Page 10 of Naughty & Nice

It might sound pathetic—I’m sure Wilder would point out that it is—but I’m willing to forgo what I want to ensure our friendship continues. Even if that means one day she meets someone.

It’ll hurt. It’ll hurt so fucking bad. But a part of her would still be mine.

If I were to do something and lose her…

No.

Fear cuts through me like a knife.

I might have Wilder and Lori in my life. But Noelle…

Fuck. Noelle.

I watch her through the gap in the front seats as she pulls the sun visor down and flips the little mirror open.

She wipes the stray makeup from under her eyes and then coats her lips with her favorite strawberry lip balm.

I don’t need to be closer to her to know exactly how that smells. I have it committed to memory.

As if she can sense me watching, she looks up and her eyes catch mine in the small mirror.

I can’t see her mouth now, but her eyes tell me that she’s smiling.

‘You okay?’ I mouth.

She gives a simple nod before the GPS speaks up, letting us know that our destination is up ahead.

Despite our current situation and the guy sitting in the driver’s seat of my car who is no doubt going to spend the next five days complaining like a petulant toddler, excitement bubbles up.

I’ve been waiting for this trip for weeks, and nothing Wilder can do is going to ruin it.

“This place is so freaking cute,” Noelle says as Wilder pulls the car to a stop out the front of our cabin.

It looks just like the photograph online, which is a relief. Neither of us has a lot of experience with booking vacations, and while I know that I could have asked Lori to help, we wanted to do this ourselves. And I’ve got to say, I’m impressed with what we’ve achieved.

“It’s small,” Wilder complains.

“It’s perfect. I hope it’s decorated,” Noelle exclaims, her voice all light and whimsical. It makes my heart sing hearing her so happy.

We climb out of the car, shivering. While Noelle scrolls through her cell to find the instructions to get inside, I grab our bags from the trunk, leaving Wilder’s backpack for him to get himself.

“Ready?” Noelle asks once I join her at the front door.

“Ready,” I agree.

She pushes the door open, and the scent of Christmas immediately hits my nose.

“Oh my god,” Noelle gasps happily before rushing inside.

I follow her, unable to believe what I’m seeing. The entire place has been decorated like a winter wonderland. It’s incredible.

Lights twinkle everywhere. There’s even soft Christmas music playing.

We nailed it. Totally fucking nailed it.

“There’s mulled wine warming on the stove. Rix, this is incredible,” she says excitedly, turning to me with wide, glittering eyes.

Seeing her so happy melts my heart. It’s all I’ve ever wanted for her.

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