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Feeling full and satisfied from good food, good wine and good company, Holly was pleasantly buzzed.
“I’ll be right behind you,” Jaxon said as she, Nick, and Kris got ready to leave. “I just need to check everything is organized in the kitchens and make sure there won’t be any hiccups before the end of service.”
They’d just buckled themselves into the SUV and were about to pull out of the parking lot when Nick’s phone pinged with a message. “Shit. Pull over,” he said to Kris, who was driving. “I need to go and put out some fires myself. It shouldn’t take long. I’ll catch a lift back with Jaxon.”
He didn’t really wait for a reply, just climbed back out of the vehicle while Kris gave a noncommittal grunt and drove off.
The journey back to the cabin was uneventful enough, though Holly missed the presence of Nick and Jaxon, and wondered what on earth could have called Nick out on Christmas Day. Navigating Kris’ moods was often like maneuvering through a minefield, especially without the other two men as a buffer, and she didn’t want anything to spoil this day.
On their return, Holly excused herself to change into something more comfortable than the formal dress and sparkly sandals she was wearing, and Kris headed for the kitchen to pour himself a drink since he’d been the designated driver for their outing.
She returned wearing a pair of comfortable leggings and form-fitting long sleeved tee-shirt that molded to her curves, looking forward to a nice glass of wine.
What she wasn’t expecting was the hostility she was met with that emanated from Kris. “You have a lot to answer for, you know.”
Fuck fuckity fuck.
Holly sighed and shook her head. “Look, Kris, it’s Christmas Day. Can we not do this right now?”
He took no notice. “You’re determined to push me out of my own home, aren’t you,” Kris accused, knocking back the generous slug of red wine before slamming the glass back on the countertop with enough force she was surprised it didn’t shatter.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Holly argued, indignation prickling between her shoulder blades. “Nothing I’ve done affects you whatsoever. I keep out of your way, and when I can’t, I bite my tongue the rest of the time, even when you insist on criticizing and belittling me. If there’s an attempt to run anyone off here, it’s you doing it to me. What the hell have I ever done to you?”
“You’re fucking my two best friends,” he snarled, the hand resting on the countertop balling into a fist.
Why was he so angry about it?
“So? It’s all consensual and we’re not exactly rubbing your face in it. It’s not like we’re screwing anywhere you might walk in on us.”
Okay, so maybe that wasn’t strictly true… but he didn’t have to watch.
“Or is it the fact that we’re indulging in a menage that bothers you? Are you going to hit me with some double standards, where it’s cool for your buddies to do something like that, but I must be a whore for the same indulgence?”
She jammed her hands on her hips and raised her chin. “And what the hell has it got to do with you anyway? It’s not even as if I’m going to be here much longer.”
“God, you have no idea, do you?” Kris seemed to seethe, his anger vibrated off of him like it was a living entity. Not that he scared her at all.
He just needs to get laid. Shut up!
“No, I don’t!” She shot back at him, turning to leave before things could get further out of hand. “Why don’t you just try being happy for your friends for a change? That’s how friends are supposed to behave.”
“I am happy for them.”
She stopped and swung around to pin him with a scowl. “Oh, I see, so it’s just me you have a problem with. Well, no surprises there, I guess.”
He stalked over to where she stood, and Holly reflexively took a few steps back until her butt hit the wall.
“You really don’t get it, do you?” Kris slapped his hands onto the wall on either side of her head, causing Holly to flinch.
Fuck! Why was the dratted man so sexy when he was like this? She surely must not be normal, thinking those kinds of things.
Angry sex is a thing. Enough already.
“Then by all means, enlighten me,” Holly goaded, refusing to back down. She was at the end of her tether with this man.
“You’re driving me nuts!” he growled, his face inches from hers, his breath hot against her cheek. “All sassy and spirited, standing up to me, getting in my face, calling me out on my behavior. Buying me gifts that show your thoughtfulness. Do you know how many people do that?”
Holly shook her head, her eyes wide, mesmerized by the sparks of silver that seemed to flare in his own ice-blue stare.
