Page 61 of A Cozy Kind of Christmas
It used to be me.
I used to be the one who got to see every part of you—flaws and all.
Man, I miss that.
I miss you.
Meg paused and gripped the letter so tightly between her fingers that she was afraid it might rip.
“I miss you, too, Matt,” she whispered, fighting back tears. “I miss you, too.”
THIRTY-NINE
JOHANNA
A timid knock sounded on Johanna’s door. Her heart kicked up a beat.
Connor was here.
She took her time answering, stopping to check her appearance in the mirror. She’d showered after her morning outing with Meg. The sage green sweater dress accented her curves in all the right places. Her hair fell in loose waves to her shoulders, tied back on one side with a silver barrette and a sprig of holly. Her cheeks shimmered with an iridescent powder and matching eyeshadow. The effect was simple but made a statement.
She looked good.
Sexy.
Powerful.
Strong.
Take that, Connor.
Eat your heart out.
She swept to the door, holding her stomach in place with one hand and forcing her face into a calm and composed glower.
Connor stood on the porch with a bag slung over one shoulder. Multiple bouquets of red roses obscured his face, and a box of expensive chocolate was tucked under his other arm.
He looked like a lost boy searching for his house or a kid going door-to-door selling candy for a school fundraiser.
“What the hell are you doing here? This is absolutely absurd,” Johanna said, not giving him a chance to be the first to speak.
She needed to make it crystal clear who had the upper hand here—her.
“Come on, don’t start like this. Can I come in?” He motioned to the crack in the door with his head. “I flew to Oregon for you. Can we at least talk, Jo?”
“Don’t use that nickname with me, and for the record, I didn’t ask you to fly to Bend. You did that all on your own. Without my knowledge, by the way.”
“Take these. You said every flower on the planet. I couldn’t quite do that, but I bought out the local florist.” He thrust the flowers and chocolate at her. “It’s your favorite—dark chocolate and orange.”
“You stole my promotion from right under me, and you think some roses and a box of chocolates are going to fix it?”
“I didn’t steal your job,” Connor said with more than a hint of exasperation. “You’re so damn stubborn sometimes, Johanna. Just let me in. Come on, otherwise, I’m going to beg.” He started to lower himself on a knee, nearly dropping the flowers and chocolate in the process.
“Oh, my God. Do not,” Johanna hissed, yanking him up and dragging him inside. “You have five minutes, but you’re not staying. I don’t know why you brought a bag.”
“Call me an optimist.” He flashed her a hopeful smile before he stepped inside.
He glanced around. “This is cute. Very cabin-ish.”
