Page 58 of Hostile for the Holidays

“Jasper,”I gasp.

“Do you like them?”

I look up to see him watching me intently.

“Ilovethem.”

He presses a kiss to my lips. “Good. I know they’ll look great on you.”

I’m confused. And empty-handed. I didn’t get Jasper a Christmas gift. With all the chaos of our fake relationship andSadie’s wedding preparation, I hadn’t thought about it. That only makes me feel worse, because Jasper thought about me.

“I didn’t get you a gift.”

“This is all I want for Christmas, Stell.” He slides a hand over my ass and pulls me closer. “You, here with me. Is that okay?”

“Yeah.” I nod, simply because I’m under some kind of spell.

There’s something about the way he cups my ass. He did it earlier when I came over to help his mom wrap presents. It’s possessive, yet sweet. The perfect combination of firm fingertips pressing into the flesh of my ass, and his palm gently holding me to him.

He leans down to give me the sweetest, yet most passionate kiss. I kiss him back with everything I have, hoping that fills the void of not having a Christmas gift for him.

I might take this chance to maul him, but I want to spend time with our families and friends, so I exchange my current earrings for the diamond bows Jasper gave me and we head back downstairs.

The evening is the most fun I’ve had in a long time.

Liam is a good time. Telling jokes—I love his British humor—and whipping up the perfect dirty martini, which I only need one of so I won’t faceplant into the Christmas tree.

Jasper and I end the night slow dancing in the living room to Frank Sinatra’s “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,”then I help his family with some clean up, before he walks me home.

It’s snowing big fluffy flakes, so I stick my tongue out and capture one.

I turn to find Jasper staring at me.

At my front door, he pulls me in close and kisses me as the snow falls around us. Everything about tonight feels like a scene out of a Hallmark holiday movie, except for the part where we slipped into the bathroom together so he could finger me while I gave him a skilled hand job.

“Merry Christmas, Stella.” He kisses me softly.

“Merry Christmas, Jasper.” I kiss him back. He tastes like citrus and whiskey and gingerbread. I’m tempted to invite him up but not ready to analyze what that means for our fake relationship status, so I say goodnight.

In my bedroom, I get ready for bed, but I leave the curtains open so I can enjoy the view of Jasper’s house, then crawl into bed and fall asleep.

Christmas day with my family is magical. There’s nothing that can be done for the wedding today. No vendors to call or meet with, no shops open to run errands at, so we lounge in the matching pajamas that I got for us—except Daniel, since I didn’t know he was going to be here—open gifts, then stuff ourselves with a home-cooked meal that we all helped prepare.

We clean up the kitchen, play a few rounds of Spades at my dad’s request, then gather up snacks to watch a movie.

It’s a wonderful Christmas, exactly what I wanted, but something is missing.

Not something. Someone.

I miss Jasper.

There. I said it.

“Is Jasper coming over?” Sadie asks like she can read my mind.

“No, he’s got plans with his family. And Liam.” I don’t know why I don’t tell Sadie the truth. The truth is, I don’t know what his plans are. She knows we’re not really together, so I’m not sure why she would expect him to show up today.

“Are you sure about that?” she asks, pointing out the window where Jasper is crossing the street to our house right now.

---