“You realize your secret would have been out of the bag if Tara had seen this setup.” I gestured to the room, totally bypassing his query.
“I would have dealt with it; I’m not ashamed.”
“And you shouldn’t be. You did an incredible job with the place.”
“Thank you. When I moved in, I couldn’t help myself. I finally had my own place to do with as I pleased.”
I nodded, knowing the exact feeling, yet self-doubt began to creep through the cracks in my foundation as the silence stretched on.
The holidays always had a way of stirring my emotions, and often when I least expected it. Finding myself caught between a battle of sadness for all that I’d lost versus the joy of living in the present and the promise of new memories to come wasn’t foreign to me.
What was surprising was my sense of comfort while in Jameson’s home. That knowledge wrapped around me like a cozy, warm blanket before my awareness gently pulled me back to the present and the real reason why I was there.
Chapter Ten
Jameson
“Fuck,” I groaned under my breath.
I was wound up tight, my nerves buzzing as restless energy rattled my psyche, and the push-ups I had just finished did nothing to curb the adrenaline surging through my veins.
When Arizona suggested I remove my turnout gear, my mind raced from zero to a hundred in a nano-second with anticipation. But that excitement quickly faded when I realized she just wanted to switch things up and snap a few photos of me in my black button-up shirt and dress pants.
I stood in front of my mirror, buttoning up my shirt, and questioned whether I felt off-balanced because I was so accustomed to projecting overconfidence or if it was something more.
My stomach was in knots.
Not only was Arizona in my home, but we were also getting along. Our banter was friendly rather than taunting, and it filled me with a sense of hope for the first time in a long time that maybe we’d bridged the gap from enemies to friends.
I’d always been hopeful I could break through her tough-girl exterior, however, now that there was an opening, I found myself on edge, fearful of fucking up any chance I had with her.
Did she feel the attraction?
It was there once before, then poof, I was enemy number one.
“Enough, just get your dumbass back out there.” I sighed to myself and jammed my shirt into my dress pants.
When I got back to the living room, Ari was sitting on the floor, knees pulled up to her chest, staring longingly into the Christmas tree.
She was so beautiful.
At that moment, even a picture-perfect angel would fall short of capturing the essence of her aura.
I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and quickly snapped a photo before announcing my arrival. Only once she heard me approaching did I notice her cheeks were damp with tears.
“Ari, what?—”
She quickly wiped them away and stood, hiding herself from me.
“Did I do something?”
“No, no, it’s not you. Christmas makes me emotional.”
“Because of your mom?”
She blinked her tears back in surprise at my question.
“I’ve heard you mention it was her favorite time of year.”
