Page 24 of Baby for My Billionaire Rival

“You need to take a break and enjoy the wine.”

Caroline looks up at me, her lower lip poking out. Two and a half months ago, I would have been annoyed at her pouting.Now, it’s so desperately cute it makes my heart sing. “Please, Jake, I just want it to be perfect.”

“Nothing’s ever perfect, Caroline.”

“Don’t tell me that!” she huffs.

“Ten minutes. That’s all I’m asking, we take a break for ten minutes and drink the wine…” I gesture out the window. “Enjoy the Christmas lights…”

Hard to believe the holidays are only a week and change away. And I feel leagues different than the man I was a year ago around this time.

Caroline sighs, removing her hands from the computer. “Fine. Be that way.”

I chuckle and shut the computer. “You won’t regret it.”

“Mm. Debatable.” She takes a long swig of the wine. I watch her shoulders unfurl. They could unfurl more if she let me knead those muscles for her.

Jake… don’t be a creep in this woman’s own home.

“Mm, that’s good.” Caroline looks at the wine, sniffs it, then takes another sip. “Really good.”

“Would you believe me if I said that it’s tomato wine?”

Her eyes bug out. “Shut up!”

“Serious!”

“You didn’t tell me you make tomato wine!”

“Small batch. A little experiment I’m trying. I wanted you to be one of the first to try it.”

Caroline grabs my shoulder, her touch singeing right through my sleeve. Then, she pushes me away playfully. “You’re obsessed with tomatoes.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” I tease.

“No, it’s…” she pauses. “It’s cute.”

The coil of my core tightens. Did she… did she just call me cute?Move along, Jake, don’t linger. “D’you –” My voice cracks. Ugh. Let me try that again. “Do you have any big holiday plans?”

Caroline leans into the corner of her couch, curling her legs up underneath her. “Well, this is the first Christmas with my brother’s new girlfriend.”

“Ah… is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“Both, I guess. See, she’s my best friend and –” “

I wince. “Ouch.”

“It’s not all bad. I mean, I love them both, I know they’ll be good to each other.” Caroline sighs. “It’s just this whole complicated story of them getting together. Basically, my whole summer was the Jude and Chase show.”

“You don’t have to get into it if you don’t –“

“They pretended to be engaged.”

My eyes widen. “Yeesh, thatiscomplicated.”

Caroline nods, eyelashes fluttering in annoyance. “My Gram, she has these rules for my brother and me in order to earn our inheritances. And Chase’s was that he needed to be married before his fortieth birthday. Jude volunteered and before you know it, we’re all sitting at a wedding that is revealed to be fake when Chase leaves her at the altar and – they’re fine now. They’re together. It’s just… anyway… not really interesting if you don’t know them.”

I guffaw. “I’d beg to differ. That sounds like the plot of a Hallmark movie.”

---