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Reece froze. “Um…what?”

She winced. “I know I should’ve said something earlier. And definitely before we got here.”

“What’s going on?”

It all came spilling out—Joanne, the gossip, the town watching them. She was breathless by the time she finished, and she figured Reece would understand. Instead, he laughed.

Loudly.

“I don’t think this is funny,” she said, crossing her arms.

“Sweetheart, it kind of is.”

“No. It’s not.”

Still smiling, he stepped closer and kissed her, completely ignoring her rigid stance, and that just annoyed her.

“Look,” he said gently, stepping back. “I get why it feels weird. But people are going to talk regardless of if you stay here tonight. That’s just how it works here.”

She frowned but didn’t interrupt.

“I’ve thought about leaving Harbortown more than once because of that sort of thing,” he continued. “But I love it—even the gossip. And in a week or two, they’ll move on to someone else.”

That’s when it hit her.

This wasn’t permanent.

She was leaving in a couple of weeks.

The realization hit hard, shifting her emotions from embarrassed…to something else entirely.

“You don’t have to stay tonight,” Reece said. “If you’re uncomfortable, I’ll take you home.” Then he stepped closer again, his voice softer. “But I want you here. I want to spend as much time with you as I can. The holidays are coming fast, and…” He shrugged. “Time’s going faster than I’d like.”

Her chest tightened.

He didn’t have to spell it out because she completely understood.

“I’ll leave it up to you,” he said. “But I’d rather have you here.”

Alesha looked at him for a long moment before letting out a breath. Why waste the time they had worrying about what other people thought?

“I’d rather be here with you too.”

His smile spread slowly. “Good.”

Taking his hand, she tugged him toward the bedroom with a wink. “Glad we got that settled.”

“Oh my goodness! How did you manage this?”

Reece had booked them for a long weekend at the resort—and arranged for a Christmas tree to be set up in their suite.

“It’s something they offer on request,” he said with a shrug. “I thought it would be a nice touch.”

Alesha walked over and kissed him. “Are you kidding me? It’s more than a nice touch. It makes everything almost perfect.”

He pulled back with a grin. “Almost?”

“Well…” She gestured toward the window, her expression shifting into a small frown.