pulled my hand out of his grip. “Wait? Did Garland tell you we had?”
“No.” Evan shook his head.
I scratched mine. “Did Nate tell you we had?”
He reached out and took my hand back while having a good chuckle. “Nobody said anything.” He paused. The air around us grew charged with electricity. “Your brother keeps a picture of you guys on his desk. I’ve always thought you were pretty. And he talks about you enough that I already knew I’d like you. But I honestly didn’t expect to like you so much. I just want to make sure I’m not poaching in someone else’s territory.”
“Oh.” My cheeks flushed at his candor. I don’t think I’d ever had a guy be so straightforward with me. On one hand, it was nice to know where I stood. On the other, it was kind of/sort of a teeny-tiny bit terrifying. I wondered if all college guys were so mature. But then I remembered that Garland was “a college man now” and threw that theory out the window.
My tongue felt tied up. Evan bumped me in the shoulder. “Is it okay if I like you?”
I summoned all the courage I had and turned to face him. “If you want to like me.”
“I want to know what you want.” His eyes roamed over my mouth again, and his tongue darted out to wet his lips. Holy crap, he was going to kiss me. Right here, in front of Garland and Nate. In front of everyone.
Our gazes locked, and he started to lean in when Mrs. Newport cleared her throat loudly into the microphone. I jumped. Boy, that woman really knew how to kill a mood. Forget Mrs. Claus, Kathy was more like the grim reaper of romance.
“Can I get everyone’s attention, please?” The crowed hushed, and all eyes looked over to the stage. “We’re ready to announce the contestants who will be advancing to the next round.”
Evan squeezed my hand. “You’ll make it, no question,” he whispered.
“Thanks,” I whispered back.
A funny thing happened when that word left my mouth—I got a little bit excited. There was no way it could be the contest giving me flutters in my stomach, so I blamed them on the company. Kathy rattled off a list of numbers, but I wasn’t listening. I was too focused on whatever strange feeling was bouncing around inside me.
I must have zoned out for quite a while. The next thing I knew, Evan was elbowing me in the side. “That’s you!”
I shook my head. “What’s me?”
He nodded toward Mrs. Newport, who was holding a shiny blue ribbon and calling out my number. “Fifty-seven? Where are you? Come claim your judge’s award.”
I was still confused, until Nate came up on my other side and shook my shoulder. “Woman! Get up there and fetch me my ribbon.” He had a greedy grin on his face. That’s when it finally dawned on me that not only had we made it to the next round, we’d won the honorable mention.
“Come with me,” I begged him.
He shook his head. “I’m not the contestant. You are.”
Nate nudged me toward the stage. The crowd parted as I made my way to the front of the room and up the stairs. When Kathy saw me, she gasped. “You’re number fifty-seven?”
“Yep,” I admitted guiltily, since I hadn’t done much of the work.
Mrs. Cooper walked up the stairs on the other side of the stage, carrying the church Nate had slaved over all afternoon. I glanced into the audience until our eyes met. He pulled his fingers over his lips, zipping them shut. For some reason, he didn’t want the credit.
Kathy put her hand over the microphone. “Really?” she asked quietly. “You’re not trying to pull a fast one on me?”
I wanted to be offended, but I had no right. I’d have doubted me, too. Last year when she and my parents combined yard space for their Christmas light display, I made a sign on poster board and stuck it in the ground between our houses. It read: The money we spend on electricity could buy Christmas dinner for starving children.
I thought I was being clever. My parents said it was plain-old rude and made me take the sign down. Not before Kathy saw it, though. She spent ten minutes lecturing me on how charity was important, but even poor people appreciated the joy that a good light display brought to the community. Later that day, my mom informed me that Kathy and her husband donated hundreds of dollars to the soup kitchen in Rutland every Christmas. I felt like trash.
“Really.” I crossed my finger over my heart and gave Mrs. Newport a smile, hoping she wouldn’t call me out for being a holiday fraud in front of the entire town.
She mumbled under her breath, “Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle.” Then she uncovered the microphone and held her hand out to acknowledge me and my work of art. “Our first ribbon of the year goes to Chrissy Jensen.”
People started to clap, until someone in the back shouted, “That’s not even a house!” The voice sounded an awful lot like Sebastian Wickham’s.
Reverend Johnson stepped forward and put his hand on my shoulder. He took the microphone from Kathy and replied to the heckler, “On the contrary, it’s the most important house there is. It’s the Lord’s house.” I groaned inwardly. Seriously, people, Jesus lives in heaven. I’m like 95 percent sure of it.
