Spying Under the Mistletoe (Love Undercover #2) - Stina Lindenblatt Page 0,48

room.

Despite her voice being nowhere near as loud as when she was younger, the room goes quiet. The woman has a presence about her you can’t ignore.

“Dinner is ready,” she announces. “As per tradition, mistletoe is hanging in the doorway to the dining room. All of you with a special someone in your life who’s here tonight must kiss under the mistletoe before entering the room. And as you know, I’m a real stickler for that rule.”

A wave of soft laughter spreads through the room.

“And this year, I’m excited that my granddaughter, Isabelle, will finally be granting me the wish of seeing her and her handsome fiancé kiss under the mistletoe.” She lifts her wineglass to the couple in question. “I was beginning to think you two would never get your act together and notice what was right in front of you.”

There’s a sprinkling of “Hear, hears” from several individuals, most notably Henri and Liza. Beaming like proud parents, the pair raise their glasses at Isabelle and Jayden.

Jayden apparently can’t wait until it’s their turn under the mistletoe. He gives his fiancée a kiss that has me mentally fanning myself.

I can’t remember the last time a man kissed me that way.

Landon and I join the end of the line into the dining room. My palms grow damp at the thought of kissing him. At no point during our discussion about me being his fake girlfriend did we talk about being intimate that way.

When it came to convincing everyone that our fake relationship was real, holding hands in public had seemed like enough.

Jayden and Isabelle kiss again, but not quite as enthusiastically as last time. Isabelle glances over at me, and I give her a thumbs-up. I’m not really sure why. Something in her expression had me wanting to reassure her that everything’s fine.

And it is fine. The kiss is part of Landon’s and my cover.

Well, his cover. I’m just the person he’s protecting at the request of my cousin.

Landon and I step under the mistletoe, and I glance up at him and his highly kissable-looking lips.

Lips that I might’ve wondered how they would feel, how they would taste.

I sense that he wants to ask me if I’m okay with this, but Josephine’s standing near us, waiting for us to kiss.

I don’t want her to think I’ve been lying to her, that I’m a deceitful person. She’s been so amazing with her offer to help me with the Christmas show. So I smile reassuringly at him, telling him without words that I’m more than okay with him kissing me.

Landon lowers his mouth to mine. He lingers there for a heartbeat; then he lightly presses his mouth against mine.

The instant our lips touch, it’s like all the air in the room has been sucked out, leaving me breathless.

Our lips don’t touch for long before he pulls away. But it’s enough to tilt my world in a way I don’t ever remember experiencing.

The moment ends, but the tingling of my skin where he touched me remains. I lift two fingers to my mouth as if that will lock the memory of his lips against mine for longer than a few seconds.

The kiss might be over, but neither of us makes a move to step into the room. We stare at each other for several rapid heartbeats, searching each other’s eyes.

A polite cough from the living room jerks me back to the here and now.

I glance at Andrew, who’s grinning at us. “Unless you’re planning to kiss me,” he says to me, “you might want to move along so I can kiss our delightful host.”

My face heats up, my insides melt, and I smile to the point where my cheeks ache. “I’m sorry.”

We step into the dining room, and I peek over my shoulder in time to catch Andrew kissing Josephine.

And if the kiss is anything to go by, those two are more than just friends.

Oh, that’s so sweet.

“What’s so sweet?” Landon asks, turning around to see what I’m looking at.

“Did I say that out loud?”

He nods. “Are you going to tell me what’s sweet?”

“Those two. Josephine and Andrew. Are they married?” I didn’t notice a wedding ring on her finger.

“No. Josephine’s husband—Isabelle’s grandfather—died about six or so years ago.”

“Then I believe they’re dating. I know this sounds silly, but I didn’t think people in their eighties dated.” She’s definitely doing better in the romance department compared to me. Maybe she can give me some pointers.

Not that I’m looking for a relationship. But maybe