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“Doesn’t everyone? Those two are like a walking billboard for romance, no matter your preference.”
“Yes, but you specifically want whattheyhave. To be open and out of the closet. To be able to hold hands and touch the man you care about.”
I let out a sigh and shrugged. “Yeah, well, he hasn’t shown up yet, so I’m not all that worried.”
“And when he does? Will you tell me?”
A frown pulled between my brows as I tried to ignore the sudden flush of heat that crept up the back of my neck. Ireallyhated lying to her. “Of course. Just like you’ll tell me, right?”
“That was the deal.”
“I know. But I don’t want you to think that you have to hold back on my account.” I reached for a strand of her blonde hair and twirled it around my finger, redirecting the conversation away from my guilty conscience. “You mean the world to me, and your happiness is just as important to me as my own. So when you find someone, you better fucking tell me.”
The irony didn’t escape me.
A fun-loving laugh left her as she saluted me. “Yes, sir.”
“Good. So for now, we agree this situation is working just fine and we’re happy to leave it at that.”
“Happy as can be.” She grabbed another slice. “You sure you don’t want to tell your friends, though? Would be much easier to sneak off to see Raul if they knew what kind of ‘massage’ you were running late for.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. They’d be more than willing to cover for you so you could go get your happy ending.”
I picked up one of the cushions off the couch and tossed it at her. “You’re a damn troublemaker.”
She flopped back into the seat and bit down into her cheesy slice. “Yeah, but you love me anyway.”
She was right. I loved her with all my damn heart. In the way best friends do.
I couldn’t help the wave of guilt that washed over me again, though, as the memory of her father pushing me up against the wall and kissing the breath out of me intruded on my thoughts. I couldn’t reconcile what I was thinking and feeling, though if Archer didn’t ask Serena about the truth of our relationship, it didn’t seem like it would ever matter anyway.
But I’d felt that tension between us. It’d been real. And that spark of curiosity in his eyes as I’d left his office told me that maybe, just maybe, I had a chance.
THREE
archer
“WHAT ARE WE thinking this year? A pine? Spruce? Our go-to fir?” I scanned the Christmas tree lot and picked up the one closest to me, a pretty greenish-blue spruce.
I glanced over my shoulder to where Serena stood, head tilted in thought as she looked over the tree.
“Well, that depends. Did you want something different?”
“Not necessarily.” I shook the branches, fluffing it out. “Just figured we should look at all our options.”
“Hah.” Serena’s lips twisted, amusement lighting her eyes. “You know you’re not going to buy that one.”
“Why would you say that? It’s nice, right? Good height.”
“Dad, please. Every year we go to a million different lots, we look at every tree they have, and youstillwalk away with a Douglas fir.Every. Time.”
I opened my mouth to deny that and then closed it when I realized she was right. I liked what I liked, even when I tried to be open-minded.
“Well, damn.” I laid the tree back down on top of the pile and threw my arm around her shoulders, tugging her into my side. “Since when did you get smarter than your old man?”
She laughed and wrapped her arm around my waist as we headed through the lot, past all the trees Iwouldn’tbe taking home. “Do you really want me to answer that?”
