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She looked up at him, her eyes full of things he couldn’t quite name, but then again, words seemed unnecessary. Instead, he scooped her into his arms and carried her to the bed.

“Feel free to unwrap me,” he teased as he laid her down.

But as he settled beside her, pulling her close, he couldn’t ignore the quiet truth lingering between them.

This might be Christmas magic…

But he wasn’t sure it was something he’d be able to let go of when it ended.

thirteen

The next day, Alesha stared down at her phone, reading her mother’s text for what had to be the twelfth time.

Mom

Merry Christmas, my darling girl! It’ll be so good having you back home where you belong! xoxo

It wasn’t like she hadn’t been in touch since arriving in Harbortown, but she’d carefully avoided sharing certain things.

The good things.

The things that made her happy.

And why?

Because of that text. Sweet on the surface, but just sharp enough underneath. If she’d mentioned Reece, the resort, how much she was enjoying herself… there would have been more messages. More subtle digs that would take the shine off everything.

Ugh.

“Who’s ready for the next song?”

Alesha looked up, forcing her attention back to the resort lobby and the game of Name That Carol. A pianist played snippets of holiday carols while an announcer took guesses from the crowd, and once someone guessed correctly, the entire room had to sing along.

Marlene’s idea, of course.

Next up was holiday bingo, followed by dinner, and then Christmas movie trivia.

A full evening of festive cheer.

She played along, sang when she had to, smiled when expected, but more than once she caught her father watching her with a thoughtful expression.

This was new—this feeling of being pulled in two directions.

And it sucked.

An hour later, when they transitioned to bingo, Reece went to grab drinks, and her father slipped into the seat beside her.

“Something’s on your mind, sweet pea. Want to talk about it?”

She glanced at him. “Funny. I was about to ask you the same thing. I’ve caught you watching me more than once.”

He smiled slightly. “Well, I’ve been watching you stare at your phone. If I had to guess… you heard from your mother.”

“Dad…” She sighed, not ready to go there.

“I’m not going to say anything bad,” he said gently. “I just want you to know I can see you’re struggling. And I’m here if you need me.”

“Oh.” Her shoulders softened. “Thank you.” She hesitated, then admitted, “I feel like I’m in limbo. No matter what I choose, I’m going to let someone down.”