Holidate

by Monica Murphy

  “Did Sullivan provide this tree?” I ask him as we make our way down the corridor toward the room where the event is being held.

  “No. I don’t think we’ve ever provided them a tree.”

  “Maybe you could try to change that for next year. I’m sure someone from the hotel will be mingling among the guests tonight. Probably a few hotel someones.” Unable to resist, I hook my arm through his, wanting us to appear a united front when we enter the room. “There will be a lot of people here.”

  “This is a fundraiser, right?”

  “Yes.” I nod.

  “Benefitting…?” He raises his brows.

  “The local Boys and Girls Club. They raise a lot of money at this event, and they need it. I swear they struggle every year just to make it to the next.” And that breaks my heart.

  “Did you make a contribution?” he asks.

  I can tell we’re getting closer to the party. I hear the tinkling of a piano playing a jazzy holiday tune, the dull roar of what sounds like hundreds of people engaged in meaningful conversation. “Of course. Did you?”

  “I couldn’t. Didn’t know exactly who it was benefitting. But I can make a contribution after.”

  “That would be wonderful. It’s for a good cause.”

  We make our way inside the crowded room, and I unhook myself from him as I swipe a glass of bubbly champagne from a server’s tray when she passes by. I can see right away that there are a lot of people here tonight that I know. Friends of my parents. Society ladies I come in contact with through my charity work. Some of the partygoers are even old friends from high school. And one of them I used to…

  Oh.

  Crap.

  I used to go out with that guy.

  Carefully I sip my glass of champagne as I watch Aaron Bryant chatting with a woman I don’t recognize. She’s probably around our age. Gorgeous. Pale blonde hair and icy blue eyes, dressed in a strapless black wisp of a dress. Tall and lithe with a model’s figure and a flashy diamond on her finger. Aaron dips his head close to hers, whispers something in her ear, and she smiles up at him when he withdraws, then presses her mouth to his.

  Well. Looks like she’s Aaron’s wife or fiancée. How lovely for him.

  Turning, I head in the opposite direction, draining the glass of champagne as I walk. I can hear Charlie saying my name, practically feel him following after me, but I don’t acknowledge him. My thoughts are turbulent as I pause before a table laden with beautiful desserts. Normally I’d be tempted to reach for something, but right now, my appetite has completely disappeared.

  I blame it on seeing stupid Aaron.

  “Hey.” Charlie touches me, his hand resting on my shoulder for the briefest moment. “Are you all right?”

  Keeping my back to him, I turn my head to the side, murmuring, “My ex is here tonight.”

  He leans in closer. “Who?”

  “My ex.” When he frowns, I blow out an irritated breath. “Ex-boyfriend. He’s here. Well, he’s over there. With a woman.”

  “Oh.” Charlie stands up straighter and glances around, curiosity written all over his handsome face. God, why are men so obvious sometimes? “Where’s he at? Want me to kick his ass for you? Call him out in front of everyone and humiliate him?”

  Charlie would really do that for me?

  “No. Please, just stop.” I grab his hand, send him an imploring look. “Can you just…play along with me here? I need to go talk to him and get this over with.”

  “Play along with what?” He’s frowning. Confusion clouds his pretty green eyes, and he is so adorable when he doesn’t know what’s going on. I kind of prefer him like this. Clueless. It’s definitely an improvement over his typical grouchy behavior.

  “Just—come on.” I keep hold of his hand and force him to walk with me. I make my way toward Aaron and his beautiful companion, keeping my fingers locked tight with my own beautiful companion.

  I really hope he doesn’t screw this up.

  “Aaron! Oh my God!” I decide to approach him with the element of surprise. And guess what? It works. He turns to look at me with wide eyes, his gaze filling with shock when he realizes it’s me.

  “Candice. Wow. It’s been a long time.” I let go of Charlie’s hand just as Aaron pulls me into a brief, polite hug. “You look amazing,” he says once we part.

  “Thank you. So do you.” It’s not a lie. Aaron Bryant is a very attractive man. We dated a couple of years ago. He’s the one who broke up with me. The one who thought I was boring.

