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“I don’t know about that.” She let out a low laugh as she leaned back on the couch in the same position she’d been in last night. “I had a boyfriend through all of high school and college.”
Liam’s heart jumped to his throat as he settled his body over hers. “What happened there?”
She shrugged, her blue eyes looking up at him, her face wide open like she had no reason not to trust him. “I don’t know. If it was up to him, we’d probably still be together. But … I just wanted something different. Something better, you know?”
“Yeah, I know what you mean,” he said quietly. She lifted her hands up to graze his chest underneath his T-shirt, and Liam groaned as he pulled her hands away from him and held them behind her back.
She moaned and leaned back, letting him take full control. “What were you like in high school?” she asked quietly. “I bet all the girls were clamoring for you.”
Liam paused and lifted himself up, looking down at her seriously. His eyes connected with hers as he looked for something, anything to show she recognized him. But she didn’t, he realized. And she probably never would. Maybe it was for the best.
“I was a big nerd,” he said quietly, smiling slightly when she laughed in return. “Girls weren’t really into that.”
“Well, their loss,” she said softly, reaching up to kiss him gently.
He looked at her, rubbing her sunburned cheek gently. “Maybe,” he said simply.
“Hey, I have something else I want to do with you,” she said in her low, sultry voice, reaching up to nip him on the earlobe.
“Mmm, what’s that?” he asked.
“Let’s … watchFriends,” she said the words like she was describing something illicit and new, and Liam couldn’t help but sputter out a laugh in response.
“Perfect,” he said, the word echoing behind his heartbeat.
7
Sadie
“You’rereallyfeelingthatholiday spirit, aren’t you, Sadie?” Annie looked over at Sadie with a wry smile where she stood taping a cut-out snowman to the wall outside of her classroom.
Sadie was wearing a red sweater with a Christmas tree embroidered on it while humming “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”—her kids had been singing it in music today, and she couldn’t get it out of her head. All she was really missing was a Santa hat and some bells to truly be the most obnoxious version of holiday spirit that had ever existed.
“What can I say? It’s the most wonderful time of the year!” Sadie's voice was bright and high pitched. She almost winced as she said the words but quickly shook off the self-consciousness. She had a lot to be happy about right now, and that was nothing to be ashamed of.
First, it was the holidays; second, it was snowing consistently, so she’d skied every chance she could get; and, third, she and Liam had spent the past two weeks since Thanksgiving in a state of blissful, sexy oblivion.
“I don’t know,” Annie said wistfully, standing on her tiptoes on a stool while she taped snowballs around Sadie’s snowman. “Us Jews can be kind of iffy about all this Christmas propaganda. Just ask Liam.”
Sadie froze, warmth flooding her at the sound of Liam’s name. “Liam’s Jewish?” she asked excitedly. “How did I not know that?”
Thoughts and plans for the future assaulted her in flashes and flickers. She was by no means religious, but she celebrated Christmas and Easter. They would have to raise their kids to celebrate both Christian and Jewish holidays. How would that work? Lots of people did it, right?
Annie looked at her wryly, interrupting her wild thoughts of dark-haired, dimpled toddlers standing next to a Christmas tree while lighting a menorah. “His last name is Cohen—how could you not know that?”
“I guess I never really thought about it…” Sadie said, trailing off. “But that issointeresting.”
“Sure, I guess,” Annie hummed, looking over at her curiously. “So how are things going with the play? Liam hasn’t been too mean?”
Sadie froze mid-taping and looked over at Annie and up and down the empty hall cautiously. She should tell Annie—she really should. Wasn’t that the point of having girl friends? Telling them when you liked a boy?
“Nooo.” Sadie drew the word out slowly, looking at Annie out of the corner of her eyes as she lightly traced her finger over the edge of the snowman. “Actually, he’s been …pretty… great.”
She looked at Annie meaningfully, lowering her eyebrows in concentration as if trying to figure her out. Annie returned her gaze with an intense stare, and Sadie’s cheeks started burning. She turned away, refocusing on her snowman for a second before shooting Annie a sharp and knowing look.
Annie’s eyes grew wide as understanding dawned on her. She dropped the tape on the floor causing a loud clatter to echo through the empty hallway, her hands coming up to her mouth as she sucked in a sharp breath.
Looking behind Annie, Sadie saw Elaine stick her head out of her classroom at the noise. When Annie turned and saw her, she jumped off the stool, grabbed Sadie by the arm, and pulled her into Sadie's empty classroom.
