‘Not when there is any other way.’ With his good hand he reached for hers and she took it, letting him fold her palm inside his. His second chance came with an enormous year-end bonus he was going to bank immediately.
They spoke together using the same words, their bodies angled towards each other, knees grazing. ‘Would you—?’
Smiling at her hurt a little. In his cheek. At his brow. In his heart. ‘You go first.’ If she’d let him, he’d always stand up for her and put her first.
‘Would you like to come to my Christmas day orphan’s lunch? I should’ve asked you earlier. I’ve wanted to for months now. You probably have plans with friends, so I get it if you can’t come, but I wanted to ask, and I thought I’d blown my chance, and I don’t care that we work together, still work together. Oh Adam, I’m so glad we still work together.’
He’d never heard Shelby babble, or get breathless. He could feel the nervous tremor through her palm.
‘I’d really like it if you’d come. It’s nothing formal and it wouldn’t matter that you don’t know anyone but me, and—’
‘I’d love to.’
The grin she gave him was everything Christmas should be. Hope and joy and peace and goodwill, the promise of love that could make the world a better place.
She squeezed his hand. ‘You would? That’s fantastic. I’m so pleased. It doesn’t have to mean anything, just way too much food and a gut ache.’
The true ache was further up his chest and it was anything but unpleasant. ‘What if I want it to mean more?’
She looked down at their hands. What if she did? ‘What were you going to ask me?’ she said.
There was a first time for everything and Christmas was the best time to reach for love. He’d decked a man tonight. Learning Santa was real and taking a sleigh ride to the north pole care of Rudolph would’ve stunned him less. It was easy to ask for what he wanted.
‘Would you let me kiss you?’
She took her hand away, lowered her eyes, and he swallowed his disappointment, only to have it switch to astonishment when she put her hand gently to the side of his face and pushed his hair back, fingers tangling in it before going to the back of his neck and holding him, still and warm and gentle and right.
‘It’s the season to be jolly,’ she said, smiling as she leaned in.
And as their lips touched, bells rang, angels chorused, brolgas danced, boomers bounced, that damn partridge was firmly up the pear tree, and all Adam’s Christmas wishes came at once.
Thanks for reading Tinsel In A Tangle. I hope you enjoyed it.
If you’d like to know more about me, my books, or to connect with me online by following me on Twitter @AinsliePaton or like my Facebook page https://facebook.com/AinsliePaton or visit my website ainsliepaton.com.au
You can also follow me through my publisher’s page here www.escapepublishing.com.au
Reviews can help readers find books, and I am grateful for all honest reviews. Thank you for taking the time to let others know what you’ve read, and what you thought.
If you liked this book, here are my other titles:
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ISBN: 9781489265869
Title: Tinsel In A Tangle
Copyright © 2018 by AINSLIE PATON
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises (Australia) Limited, Level 13/201 Elizabeth Street, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 2000.
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
® and ™ are trademarks of Harlequin Enterprises Limited and are used under license to the Publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in Australia, New Zealand, the United States Patent and Trademark Office and in other countries.
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