Page 23 of His Christmas Gift

“For now, I do, I just don’t want people asking snide questions of how I kept my internship or about Callum leaving the company.”

“Some people might wonder but since there’s already the fact that Jasper had Callum apologize to you in front of that group, they’d simply think Callum’s attitude was because he was into you, and you were with his brother. I know that’s not true, but they don’t see Jasper the way I do every day. He lights up when you come into the room and I know you feel the same, so until you come out with it, I won’t say a word, I promise.”

“Thank you,” Melissa said, finishing the decorating with a smile on her lips and in her heart knowing this week was going to quickly become rushed, but for now, it was nice to take it slow.

Chapter 10

Melissa sat going over the options from the decorators late Wednesday afternoon. She’d thought about heading back to the office to do it, but by the time she got there it would have been later than this. Then she would have ended up chatting with others instead of focusing on settling on options so they could ensure everything was in on time for the investors’ dinner.

She couldn’t believe it was barely over a month away now. Five and a half weeks to it and about eight to the end of her internship. Never in her life had three weeks flown by so quickly but with Jasper, making each day count for something, she could barely realize that it had.

She heard the front door opening and smiled glancing at the time. She loved it when Jasper came home early, it always made her feel special, knowing that as busy as he was, he wanted to spend time with her, it was everything to her.

“I’m in the living room, honey,” she called out, the two fabrics in front of her fighting to be chosen still.

“I don’t believe I’m quite the ‘honey’ you were looking forward to seeing, but I’d be delighted to meet you,” a voice said from the doorway a moment later and she glanced up, her gaze landing on a smiling woman she knew was Jasper’s mother.

“You must be Evelyn; Jasper’s told me so much about you,” Melissa said setting aside the fabric pieces to get up to meet her.

“I think he fully meant you to be a surprise to me, but I’ll say this much, you’re a very welcome one compared to some of the girls he’s been seen with before, my dear. Also, if you managed to convince him to decorate like this,” Evelyn said motioning to the room, “then I have to ask when the wedding is?”

“Honey, perhaps a little subtlety is needed here,” the man with her stated and Melissa laughed knowing her cheeks were red.

“Come now Fred, you know my son, would he let just any woman have a go at his home like this?” Evelyn said to her husband before turning back her way. “Who on earth did the decorating? I know I’ve never hired them before, but I should.”

“No hiring away my girl,” Jasper stated overhearing his mother’s comment as he moved into the entryway. He headed over, shaking Fred’s hand before giving his mother a hug, glancing towards Melissa who was smiling despite the light blush on her cheeks making him adore her further and further each time she did.

“I take it you’ve done introductions?” he added moving to her side, tilting her head up to give her a soft lingering kiss.

“Not entirely,” his mother stated beaming their way. “Give your mother a heart attack, why don’t you, Jasper? Here I come in expecting to have to dig up someone to decorate the house and tree, and I find this gorgeous array, to then find this gorgeous woman here waiting for you. So, tell me, how on earth you met Melissa, and when the wedding?”

“Easy Mother,” Jasper said as Mrs. Nelson came through to get their luggage. He waited until she moved up the steps to walk Melissa back over to the couch, glancing at the fabric swatches on the table beside it. “Is this for the investors’ dinner?”

“Yes, I haven’t quite decided between these two,” she said as his mother’s brows rose as they moved to the other couch. “I think I’m actually going to use both, it will create a more dynamic feel, make it seem a little more 3D even.”

“I will leave it in your expert hands to choose,” he assured her, not seeing what she did yet but he knew the end result would be astonishing.

“You’re planning the investors’ dinner?” Evelyn asked looking between them and she nodded seeing the relief on the woman’s face. “Thank goodness, I completely forgot about it and was panicked the whole way here that I’d have to handle everything in the next month.”

“No need to worry about that,” Jasper stated running his hand down Melissa’s shoulder to her elbow and back up again. “Melissa is completely on top of it and if it’s anything like her dinner party or the Christmas party, it will be amazing.”

“Are you an event planner then? Is that how you met? I want to know every little detail, don’t leave anything out,” Evelyn said making her grin as Jasper chuckled.

“She should be an event planner, she’s incredible at it, but thankfully for me, she’s not. Melissa has been working as an intern at the company actually,” he said making his mother’s eyes widen. “Her father wants her to go into business, wanted her to get her MBA this semester but she convinced him that business wasn’t her path.”

“He relented on me not attending grad school on the condition that I spend at least six months working somewhere to get a real hands-on grasp of what I’d be giving up,” Melissa said, and Evelyn nodded in understanding. “I was miserable working the internship, at least until Jasper picked me up out of the puddle of coffee and changed everything.”

“She was working under Callum, and he’d sent her out for coffee for everyone. On her way through the lobby, one of the architect’s in the firm just below our offices hit her with his tube and the coffee fell. She stepped back to avoid the liquid and onto someone’s bag handle. They jerked it and she slipped, making the second tray she had fall down her front,” Jasper stated pressing a soft kiss to her temple that had her eyes fluttering shut happy to be with him.

“Callum made some extremely rude comments and was laughing at her. I wasn’t pleased at all, especially not when I looked into her face and discovered everything I ever hoped to find in a woman there in her. I had Keith take Melissa home and stopped by to check on her that night,” Jasper added, and he saw realization as to why he’d fired Callum hit his mother. “Her father called while I was there, and Melissa told me the only reason she was sticking with the internship was because of the agreement with him. I knew I didn’t want her anywhere near Callum and I transferred her upstairs to help Elaine.”

“Oh my, so now you’re having Melissa help with the party arrangements to get her through the internship I take it?” his mother asked, and Jasper nodded.

“Incredibly lucky for me as it turned out. We forgot to confirm the caterers for the dinner party that next evening and had nothing planned for it. Melissa stepped in and made the entire night top-notch in a single day. After that, she agreed to take on the Christmas and investors’ events, and also agreed to give me the chance to get to know her. Her internship is up the middle of February and I plan to go meet her father then,” he told them.

“He’s busy over the holidays and as my internship doesn’t provide time off, it was easier to just stay here for them,” Melissa added in case she asked about inviting her father there for Christmas.

“Which meant I got to keep her with me, I moved her in with me at the beginning of the month and haven’t regretted a single moment of it, not even when I saw the cost for the new furniture,” he teased as his mother glanced around the room. “Everything you see here Melissa did herself, in case you were wondering.”

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