Nate’s expression said I told you so. I was annoyed, but I’d rather Nate be right than Sebastian. I wanted to yell at the jerk and tell him to shove it. However, the reverend’s humble rebuke was more powerful than any rude comment I could make
. He took the ribbon from Kathy and stuck it on the edge of the pan as Mrs. Cooper handed it to me. After that, he said, “Let’s hear it for this amazing creation that captures the true meaning of Christmas.”
Despite the zealous applause, the overall feeling in the room was one of peaceful reverence. A sense of pride grew within me. When I made it back through the crowd, Nate took the pan, handed it to Garland, and pulled me into a giant hug.
“Not too bad, for a Christmas hater,” he teased quietly so Evan wouldn’t hear.
“I still hate Christmas,” I replied, ignoring the warm fuzzies that tingled all over my body. “But I guess making gingerbread houses isn’t so bad.”
The four of us stayed up late watching sketch comedy clips online. They all had a Christmas theme—obviously not my choice. I protested and was outvoted. But it wasn’t as bad as I thought it’d be. Most of the skits made fun of Christmas clichés and were quite amusing.
The boys were tense all night. Luckily Garland was there, playing Switzerland with his goofball antics. Without him, I think Evan and Nate would’ve duked it out like reindeer trying to see whose antlers were bigger. There was still a lot of swaggering and preening. Peacocks are almost as bad as reindeer, just less violent. The testosterone in the room was thick enough to slice in half and serve on a cracker.
I wasn’t surprised by Evan’s behavior. Nate, on the other hand; well, I hadn’t seen a display like that since he and Garland both liked Paisley Pratt back in middle school. If I didn’t know better, I’d think Nate had feelings for me…as in romantically. I didn’t get the chance to call him out on being weird until the next morning.
Nate let himself into my room, bright and early, while I was doing my makeup. I skipped the hello. “What was wrong with you last night? Are you really that threatened by Evan?”
“I have no idea what you mean.” He played dumb as he laid down on the floor beside me and watched me apply some mascara.
I finished one eye and dipped the wand back in for another coat. “You know exactly what I mean.”
He fished through my cosmetics case and pulled out his favorite lip gloss. It was a neutral salmonish color that smelled like peaches. He held it out to me and asked, “Why are you getting all dolled up this morning?”
“Way to change the subject.” I screwed the top back on the mascara and tried to switch with him. “Evan’s taking me to breakfast.”
Nate’s lip curled. He yanked the gloss back and handed me a tube of black lipstick that I’d bought for Halloween. “On second thought,” he said, “I think you should go with this one.”
I stuck my tongue out at him. “Seriously, what’s your problem?”
“That twit you’re going out with is my problem.”
“You aren’t being fair,” I chided. Nate’s approval mattered to me. He was never a big fan of any boy I went out with, but his disdain for Evan was on a whole new level. “Evan has been nothing but nice.”
“It’s an act. Forget taking you to breakfast. He probably wants to eat you for breakfast.”
I reached back into the sea of makeup and grabbed the peach gloss. After dabbing it on my lips, I rubbed them together and puckered a few times. “You’re being ridiculous.”
“And you’re being naïve,” he retorted with a sharpness that suggested he was upset for real. I’d been speaking to him in the mirror, and I finally turned to face him.
“I’m not being naïve. I know exactly what kind of a guy he is. I don’t care if he’s a player. I know he’s only here for the week, so I’m not going to get hurt. I’m not looking for a boyfriend.”
Nate drew back, his face tinged with disgust. “Then what are you looking for?”
“The fact that you asked that makes me want to thump you on the head.” I rolled my eyes. I didn’t intend to hit him, but he scooted out of my reach anyway. I sighed. “Sometimes it’s just nice to feel desired. I haven’t been asked on any dates since school started. Not a single one. I mean, there’s not anyone worth dating, but still, it feels good to be asked. I’m beginning to think I smell bad or something.”
“You always smell amazing,” Nate replied.
“Thanks.” I laughed sarcastically.
“I’m being serious.” He frowned before sitting up. “And what do you mean, there aren’t any guys worth dating?”
Uh-oh. That was the I’m hurt voice. Nate had a big ego, but in my opinion, that made him more vulnerable. “Present company excluded,” I amended.
“Do you mean that?”
“Of course I mean it. It’s your own darn fault you’re so picky. You’re the biggest catch in town. You could have your choice of girls. As a matter of fact, I know half a dozen who’d sell a kidney just to get one date with you.”
A tiny smile tried to peek through his pout, but he was dead set on being disagreeable. “You’re wrong. I can’t have my choice of girls.”
