Page 45 of The Holiday Fail

I laughed. “Isn’t it unfair to our guests if I get the first pick?”

“I won’t tell if you don’t,” he replied with a mischievous smile.

I couldn’t help myself and planted a kiss on those sexy lips, right there in the middle of the dining room, where anyone could see us.

Levi was naturally surprised by my sudden action, as was I, but then those brown eyes warmed and melted away all my anxiety.

There wasn’t time to think too deeply about why Levi’s smile had a calming effect on me since the guests started flowing in at that moment. The B&B had been booked completely full for the last couple of weeks, and tonight was no exception. Guests from all ten rooms came in, some with children leading in front of them, filling the room completely.

Everyone chose their pumpkins, and Levi took center stage as he demonstrated how to start the carving process. Apparently, it wasn’t as easy as just taking a knife to the orange squash.

Levi went around the room, giving a hand to anyone who needed a little extra help. He was practically glowing with how animated he was, laughing and chatting with everyone as he helped them with their pumpkin. Some were older guests who visited every year and others were experiencing Wintertown for the first time, but Levi still treated them like old friends.

It was so clear that he loved people. It made sense why he worked so hard for the B&B and put his all into this place. It was because he loved the little community they built here. The guests might change, but the sentiment always stayed the same.

Levi was so popular—even the kids pulled him away to brainstorm what to carve on their pumpkin—that I didn’t get a chance to talk to him again until after I’d finished cleaning out my pumpkin and scooping all the seeds into a container to bake later.

I’d never tried roasting fresh pumpkin seeds before, so it’d be interesting to see how they’d turn out.

“That’s a nice pile of pumpkin guts you have there,” Levi said, popping up beside me holding a mini pumpkin in his hand.

I peered at him as he cut a hole at the top with ease and expertly scooped out the seeds. “Way to make it sound sinister,” I teased.

He turned to me with a goofy grin. His hair was tossed every which way, but on Levi, it looked like it had been meticulously styled on purpose. He looked put together even after running around all day. The only thing that broke his perfect illusion was the stray pumpkin seed that had somehow made its way to his forehead.

“You got a little something,” I commented and gestured to where the pale-yellow seed still covered in orange flesh stuck proudly on his skin. He used the back of his hand to wipe the area, completely missing the seed.

I laughed and wiped my hands with a towel before stepping closer to him and reaching up.

“Here,” I said and took the seed off. My thumb rubbed against his forehead.

I didn’t know if it was intentional or not, but Levi’s eyes fluttered closed for the briefest second as he rubbed up against my palm. The action made it feel like time had stopped. Then his lids opened again, eyes focused on me, and the chatter and sound of excited kids starting their carvings faded away.

Nothing else existed but Levi and me…and there was a sinking feeling that I was well and truly fucked for this man. No matter how much I tried to deny it, I’d already done the one thing I said I wouldn’t do.

I’d gotten attached.

Then a kid tugged at Levi’s clothes, bright-eyed as he asked for help with carving a dinosaur, and breaking the spell that Levi always managed to cast over me. I pulled my hand back, mostly shocked by the child’s interruption more than anything else.

Levi shot me an apologetic look before leaving with thechild to his station. The child had picked a pumpkin twice the size of his head, but it seemed his parents were working on it together with him.

They placed the squash on the ground, so the kid had easier access to it. Levi squatted and took a marker to quickly sketch out a T-Rex’s head. It was my first time seeing his artistic abilities, and I was surprised at how quickly the image appeared. It wasn’t too detailed, which would make it hard to carve, but the image was definitely recognizable as the roaring dinosaur with its little arms.

Levi bent over at the knees to get up butt first. I tried really hard not to stare at that ass, but it was really hard with how his jeans curved around that butt so deliciously. It was like every piece of clothing the man owned was tailor-made to fit him.

The kid practically squealed when he saw the finished product and jumped into Levi’s arms for a hug before tugging at his mom’s shirt to show off his new design. Levi chatted with the parents for a while, smiling affectionately as the child ran to the other kids with a goofy smile to show off his new pumpkin.

Of course, that led to the other kids requesting Levi’s help too. He nodded patiently as he went to each child’s station and drew their requested image. He left behind a group of happily laughing kids as he walked back to me with the brightest smile on his face and picked up his own tiny pumpkin.

I had finished scooping out the rest of the seeds and cleaned the inside so it was ready to be carved. When Levi noticed, he bumped my hip with his. There was a shy smile on his face as he thanked me.

“Sorry. I invited you, but I’ve barely had any time to spend with you,” he murmured. He was focused on his pumpkin, hand moving quickly as he drew an outline for his carving.

“It’s okay. I’m enjoying myself,” I replied, realizing that I meant it. This wasn’t how I imagined my first carvingexperience, but I had fun watching Levi interact with everyone like old friends. I didn’t get to spend a bunch of time with him, but I got to see another side of him, and that felt big.

Levi smiled, shy but dimply, as he capped the marker he was using. I took a glance at his pumpkin and shouldn’t have been surprised to see two doves with their beaks touching, as if kissing.

The Doves of Destiny, who ambushed me everywhere I went and signified Levi’s hope to find the person who was meant to be his. I didn’t know if the birds were real and actually blessed people’s love lives, but at that moment, I hoped it was, and that Levi would find someone who deserved him.

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