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"What?"
"Romance books." Her gaze goes distant, dreamy. "The trope of childhood friends who fall in love is one of my favorites."
"Maybe in fiction. But not in real life. Friends should stay friends." She pats my hand again, but this time, I grab it and squeeze. "Stop trying to comfort me. I'm not heartsick."
Instead of pulling away, she leans in, her face inches from mine. "I won't force you to talk about it. I just want you to know I'm here if you ever do want to talk."
She's so close I can feel her breath on my lips. I'm surrounded by the sweet, citrusy scent of her. It would take the barest movement on my part and my lips would be on hers.
I pull my hand free and leap off the bed. "Can we just focus on the plan to break up my sister and the love of your life?"
CHAPTER TWELVE
Cherry
Xavier paces my small rental, pushing his hands through his hair, his expression grim. I'm not blind, so I've noticed how hot the man is, and I take a moment to enjoy the view of his tight, shapely ass, and the way his biceps flex under his henley when he pulls on his hair.
"Don't feel bad," I say. "I wanted to kiss you, too."
He stops, obviously surprised. "The important thing is we didn't kiss. And we aren't going to."
"Are you trying to convince me or yourself? Because, I have to say, I'm not convinced."
His brows rise. "You're here to win back your ex-fiancé. In what world is kissing me a good idea?"
I shrug. "Me being physically attracted to you doesn't diminish what I feel for RJ. If he and I were together, I'd never consider touching you, but we're not together at the moment. And you aren't with Murphy or Liam or whichever of them you're in love with. You don't need to feel bad about wanting me or even acting on it. If we're going to work together, we're going to have to be honest with each other and, honestly, impulse control has never been one of my strengths."
"Murphy."
I hop up and do a little shimmy. "I knew it! I'm never wrong."
His mouth quirks up. "You are wrong. I'm not in love with either of them, but if I—"
Outside, music swells. Jingle Bells. "Are those carolers?" I run to the window and press my face against the glass to peer out. Sure enough, on the sidewalk next to the parking lot, ten people, dressed in old-timey costumes, are singing at full volume. The snow is falling around them and behind them the Christmas lights of a home glow them up like they're on stage. "I've never seen carolers in real life."
"It's really not that exciting," Xavier says. But he helps me push the window up. I lean out into the frosty night, snowflakes brushing my cheeks.
When the first song ends, I stick two fingers in my mouth and whistle. Then I cheer. Next to me, his body warm against mine, Xavier claps.
The carolers wave and start up the next song.
Well, most of them start up the next song. Two women at the end of the group whisper and point up to the window.
"Oh, crap." Xavier ducks under the windowsill.
I ignore his dramatics, because I'm caught up in the magic of this moment. The snowflakes are falling, my face is freezing, and the Christmas carols are floating up through it all, warming me like a fuzzy blanket on a chilly night or relief after a day filled with anxiety.
I let all my thoughts and worries go and listen to the music, singing along softly. When the carolers finish two more songs, they wave and head off to sing for someone else.
I look down at the floor to see Xavier staring up at me, his expression soft and a bit awed. Clearly, he got caught up in the magic of the carolers. For all his bah humbug attitude, he's secretly got the Christmas spirit.
"Why are you on the floor?" I ask.
He gets up and helps me close the window. "I went to school with two of the carolers. I guarantee, by tomorrow afternoon, the whole town will be talking about what I was doing in your condo and the consensus will be sex."
"That's hardly the end of the world, is it?" I get up and start for the kitchen when the idea strikes me like a reindeer kick to the head. "Oh. That might just work."
"What might work?" Xavier sounds genuinely worried.