I gave him a flat look. “Name one that doesn’t want you.”
“Chrissy Jensen,” he said pointedly.
I started to respond, but he’d been acting so weird the past few days that I didn’t know what to say. Maybe he really did feel threatened by Evan. Besides my family, I’d never spent Christmas with anyone but him. None of my other friends wanted to be around me because I’m such a pill. I guess if the tables were turned and some hot chick waltzed into town, all flirty and up in his grill, I’d be a little jealous, too.
I got to my feet and offered him my hand. When he stood, I wrapped my arms around him. “I’m sorry if my swooning hurts your feelings.”
“My feelings aren’t hurt.”
“Riiiiiight.”
“They aren’t!” Nate insisted. “I just don’t like sharing.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.”
When I leaned back to laugh at him, a piece of my hair stuck to his wool sweater. He pulled the strand off and tucked it behind my ear. Then he swept the rest over my shoulder and ran his hand through it. Nate always played with my hair. He claimed it was relaxing. But this wasn’t the normal see if I can figure out how to French braid kind of playing.
He gathered me back into his arms until my head laid against his chest. His fingers combed through my long tresses and settled on the small of my back, running up and down in a gentle, soothing pattern. “I love you,” he said. His declaration wasn’t passionate, but it definitely felt real.
“What?” I asked in confusion. Or maybe it was shock. Perhaps a little of both. I sucked in a breath and held it while I decided whether to panic.
He chuckled. “You said to tell you something you didn’t know.”
“Oh, geez!” I let out all the air in one giant sigh. He’d almost given me a heart attack. It sounded like he was telling me that he loved me. “I already know that.” I shoved him playfully and waited for my heart rate to return to normal. “I said tell me something I don’t know.”
“I thought I did.”
“Stop messing with me.” I shoved him again and stepped away. This was starting to freak me out a little.
“Okay, fine. Something you don’t know. Hmmm. How about Evan has a small—”
He didn’t get to finish, because I slapped my hand over his mouth. “Don’t you dare!” I warned. His chuckle turned into a gut-busting laugh.
He peeled my fingers away and yelled, “Brain! I was going to say brain!”
“Sure you were.” I shook my head.
Nate made himself cozy on my bed while I finished getting ready. A few minutes later, Evan knocked on the door and pushed it open. When he saw that Nate was wrapped up in my blankets and snuggling with my stuffed bunny, he looked completely annoyed. He glared at Nate, then gave me his charming smile and asked, “You ready to go?”
“Yep,” I chirped, grabbing my phone. I picked up the forbidden lip gloss and waved it at Nate while I gave him an evil smirk. “I might need this later.”
“You better not,” he grumbled. I left him i
n my room, sulking on the bed.
Ann’s Kitchen wasn’t super busy, even though it was the only place in town to get a decent breakfast. Evan and I had been there for less than fifteen minutes when the bell above the door rang. Evan’s eyebrows drew together. I looked over my shoulder to see Nate and Garland standing by the Seat Yourself sign.
“Go away!” I said loudly. I wasn’t yelling, but the rest of the patrons stopped eating to stare at me. “Sorry,” I announced to the room before glaring at Nate.
Garland walked over to us and shrugged. “It’s a free country, sis. You’re the one who ditched your BFF. He was bored, so he offered to buy me breakfast. I’m not passing up a free meal. Especially not on pumpkin pancake day.” He jerked his chin at the daily special board.
I knew it was pointless to argue. I sighed and jerked my thumb across the dining room. “You guys have to sit over there.” Surprisingly, they listened. But the distance didn’t help. I couldn’t act freely with my big brother and best friend watching me like a couple of creepers.
“Let’s go for a walk,” Evan suggested after he paid the bill.
“Good idea.” I nodded toward Garland and Nate. “They still haven’t gotten their check. If we leave right now, we might be able to ditch them.”
Evan grinned. “You’re kinda sexy when you’re being sneaky.”
He grabbed my hand, pulling me out the door. We ran down the windowless side of the building and up the ally. Then we made a giant loop around the block and crossed the street to the park. We’d practically been sprinting, so once we stopped, I was flushed and winded. I yanked off my scarf and used it to fan myself.
“I’m all hot now.”
“Hotter,” Evan corrected. “You were already hot.”
I giggled. His lines were so corny, but I couldn’t get enough of them. After I caught my breath, Evan clutched my hand again and led me through the snow, this time at a leisurely pace. I didn’t realize where he was taking me until we stopped under the kissing tree.
His eyes drifted upward as he gave me a mischievous grin. “How did we end up here?”
The Trouble With Christmas Page 5