  He never said those words out loud, but I always had a sneaking suspicion.

  “How have you been?” Aaron asks.

  “I’ve been great!” My voice is overly bright, and Charlie sends me a look. One that says, calm down there, little missy, but it’s like I can’t stop myself. “Aaron, this is my boyfriend, Charles.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Aaron says, offering his hand to Charlie to shake, which they do. Because they’re polite men, not complete savages.

  “Great to meet you too,” Charlie says, his words coming out slowly. I think I shocked him with the boyfriend statement.

  “This is my fiancée, Naomi,” Aaron says.

  The icy blonde smiles, offering a limp hand to me, which I shake just as limply in return. “How do you and Aaron know each other?” she asks.

  “We’re—friends. We used to work out at the same gym,” Aaron says, suddenly looking uncomfortable. “Didn’t we, Candice?”

  I say nothing at first. I’m beyond annoyed, moving into full-blown angry territory. What, he can’t say that we used to go out? Instead, he has to make me seem like an eager freak who might’ve had a thing for him, but he could never really tell?

  Or maybe that’s just my own insecurities popping out. I need to get ahold of myself.

  “Yes. That’s what we were,” I bite out. “Friends.”

  “I’m Charlie,” he tells Naomi, who shakes his hand rather limply as well. Guess I shouldn’t take it personal. “Candice’s boyfriend.” He stresses that last word, sending me an unreadable look.

  I decide to ignore it. I’m so irritated by Aaron’s denial, I can’t really think straight.

  “How long have you two been together?” Aaron asks.

  Charlie and I glance at each other, and I can tell he’s not going to be the one who answers. “Almost six months,” I say with a tight smile aimed at Aaron. “Though that time has really—flown by.”

  “I’ll say, honey.” Charlie slings his arm around my shoulders, tugging me into his side. He’s solid and warm, and usually I’d be thrilled to be held so tight by him, but right now, all I can focus on is my anger toward Aaron. “Being with you has been the best six months of my life.”

  Realizing I need to play it up, I gaze up at Charlie, resting my hand on the wall that is his chest. “Oh, I so agree.” I bat my eyelashes at him, and he screws his lips up, as if he’s trying to contain his laughter.

  “You look happy, Candice,” Aaron says, slipping his arm around Naomi’s waist. “Good for you.”

  “You look happy too,” I say, my smile fading when Charlie gives my shoulder a firm squeeze. Is he trying to signal me or something? “Congratulations on your engagement, you two.”

  “Thank you.” Aaron glances over at his fiancée, who smiles at him. “We’re going to make one more go-round and then we need to leave. There’s another party we must get to.”

  “Oh, I totally understand.” I wave a hand, waving him on, and Aaron gives me a weird look before he and Naomi slowly walk away. “Good to see you!” I practically scream after them, but neither Aaron nor his fiancée say another word to us.

  “You okay there?” Charlie asks once they’re gone. His arm slides away from my shoulders, but he keeps his hand on the middle of my back, giving it a gentle rub. It feels really good. I bet he knows exactly what to do with his hands at all times. “You seemed really tense while we were talking to them. You’re still tense.” He digs his fingers deep into my tight n
eck muscles to prove his point.

  I squirm away from his touch, turning so I can face him. “I didn’t like how he called me a friend to his fiancée. What’s wrong with admitting you used to be with someone? I have nothing to hide. Neither should he.”

  “Except for the fact that I’m not really your boyfriend,” Charlie reminds me pleasantly.

  “Right. You’re so right.” A giant sigh leaves me and I grab another glass of champagne as a waiter walks by. “I think I need a couple more drinks to get through tonight.”

  Charlie frowns. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

  Honestly? I don’t know what’s a good idea. But I’m starting to think spending so much time with Charlie and trying to help him…

  Is only going to become more and more difficult.

  Seventeen

  Charlie

  Something’s bothering Candice, and I’m not exactly sure what it is. I mean, I could assume it has to do with running into the old boyfriend. And how the idiot played it off that they were never together and only just friends—total asshole move, but who am I to judge?—but it feels like more than that.

