How could one man make her feel dizzy like a teenager all over again with just one dance? Somehow at the same time the years were layers between them. Either a boundary they would never surpass, or layers they would have to chip away. The dance felt like it was both .
Cami closed her eyes and inhaled his spicy masculine scent, mixed with a hint of the wilderness .
As the song ended, they stopped moving. Cami heard a low chant from the crowd, but she couldn’t quite make it out .
“What are they saying?” She looked into Evan’s eyes for answers .
> He cocked his head to the side and paused. “They’re saying look up .”
Cami’s gaze drifted to the bough of mistletoe over their heads. Her cheeks turned an instant crimson color, but it didn’t stop the crowd .
Evan pressed his lips together before leaning toward her and planting a kiss on her cheek. Then he dropped his hold on her waist and walked off the dance floor .
Twelve
Evan
“G ood morning, Mayor.” Georgia Hawkes wore a cat-caught-the-canary grin when Evan walked into the mayor’s office Monday morning .
“Hello, Georgia .”
He collected the memos and email lists she had compiled for him off her desk .
“Did you see the front page of the Post yet?” she asked .
He was almost in his office when she held up the paper, shaking it to stand tall. His eyes bulged. Above the fold was a picture of him dancing with Cami at the mistletoe shoot over the weekend. What the fuck ?
“Let me see that.” He took the paper from her hands. “Who published this? What in the…” he grumbled, closing the door behind him in his office. Shit .
Things were getting out of control quickly. He only danced with Cami to quiet things down, instead he seemed to have heated up the entire situation. He threw the paper in the trash without reading the rest of the story .
As mayor, Evan did everything he could to avoid being the subject of gossip, instead he wound up being on the front page. And why? Because it fed some kind of feel-good romance for the town? Did they have any idea what they were talking about? He and Cami were not getting back together. The harder he tried to dissuade everyone, even his best friend, the worse it got. The sex was fucking incredible, but it wasn’t happening again. No one in this town even knew what happened. They could go to hell if they were going to keep pushing this on him .
For lunch, he walked to Hurricanes and ordered the usual, only this time he placed it for two .
He carried two grilled cheeses and chicken noodle soups a block around the corner. Today, the white bags were decorated with candy canes. He walked up the ramp of the old Victorian home and through the ornately carved wooden door. The crystal glass on the front was frosted so he couldn’t see through into the foyer. Otherwise, he would have stopped before going inside. He would have at least had a warning .
He heard her voice in the parlor. No one else had a voice like that. The piano seemed secondary even though the notes filled the room. He stopped in the doorway. Cami couldn’t see him. She faced the keys and played a familiar Christmas carol while his grandmother hummed from her chair .
Her voice did something. It always had. It was the reason when he heard her music on the radio, he had to switch to another station. It was the reason he had fought so hard to keep her off the tree lighting stage. It was why now, his heart was twisted in a million directions .
His grandmother looked up, spotting him in the doorway. Instead of recognition, she looked puzzled. He crossed the room and Cami stopped playing. She leaned toward his grandmother and saw him too .
“Hi Grandmother.” He leaned to kiss her on the cheek. “I brought you lunch today.” He held up the bags from Hurricanes. He wondered what things she would recognize today .
She tilted her head from side to side. “I can’t believe I would have a grandson as handsome as you .”
He laughed. “Don’t know that I’m handsome, but I am your grandson. Are you hungry? I have your favorites .”
She pointed to Cami. “This young lady here came to play Christmas music for me. And what a voice. Sweet and pure like a nightingale .”
He eyed Cami. She was wearing a red sweater with a snowflake in the center and a pair of jeans that hugged her waist. She looked beautiful. Her hair cascaded along her shoulders .
“Did she ?”
Cami folded the sheet music on the easel. “I hope it’s ok. I thought I’d drop by and say hi. And you know Aunt Sophie and your grandmother were best friends. We started talking, and she asked if I would play .”
She must have thought he was some kind of monster, if she was worried he’d be upset about her visiting his grandmother. He’d let his anger be visible all these weeks when it should have been hidden .