Just One Kiss - J. Saman Page 0,21
I hadn’t even realize he was clenching. But his jaw is still tense as he goes to the freezer to retrieve my ice pack.
“The weather is looking pretty rough out there,” I comment, hoping to alleviate some of the tension I feel building between us.
No sooner are the words out of my mouth then the lights flicker.
My eyes pop open wide, searching around the room to make sure we do still in fact have power.
“It’s not supposed to stop until tomorrow afternoon. Then it will likely take a day or so for everything to be fully plowed out.” He turns to me, watching my expression carefully as he creates a mammoth plate that could feed a grizzly. “And yes, we’ll likely lose power as the wind is supposed to kick up some more. But relax. I have a generator that runs on natural gas and plenty of wood for the fire. We’ll be fine.”
“Right.” I glance down, my hands twisting in my lap. “You didn’t exactly plan on me for your Christmas guest though.”
He marches toward me, plate in hand, setting it on the counter and placing the ice on my knee. His hand cups my face, lifting my chin until I’m forced to meet his steady gaze. “I wasn’t planning on anyone for my Christmas guest, so that makes no difference to me. I’m just sorry that you likely won’t make it in time for Christmas Eve with your family.”
And before I can stop myself, I ask, “Who are you spending Christmas with?”
He releases my face, turning away from me and heading back into the kitchen, making himself busy as he places a strong helping of distance between us. “Betsy. But I usually work Christmas since no one comes through and the gallery is closed. It’s a good day to get stuff done.”
My heart jerks at that. I wonder who Miles has in his life. If he’s as alone as he appears to be.
Just as I’m lifting my first bite of eggs to my mouth, the lights flicker, then go out, and don’t come back on. “Miles,” I whisper.
“Wait for it.”
A loud mechanical sound clicks on and with it, some of the lights, but not all of them.
“We’ll have heat?” I ask.
“In some spots of the house, yes. We’ll still have hot water. The stove works, as does the microwave and toaster, but the oven is out. Half the lights down here and I think the lights in your bedroom don’t work either. Just in your bathroom. Much of the back of the house won’t have heat or a lot of power.”
“The back of the house?” My eyebrows tilt in.
“Eat up,” he says to me. “I need to check on the gallery and my studio to make sure the other generator clicked on there too.”
“You can go if you need to. I can certainly eat here by myself.”
He shakes his head. “I want to show you around a bit. There is something I think you’ll really like.”
Chapter Eight
MILES
“You look sad,” I comment, feeling the matching frown on my own face.
She chews her piece of pancake like she’s trying to set a record on speed. Then she shrugs.
“What is it? Not being with your family?”
She swallows audibly, taking a hasty sip of her coffee. “I’m not sad.”
“Do you remember what I said about you being a bad liar?”
She huffs out an aggravated sound. “Fine. I’m a little sad. It’s just that Christmas is my favorite holiday. The lights. The music. The movies and homemade cookies. And yes, it’s also the holiday we always spend together as a family.”
Fuck. I have none of that. And with the power out and the oven gone, I can’t even bake her cookies. Not that I even know how because I’ve never done that before. Cooking I can do, but baking is something else altogether.
“I see your wheels spinning, Miles, and that was not my intention. I’m good. I swear, I am. I don’t want to sound like a downer or come off as ungrateful because I’m not. I’m really glad I’m here with you.”
Her eyes burn into mine with a sincerity that has me rubbing absently at a sore spot on my chest.
“What’s your favorite Christmas movie?”
“What’s yours?” she throws back at me.
“I don’t do holidays, London. Just tell me and we can watch it together later if you want.”
“Christmas Vacation.”
“Done.”
She lets out a small sigh, returning to her breakfast and I turn away from her, going about doing the dishes. The dishwasher is