  She’s quiet. And Candice is never quiet. She seems sad too, which is also totally unlike her. She’s always upbeat. Even when she fell and got a concussion, she was friendly. Sweet.

  She’s always sweet, even when I’m being a jerk.

  I don’t like that she’s so quiet. I find it—disturbing. I want to ask her what’s wrong, but I hate it when people do that to me, so I try not to be bothersome. I had a girlfriend like that once. A long, long time ago. She always assumed something was bothering me when I was quiet or keeping to myself, and she’d badger me endlessly, constantly asking if I was okay.

  After a while, I wasn’t okay, thanks to her endless questions.

  But that woman is old news. I want to focus on the here and now.

  I want to put a smile on Candice’s face.

  I tease her a little bit, but all she can manage is a nod. Not even her usual eyeroll when she’s had it with me. I bring her a plate of appetizers and she doesn’t even eat them. She keeps chugging champagne, though, which can’t be good.

  She sits at a table and chats with some older women she knows, and tells me to go mingle. I don’t really want to do it alone, but I can tell she’s not in the mood, so I give it a try.

  And find out I can manage this mingling thing on my own pretty decently. I just approach small groups of people and listen in on their conversation, adding my opinion when there’s a lull. When I introduce myself, they usually recognize my name and the family business immediately, which pleases me.

  You can have a booming business that grows each year, but it can still feel like people don’t know who you are or where you’re located sometimes. It was nice to get some affirmation that they know we exist.

  I exchanged quite a few business cards. And pleasantries with lots of people. One woman in particular seemed very interested in me, if you know what I mean, but she didn’t appeal to me.

  All I could think about was Candice. Is she all right? Why is she so down? What can I do to cheer her up?

  I need to get her out of here, is what I have to do.

  Breaking away from a group of people talking, I make my way to the table Candice is still sitting at. She’s all alone, which makes my chest ache, and I rub at it, smiling at her when we make eye contact.

  But she doesn’t smile in return. She just blinks at me, her expression impassive as I draw closer.

  “Hey.” I stop directly in front of her. She tilts her head back to meet my gaze. “Let’s get out of here.”

  She frowns. “We haven’t even been here an hour.”

  “For real?” I pull my phone out of my pocket and check it, but the time means nothing. I don’t know exactly when we arrived so…

  “We should stay a little longer,” she tells me, pursing her deep red lips. That lipstick she wears doesn’t seem to budge.

  Wonder if I could kiss it off.

  “Why? Are you having fun?” I send her a pointed look, waiting for her to lie to me that yes, she’s having the most amazing time ever.

  “It doesn’t matter if I’m having fun, Charles. This is all about you,” she stresses, not falling into my trap.

  “Well, I’m having a shit time. Let’s get out of here.” I grab the back of her chair and pull it out, and she rises to her feet, teetering a little on those extra-high heels she’s wearing. I grab hold of her elbow, stabilizing her, and an electric current jolts up my arm, radiating just beneath my skin and throughout my entire body.

  I try to ignore it, but every single time we touch, this happens. Some instances are more intense than others, but tonight’s is a big one.

  It makes me realize that we share an undeniable attraction. And I don’t know what to do about it.

  Well. I know. But do I…actually want to do that? I don’t have time for a relationship. She doesn’t seem to be a casual kind of girl.

  “Let’s go then,” she says, her voice low, her body brushing against mine as she turns away and heads for the door.

  I follow after her, admiring the gentle sway of her hips, her shapely calves. She was in such good spirits when I picked her up at her family’s mansion. So happy and carefree.

  Exiting the hotel and waiting for the valet to retrieve her car takes all of five minutes, if that. By the time we’re buckled into her Mercedes and driving away with me behind the steering wheel, I can hardly take it anymore.

  And I’m not usually the one who breaks first.

  “What the hell, Gaines? Why are you so mopey?” I turn right out of the driveway of the hotel, picking up speed quickly. The fog has rolled in, pale and wispy, and I’m grateful it’s not too thick. I slow down, unfamiliar with this particular stretch of road.

