Page 3 of The Gift Rarely Given

“The girls would love to see you if you decide to get over your Scrooge spirit and come out.”

I love Natalie and Bella, and if there are two people who could talk me into going out on a day completely filled with holiday cheer—obnoxious holiday cheer—it’s them.

“I’ll try but I won’t promise, so don’t tell them anything.”

“Good to see you, Alex. Call me tomorrow if you make it,” Nick says and turns toward his truck as I keep walking straight toward mine. The sun has set already but it’s not deep into the night. The stars and the moon shine bright and, when combined with the streetlight, I can see the parking lot clearly and the marina beyond. I can also see a certain sassy-parking-spot-stealer-elf sleeping on the bench across from the water.

I make a split-second decision to go check on her. Amelia Island is usually safe, but that doesn’t change the fact that she’s a woman sleeping on a bench, at night, alone. I approach her as quietly as I can, being careful not to scare her. Because after all, I imagine I’m a tall and scary motherfucker if you don’t know me.

A fact the press had no problem inreminding me and everyone who will listen. Stay away from Alex Haddock. Alex Haddock, womanizer on the street. Alex Haddock makes another scene at a bar. What the press doesn’t know is that I haven’t had a drink in years. I barely go anywhere, let alone bars, and I haven’t been with a woman in a long time. It’s hard to date anyone when everyone just remembers you as Haddock the Quarterback, not Alex the man. It gets old quickly, so I’m sure I’m destined to die alone.

She’s sleeping on this bench completely at ease. She looks peaceful, without a care in the world. Almost like she had been helping Santa distribute toys and was too tired from working all day so she collapsed here. Her skin is covered in goosebumps, though, so I take off my hoodie and cover her. She wiggles until she’s comfortable and stills. There’s not another bench for me to sit on but I find a big rock against a palm tree, giving me the perfect spot to sit down and keep an eye on her.

3

ARE YOU LIKE FAMOUS OR SOMETHING

HO HEY, THE LUMINEERS

Alex

“Good morning,sunshine…or, should I say, elfie?” I ask as soon as I see her move and open her eyes. I know I scared her when she jolts at the sound of my voice, but I figured it would be best to just get it out of the way.

“Who the fuck are you?!” she shouts. “It’s not even morning!” She sits up and drops my hoodie onto the ground.

“Your guardian angel, apparently,” I reply, bending forward and picking up my jacket from the ground. “You fell asleep and it didn’t seem safe to leave you here by yourself. I saw you while walking back to my truck, but now that you’re awake, have a good night.” I get up to leave, but before heading to my SUV, I add, “You’re welcome, by the way.”

“Shit, I’m sorry. You didn’t have to keep watch. I can’t believe I fell asleep. What the hell?” she questions, stillgroggy from sleep and frantically looking for the snowflake pillow that I can see now is a purse.

She grabs the purse, opens it, and gets her phone out, checking it and letting out a curse. “Sorry; thank you for keeping an eye on me, but I’m good now.” She stands up, shaking her dress out and stepping closer to me.

She offers me her small hand so I can shake it. I notice immediately how much I tower over her and that she’s even prettier up close. Her long lashes kiss her cheeks, her skin a beautiful contrast with her dark hair and her freckles. And her body…her damn perfect body. All soft, sexy, and feminine curves. And when her eyes lock on mine, the sensation coursing through our fingertips intensifies. I pull my hand away and grunt.

“I’m glad you’re good. I hope you make it to wherever you’re going to dressed like that safely,” I say. I was trying to go for flirty and fun but it came out snarky as fuck.

“What? You’ve never seen holiday glee in human form before? That’s sad, even for a grump,” she sasses back.

“A grump? I’m not a grump. You’re the grump, flipping me off when you stole my parking spot.”

She gasps loudly, holding her hands together over her chest and dropping her mouth. “Your parking spot?! I was already there, and my blinker was on, and—wait, are you stalking me?”

I can’t help but roll my eyes. “I was there first and, no, I’m not stalking you. It’s hard to miss someone dressed like Cindy Lou Who on a Friday night,” I tease. Fuck, why am I arguing with this girl instead of asking her out? “A cute Cindy Lou Who,” I add, trying to smooth over this increasingly worse moment.

She rolls her eyes and folds her arms over her chest. “Iwas going to a party, hence the outfit, but now I just look ridiculous, I guess.”

“Cute. You looked cute even when you stole my parking spot,” I explain, winking at her and stretching my hand in front of her again. “Hi, I’m Alex, nice to meet you.”

“Livie,” she replies, shaking my hand softly.

“You hungry, Livie? I saw you didn’t stay for your dinner date long earlier.”

“So, you are stalking me,” she teases with a smile. The air around us is crisp and her arms break out in goosebumps. This time I offer my hoodie to her, holding between us in a silent gesture.

“I’m harmless, I promise. You were sitting across from my table back there—”I point to the restaurant—"and I saw how quickly you left, so unless you went to eat somewhere else, I bet you’re starving.”

I can see hesitation shifting in her eyes. “Are you asking me to go eat with you?”

I grin and reply, “I am.” She looks at me, her gaze searching my eyes with her hands on hips. Her body language shows how confident she is in her own skin but her eyes are telling a different story. To her, I’m just a giant asshole creepy stalker. If she was my sister—if I had a sister—I wouldn’t want her to go anywhere with me. “Listen, this was a bad idea. You don’t know me, and for all you know I could be a serial killer, so just forget it.”

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