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“Can we add mistletoe to the list, please?” I batted my lashes hopefully.
“Got your eye on anyone in particular, Ash?” Eddie asked.
I shook my head. “No, not at all. Although…” I sighed, “I saw the most gorgeous man this morning when I was getting a coffee. Like, he literally made me weak at the knees.”
“Who was he?” Eddie stared at me, enthralled, his hand propped on his chin as he leaned on the conference table.
“I have no idea. And living in a city this big, what are the chances of me running into him again?”
“You never know what might happen. But, yes, we’ll add mistletoe to the list. Although, the only one kissing Luke will be me, thank you.” Olivia smirked at me, and I laughed. Before her and Luke got together, when they still supposedly hated each other, Luke had asked me on one disastrous date. Disastrous, because not only had we ended up at the same pub that Olivia happen
ed to be at, but we’d ended up sitting with them, and the sexual tension between them had been so thick you could cut it with a knife. Suffice to say, there wasn’t a second date between us.
“I’ll be sure to only stand under the mistletoe if any hot, single men appear. We can all invite up to two guests, right? Maybe someone will have a sexy single brother,” I said hopefully.
“If not, just wander around the building. I hear the men on floor twenty are fiiiiine,” Eddie dragged out the word dramatically, fanning himself. “I’m happy to come and check them out with you, for research purposes, of course.”
“Oh, really? And what would George think of that?” I raised a brow as I reminded Eddie of his long-time boyfriend.
“Oh, he’ll join us.” He winked at me.
“I’ll keep it in mind, then,” I laughed. “Come on, let’s decide on music. I think we need a mix of Christmas themed songs, and party tunes. I could make a Spotify playlist, if no one objects?”
“Fine by me,” Olivia said, and Eddie nodded in agreement.
“On to the most important question. What are the options for the food?” Eddie patted his stomach, then mimed tipping a drink into his mouth. “And drinks, of course.”
We began narrowing down our options, with the help of the menus Olivia had open on her laptop, and by the time our lunch hour was up, the party was mostly organised.
“That’s what I call teamwork!” Eddie gave us both an enthusiastic high five as we stood from our seats to go back to our respective jobs.
The countdown to the party was on. Eight weeks to go.
2
Ashley
The day of the party had arrived. Finally. I’d woken up so excited—this was the last day of work before Christmas, we’d finish with the party, and tomorrow was Christmas Eve. I hummed along with “Baby, It’s Cold Outside”, which was playing on the radio, as I got ready for work, and gathered together the festive accessories and outfit I was planning to change into for the party. The morning was still dark as I left the house I shared with three other commuters, all of us passing like ships in the night thanks to our long travel times into London.
I boarded the train to London Bridge in the dark, and by the time I arrived, the sun had risen. It was one of those clear winter days—cold, but bright sunshine, the air crisp and fresh. For London, anyway. There was even a light dusting of snow on the tops of buildings and on the trees, sparkling in the sun. My bus arrived and I managed to get a seat, somehow, which never happened. Hopefully that was a good sign for things to come.
“Hey, Casey,” I greeted the girl behind the counter in The Daily Grind, and she returned my smile with one of her own.
“Morning! Let me guess. Christmas Spice latte?”
“Yes please. Thanks.” I tapped my contactless card on the card reader and settled in my favourite seat, near the counter, to wait for my coffee to be ready. Ever since I’d seen the sexy stranger here, The Daily Grind had become a regular stop on my way to work. Not just because I held out a small hope that I might run into him again one day, but I’d grown to love the quiet, calm atmosphere, and I enjoyed my morning chats with Casey.
“How long will it take you to get home? You said you were going to visit your grandparents for Christmas, right?” I spoke up to be heard over the noise of the coffee machine.
“Around three hours. We’re closing at lunchtime today, so I’ll be leaving this afternoon. Should miss the rush hour traffic that way, hopefully.” She squirted cream into my coffee and sprinkled some cocoa powder on top. “There you go. All done.”
“Thanks. Well, I guess I’ll see you after Christmas, then. Safe travels and merry Christmas.” I slid a card across the counter to her. “It’s only a Christmas card,” I shrugged. “I just wanted to say thanks for brightening up my mornings with your conversation and epic coffees.”
She blushed, biting her lip, fighting a pleased smile. “Uh, thanks. I’m glad I could help. Thanks for keeping me company. Happy Christmas.”
As I turned to leave, she shouted after me, “By the way, if your hot man ever comes back, I’m totally getting his number for you.”
“Glad to hear it,” I called back, pushing the door open and leaving with a wave.
