Page 27 of Miss Understanding

Holy shit. Kendall had fallen. I rushed down the stairs, pausing only to frantically yank on my boots before running out the back door and down the steps toward where I saw her on the ground.

I found her laughing. Was she delirious from the cold? A bump on the head?

“What the hell are you doing?” I asked.

She looked up with rosy cheeks, bright eyes, and the biggest smile I’d ever seen on her face. “Making a snow angel.”

“Why?” It was truly baffling to me.

“Because this is my first time seeing snow.”

Her purple sparkly boots peeked out from the giant parka, making me shake my head. She looked like a toddler poorly dressed for the weather in hand-me-downs.

“You’d best get up before the snow seeps through all of your clothes.”

She stuck her tongue out in response. “Go away. I’m not on the clock yet, and you’re ruining my fun.”

“I came racing down here because I thought you’d fallen.”

“Oh, yeah? Did you come out to rescue me? Or hope you could quickly hide the body?” she asked, holding out her gloved hand.

I pulled her up without much effort. I’d be surprised if her petite stature weighed more than a hundred pounds. Her grin was infectious despite my hangover. “Depends. Did you make coffee?”

Her lips twitched in a smile. “I did. I’ll even give you some. Just as soon as you help me make a snowman.”

She was adorable. And not in the toddler kind of way. The type of way that made me want her to hook her legs around my waist so I could take her against a wall. “You can’t make a snowman with an inch of snow.”

She frowned. “Bummer. But maybe it’ll snow some more.”

She trudged up the back porch steps, knocking her boots against the house before turning around. “Oh, I forgot the original reason I came out here. I need to get wood for the fireplace.”

“I’ll take care of it. After coffee.”

She smiled, forever a morning person and thankfully not holding a grudge about last night. “You got it.”

Chapter Fifteen

Kendall

I refused to let Liam ruin my good mood over seeing snow for the very first time. But he had been right about the snow seeping through to my clothes. Once I went inside, I could feel the wet and the cold. “Coffee is in the pot. I’ve gotta go change.”

He grunted something sounding like “fine” and proceeded into the kitchen while I went into my bedroom. I’d already showered, so I made quick work of exchanging my yoga pants for jeans and my fleece for a light sweater. Too bad I didn’t have a warmer one like the one Liam had been wearing. Then again, when would I wear it in LA?

Liam was standing in the kitchen staring at the French toast I’d made earlier this morning.

“If you don’t want any, you don’t have to eat it. Don’t want to cause you to gain too much weight.” His comment still stung from yesterday. Then again, it was one of many that had stung.

“Look, I—” He turned to face me, his intense eyes on me. “Jesus, you’re going to freeze.”

My arms wrapped around my waist. “My hoodie and jacket are both wet. I have this sweater.”

“Not warm enough. Hold on.” He was up the stairs before I could ask what he was doing. He came back down with a heavy, navy blue wool pullover sweater. “Here, put this on.”

It looked way too warm to bother to protest. I slid it over my head and relished the instant heat.

“It swallows you whole, but it’ll keep you warm.” He was already rolling up the sleeves for me like I was a child.

The kind gesture made me stand there like a deer in the headlights. My heart started beating faster. Weird. Then he sent it into overdrive.