Page 14 of Love for the Holiday

“You’re going to burn a whole in me.” Jacob smirked.

His voice startled me, and I tensed up in my seat.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.” He offered me an apologetic smile.

“You’re fine. I shouldn’t have been staring at you. I just didn’t know what else to do.”

“Ah. It is kinda boring watching me work. Huh?” He looked at his computer and then at me. “How about I pack up and treat you to dinner?”

That sounded like a wonderful idea; however, I wasn’t one to get in the way of work.

“No. You need to finish your charts.”

“You sure? I don’t want you bored.”

“I’ll play on my phone.” I grinned and then pulled my phone out of my purse.

The minutes ticked by with me going through emails, checking the news, and playing games. Occasionally, Jacob and I would both look up at the same time. Our eyes would meet, we’d smile, and then go back to doing what we were doing. It was like being in grade school because each time I felt giddy.

CHAPTER EIGHT

“Love.” I heard Jacob’s voice calling out my name in my dream. “Love, wake up, sweetheart.”

Wake up?

My body shook slightly. A warm hand was on my arm.

“Wake up, sweetheart. You fell asleep,” Jacob whispered.

Realization hit me and I startled from my sleep. I gasped for air.

“It’s okay. It’s okay,” Jacob said from where he knelt in front of my chair. “It’s just me. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“It’s… it’s okay.” My breath was ragged; more like a pant. “How… How long was I asleep?”

“About thirty minutes or so.”

I grumbled at his reply. How embarrassing. I hoped and prayed that I wasn’t snoring. With my body being so sore and exhausted there was no doubt I did. The only thing to do now was to barge past him, out the door, and never look back.

“Relax, Love,” he whispered then helped me stand. His warm arms wrapped around my waist. “Why don’t we head out so you can get some sleep?”

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered looking up at him. He kissed me gently then smiled.

“Don’t apologize for being tired.”

How can a man be so perfect? Jacob was the ideal package. The man who every woman dreamed of finding. I hadn’t been searching for the perfect man but somehow, I fell into his life… literally.

“What are you thinking about?” His words were soft but filled with amusement.

“Why are you single?” The question was meant to be said silently in my head not blurted out to him. Especially not face-to-face. A text maybe. Face-to-face? No way in hell.

“Why am I single?” He smiled.

“No!” I shook my head. “Don’t answer that!”

“Don’t want to know the answer or afraid to hear the answer?”

I leaned my forehead against his chest. A soft groan left me. Jacob rubbed my back and kissed the top of my head.

---