“It does not. He’s not from here and doesn’t have any friends. Justin and I are all he has. And if Justin isn’t busy, he’ll come backcountry skiing with us too.”
“I see.” Vivian’s brown eyes stare into my soul, scrutinizing me. “And did you have fun ice climbing yesterday?”
I smile, thinking about all the times we laughed and joked. “Yeah, I had a lot of fun.”
“See?” She points at me.
“What?”
“There’s that same smile again. I haven’t seen you smile like that in months.” She isn’t pointing at me. More like my mouth. “That smile is trouble.”
I hit her hand away. “I’m not smiling the way you think I’m smiling. I’m smiling because a few funny things happened. Like we got kicked out of a hotel, and our clothes got stolen.”
“I thought you were ice climbing.”
“We were. It’s a long story.” I shake my head, moving on. “The point is, I can still have fun with Caleb and be in love with Justin. In fact, it’s better for our relationship. Take yesterday, for example. Justin worked all day while I had fun with Caleb, and neither of us felt annoyed with the other person. And then that night, we spent some time together. It was the perfect situation.”
“As long as you don’t spend so much time with his brother that you end up falling in love with him.”
“Pfft!” I laugh. “You don’t have to worry. That’s not even a possibility.”
“Okay.” Vivian slides off my desk like she’s ready to work. “I just hope you know what you’re doing.”
I smile with all the confidence of a woman in control of her life. “Yep. Everything is under control.”
twenty-four
CALEB
I double-checkGoogle Maps one last time, making sure I’m at the right apartment complex to pick up Summer for Noel Night. Picking her up at her house makes this feel more like a date than a brotherly service project, but Justin is still at his office working, so it seemed pointless for Summer to meet at his condo. And driving separately to meet up with her family didn’t exactly sell our story that we’re a couple, so that’s how I end up knocking on her apartment door.
“Hey!” Summer swings the door open, greeting me with one of her dazzling smiles.
If hearts could sigh, mine would be sighing hard right now. It’s so good to see her. She’s been in my dreams every single night, but the real version of Summer Stanworth is better than anything my mind can conjure up.
“Hi.”
Her eyes drop to the present tucked under my arm. “What’s that?”
“It’s a gift.” I hesitate, suddenly feeling a little stupid about what I’ve done. “For you.”
Her brows lift in excitement, easing the nerves from one second ago. “You brought me a gift?”
I push the package forward. “Yeah, it’s just a little something.”
“I love gifts!”
Somehow, I could’ve guessed that.
She carries the package to her kitchen counter, leaving me to follow her inside, shutting the door behind us. I take a quick glance around the apartment. Actually, an apartment isn’t what I would call this place. It’s a shrine to Christmas. A perfectly decorated, no-inch-spared, Christmas wonderland.
From where I stand by the door, I see four Christmas trees, each decked out in ornaments—a large one in the family room, a smaller one on the kitchen counter, one in the corner by her kitchen table, and one down at the end of her hallway. Strung Christmas lights dangle from one side of the family room to the other, creating a colorful canopy of holiday glow. Different replicas of Santa Claus seem to be her favorite decoration. Glass statues, stuffed dolls, and pictures of the jolly old man are everywhere. Real garland is spread across every shelf and above every cupboard, making the entire place smell like a Christmas tree farm.
“Wow, you’ve gone all out on the decorating.”
“Uh…”—she scratches her head, glancing around—“just ignore that about me.”
“I love it. It’s festive.”
