My Life as a Holiday Album (My Life as an Album #5) - L.J. Evans Page 0,109

still have room for dancing?”

“This is perfect. I’ll just go get the rest of my stuff.”

He left, and when I turned around, Phil was right there. It startled me, and I put a hand to my chest, which only drew his eyes to the soft, heart-shaped neckline. He stepped closer, and I backed up, which put me against the amps the DJ had just set down.

He went to put his arm around my shoulder, and I ducked under it, heading for the door as fast as my stilettoed feet would carry me. He was right behind me. “Ginny, I really think we should go into business together.”

I got to the door before I turned to him, putting out a hand in a stop sign. A clear signal. “Thanks, but no. I won’t be in town, anyway. I’m still in college, remember?”

I was trying to call attention to our age difference.

“It would only be a weekend gig. We could work it out,” he said, ignoring my hand and stepping into my space, leaning forward as if he were going to grab my arm, and I got ready to use a Krav Maga move that I’d never thought I’d truly have to use on someone in real life. And then, suddenly, Cole was there, stepping in between Phil and me.

“I think she’s said no.” Cole was standing tall, eclipsing Phil.

Phil looked from Cole, back to me, and then waved a hand. “Fine, fine.” He headed for the door and then looked back. “So, all this will be out of here sometime tomorrow, right? You can drop the key in the mail slot if the bar isn’t open yet.”

Then he was gone. My entire body sagged in relief before Cole turned to me. But once his eyes were on me, all my nerve endings jumped back to life, this time in a much better way.

I took in his tailored gray slacks and sage button-down that he’d dressed up with a thin tie. He looked handsome. More than handsome. He looked exactly like a Hollywood actor you’d see on the CW. Stylish. Modern. Gorgeous.

At the same time I was assessing him, Cole was eyeing my lace dress, going all the way down to my spiked heels and then all the way back up to my eyes surrounded in black liner with bits of gold glitter in my green eyeshadow. The look of awe he had on his face was ten million times better than the creepy one Phil had given doing almost the same thing.

“You’re so unbelievably beautiful,” he said, voice going down an extra notch, making my stomach flip with pleasure.

“You look pretty fantastic yourself,” I said with a smile.

He handed me a package, and it took me a minute to register it was a wrist corsage. Like we were going to prom or something. It was a bright splash of color against my neutrals, just like the flowers on the tables. I was pretty sure he’d had the florist make it to match the centerpieces. The extra effort had my heart pattering a beat I was still not used to but loving.

“It’s perfect,” I said. “Thank you.”

The DJ made it back into the room, and we moved so he could haul more equipment over to the corner.

Cole removed the corsage from the box, took my hand, and slid it over my wrist before bringing my hand to his lips and kissing it.

“I’ve been thinking about you since you left,” he said.

“Same,” I said.

“Have you made a decision?” he asked, and I laughed. He wasn’t one to beat around the bush. It was something I liked about him. Something I was learning about him.

If I went to Europe with him, would there be things I found that I didn’t like about him? Would I be stuck somewhere in the middle of nowhere and have to find a way home because he was suddenly someone I couldn’t stand?

Looking at his friendly green eyes and his open expression, I knew, even if he did something completely ridiculous, I still wouldn’t be able to hate him. He’d woken me from my sleeping state. His entire body made mine feel alive just by standing next to him. I couldn’t imagine that ever going away.

I had made a decision, but I couldn’t help teasing him. “Hmm. I don’t know. I thought our deal had something to do with third base. Did we really make it to third base last night?” I asked quietly, suddenly very aware of the