Page 46 of The Holiday Boyfriend

My eyes popped open when I realized that Ihaddrooled from ogling him. I scrambled away and turned my back to him in embarrassment as I quickly rubbed the back of my hand over my mouth.

This definitely wasn't the way to his heart.

Jim plastered his chest against my back and pulled me in a hug. He rested his chin on my shoulder. “Why are you awake so early, anyway? The party doesn't start until tonight. What do you say we spend the morning in bed?”

It was a tempting idea to sink in the pleasure of him, but that wouldn't solve anything. It wouldn't magically extend our time or give me an idea about how to make it happen.

“We don't want to waste the day away! Today's the last day, after all!” I said, not knowing if I meant the last day of the festival or our relationship. I hoped it was only the former.

I twisted out of his hug and scurried to the kitchen. “I'll make breakfast!”

Jim insisted on helping me in the kitchen despite fooling around more than actually helping. We eventually finished cooking and settled down to have a leisurely meal while chatting about our plans for the day.

Neither of us brought up our relationship or what it would be by the end of the night, as if we had a tacit agreement to enjoy the remainder of this time.

After we cleaned up from breakfast, we changed and headed to Main Street to join in the excitement. The main square was filled to the brim with people as they crowded by the makeshift stage on one side.

Our mayor was making a speech, thanking everyone for joining our little town for the holidays. At the end of it, he pulled a ticket from a glass container and called out a number. Loud screams ensued as someone rushed on stage and accepted the prize they won.

To my surprise, Ethan was the lucky winner. He grabbed the prize and jumped up and down on stage while waving toward everyone. I shared a smile with Jim before we made our way toward the front of the crowd. We found a free spot by the stage stairs to wait for Ethan and Kingsley, and not long after, the young man came bounding off the stage, hugging his prize like it was a treasure.

His eyes lit up when he saw us. “Hey, guys! Look, I won! This is my first time winning anything,” he said before turning to his left and waving. “Kingsley, over here!”

Our other friend wove his way through the crowd and over to us. He pulled Ethan into his arms and lifted the shorter man in a spin. Ethan laughed in hisarms, his eyes squinting with joy as his boyfriend smothered his face in kisses.

Jim squeezed my hand as we watched them before turning to me. Feeling his gaze on me, I looked over and caught his eye. The smile he flashed me had the back of my spine tingling with want—and not even in a sexual way. I wanted this man always.

“What are we going to do with the present, though? Should we drop it off at the B&B?” Ethan asked when he was set back down on the solid ground.

“The B&B is out of the way. Just leave it in my truck for now. We parked a street away,” Jim said and led us back to his truck. Since we were already at the truck, we decided to check out Jim's workplace, and to satisfy Ethan's need to get some of theworld's best hot chocolate.

Jim beamed at that statement, obviously proud that his farm's products were being complimented. The four of us walked toward the back, where most of the people were hanging out. There were small tables of food and drinks, as well as games set up in the open space.

There was a trail off to the side that led to the trail of lights they set up every year, and even though it was still bright outside, I saw countless couples heading into the trail hand-in-hand.

Ethan and Kingsley wandered off to get their hot chocolate while Jim and I went to see if the farm needed any help. Alice and Trish were standing by the cash register for the little shop where they sold local homemade products.

Trish grinned wide when she saw us holding hands while walking up to them. “Don't you dare,” Jim warned, pointing a finger at her.

She chuckled. “What are you two lovebirds doing here anyway?” My face heated at her comment.

“Our friends insisted that they were dying for some of the world's best hot chocolate,” Jim said in a teasing tone.

Trish let out another full-bellied laugh and wrapped an arm around Alice and pulled her close. “Damn straight. Nobody can beat my wife's famous hot chocolate recipe.”

Alice rolled her eyes, feigning annoyance, but the tender look she sent her wife gave her away.

“Anyway, we wanted to see if you needed any help,” Jim said with a smile at their antics.

Trish released her wife and looked between Jim and me before breaking out in a smile and clapping Jim on the shoulder. “Nah, you kids go enjoy yourselves. We got it covered here,” she said and waved us off with a “shoo”gesture.

We said our goodbyes and left them to take care of the customers coming to pay for their items. We spent the rest of the day around the farm playing games, chatting with our friends and some of the locals, as well as enjoying time with just the two of us. We were also one of the couples who walked through the trail of lights despite it still being bright out.

By the time evening had rolled around, I'd long forgotten about the worries from this morning. I was having too much fun laughing and hanging out with people I cared about. But when it was time to return to the main square for the party, I found my mind going blank. There were only a few hours left in the day and I still hadn't formulated a plan on how I was going to keep Jim.

The square was popping with loud live music and people already dancing around the twinkling Christmas tree. Everyone was laughing with abandon as they reveled in the night with their loved ones.

Ethan and Kingsley had already joined the crowd of dancers. Jim pulled me to follow them. I didn't know how to dance, but that didn't matter. Jim's large hands rested on my hips, pulling us close together as we swayed to the music. It was hard to think of anything else but this man when I was in his arms like this, and before I knew it, we'd danced through three songs.

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