Page 23 of Ewan

I’m probably getting riled up for nothing.

Who hasn’t seen a big muscular teen?

They’re everywhere.

“My nineteen-year-old cousin looks like a twelve-year-old with an unrelenting case of acne,” she says.

“Shut up, Maria. Twelve year olds don’t have acne,” I say.

“That’s precisely my point.”

I toss a glare at her and push the door to the event room open and my helper quickly goes quiet.

5

SCARLETT

The man ishard to miss.

For one, he’s towering over everybody else––his physique is impressive––and then he’s like a big blob of red with a swagger.

A swagger?

I whip my eyes to Maria, who looks like a mouse shaking in the crossfires of a lion’s eyes.

She nods slowly at the stunned expression blanketing my face.

“Now you know what I mean,” she murmurs before I zip my eyes back to the man in question.

No one is showing him around––everybody seems perfectly fine with him, not thinking twice about him––yet he has no problem locating the little bench in the nook where we placed a Christmas tree in the background so he can sit, offer gifts, and take pictures with the children.

My heart throbs, skipping beats, and the room spins with me.

I lower my hand and press it against Maria’s forearm.

“Who let him in?”

“Have you looked at him? Who do you think dared to stop him?”

A bunch of kids already trail him to the garlands-decorated bench, and they do that for a good reason.

They’ve been waiting for this moment the entire evening.

A pile of festively wrapped gifts coming with holiday cards bearing their names sit under the tree.

I’ve also been waiting for this moment the entire evening.

If all goes well, this will be the highlight of the evening and the only reason we are here.

My eyes hover over the man as we both watch him check the area.

Man, those Santa pants are tight on his sexy ass, and if this is a nineteen-year-old, I need to have my eyes checked. That's not what I'm seeing.

Did he toss his costume into the dryer and use the high-heat setting?

Wait, are those tattoos on his knuckles?

My knees are about to give in.

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