Page 47 of Love Song, Take Two

On his first day as Santa, Micah showed up at Big Waves during lunch. Armed with a beautiful smile, clothes suited for a corporate setting and a bag of food; she was the best sight of his day. They sat in his office, with the windows wide open, and ate their sandwiches while she told him all about her clients that morning. Despite being distracted by the way her mouth formed words and how good she looked, he actually registered most of what she was saying. As far as he could remember, she’d always been passionate about the things that meant something to her. Whether it was music or food, now her kid and her job, Micah was all in.

And he loved that about her.

The next morning, he showed up at the George house armed with coffee. Even though he was exhausted from the first night as Santa, he had decided he was going to do this. Every moment, right? He’d waited in his truck while Emery had climbed onto her bicycle and left for school. Only then did he ring the doorbell. Because as much as he wanted to throw the conditions out the window, he knew the rules were important to Micah.

“Oh god, what are you doing here?”

Fletcher laughed at the half-dressed state she was in—hair sticking up, she wore only a long T-shirt that stopped mid-thigh and sleep marks were still on her face.

“Brought you coffee,” he said, eyes drinking her in with a wide smile. “And I was hoping to find out what you look like first thing in the morning.”

She grunted and took a coffee from him, before turning around and walking away. Fletcher followed, eyes dropping to the stretch marks on the back of her thighs and up to the slight curve of her ass visible under the hem of her shirt. Forcing himself to focus, he instead took in the state of the house. Unlike the first time he’d been there, the place was a mess. In one corner, half a Christmas tree was set up. Boxes of decorations were strewn about, open with things spilling out. The dining table was covered in papers and the cushions that had once been on the couch were all over the floor.

“What happened here?”

“Christmas,” she grunted again, dropping onto the couch as she took the first sip of her coffee.

“What’s wrong with Christmas?”

“Nothing. Everything. I don’t know.”

He watched her for a moment, then lowered himself onto the coffee table in front of her. The idea that she wasn’t a fan of the holidays hadn’t even crossed his mind. He’d been so excited to show up on her front stoop one night dressed as Santa, but now that decision would have to be tabled. Outside of his family—and their reasons were still quite unknown—Fletcher didn’t know anybody who didn’t like Christmas. It was one of his favorite times of the year and he liked everything that came with it.

Then it made him wonder if she hated the holiday or didn’t enjoy it. And if him being Santa would be a dealbreaker for this thing they were figuring out.

“Need some help?”

She blinked slowly and shook her head. “I’d rather we spend time together doing anything else. Besides, this is what Em and I do every year. It takes us weeks to get everything up and even longer to take everything down.”

“If you need assistance, you know where to find me,” he told her and Micah smiled, a soft and sleepy one that transformed her face. She scooted forward and climbed halfway into his lap, their lips meeting in a slow kiss. He hummed into the kiss, free arm sliding around her waist. “Morning.”

“Thank you for bringing me coffee, Fletch. And seeing you first thing is a pretty good treat too.”

He smiled and kissed her again. “All your free time, remember?”

“I seriously wish I had more free time.” She huffed and dropped her head to his shoulder, fingers moving through his hair. “But I have a session near the shop tomorrow evening, if you’re not busy.”

“As long as it’s before six, I’m yours.”

He wondered if she’d get tired of him working every evening for the rest of the month.

She yawned and said, “I’ll be there by four.”

As promised, Micah was waiting outside Big Waves at 4 p.m. armed with a picnic basket that was bursting at the seams. She was wearing a beautiful smile—it lit up her entire face, brightening her eyes and drawing his attention to the smattering of freckles she’d developed living in a beach town.

The woman he’d seen in the crowd sixteen years ago had been breathtaking, it’s why he’d singled her out and invited her back. The woman he was looking at in the parking lot of his music store was heart-stopping.

“Hey rockstar,” she greeted him as he walked up to where she was leaning against his truck. “You ready for the best two hours of your life?”

“I already had the best two hours. More in fact. How are you going to top that?”

Her eyebrows dipped in confusion, but then she snorted out a laugh. “Aren’t you the romantic.”

“I wrote you a song, didn’t I?”

“Indeed you did. An award-winning song too.”

“For an award-winning woman,” he added and leaned in to press a soft kiss to the corner of her mouth. “All right, where are you taking me?”

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