Page 11 of A Beastly Christmas Cheerful
I watch him go, thinking this is going to be the best Christmas ever.
Chapter Eight
MARLEY
I walk outside thinking this is going to be the best Christmas ever.
Did she really kiss me on my cheek? The place where her lips touched still tingles. I can’t believe that happened, and more so, that I did it back to her. I haven’t kissed a woman since before my accident, and now I can’t even remember their name.
When I woke up in the hospital, I didn’t know how bad my injuries were, but I could tell from the reaction of all the nurses it was worse than I thought. It wasn’t until I finally looked in the mirror that I could see why everyone was horrified. The more I saw my face, the more I convinced myself that no one would want a man so broken and scarred.
Coming to Cheerful and hiding away in my cabin was a way to protect myself. Then today, Belle went up on her toes and kissed the place I feared the most. She’s got a heart that is pure and kind, and I never imagined anyone like that would want to look at me, let alone kiss me.
I’m sure she was only being friendly. There’s no way she thinks of me romantically. She doesn’t even know me. Yet everything inside me wants to keep her and make her fall in love. Giving her the best Christmas ever might do that.
The snow is coming down heavier, and although I’d like to search the entire woods for the most perfect tree ever, I want to get back to her as soon as possible. Luckily, I spot a great tree not too far from the house. It’s tall and fluffy with lots of branches for her to decorate, which I can tell she really wants to do.
Once I’ve got it cut, I drag it back to the house and knock off all the extra snow before I bring it inside.
“Oh my god, you got back from the store fast.” She blinks at me in wonder.
“I didn’t go to the store and get it. I cut it down outside.” I look at the tree and see that there are a few branches that could be better. It’s still a great tree, but it’s not perfect. Why would she think I bought it?
“I know,” she laughs. “I was teasing you. It’s so beautiful.”
“Like you,” I say softly so she can’t hear me. I can tell by the way she’s looking at the tree that she’s pleased, and that makes me happy. Any time I can put a smile on her face, it’s another step closer to making her stay.
“I made a stand for it too. Tell me where you want it to go.”
She’s practically bouncing on her toes as she goes around the room checking for the perfect spot. In the end, she asks to put it between the kitchen and living room so she can see it from both places.
Once I have it set up, I step back to let her decorate. To my surprise, she asks me to help. At first, I open the boxes and then hold them for her as she takes the ornaments out, but then she must see that I’m still not exactly participating, so she takes the box from me and has me hang a few for her.
It’s far more fun than I thought it would be, mostly because we talk while we do it. She tells me all about her crappy job, and I get annoyed with her boss and her boss's boss. Although they are the reason she’s here, so I can’t hate them too much.
The ladies in Cheerful sent so many decorations that by the time we’re finished, the tree is covered from top to bottom.
“Here, you can put the star on top,” Belle says before holding out a glass star.
“Oh no, that’s your job.”
“But you’re tall enough to reach it.” She laughs like this is obvious, and I walk over to her.
“I think we can fix that.”
“What do you?—”
She doesn’t finish the rest of her sentence as I grab her by the waist. Her squeal of excitement at being lifted into the air makes me smile. I sit her on my right shoulder while I keep a hand on her thighs and then walk closer to the tree.
“There, now you can do it.”
“So this is what the atmosphere is like up here?”
“The air is pretty thin,” I agree, and she smiles down at me.
“I could get used to this.”
“So you’re saying you want me to carry you around all the time?” I know she’s joking, but I would gladly do this every day.
