Page 4 of The White Chocolate Christmas Wish

I winked, pulling out a stuffed snowman that looked like it’d come from one of those holiday craft fairs. “Where should we start? I’m thinking this guy should go on the table by your key bowl. We’ll put some garland on the mantle and fake frost on the windows. Hey, you got any festive throw pillows around here?”

She arched a brow.

“Take that as a no. It’s fine. Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

I set the snowman on the table in the foyer and returned to her side, loving the way her skepticism seemed to be at war with amusement now.

“You’re really gonna go all out with this list, aren’t you?” she asked, crossing her arms.

“What can I say? I’mverythorough.”

“I bet.”

I chuckled, but my blood pounded in my ears at the slight blush she wore. “It’ll be fun. We can put on some music, maybe spike some eggnog later...”

“Would anyone drink eggnog if it weren’t spiked?”

I shrugged. “I wouldif you wanted me to.”

She shook her head. “I draw the line at singin’ carols. You donotwanna hear me sing.”

“Deal,” I agreed. “Should we start with the outside stuff before it gets dark?”

At her nod, I heaved the box that held the tangled lights into my arms and stepped out onto the porch. The wooden boards creaked under my feet as I set down the box, and I knelt and dug in before she had a chance to change her mind.

“Gotta untangle this mess first,” I said as I began separating the strands.

Hope crouched on the other side of the box, reaching out to help with a particularly stubborn knot. Our fingers brushed, and I felt a spark so strong it took me a second to realize it was impossible to get electrocuted by an unplugged string of lights.

Then it happened again—but to my chest this time—when I caught the hint of a smile on her face before she dipped her head.

We fell into an easy rhythm, and it was a comfortable silence, not awkward in the slightest. By the time we began stringing lights around her porch, Hope and I moved like a team who’d spent years in each other’s space instead of only a few months.

When we were done with the porch, I gazed up at our handiwork. “So, what’s the verdict on our decorating skills so far?”

Hope paused, surveying the front of her house with her head tilted to one side. “It’s... not terrible.”

“Wow, high praise.” I deadpanned, then laughed and took a step back to admire the sparkling strands.

Unfortunately, I’d forgotten about the pile of extra lights at my feet. I stumbled forward in a tangle of limbs and wires, and my efforts to untangle myself only served to make it worse. Hope reached out instinctively to steady me, but that only served to make me more off-kilter as I pivoted to make sure I didn’t take her down with me. But more turning was the last thing we needed because then, before I could blink, we stood face to face, mere inches apart, the lights wrapped around our feet. This close, I could smell the faint scent of peppermint on her breath as surprise widened her eyes.

If I were honest, it wasn’t a terrible place to be. But then, my usual charm deserted me, and I had no idea what to do next.

Was she leaning in, or was that my imagination?

Ah, who cared? I could lean in, too.

But just as I did, a distinctive bleat at our feet shattered the moment. I looked down, still tangled in lights, to see Gertie the Goat trotting up to us with her beady eyes fixed on the strands that had us tangled up.

“It’s okay, Gertie,” Hope said, moving in my arms as if to show Gertie we weren’t in need of saving. “Don’t?—”

But it was too late. The goat darted forward, snagging a strand of lights near my ankles in her mouth, tugging on it with surprising strength. I yelped as the sudden jerk nearly sent me—no,us—straight to the ground. I cursed under my breath, trying to maintain mybalance while the pygmy attempted to save us but only made it so much worse.

Then again, I still had Hope in my arms, so was it really all that bad?

Hope laughed as we wrestled with the lights and tried to avoid getting bitten by our tiny rescuer. It was a genuine, musical sound that sent warmth spreading through my chest as we worked together in a ridiculous dance of limbs, laughter, and bleating.

Hope’s hand found mine as we both reached for the same strand, and I felt that spark again, even stronger than before.

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