Page 9 of Her Frosty Billionaire
Neither did I.
3
HOPE
Iwas blabbering like a nervous girl on her first date.
This wasn’t even a date. We were just talking on a terrace outside a crowded lounge. And I’d had dates before. They were just disasters that never led to anything.
“So what do you do, Hope Haynes?” Noel asked at the end of my description of our roommate situation. Avery, Mollie, and I in one condo with Danika, Sutton, and Gabriella in the other.
“I work for Festive Media Studios. Heard of it?”
His expression remained neutral. I tried to read his response in his eyes, but I couldn’t tell a darn thing.
“Christmas content creation and influencer management,” he said after a moment. “Eli Oakley’s company.”
“You know Eli?”
“We’ve crossed paths.” He leaned against the railing beside me. “What do you do there?”
“I’m a junior content coordinator. Basically, I help manage the social media calendars for influencers and assist with campaign logistics.” I shrugged. “It’s entry-level, but I love it. Every day is different, and I get to help create content that makes people happy during the holidays.”
“You really do love Christmas.”
“Is that so hard to believe?”
“No.” His gaze was steady on mine. “It’s just rare. Most people in this industry see Christmas as a revenue stream. You seem to actually…feel it.”
“Don’t you? Even a little?”
He was quiet for a moment, looking out at the city lights. “I used to. When I was a kid. But somewhere along the way, it just became another quarter to close. Another set of logistics problems to solve.”
There was something sad in his voice, buried under all that ice. “That’s depressing,” I said softly.
“It’s realistic.”
“It’s lonely.”
His eyes snapped to mine. For a second, I thought I’d overstepped. But then his expression softened, just barely.
“Maybe,” he admitted.
We stood there in silence. I should’ve felt cold—it was freezing out here—but I was hyperaware of how close he was. How his shoulder almost touched mine. How good he smelled, like cedar and something expensive I couldn’t name.
“Can I ask you something?” I asked, the words tumbling out before I could stop them.
“Go ahead.”
“Are you dating anyone?”
He turned to face me fully. “No. Are you?”
“No.” I laughed, but it came out hollow. “I’m not really… I haven’t really…”
Stop talking, Hope. Just stop.
But I couldn’t. Maybe it was the darkness, or the way he was looking at me like I actually mattered, or the fact that I’d been thinking about him nonstop since I first saw him in that elevator.
