Page 41 of Icing on Top
We got our coffee and sat awkwardly while I built the courage to open my mouth. “Listen, Brandy. You seem like a nice person. This isn’t my business, but you should know that Paul and I were together for three years. He moved out shortly beforeThanksgiving. When he told me he was traveling for business, he was visiting you.”
She took a sip of her coffee and set it on the table. “Paul told me you would say that,” she replied calmly. “he warned me that you had a hard time letting go, and while he broke it off months before we met, it took all that time for you to accept it.”
Laughter bubbled out of me, surprising her. “Of course he did, the little egotistical lying cockroach. You can believe what you wish. If you’re happy with that little weasel, then congratulations. I truly wish you a lifetime of happiness, but I wouldn’t have been able to live with myself if I didn’t tell you the truth. I hope he can be a better man for you than he was for me.”
“I appreciate your concern. Whatever the truth is, Paul loves me and treats me like a princess.”
“Good. I’m glad.” We sat in silent contemplation as we sipped our coffee.
“You know,” she said after some time, “your version of events does explain why he is so upset about you dating the owners of Triple Tech. He rants about it often, and I couldn’t figure out why he cared so much if it was over so long ago.”
“Yes. Paul expressed his anger to me at the festival. Hopefully, he can move past it.”
Brandy nodded. “Thank you for telling me and for the coffee. You’ve given me something to think about.”
We stood, and on impulse, I hugged her. “If you ever need to talk or just need a cupcake to improve your day, you know where to find me.”
“Thanks.”
I watched Brandy walk away and hoped things would work out for her. She did seem like a nice woman. Maybe even someone I could be friends with one day. I finished shopping, grabbed stocking stuffers, and picked up the picture. On the way home, I stopped at the craft store for stockings and supplies to decoratewith them. I pretended that I hadn’t purchased ten new rolls of wrapping paper. In my defense, you can never have too much pretty paper.
Early Christmas Present
Benjamin
6 Days Until New Year’s Eve
Ifinished wrapping the final gift we had gotten Nova for Christmas and checked my watch. We needed to get to her house and were dangerously close to running late. “Guys! Let’s go!” I yelled. I rolled my shoulders to relieve some of the tension in them. We have been working long hours preparing for the launch, and I was looking forward to having two days off to spend with Nova. Christmas was finally here, meaning it was only a week until New Year’s, and we hadn’t figured anything out yet. I wasn’t going to focus on that right now. I was going to focus on Christmas with our little Christmas Star.
Lincoln and Grant finally came downstairs with their overnight bags. I grabbed mine, and we each grabbed some gifts, loaded up the Jeep, and left. When we arrived, we let ourselves into Nova’s house and were greeted by Christmas music and delicious smells.
“Hey guys!” she called from the kitchen as we brought everything in. Grant took our bags to her bedroom while Linc and I added our gifts to the ones already under the tree.
“Smells amazing, Baby,” I told her when I joined her in the kitchen. I wrapped my arms around her, toying with the strings of her apron framing her ass.
“Thanks.” The alarm on the stove beeped. “Can you dump the lasagna noodles into the strainer in the sink for me?” Nova slid from my arms and reached into the fridge to pull out a charcuterie board she had already made for us to snack on.
“Sure can.” I grabbed the pot holders and carefully poured the boiling water through the strainer, avoiding the steam.
“Do we have to go caroling tonight?” Grant grumbled as he entered the kitchen and swept Nova into a kiss, dipping her playfully.
“Yes! It will be fun,” she admonished him when he released her.
“Fine. But I’m only doing this for you.”
“And I appreciate it. I’ll make sure to reward you properly later.”
“Oh, really? Well, I like the sound of that.” He reached for her again, but she skipped out of reach.
“You have to earn it first,” she teased.
A loud pop startled us all and had us looking in Linc’s direction. He stood there with a bottle of champagne and four glasses in front of him. “What?” he asked.
“Champagne? This early in the day?” Nova asked.
“It’s a holiday! We deserve to celebrate!” Linc chirped as he poured a glass for each of us.
“Plus, it will help us get through caroling,” Grant added sullenly.
