Page 74 of When the Fake Snow Falls

As he walks away, I can’t shake my smile.

No one else has found their way to our table yet, so I sit alone and take in the scene around me. There are couples kissing under mistletoe, excited greetings with warm hugs, and they have an actual pianist in the corner playing Christmasclassics. I never imagined I’d be at a party this fancy with a man like Chase, but I’m glad I’m here. I’m glad I get to step into these shoes, just for tonight.

After a few minutes, Chase slides into the chair next to mine and places a glass of Chardonnay on the table. “Have I told you how incredible you look?” Toying with one of my curls, he leans in closer. “I’m afraid you’re way out of my league, Candace.” I could laugh at how absurd that comment is considering I feel like I’m the one who doesn’t fit in here, but he moves to kiss my neck, and I tilt my head without thinking. It’s like my body already knows how to react in a way that will make it easier for Chase to touch me.

“I hope we’re not interrupting anything,” a voice across the table says, and my eyes fly open.

thirty-three

Two gorgeous girlsstand before us as they set their drinks on the table. One with sleek, long, brunette hair that, I’m assuming, she tried to fade into a blonde, but because she’s starting from a level five, it ended up pulling more of an orange tone. She still manages to pull it off. The other girl has red curls styled to perfection, and I wonder if it’s her natural color.

Chase leans back in his seat but keeps his arm on the back of my chair. “Candace, I’d like you to meet Chloe.” He gestures to the redhead. “And Brittany,” he says, gesturing respectively to the brunette.

I try to match them up to the many girls who tagged him online, but it’s been so long since I looked at those pictures. I have no idea if these are some of the women he’s spent time with.

The girl with auburn hair assesses me. “So, you’re the one who’s been keeping him from us,” she says with a hint of sarcasm.

Darting my eyes to Chase, I lean in a little closer. “I guess I am,” I say with a smile. “I didn’t realize I was keeping himfrom anything.” My hand finds Chase’s leg under the table, and I take another sip of my drink.

“You’re not,” Chase says simply. “They’re just upset because I won’t drive their boat around anymore.”

Thinking back to his social media, I vaguely remember seeing him tagged in photos on a boat. He looked good sun-kissed and windblown, and part of me is a little jealous these girls got to see that side of him. By the time summer rolls around next year, who knows if we’ll still be . . . whatever we are.

“Has the big boss lady met her yet?” Brittany asks Chase like I’m not sitting here.

“Nope,” Chase says happily. “We haven’t had the pleasure of running into her.”

Brittany scoffs before finally turning her attention to me. “She’s going to hate you.” I arch an eyebrow, and her eyes go wide. “It’s not you. She would hate anyone Chase is dating.”

“Good to know,” I say with a laugh. They’re not telling me anything new. His boss is the reason I’m here, but these girls don’t know that.

Chase’s fingers trace the nape of my neck. “If she has an issue, I’ll deal with it.” He gives me the easy smile I love so much before saying, “Come on, let’s go for a walk.” Standing from the table, he holds out a hand for me to take before looking at the girls. “Ladies, if you’ll excuse us.”

Trying to contain my obvious relief, I say a quick goodbye and take his hand so he can lead me through the crowd. He heads straight toward one of the many double doors, nodding to the occasional person but never stopping. Pausing before opening the door, he looks up at the mistletoe overhead and breathes out the word, “Perfect,” before covering my mouth with his. He kisses me through the doorway, and once we’re on the balcony, he doesn’t stop kissing me. He spins us around, pressing me up against the small sliver of wall between sets ofdoors so no one inside can see us. His hand on my back holds me flush against him while his free hand is braced against the wall by my head.

“Chase,” I breathe when he moves to my neck, his lips trailing down to my collarbone. When his mouth lands on my cleavage, I inhale a sharp breath. “You’re going to mess me up, and the party hasn’t even started.”

He stands up straight and leans his forehead against mine. “Maybe messing you up is the party I’d rather be at.”

As we catch our breath, I can’t help studying him in the glow of the coach light a few feet away. There’s a hunger behind his eyes, but also a hint of desperation I’ve never seen in him—not in this way, at least. “You don’t like being here, do you?”

“Not at all.”

Playfully, I whisper, “Then why are we here?”

The corner of his mouth quirks. “Because I never show my face with them, and this is the one function I feel like Ihaveto go to. They all get drinks on Tuesdays, and I blow them off every week. I stay and work late.” I open my mouth to ask about the extra workload he mentioned before, but he cuts me off. “Partly because I have to, but even if I didn’t, I wouldn’t want to go.”

“But Chloe and Brittany’s boat?”

Chase’s smile broadens. “You’re not the reason I stopped hanging out with everyone from the office. I only hung out with them for a few months after my breakup. I was fucking depressed, and at the time, I felt like my options were to take them up on their invites or sit around in my apartment all day. I always offered to drive so I wouldn’t have to talk to anyone.”

“It must have been a bad breakup,” I say quietly.

He rubs his hand over the back of his neck. “It was nothing special. We were together for three years when I found out shewas cheating on me. She said it was because I worked too much, which maybe there was truth to that. I don’t know.”

“Even if you did work too much, that’s no excuse to cheat on someone. I’m sorry.”

He blinks, the clarity coming back to his eyes. “Don’t be. I’m glad it didn’t work out.”

---