Page 20 of The Christmas Wife

"He..." I shake my head, "It…the phone's mine now."

"No, it's not."

"Alas, poor Hedwig, he’s going to have to spend Christmas without you, I’m afraid."

Her features contort, and I am sure she’s going to stamp her foot and rage, and have a full-on tantrum. This should be interesting. I head to the armchair by the fireplace, drop into it, then pick up my novel.

"The hell are you doing?" she squawks.

"Reading."

She makes a snarling sound at the back of her throat. I hear the thump of her toolkit satchel hitting the floor, then a softer crash—that’s her handbag—followed by the soft sound of her wet clothes hitting the wooden floor. Good. Footsteps approach; the next second she grabs the book from my hand.

"Hey, you only had to ask."

"I did, for my phone. Remember?"

"I mean the book." I lean back in the chair, fold one leg over the other.

She peruses the cover of the book, then blinks. "Harry Potter? You’re reading Harry Potter?"

She glances at me, with…stars in her eyes, once more.

Oh, no, no, damn it."Why do you think I recognized your reference, which I can tell you, is way too obvious. You need to up your game, Buttercup."

Her features tighten.

Bloody fuck, I shouldn’t have insulted her…but what the hell?I need to live up to my reputation as someone who doesn’t give a damn about anyone else… Besides, that strange gooey expression of hers… It scares the shit out of me. Har, har. Ask me to perform a complicated bypass, I am there. Ask me to tryto figure out why I have this strange push-pull reaction to her, and hell, if it doesn’t flummox me. Time to set this right and lay down the rules. We’ll see then, how she copes. Fuck that hint of hopefulness I’ve spotted on her face throughout the evening. It is time to show her what I am actually made of.

"Don’t let the fact that I am reading the Potter fool you."

"God forbid," she mutters.

"It’s only so I can keep up with my older niece."

"How many nieces do you have?"

"Two…and I am not answering any more questions."

"Like I care."

"I think you do, actually. And I have to warn you right now."

"What?"

"Don’t fall in love with me, Buttercup. You’ll only have your heart broken."

7

Amelie

My jaw drops. Again. The arrogance of the man. "I wouldn’t fall for you, if you were the last man on earth.

"I’ll hold you to that."

"What is that supposed to mean?" My heart begins to race.

"You know," he replies, his tone hard.

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