Page 21 of Silver Hills' Christmas Miracle

“So fucking good,” I croaked. “How did you… I mean, that was… I have no words.”

“I know.” When Kitty stood, she had the proudest smile on her face. “Just think, you almost passed up on that.”

I lifted my head and looked into her gorgeous eyes, then I slid my hand from the back of her head to the back of her neck and pulled her in for a deep, desperate kiss.

She was right. I did almost pass up on that.

At that moment, I knew I wouldn’t ever be able to say no to her.

I was completely and utterly hooked.

And if she was happy, then I was still doing my job, right?

9

KITTY

Ihadn’t planned on confessing all those thoughts and feelings to Rook two days ago. I’d been looking for a safe way back into the house and a way to cover for the fact that I had been out looking for someone, but the way he looked at me had triggered something. Suddenly, I needed him to know the truth and understand that I wanted him. Really wanted him.

I needed him to understand that the strange distance between us hurt, and I hadn’t expected him to bring up so many reasons we shouldn’t be together.

Looking back, I understood. He saw the world differently than I did and had more on his mind that he had to consider. There had even been a few moments when he almost persuaded me, but I wasn’t going to give up until I knew for a fact that he was completely uninterested.

It was safe to say that he was as hungry as I was, and that warmed me inside. I was carrying this little secret that was just for me and him, and no one else would ever get to know.

“Are you alright?” Rook locked eyes with me as I climbed out of my father’s car, pulling me from my wandering thoughts.

“Yeah.” I nodded and quickly smoothed out the rumples on my skirt and blouse. “Just thinking.”

“About?”

I glanced past Rook to the building we had parked in front of. Just ahead of us, my mom and dad hurried up the steps flanked by the security team. From the other cars dotted about the parking lot, most other people were already here, making us the last ones.

“Just…” I sidestepped Rook as he closed the car door. “I guess trying to think of what more I could say to persuade my father how dangerous this deal really is.”

“He’s not shifting?”

“Not even a little.” I tucked some loose strands of hair behind my ear as we headed up the steps. “I don’t even fully understand the details of this meeting, but I think they’re moving on to the next steps of which part of the forest to tear down next. Did you know those trees had been untouched for longer than anyone could count?”

Rook shook his head. “I didn’t know that.”

“Even the people who settled here and built this town saw the importance of the forest and preserving nature. Never mind the beauty for the tourists, and now we lose it all because some rich fucks want to get from one boring gray city to the next faster.”

“From what I’ve seen,” Rook said as he held open the door and I ducked under his arm, “a lot of people in town mirror your passion for stopping this.”

“Yeah, but most folks are caught between feeling like they couldn’t do enough and their voices don’t matter, or they still have some misplaced respect for my father and what he used to be like.” As we walked, the clack of my heels echoed in the hall and I winced slightly. “I won’t stop trying, but I’m just aware, I guess, of the limitations.”

“I can’t offer much in the way of advice,” Rook said, stopping outside the door to the meeting room, “but standing up for what you believe in is always the right way to go.”

I flashed him a wide smile and nodded, then took a deep breath and walked inside.

The room was filled with various different CEOs and construction planners all deep in personal conversations. My dad took a few minutes to introduce me, and I had to dance around comments about what I thought of the highway, how proud I must be of my father and how I’m surely too young to be involved in such discussions.

Those pleasantries faded when my dad called the meeting to order and silence fell. I took my seat and braced myself for what was sure to be a tough afternoon.

It started slowly, with talks of money saved by switching to a different construction company at the last minute, to using cheap labor and dodgy contracts that sounded like they offered no benefits to the employees. To my father’s credit, he did have a few questions about that, but they were quickly brushed away when the talk of profit came to the table. Through all the mind-numbing talk of these businessmen blowing smoke up each other’s asses, my only comfort was Rook. He stood nearby, watching over everything, and it warmed my heart to have him so close.

Especially knowing what he was packing in those pants.

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