Page 19 of Another Christmas from Hell

“This is going to be the best Thanksgiving ever,” Johnny said on a heartfelt sigh as he reached for the mashed potatoes.

“Don’t make me kill you,” Bryce said, reaching over and stole the mashed potatoes from him.

“So,” Sean said, looking really fucking happy as he propped his chin on his fists as he glanced between the two of them, “what’s new?”

“I’ve been kidnapped,” Cayley said, nodding solemnly as Bryce scooped mashed potatoes onto her plate.

“That would explain the pajamas,” Connor murmured, sounding amused as Bryce glanced around the table, noting that the rest of his family was watching her curiously while his father glared at him, which was understandable considering the fact that Cayley was his oldest friend’s only daughter.

“So, I have questions,” Sean murmured, smiling hugely only to lose that smile, clear his throat, and shift his attention back to his plate when Cayley said, “The eighth-grade field trip.”

Since that drew everyone’s attention, Bryce decided to use the opportunity to finish loading their plates with food and once he was done, he quickly dug in, ignoring everything around him and focused on the small woman sitting next to him as he found himself wondering how he was supposed to pull this off. For the next thirty days, he needed to spend time with her so that he could prove that the Bradford curse was bullshit, but that might be a problem given their history.

He was going to have to figure out a way to-

“Cayley, I know that you already have your hands full with the renovations and everything coming up this year, but I was thinking that perhaps it would be for the best if you worked on the Dawson Project with Bryce,” Rory suddenly announced, making him bite back a smile because this was absolutely fucking perfect.

Working with Cayley on the Dawson Project would allow him to keep his focus on work and fulfill his sister’s requirement for this bullshit agreement that he’d stupidly agreed to at the same time without having to worry about touching her again since they would-

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Cayley said, making him frown.

“And why’s that?” Connor asked, looking really fucking amused for some reason while Bryce sat there glaring at the small woman looking helplessly down at the plate that he’d piled high with turkey and all the delicious trimmings.

“Besides the fact that I’m pretty sure that he’s planning my murder?” Cayley asked, blinking down at her plate as she mumbled, “I don’t think that I can eat this much.”

There was a heavy sigh and then-

“Ow!”

Sean was forced to pull back his hand or risk losing it when he tried to steal the plate that Bryce had taken the time to fix for Cayley. With a glare aimed at the small woman that was already starting to piss him off, Bryce reached over, scooped up more stuffing from the large bowl in front of him and placed it on her plate with a look that dared her to bitch about his generosity.

“You were saying,” Craig said as Bryce noted that all of his brothers were watching him with an unholy glimmer in their eyes, letting him know that it was only going to get worse from here.

“That I don’t think it’s a good idea to work together for the sake of my sanity,” Cayley said, picking up her fork as Bryce narrowed his eyes on her.

“I’m a pleasure to work with,” he bit out, only to shift his glare to his brothers as the inconsiderate bastards actually had the balls to snort in disbelief.

“You’re really not, though,” Brian said, shaking his head with a sigh as he grabbed another roll.

“You’re a control freak,” Johnny added with a glare that Bryce easily ignored as he shifted his gaze to his oldest brother as the traitorous bastard said, “You really are.”

“How am I a control freak?” Bryce demanded as he narrowed his eyes on Craig, only to shift his glare to Sean when the little prick said, “You mean besides the fact that you’ve made several men quit in tears and you’re always carrying that damn clipboard that we’d love to shove up your-”

“I’m organized,” Bryce bit out with a look that dared them to argue as he looked at his father to back him up, only to find him still glaring, which, again, was understandable.

Nodding, Johnny said, “And a control freak,” drawing his attention back to the little bastard.

“God, he really is,” Rory said, sighing heavily as she nodded, quickly losing her spot as his favorite.

* * *

“Stupid Bryce,”Cayley mumbled, grabbing another pan as she glared out the kitchen window at the large bastard who’d tattletaled on her.

If anyone should be doing dishes, it was Bryce. He was the one that was technically late since she hadn’t been invited, but when she’d used that logic on him earlier, he’d pointed out that he was late because she was a pain in the ass and she’d somehow found herself standing in front of a sink full of dirty dishes. She would have argued, but she knew the rules better than most. The last one to the table did the dishes, something that she’d learned when she was five and it had taken her two hours to climb out of the tree that Sean chased her up in.

She still needed to get him back for that, Cayley absently thought, but later, much later, she decided as she watched Bryce, who still looked really pissed, pull off his shirt and toss it aside. His brothers took off their shirts as well, and while they all had impressive bodies, it was Bryce that she couldn’t seem to take her eyes off. Every golden muscle was toned to perfection, from his large biceps to his abdomen and everything in between.

As he stood there glaring at one of his brothers, Cayley took the opportunity to run her eyes over him, taking in his perfectly sculptured chest and abdomen, watching as his muscles flexed as he reached up with one hand and caught the football before she found herself following that thin, dark trail of hair that started right below his navel and-

---