Page 33 of Give Me a Reason

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Christmastime in Seoul had been different. Sometimes there was snow, which made for a pretty sight. But the decorations and music were just sprinkled here and there, unlike in the US, where the holidays took overeverything.

Anne actually liked it when the holiday season swallowed up life as they knew it and spat out a winter wonderland at their feet, even without the snow. She’d missed that feeling of warmth and manic happiness, where everyone seemed to be a soft nudge away from bursting into song.

Walking into Auntie Sharon’s house on Christmas Day gave Anne a true sense of homecoming. Her aunt’s holiday philosophy definitely belonged to the winter wonderland end of the spectrum. The house looked as though Buddy the Elf had spent all day preparing it for Santa’s visit. And the scent of cinnamon and cloves from Uncle Paul’s signature mulled apple cider infused the air, with the fresh scent of their Christmas tree cutting through it.

Anne hugged her aunt. “Merry Christmas, Imo.”

“Merry Christmas, sweetie.” Auntie Sharon patted her cheek. “It’s so good to have you home, especially for the holidays.”

“My turn.” Uncle Paul picked Anne off the floor in a bear hug, making her squeak and laugh.

“Hey, what about me?” Tessa asked, holding her arms out.

“What about you?” he teased. “Come here. I saved you the best hug.”

Meanwhile, Juliette and Anne’s father slinked off to sit on the living room sofa, wearing twin looks of disdain as they took in the colorful Christmas tree. Every year, her older sister decided on a monochromatic theme for their Christmas tree. This year, she chose various shades of white for the decorations. Anne couldn’t deny that it looked striking, but it felt so cold and aloof. A wry smile twisted her lips. Cold and aloof were perfectly on brand for her father and Juliette.

Anne shook off the unkind thought and turned to Bethany. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas.” Her cousin hugged her tightly. “I made crème brûlée for dessert.”

“Really? You’re the best.” Anne hugged her tighter. “I love crème brûlée.”

“Duh, I know.” Bethany smiled as she stepped back. “Did you have a nice Christmas dinner with your family?”

“Yes, it was… nice,” Anne said blandly.

Knowing her father’s and Juliette’s tastes—even though they wouldn’t know hers if their lives depended on it—she’d made salt-baked branzino and blanched white asparagus for dinner. In quiet rebellion, she poured a drizzle of rich, creamy hollandaise sauce on the asparagus. A small part of her felt sheepish for her immature behavior, but the rest of her felt pretty fantastic about it.Vive la révolution!

To their credit, her father and older sister didn’t complain as they scraped off the hollandaise before transferring the asparagus to their plates. Tessa scooped up the extra sauce for herself with a wink at Anne.

“How was your dinner?” Anne hoped Bethany had made extra dessert because she was still hungry.

“Oh my God.” She gripped Anne’s forearm as if the memory of their dinner made her feel faint with ecstasy. “Dad perfected his prime rib and Yorkshire pudding recipes. It wasdivine.”

“Do you have leftovers?” Tessa asked in a low, desperate voice.

“Yes, what she said.” Anne nodded rapidly.

“Come on, you two.” Bethany beckoned them to the kitchen. “You can eat before Coraline and Joe come.”

“Did Coraline have dinner with Joe’s family?” Tessa leaned against the island as Bethany bustled around.

“Uh-huh,” her cousin said, preparing two plates of prime rib and Yorkshire pudding. “And they’re coming over for dessert. Next year, they’ll have dinner with our family, then have dessert with his. So on, so forth.”

“They make it look so easy.” Anne bit into the medium-rare goodness and moaned. “Oh yeah. Uncle Paul has definitely got this down to a science.”

“Anart,” Tessa said reverently. “This is a beautiful piece of meat.”

“Dad will be thrilled to hear that.” Bethany grinned and went about tidying up the kitchen. For a while, Anne and Tessa ate their second dinner in blissful silence, but their cousin suddenly straightened and smoothed out her clothes. “Hey, guys. Do I look okay?”

“Gorgeous as usual.” Anne arched an eyebrow. “Why do you ask?”

“Frederick is coming over with Coraline and Joe,” her cousin said a little breathlessly. “His sister and brother-in-law are out of the country, so Joe invited him to dinner with his family. Mom insisted Frederick come to our house after because she wants to meet her future son-in-law’s boss.”

Anne stopped chewing, stopped breathing.Frederick’s coming here? Now?Luckily, no one noticed her sudden transformation into a statue.

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