Page 14 of Taylor

“Hey, I’m sorry to bother you again. I tried to dig myself out as best I could, but I got stuck in a ditch toward the end of the drive. Besides, the road out there is not plowed. I think I might be snowed in?—”

“Come on in,” she said, pulling the door open farther.

He stomped his boots on the porch before coming in.

“I’m sorry. I’ll try later to get out of your hair,” he said as he hung his coat.

“I don’t mind.”

“I can just hang out in my room. I can watch some game videos up there and try again later,” he said, turning for the stairs.

She took a deep breath.

She could do this. This was part of being a grown-up and getting her life together. They could be here, awkwardly existing in the same cabin, or she could pull up her big-girl pants and deal with the problem head-on.

“That’s silly. You can hang out with me—I mean if you want to, that is, no pressure,” she said as she nervously played with her hoody string.

“Are you sure?” he asked, eyeing her carefully.

“Absolutely, although I do just plan on watching Christmas carols all day, so if that’s not your thing...”

“Christmas carols?” he asked, his interest seeming piqued.

“It’s a family tradition. We watch all the different versions on Christmas Eve,” she said with a soft smile.

“I can get behind that. Which one are you watching now?”

Alice unpaused the TV to reveal the Ghost of Christmas Present taking Scrooge McDuck to Mickey’s little house.

“Shut up... I don’t think I’ve seen this since I was a kid,” he said, not even hiding the excitement in his voice.

A smile stretched across her face. “Care to join me?”

“Let’s do this.” He shook snow out of his hair.

The sight of that made her clench her thighs.

They sat on the couch as she pressed play. She kept sneaking glances at him as he rubbed his hands and blew into them.

“Do you want some blanket?” she asked, holding out her throw.

His eyes met hers, and the air felt electric.

“Sure,” he said, taking its corner.

“Oh my god,” she gasped as his hand grazed her. “Your hands are cold!”

“Yeah, sorry about that. It’s cold out there today,” he said, pulling his hands back.

“I’m sorry I sent you out in that. I guess I didn’t see how much snow we had.”

“Don’t even worry about it. I was supposed to leave. Speaking of that, I need to cancel my flight,” he said as he dug his phone out of his pocket.

While he was dealing with his flight, Alice kept looking at him.

He was so incredibly handsome, and of course, she was so attracted to him. There was nothing wrong with her. She was pretty and, yes, bigger than what society considered beautiful, but she didn’t let that hold her back anywhere else in life—so why should it here?

What was the worst that could happen? He would turn her down, would find her annoying, would think she was too much, too sensitive, too weird.

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