  “You’re going the wrong direction,” she tells me, avoiding my question.

  “I’m taking you somewhere else.” I glance over at her to see she’s messing around on her phone and not even paying attention to me. “Well? You going to tell me what’s bugging you or not?”

  She lifts her head, staring blankly at the windshield instead of looking at me. “I’d rather not,” she says with a sigh.

  I respect her privacy and quit asking questions, even though it bugs the shit out of me that she’s not comfortable enough to share with me why she’s feeling so low. And I know she’s low. I’ve been with her plenty of times, and I have a pretty good read on her behavior.

  We stay quiet as we drive through the night, the fog giving the effect that we’re all alone on the road. I know exactly where we’re going, though Candice doesn’t have a clue, and I really hope she likes my surprise.

  Twenty minutes later and we’re pulling into the dirt lot of the tree farm. I park in the front row spot that’s next to the entrance and shut off the engine.

  “Why did you bring me here?” she asks, her voice soft.

  The white lights that are strung from pole to pole are still on, giving the lot a dreamy glow. Tendrils of white fog cling to the trees, and someone forgot to put the signs away, damn it.

  But it doesn’t matter. All I want is to put a smile on Candice’s face. Give her a glimpse of something that’ll put her in a better mood.

  “I think the lot is prettiest at night, when no one else is here,” I say, staring out the window. It’s true. When I was a kid, I loved coming here at night, after the lot closed and all the people were gone. We used to take my dad’s flashlights—he had a lot of them, still does—and run through the rows of trees, playing hide and seek, trying to scare each other.

  It was fun.

  “The lights are nice,” she admits, nibbling on her lower lip. I wouldn’t mind knowing what that lip tastes like.

  “You want to get out? Look around?”

  “It’ll be cold.” She shivers like she’s already outside.

  “Put your coat back on.” She took it off and left it in the backseat when we first arrived at the hotel.r />
  “What do you want to do outside, Charlie?” She turns to look at me, her voice weary, her eyes sad. “Harass me? Tell me how rich you are so far this season, since you and your family swindle everyone out of their money in this joke of a season we call Christmas?”

  I lean back, shocked by her outburst. “I wanted to turn on the rest of the lights and walk around the lot with you. After that, I thought I could make you a cup of hot chocolate and let you wander around the store for a little bit. So you could pick out something you want for a gift.”

  She blinks at me. Clearly my offer was unexpected. “Oh.”

  “But if you want to leave, I get it.” It’s true. I know I’ve been an asshole more than once. Why would she want to hang out with me? If I’m being real with myself, I’ve been nothing but irritable toward her most of the time. I’m sure she’s over it.

  I drive a lot of people away without even meaning to sometimes. I think it goes way back to when I was constantly surrounded by my family and all I wanted to do was get away from them. I like being alone. I like my routine.

  Yet there’s something about this woman…I’m starting to crave spending more time with her.

  Reaching toward the ignition, I’m ready to start the car and back out of the lot, when she settles her hand on my forearm, her fingers warm even through the fabric of my shirt. She rubs my arm, like she can’t help herself and that simple touch lights my skin on fire.

  “I don’t want to go,” she whispers. “Not yet. I’m sorry for snapping, Charlie.”

  “It’s okay.” I drop my hand into my lap and she does the same with hers. “Tell me what’s wrong, Candice. Tell me how I can fix it.”

  “Fix what?” She sounds genuinely confused.

  “Your mood. You’ve been sad ever since we ran into that asshole back at the party. Aaron.” I make a face, annoyed that he annoys me. I shouldn’t give two shits about that guy. “He’s not worth your sadness, you know.”

  “It’s not him that’s making me sad. It’s what he said. Like I don’t matter.” She dips her head, her hair falling in front of her face, hiding herself from me. “He didn’t want his fiancée to know we were once a couple, and I don’t get why. Is it that he’s not proud of his past? Is it because I’m so worthless that it looks bad that we were once together? What is it? Do I embarrass him?”