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I make a stop at Warren’s Grocery in search of a form of bribery. I find the perfect solution and hurry home. I even turn on the Christmas music station by accident and don’t turn it off. I am in that good of a mood. Good ideas always give me an adrenaline rush. It has absolutely nothing to do with seeing Brie again.
I grin. Fine. It has a little to do with it. I’m not even sorry.
Chapter 15
Brie
Isthereanythingsweeterthan opening the door and finding a handsome guy on the other end holding a gift for you in his arms? I believe not.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a bribe.”
I laugh. “How subtle.”
“Can I come in?” Rockwell is too much of a man to look boyish, but those imploring eyes are cuter than any of my first graders. I’m caving before I even hear him out.
“Of course.” I move aside for him to walk by me. Our arms brush, and he pauses in his step to look at me. Those same cute eyes turn a little heated, and my cheeks catch fire. The side of his smile slides up, and he comes fully into the room, allowing me to close the door. “So, what’s this bribe about?”
“Two things, actually.” Rockwell perches on the arm of my couch. “I need to check off some more fun from my list and hoped you would help me do it.” He holds up the gift bag in his arms.
“So, it’s not a present for me? I’m disappointed.”
He chuckles. “It’s not Christmas yet. I just picked up this bag at Warren’s because I thought if you saw it, you’d let me in.”
“That’s low.” I take a seat on the couch. “You’re using my love for Christmas to get me to do whatever it is you have planned.”
He rotates on the couch arm so he’s facing me. “Like I said, I’m here to bribe you. I need someone to come to my mom’s farm with me. Particularly someone she loves. Someone extremely nice, who tends to say the right things at the right time.”
I lift my hand palm up and open and close it like I want him to continue. “Keep talking, because if you want me to convince your mom to move, I’m going to need a lot more convincing.”
“Come with me then. You don’t have to say anything.”
I eye him. “How will my presence help you?”
He shrugs. “You’ll make me look good.”
Now I’m laughing. “You’re funny.”
“Fine.” He stares at me for a second, but I have no idea what he is assessing me for. Finally, he says, “I might be a little nervous to see the farm again. It’s been a long time.”
I don’t know what I’m expecting, but it isn’t this. “Wait, you haven’t been out there yet?”
He visibly cringes. “Dealing with Samson was a breeze in comparison.”
For five whole seconds, I see Rockwell without his walls up. His vulnerability catches me off guard, and I don’t know how to respond. “Uh, sure. Yeah. I can go with you. I’ve always loved your family’s stretch of land.”
“Thanks.” His simple smile is worth my agreement. “My mom has appointments tomorrow, so it’ll be the day after.”
My brain starts working, and I remember my calendar. He wants to go Thursday, four days before Christmas, and the day the Wassail committee meets again. “I’m helping my mom in the afternoon that day with some Wassail Night prep. We have a million snowflakes to hang. My morning is free though. Would it work to go then?”
“How about ten?”
“Ten is great.”
He lifts the bag and hands it to me.
I reach inside past the tissue paper and pull out a box of popcorn. “You know me well.”
