Page 7 of Blame It On The Carols

I pressed a few buttons and waited for the music to start. They were singing Silent Night, and I had heard them do it a few times already, as they came in often to rehearse. But this would be the first time I’d heard Makayla sing in person since she left.

Six

Makayla

Ididn’t know if itwas from whatever was in the Dirty Reindeer Balls drink that Aiden had made for me or if it was the way he was watching me from the DJ podium, but suddenly—I had the courage I needed to take the stage and sing. It wasn’t like I didn’t do this for a living. But the difference was that I knew these people. I knew Aiden. And I’d never performed for the people in the small town I left behind when I started my career.

The ladies all stood behind me, and it felt weird that we hadn’t talked about what we would do or how this would work. My mom assured me that I just needed to sing, and they would do the rest—which didn’t really sound that promising. I had worked with plenty of backup singers in my life, and they always needed guidance, no matter how experienced they were.

I took a deep breath, pulled my shoulders back, and closed my eyes as I began singing. Silent Night was my favorite song, and I had sung it so many times as a child that I knew every single word. I was so lost in the moment that I hadn’t even noticed how perfectly the women were harmonizing behind me as they sang along. I knew they were good and had won the caroling competition a few times, but I had no idea they werethatgood. That was what happened when you moved away and didn’t make time for those you left behind—you missed out on all of the good things that happened without you.

I continued singing, completely caught up in the song, as I slowly opened my eyes and found Aiden watching me. His arms were folded over his chest, and his body looked rigid. But his attention was solely on me. I looked into his eyes as I kept singing, holding onto this feeling before it ended. It was hard to describe what it was, but I knew I had never felt anything like it before. It was a mix of acknowledging what we used to have while also being curious about what could be between us if given a chance.

Once the song was over, the ladies quickly cleared off the stage and left me to return the microphone to Aiden. He had already started another song to fill the space before he called the next person up for karaoke, which meant I couldn’t just shove it at him and run off like I wanted to.

“Here you go,” I said, handing him the microphone.

His fingers brushed mine as he took it, a surge of electricity washing over my skin from the contact.

“You did amazing up there,” he said softly, not looking at me as he set it down next to the others.

“Thank you.” My cheeks flamed as a blush crept across them. I turned to go back to my seat but stopped when I felt his hand on my arm.

“I didn’t mean what I said last night,” he said, his tone firm.

I looked away before looking at him, unsure of what to say.

“It’s okay if you did,” I admitted. “I knew that things between us would be different when I came back. I don’t blame you for being upset with me or for being caught off guard with me just showing up out of the blue.”

“I was definitely caught off guard.” He smiled and I looked away because I couldn’t handle what it did to my heart.

“Well, I’m sorry about that.”

“You don’t need to keep apologizing for coming back. Your mom is still here, and you have every right to visit her. I’m sorry that I wasn’t more welcoming. I’m sure the town is more than excited to have a local celebrity here.”

The town—not him.

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