Page 35 of The Holiday Fail

Without realizing it, I’d started liking Levi a lot more than what was allowed for someone working for him. I’d gotten lost in him. That must be why it was so hard to let him go. And that was much too dangerous when I had a goal to reach.

I knew what I had to do, so I thanked Casey for clearing the fuzz in my head. He sounded skeptical when I told him I’d worked it out and made a snide comment, betting that I wouldn’t return to New York.

Well, fuck him very much. He wasn’t funny at all.

I had big dreams that didn’t align with the small-town life. White picket fence with a husband and two-point-five kids? That wasn’t anywhere in my future of a penthouse with the view and all the luxuries the city had to offer at my fingertips.

So even if I had hurt Levi by pretending that beautiful, delicious kiss hadn’t happened, it was for the best. We both needed to move on, and that was what I kept telling myself even a week later.

I focused back on plating the finished order and rang the bell for Julie to deliver the food. More people had stayed to have dinner at the B&B. I liked to think it was because of the reputation of my fantastic food.

It was cocky, but it was hard not to be when I was getting as many compliments for my food as I did. It wasn’t something I was used to back in the city, but it was very welcome.

Julie popped into the kitchen, long blond hair tied back in a neat bun, and a pearly white smile shot my way as she loaded her tray with the prepared plates and carried them away with a sway of her hips.

Julie was hot—exactly my type, in fact. But I couldn’t even enjoy the show she was putting on for me. My mind keptreturning to the slim waist and tight abs of the man who had been pushed under me.

I waved my hand, thinking it might dispel images of a very sexy Levi lying under me. It didn’t. In fact, I almost thought my imagining of the man had become so intense that I’d somehow caused him to materialize in front of me. When I reached out to touch him, my hand was met with warm skin that had me jolting back.

“Sorry,” I said and tried to pretend like I hadn’t overreacted just now, because why not? I was apparently the king of pretending these days. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

I hadn’t really talked to him sincethatnight, which wasn’t abnormal. He was a busy man, and even before kissing him, catching sight of him was a rarity. But in the period that I hadn’t seen him, he seemed to have gotten even more handsome. Moreglowy, if that was even possible.

Levi’s face was harder now, so unlike the openness I’d gotten used to since knowing him. My nails dug into my skin, hating that I’d been the one to do that to him.

His fingers curled around the base of the sweater he wore today. It wasn’t big like the one he’d worn that night, but fit him light a glove and accentuated his trim waist and curves.

I forced myself to look at his face instead of continuing to check him out. He looked good, if not a bit guarded, but good.

Now that he was here in front of me, I knew I couldn’t keep chickening out. He deserved a proper apology, and maybe I couldn’t explain why I acted the way I had, but an apology I could do. “Listen, I actually wanted to talk to you about?—”

Levi held his hand up, cutting off the rest of my words. I obediently shut my mouth. His plump bottom lip snagged under his teeth before loosening again. I tried forcing my eyes away from those delectable lips, I really did, but it waspainfully obvious that I’d failed when Levi cleared his throat to catch my attention.

He had a brow raised and a hand on his hip. He obviously knew what I’d been staring at, but instead of accusing me of being the hypocrite I was, of wanting him but pushing him away, he said, “My friends and I are heading to the club tonight. If you’re free, do you want to come? As my wingman?”

Levi shifted on his feet, looking both nervous and another emotion that I couldn’t grasp. Meanwhile, the ground felt unsteady under me.

Being Levi’s wingman was thelastthing I wanted to do right now, but I couldn’t very well refuse him without a good reason when I’d said I’d help him. I was enough of a jerk already without going back on my word.

So I held my tongue—and my feelings—and nodded. Levi replied with a casual “Good,” before leaving me alone in the kitchen. The room was still warm from the oven, but the chill still crept under my skin.

I threw myself into cooking, finishing up the orders for the night, then scrubbed every pot and pan until they were sparkling to try to get my mind off of tonight, but it was useless.

Images of Levi’s sexy body grinding up against someone else’s on the dance floor left me feeling a tiny bit confused and a whole lot hollow. I didn’t want him to go to the club tonight, nor did I want to be his wingman.

Maybe this would be a good thing. It wasn’t like anything could happen between Levi and me. We needed to keep a strict, professional relationship, and okay, that might have veered alittlebit off track, but I was sure we could salvage this. And the first step was to be the damn best wingman the world had ever seen.

That was the plan I’d been so determined to follow, but allmy perseverance flew out the window when I returned home to find Levi already dressed for a night out.

If I thought the pants he wore on our date were tight, they had nothing on the leather ones he wore tonight. They were practically a second skin on his long legs. And his top—if it could even be called that—was a black, sparkly mesh material that left nothing to the imagination.

His chest was hairless with just the hint of an expanse of delicious skin. Each hard ridge of his defined abs was out for the world to admire. And those tight brown nips peeking through his shirt had my mouth feeling both dry and watery at the same time.

Levi caught me staring—of course he did. I wasn’t being subtle about it. And like earlier, he didn’t comment on it, though a part of me wished he did. Maybe if he had, I could have convinced him to change into something less revealing.

A winter parka would be perfect, in my opinion.

Better yet, I’d convince him going out was a terrible idea altogether and that it would be much better to stay in and finish watching the movie about his favorite spooky family. Instead, I kept quiet.

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