Page 36 of A Roommate for Christmas
“Yeah, uh ...”He paused briefly.“I guess you could say that, but I won’t bore you with the details.”
He stuffed a big bite of pancake into his mouth, leading to their first string of silence of the morning, but it gave Paige some time to clean up the dishes while she thought of what to say next.Talking with Carter was easy, and she wasn’t ready for him to retreat to his room just yet.
“So, I’m thinking first on our list of activities for the day,” Carter cut in before she could think of anything, “we compete in a friendly game of Mario Kart,” he said as he pointed at the Nintendo Switch by the TV.
List of activities?Seems like I’m not the only one who wants more time together ...
“Oh, heck yeah.”Paige turned toward him.“Are yousureyou’re ready to get your ass handed to you so soon?”
Carter looked stunned at her reply.
“I see how it is.You don’t know the can of worms you’ve just opened up.”Carter smirked.His golden-brown eyes twinkled at the mention of competition.
“Bring it on,” Paige said, throwing the dish towel on the counter and scurrying toward the TV.
The light trash talk only strengthened the tension that was building in the room.
They picked their characters—Princess Peach for Paige and Yoshi for Carter—and played for two hours straight, going tit for tat until their fingers were stiff.To spare their hands from permanent carpal tunnel, Carter proclaimed the next race was for all the marbles.
“What do you say we make this interesting?”he asked, narrowing his eyes at her.
Paige felt her cheeks starting to flush as she responded, “Keep talking ...what do you have in mind?”
What the hell is he about to suggest?She thought.And why do I low-key hope it’s a game of strip Mario Kart?She tried to shake the image of a shirtless Carter from her mind with little success.
“If I win,” he said, “you put away ten Christmas decorations of my choosing, which will most definitely include that large Santa over there.”He pointed at the corner across from his bedroom door where Paige and Nadia always put their vintage light-up Santa.It was technically meant to be an outdoor decoration, but the girls loved the classic Christmas vibe it brought to the condo.
“Oh, you mean the one that scares the shit out of you?”she teased.
Paige had noticed Carter jump on more than one occasion upon leaving his room, and although it was funny to see him get scared by a plastic decoration, she had to admit itwasa bit much.
“I will neither confirm nor deny the answer to that question,” he said, avoiding eye contact.
“Whatever you say, scaredy cat.So, what happens when I win?”
“Ifyou win ...”He paused while he contemplated his next words.“If you win, I will watch a Christmas movie of your choice with you tonight.”
A little disappointing this isn’t strip Mario Kart with his six-pack abs on display,but this is major progress.
“Wow, so you’re telling me that if I win, Mr.Grinch himself will watch a full-length Christmas movie?”
“Yep.And if I win, then Mrs.Claus needs to send the tacky Santa back to storage.So, do we have a deal?”He stretched out his hand toward her.Despite his dig at her festive knickknacks, Paige shook it and felt that familiar electricity run through her as their skin touched.
They zoned in as the race started, mashing buttons and cursing at every inconvenience.On lap three, they were neck and neck until Paige got hit by a red shell from a computer player behind her, allowing Carter to take the lead.As she hit the gas again, a blue shell flew past her, its sights set on Carter.
The shell hit him just short of the finish line, taking out the computer opponent in its wake, allowing Paige to speed past them and over the finish line in first place.
Carter slung some expletives at the screen while Paige jumped up and down, pretending to bow for an invisible cheering crowd.
“Oh, Carter, don’t look so ...shell-shocked,” she teased.
He stared at her blankly for a second before bursting into uncontrollable laughter.It was contagious enough that Paige joined in.
“Damn.You’re pretty, funny, a cookie master, and you can whoop ass in Mario Kart.Why am I moving out?”
Paige’s heart skipped a beat.
“Pretty, huh?”she asked, feeling bold.
