Page 22 of A Second Chance Christmas Kiss

She smiled a tight-lipped smile and then mimicked my position. We’d always done that growing up. She ate a bite of muffin, then looked out the window. “I’m Paine now.”

“Right. Sorry.”

She shrugged.

“What areyouthinking about?”

She sighed. “I haven’t decided if I’m going back to Harris or not.”

I could tell the topic made her sad, so I said, “Do you really want to know what I was thinking when we first got here?”

She took a sip. “Of course.”

“I was thinking about how I was nervous.”

That got me a smirk. “Really?”

“Don’t be so happy about it.”

She gestured to the muffins. “Are you going to eat, Mr. Pre-sipped Coffee?”

“Yes.” I grinned and took a bite.

“I haven’t had one of these muffins since I’ve been back.”

I removed the wrapper from mine. “I haven’t either, and I’m regretting it, because I should have one every day while I’m here. I always miss them when I’m gone.”

Melody took another bite and closed her eyes. I’d missed seeing her little looks like that. I wanted to watch her look like that every day.

I quickly pushed those thoughts away. No putting the cart before the horse.

She flashed her eyes open and pointed at me. “Okay. Now you have to tell me what you’re thinking.” She chomped a couple more bites of muffin and sipped some coffee. “The truth.”

I would not tell her the truth—that I really enjoyed seeing how much pleasure she got out of a muffin. No way. I took a sip of coffee and grinned. “I was thinking about how you look different and the same.” A half-truth.

She held my gaze, looking doubtful. “Is that good or bad?”

I nearly coughed out a bite. “Good, of course.” Was she fishing for a compliment? She’d never been the type to need compliments, but it’d been nineteen years. Was that a blush on her cheeks?

“How long are you in town?”

I shifted in my seat, suddenly uncomfortable. She’d always asked that question. Toward the end of our relationship, she’d told me she hated asking and that it had led to us growing apart. At least, that was what she’d told me. She’d gotten tired of just seeing me at summer or Christmas. Well, she wouldn’t talk tome after that last Christmas, so I really didn’t know why she’d ended things. She hadn’t answered that question when I’d tried to interrupt the wedding. No, sir, I wouldn’t bring that up. “Not sure.”

“Hmm.”

I shifted the conversation. “How is the doll business?”

Her eyes flashed, and I could swear that meant she was worried. She shrugged. “It’s great. It’s the holidays, and there’s been an uptick in business. Which is good.”

I had a feeling that wasn’t the whole truth. “Good.”

“How is your business? Or rather, your businesses.”

That was not at all what I wanted to talk about. I was more interested in every detail of her life, since she’d told me she wouldn’t see me any longer. “It’s good. I’m working on a commercial deal right now in Boston.”

“You’re an attorney, right?”

“Right.”

---