full of shock. “What are you doing here?”
He hadn’t memorized Bishop’s speech, but Ace had never really had a problem speaking his mind. He held up his phone. “I don’t want to take a break.” He cleared his throat. “Life is busy, Holly Ann. We can’t break-up every single time you have something going on in your life. That’s not how real relationships work.”
She stared at him, her eyes wide. She was stunning, even with only the light from her car spilling onto her, and the house lights haloing her from behind. She wasn’t wearing a jacket over her nearly sheer blouse, as it was the same one she’d worn on-camera.
He’d been able to see the outline of her black camisole underneath the blouse, which was cream-colored and covered with multi-colored stars. She’d paired it with a black pencil skirt and a sexy pair of ankle boots that gave her an extra three inches.
He did not want to break up with her. He was not going to let her break up with him. He wished she’d say something.
The tension in her shoulders broke, and she eased out of the way of her door, using her foot to close it. “Do you want to come in?”
“Yes,” he said instantly. “Let me help you with all of that.” He stepped forward and took her drink and her food. She smiled at him, and it wasn’t the horrible, fake smile he’d seen on TV. His hope rebounded and shot into the sky, because maybe—just maybe—doing something he’d never done before would get him something he’d never gotten before.
Sneak Peek! The Secret of Santa Chapter Two:
Holly Ann Broadbent put her heavy purse down on the built-in desk in her kitchen while Ace Glover set her food and drink on the counter. Her little brown and white dog, Snickers, yipped at her, jumping up on her legs in excitement.
“Yes, I see you,” she said, grinning at the dog. “I left you home for so long, didn’t I?” She scooped him into her arms and took him to the sliding glass door. “Go out and go potty.” The little dog ran into the darkness, and she flipped the switch to turn on the lights in the back yard.
Turning around, she faced Ace. She couldn’t believe he was here. He had a lot of nerve to be sitting in her driveway this late at night. She could’ve called the cops on him for loitering and scaring her half to death. If she hadn’t recognized that half-ton truck in an unusual matte gray the color of river mud, she would have.
At the same time, every cell in her body vibrated with a new kind of energy, all of it screaming, Ace Glover is here!
Ace Glover didn’t just give up this time!
“Did you eat?” she asked, reaching for the white paper bag her Chinese food had come in. “I have plenty.” She glanced at him, but she’d never been able to just take a casual look. Ace demanded that she really soak him in, even when she tried not to.
Tonight, he wore a sexy pair of dark wash jeans that made his legs look impossibly long. He always had the cowboy boots, the cowboy hat, and the belt buckle. Always. They were three of her favorite things about Ace.
His gray shirt peeked through his jacket at his throat, only a triangle of light against the dark brown leather. He lit her up every time he walked in the room. Every single time.
“I ate,” he said, and she wondered how much time had gone by while she drank him in. She hadn’t even taken one container out of the bag yet, so probably not much.
“Did you hear what I said outside?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said, opening the box and getting a nose full of orange mixed with fried food. Her stomach growled, and her mouth watered. “That’s why I invited you in.”
“So…we’re not breaking up?”
“You said you didn’t want to.”
“I don’t.”
“I’m going to be incredibly busy.” Not only that, but Holly Ann didn’t deal well with stress or exhaustion. She would be both stressed and exhausted, constantly, from now until New Year’s Day. “And Ace, you thought I was bad when I was taking care of Snickers after his surgery, and catering events, and no one was sleeping. This is going to be ten times worse.”
“I’ll come sit with you while you sleep,” he said quietly.
Holly Ann saw no point in dirtying a plate she’d have to wash later, so