Page 24 of The Christmas Romance Wish

“He sure has.” Taking a deep breath, she’s right. “So much inlife can be avoided if people use their communication skills. No BMs.”

“Maybe don’t use that abbreviation with Captain America of the smokin’ hot voice.”

“We shall strike it from the record and never repeat it.”

With warm laughter, Dylann and I get off the phone.

Around dinner time, I bundle up, preparing to go to the main house to help with the wreaths, but when I get outside, a bonfire blazes in the backyard and the guys gather around. I join their circle as they warm their hands and chat.

Paxton slides his arm around my shoulder. “Welcome, Your Majesty. Might I invite you to enjoy some pizza?” He gestures toward a table behind Alex who captures my gaze. His eyes flame and flare as Pax gloats about how well he handled the hike.

He doesn’t even make it halfway up the hill in his recounting of the ruck when Alex appears next to us like a ninja from the darkness.

“Hey, Emmie.” His tone is low, almost irritable.

“Ignore Alex’s killjoy mood. Something crawled up his?—”

I wave my hands. “We vowed not to have BMs. I mean we won’t talk about BMs. Whatever it is, I didn’t do it. You saw me on the couch. I hardly moved except to put logs on the fire and make a peppermint mocha. Thank you for the supplies by the way.”

They both stare at me. Paxton has laughter all over his face. Alex looks concerned but grunts in acknowledgment at the part about the peppermint mocha.

“I mean, no big misunderstandings. B-big, M-misunderstandings. I stayed in the house all day, working. Mostly. I mean, I did some creative writing too. Gazed out the window. Imagined what it would be like to live up here.”

“Sounds like a productive day,” Pax says with another laugh.

I squish up my face which is getting redder by the moment. “I’m going to plunge myself into that snowbank over there. See you guys in the morning.”

Swiping a piece of pizza, I do just that. Well, not the snowbank part. I return to my cabin and hide there until morning. My busy brain rehashes every word spoken. Every syllable. Every movement and sound.

My findings result in a plan to avoid socializing for the foreseeable future and I’ll find a car service that will come out here and bring me to the airport in the morning to avoid further embarrassment in front of Alex.

The rise and fall of voices fade and I realize most of the guys leave that night. I guess they finished the wreaths, and no one had to do pushups in the snow. I hope and pray that things won’t be more awkward tomorrow than I made them today.

It’s no wonder I’m single.

When I wake up, sunlight streams through the window of the cabin and I have one of those fairy tale princess moments with the birds chirping and everything sparkling. I could stay here, snug and cozy until the spring thaw because I have serious second thoughts about leaving. Not only because of how lovely it is here but also because of how badly I embarrassed myself last night with the whole BM thing.

Maybe Alex will forget I’m in the cabin and I can sneak bread crusts and peppermint mochas when he’s not looking.

Considering Dylann and I agreed not to speak of BMs and because, as a writer, I should have better command over the English language, it could have been avoided.

I bet Ginny never says things about BMs or anything related to big misunderstandings.

My flight leaves at half-past eleven so I look up how to get to the airport, but my service bars drop from four to zero before my eyes. Originally, I was to return to Salt Lake City with Sydney, but since he didn’t make it out for the workshop, Alex said he’d bring me.

If this weekend were a book, the summary would go something like this:

After proving that she’s hopelessly awkward and has a better way with written words than spoken, she resigns herself to riding on the roof of the Jeep to spare the hunky, hulky hero from greater embarrassment and annoyance.

On the way to the airport, snowflakes drift from the sky and clouds move rapidly toward the sun. She rethinks her life choices and longs to find a mountain man of her own. The one who crept into her heart is taken.

Will she get her Christmas romance wish and find love or remain alone on a desert island?

Giving my head a little shake, I finish getting ready and pack up my belongings. After I make the short trek to the main house, I find Alex brewing coffee.

When he turns around, my breath falters. My skin tingles and not from the cold on my quick walk over here. The bah humbugs rush to the window as if they heard Santa’s sleigh bells.

And what to my wondering eyes appears?

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