Page 8 of Stranded with My Mafia Boss

"Yes?"

"Don’t hide in your room. Stay down here."

After one nod, I jogged up the stairs, grabbed my laptop from my carry-on and stared out the window for a moment. The storm outside raged on, snowflakes swirling past the window like dancers at a wild party.

The memory of his words put a block of ice in my gut, reminding me of just how perilous this newfound connection could be. Even so, I couldn’t deny that part of me longed to explore it further, to find out just how deep the rabbit hole went between us.

I wouldn't allow myself to be swept away by Damien’s dangerous allure. Even as I made that vow, I damn well knew resisting the pull between us might be beyond me. Especially if Damien elected to act on the attraction.

He was sitting on the couch staring out the window when I came downstairs, and a brilliant idea sprang to mind. Why not ask him about decorating? He used this place for gatherings. There had to be decoration somewhere in it.

"Here I am, and I have a great idea. Instead of working on the contract, why don’t we decorate here for Christmas? You have decorations, don’t you?"

His brows rose and his expression shifted to the sardonic. "I do. I take it there will be no peace unless there is tinsel in sight?"

I curved my mouth into a triumphant smile. "Correct."

Damien shook his head and said, "This way." He headed up the grand staircase, and I hurried to catch up with him.

Halfway up, my foot caught, and I stumbled.

Damien steadied me, his hand resting firmly on my arm, and then he moved around behind me to place his hand on my lower back. His warmth spread through the silk of my blouse, and I fought the urge to lean into his touch. "Are you okay?" the damnable man asked softly.

"Of course. I’m not usually very clumsy, I just caught my foot."

"I know you aren’t." He gestured for me to walk ahead of him.

At the end of the hall on the second floor, he opened a heavy wooden door and flipped on the lights. "After you."

I gasped. Rows of shelves lined three of the walls, each neatly labeled with a season and filled with identical plastic totes. On the fourth wall, an entire table was covered in rows of gift bags, sorted by color, tissue paper peeking out the top.

"What is all of this?" I said, unable to hide my surprise.

Damien shrugged, hand brushing my arm to direct my attention to the shelves. "Emergency presents. In case I ever go completely insane and have unexpected visitors over the holidays."

I snorted, shaking my head. Trust Damien Santini to be prepared for any scenario, even spontaneous Yuletide cheer.

"Well, since you're so eager to celebrate." He waved a hand at the boxes. "Pick your poison."

My eyes lit up. I hurried over to the winter shelves and pulled a tote out and set it on the floor, pulling the lid off. It was full of neatly coiled LED lights. The familiar plastic-y aroma of them made me smile. The next tote rattled gently, full glass ornaments in all the colors of the rainbow, still in their boxes. Opening another, tinsel garlands in silver and gold and red, oh my, crackled under my fingers.

A ginormous tote held a disassembled tree.

Damien leaned against the door, watching me. "Is this enough of a fix, or do we need to put them up?"

"Definitely need to put them up. Help me carry them downstairs." I was halfway down the staircase when it dawned on me that I’d ordered him around. Oh, crap. At least he hadn’t gotten angry.

It took three trips to get everything downstairs. I pulled up a playlist of Christmas music on my phone and cheerful sounds filled the air.

Damien’s expression of long-suffering intensified, and I choked back laughter.

"Could you assemble the tree while I start putting up some lights?" I opened the light tote with a contented grin.

"Is there nothing that will convince you to cease this insanity? A raise, a vacation to an exotic island?" he rumbled.

I hesitated at the thought of a raise, but he was just joking. "Nothing, You can invite people over for Christmas, and it would surprise them so much."

Within minutes, I’d strung soft white lights around the living room. The tree turned out to be on the small side and only took a short time for Damien to set up.

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