Page 94 of The Mistletoe Makeover

Jace

Mission accomplished.It’s the only message I received from my manager after the auction.

Never mind that it cost me a fortune to fly Allan back to show up at the auction in my place. There’s no way I was going to let Cal win.

I open the door as quietly as I can when I arrive home, trying not to wake Mia. Two cats scurry past me. “What are you doing inside?” I mutter as they slip outside.

As soon as I flip on the light, she rises from the couch, dressed in a stunning red dress that looks nothing like her usual faded jeans and oversized sweatshirt. As my eyes sweep over her, my body forgets how tired I am. Seeing her again is like downing an energy drink.

She freezes as she turns to me, and we don’t say anything for a moment.

“I let the cats in,” she confesses. “I thought you weren’t coming home until tomorrow, and Allan was already in bed when I got back after the auction. The cats made me feel less alone.”

“I’m glad they kept you company. At least they’re good for something.” Right now, I don’t even care about the cats being inside. She’s the only one who captures my attention.

“Why are you home early?” she asks.

“I couldn’t wait to see you, so I took a late flight.”

She holds up the folded paper I left for her. “Is this note true?”

I nod. “I only gave Allan one instruction for the auction.To win.” Even though I want to close the gap between us, I stay in one place, unwilling to cross that line, afraid of what might happen if I do.

“But why would you pay so much for a ticket to your own concert?”

“The town needs it,” I say, though that’s not entirely true. I don’t want her to date anyone else.

“You could have made a donation without putting me through that,” she grumbles.

“Originally, I wasn’t planning on bidding.”

“Then why did you?”

I let out a ragged sigh. “After hearing how much you despised Cal, I couldn’t stand seeing you miserable.”

She lifts an eyebrow. “So you paid ten thousand dollars so I wouldn’t be miserable?”

“Mia, I’d pay anything to see you happy.”

She hesitates, her eyes rippling with something I can’t read.

I shove my hands in my pockets. “I’m the one who donated the ticket and got you into this mess. I never intended to hurt you.”

She walks toward me, her gaze leveled on me. “That was averyexpensive apology.”

“Believe me, I know,” I say, rubbing the back of my neck.But you’re worth every penny.

She stops in front of me. The light green flecks in her eyes have turned to a dark moss.

“And you infuriated Cal, which was priceless,” she adds with a satisfied smile. “He really wanted that ticket.”

“I wasn’t going to let him have the ticket... or you.”

For a moment, her eyes narrow.

I shake my head. “Now that we’ve been seen together, we need to keep up the charade.”

For a brief moment, she almost looks disappointed.

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