Page 62 of You Had Me at Chocolate

“Oh, Jude.” She clutched her chest as she gazed upon his masterpiece. “It’s…” She glanced at him, shaking her head, and he was looking at her with such intensity, she couldn’t look away.

But she had to, because her eyes were stinging from the effort of suppressing the threatening tears. Blinking them away, she turned her attention to the village again not that she took much in as her brain tried to figure out what the hell was wrong with her. She’d been feeling weird since she accidentally kissed him on the mouth earlier—sure, it had only been a peck, but it hadn’t been her intention. She’d been going for his cheek. A congratulatory kiss between friends but the brief press of their lips had felt way more… intimate somehow.

She felt like they’d gotten past any morning-after weirdness from their chocolate mousse-inspired sex marathon the night before Thanksgiving but now it was like she was right back there again. Awkward over a kiss. And crying. Over a chocolate gingerbread village?

What in hell was the matter with her?

Sure, it was beautiful, with the intricate white frosting giving each house a regal kind of elegance. The color and gaudiness of the commercially bought candy embellishments were a stark contrast but even they were precisely cut and perfectly placed. Nothing ramshackle or haphazard—everything was neat and regimented. The tidiest of tidy chocolate gingerbread towns complete with chocolate houses, chocolate trees, chocolate roads, chocolate hedges and chocolate lightposts.

It had taken him many man hours to construct and Clem could see why. She could also see why he’d taken the grand prize. But, it wasn’t worth crying over, surely?

Although works of art did inspire high emotion, right? She remembered staring up at the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, marvelling at its magnificence with tears falling down her cheeks. If she added in the nostalgia of the stroll, nearly losing her mom not long ago, and the occasional drift of traditional Christmas carols from outside, it was a lot.

No wonder she was a little emotional.

“It’s?” he prompted, coming to stand near her elbow.

Clem cleared her throat of the lump pressing on her vocal chords. “Amazing,” she said then forced herself to look at him and smile normally and stop being such a freaking dork. “Of course, you won the competition, it’s absolutely exquisite.”

Pricking at the backs of her eyes warned of another stealth attack by her tear ducts and Clem quickly returned her gaze to the village.

“Yeah, gotta admit, I impressed even myself.”

“Well, that is high praise,” Clem said, forcing a light teasing note into her voice.

He laughed. “I am my own harshest critic…”

“Aren’t we all?” she murmured, risking a glance at him.

He looked at her at the same time and smiled and she smiled back and the strange vibe evaporated and they were just two friends again sharing their evening together.

“Oh wow, Mommy!” A little girl pulled up beside them looking a little like the Michelin Man in her puffy jumpsuit, a knit hat with a pom-pom on top pulled down over her ears. She looked about five or six and stared at the chocolate village before her with awe and wonder. “Is it all made of chocolate?”

Clem didn’t recognize the mother who smiled at them politely before answering her daughter. “Yep, all of it.”

“Are we allowed to eat it?”

“Definitely not.”

Undeterred the little girl shifted tack. “Can we jump in? Like Mary Poppins did with Bert and live in there forever?”

The mom laughed and Clem bit the inside of her cheek to prevent herself from following suit. Jude grinned from ear to ear as she said, “No, darling, we can’t.”

“Can we make one at home?”

“Umm.” The woman looked it over clearly intimidated. “Sure. Something like it anyway.” She held out her hand. “C’mon, let’s go. We gotta meet up with your cousin for the hayride.”

They departed then and Clem turned to him. “Are we allowed to eat it?” she asked, a smile on her mouth.

Jude laughed. “Definitely not.”

Clem sighed. “Spoilsport.”

But he just grinned and said, “Fancy a hayride?”

“Well, it’s not eating an entire chocolate village, but it’ll do.” Any distraction from this damn mood bringing her down tonight would do.

They exited the Graff and headed for the courthouse again. Clem was very aware of Jude beside her, their arms occasionally brushing as they walked. “I’m going to see another property that’s just come on the market tomorrow. You want to come?”

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