Page 58 of The Mistletoe Switch

"Tell me, Cherry." Alice's tone is sharp. "What about my brother made you fall in love so irresponsibly?"

I blink at her, my mind going completely blank. Love? The last time I loved a man, he broke my heart into a thousand pieces. I don't even want to think about love, much less love for Xavier. I don't love him. I like him. I really, really like him. Because he's nice and he listens and he seems to believe I'm about a bazillion times better than I actually am, but love…? No. Just no.

Alice waves a hand in my face. "Hello? Did you fall asleep with your eyes open?"

"His thighs," I blurt. Shit. I glance at Xavier, who's somehow smiling seductively while also giving me wide, freaked out eyes. "Were the first thing I noticed about him. I love a man with strong thighs."

"His thighs?" Alice draws out the word like I'm an idiot. I really am an idiot.

"And his eyes. They've got a bit of, like, gold flecks in them." I smile like I'm a big ditz, which has saved me in the past in so many situations.

Alice doesn't look impressed. "That's physical attraction. Not love."

"He takes me seriously." I'm left with no option but the truth. "Most people look at me and see a ditzy woman with a great fashion sense and a weak moral compass, but Xavier saw through all that. He believes I can do more than I think I can. He listens, and he cares and, when he's not putting on his grumpy routine, he can be really funny."

Alice's eyes pop wide. "Grumpy routine? He's a genuine grump, Cherry. Don't get your hopes up there."

I chuckle. "A genuine grump wouldn't drop everything to help a stranger shop for clothes or plow residents' driveways for free. He definitely wouldn't take time from his own struggling business to be mayor for a friend."

I look over at Xavier for confirmation, but he's staring a me with the oddest look on his face, his hand still on the puppy's back. My heart sinks. Did I say the wrong thing?

"I mean, unless you want everyone to think you're really a mean old grump?"

"He is a mean old grump." Alice just looks confused now, her earlier impatience gone. "He can't even be happy for his best friends falling in love."

"That's just because he's worried about them. He's not grumpy, he's sensitive and empathetic and the grumpiness is his armor."

"I am not sensitive." Xavier's voice is gruff. "I'm just honest. Nothing good comes from lying and pretending to be happy for Liam and Murphy when I know they're headed for heartbreak."

I nod, since that's the only gesture I can make from under the covers. "See?"

"Huh." She tilts her head to the side as she stares her brother down, like she's seeing him from a new angle. "I never thought about it that way."

"It's easy to stop seeing people clearly when we're close to them."

"I'm not sensitive or that other thing." Xavier lifts his arms to flex his biceps, the puppy looking up at him. "I'm über masculine and tough. And grumpy. I'm always grumpy."

But it's too late. Alice is already looking at him with a new understanding. "I totally see it." Quickly, her expression hardens. "But that doesn't mean he's not also a liar. Xavier, what about Cherry made you fall in love with her?"

Xavier goes back to petting the dog, his brow furrowed. I'm braced for either brutal honesty or an excuse not to answer the question at all. Instead, he looks over at me and his expression clears. "She's fearless, and she's got this fiery, wild energy that shines through her. She sees beauty in the mundane and makes the mundane beautiful. She's kind and warm and she's got an amazing laugh she shares freely."

My heart melts. He's probably just making it all up, but it's still amazing.

"Plus, she's smart as hell and she's not afraid of breaking some rules to get what she wants."

Alice purses her lips. "So, no remorse for ending my relationship to a man you've now decided you don't want?"

She's glaring at me and all the warm gooey feelings Xavier's kind words gave me evaporate. I'm a horrible person. "Hedoesn't want me. I can't honestly say I'm sorry for breaking the two of you up, but I couldn't live with myself if I didn't at least try to get him back."

"So if he did want you, you'd break my brother's heart and go back to him?"

I fling an arm free of the blankets to cross a finger over my heart. "I swear I won't hurt your-"

She leaps to her feet and points. "Ha! You're wearing clothes. I knew it! I knew this whole thing was a sham."

"It's not a sham," Xavier says. "She's naked from the waist down. She took my clothes off first and then I—"

Alice sticks her fingers in her ears and starts toward the door. "Shut up, shut up, shut up! I don't want to know anything about your sexy times."

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