Page 25 of The Duke Who Saved Christmas
I, too, froze.
What else was I supposed to do? Start singing a Christmas jingle?
Thomas looked at us both. “What? What did I say?”
Slowly, I shook my head. “You are so stupid.”
Beth swallowed and cleared her throat. “Don’t worry about it, Thomas. I’ll move them later.”
I stared at him. “If you don’t move those boxes, I will. And if I chip a nail doing it, I’m going to sendyouthe bill when I get them fixed.”
“I don’t—” Thomas stopped. “Oh, shit. Beth?”
She wrapped her arms around herself. “Don’t. I just—it’s fine.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose, briefly squeezing his eyes shut, and his broad shoulders visibly tensed through his jumper. “I’ll move the boxes.”
I had no idea what was going on here, but clearly, there was a big family issue I wasn’t privy to. I didn’t want to be privy to such a thing either, but Beth looked so forlorn that the human part of me couldn’t let it go.
She clearly needed a friend right now.
“Hey,” I said to her. “I have to call my sister’s catering company in about half an hour, but if you don’t mind me doing that, why don’t you join me for lunch? You look like you could use a break.”
Thomas shot daggers my way, but I wasn’t going to entertain it.
Not only was he dense, but he was being denseandmean to her.
Beth glanced at him, then quickly nodded. “I was about to take lunch anyway.”
“Great. Let’s go.”
She skirted past Thomas into the back, quickly disappearing through a plastic curtain.
“What are you doing?” he hissed at me.
“Don’t you speak to me like that,” I shot back, pointing at him. “I’ll forgive your denseness because you aren’t a woman, but the look on her face said she needs a friend, and the look onyourssaid you have no intention of being it.”
“Don’t get involved in this.” His voice was low, and a dark flash of annoyance crossed his face.
“I’m not getting involved. I’m taking my friend for lunch. Not thatyouhave any business telling me what to do,” I shot back right as Beth swept the plastic curtain aside.
She dipped her head. “Would you mind locking the door when you’ve moved the boxes?” she asked Thomas softly.
His nostrils flared. “Of course not.”
“Thank you.” She slipped around the counter and stepped in front of me, heading for the door.
I touched my hand to her back and gave Thomas one last monster glare as I followed her out of the front door of the shop.
His responding glare followed me as I passed the window, but I simply slipped my arm through Beth’s and carried on walking.
Idiot.
CHAPTER SIX – SYLVIE
“Thank you,” Beth said when I sat back down after making my phone call. “For getting me out of there so quickly.”
I waved a hand dismissively. “I had a feeling it was a conversation you didn’t want to have there and then, especially not with that dense prat.”
