Totally Smitten (A Cozy AF Christmas 3)

If only I could get over my silly infatuation with him, I could see me staying in this job indefinitely. I just don’t know how I’ll handle him ever actually dating someone or bringing a girlfriend to the office.

In the beginning it was a simple attraction. Now it’s way beyond that. Now I’ve gotten to know him, and I’ve fallen even harder for him. He’s truly a great guy. A fair boss, treats everyone in a respectable manner, worries about me, and is always offering to drive me in the snow or follow me home. He makes it impossible to not like him. There’s just no way I can spend three to four days—and nights—with him. No way!

“You can’t go with me. I’m not putting you through that,” I tell him as I shuffle back to my desk, hoping this conversation is over.

“So you’re going to leave me here? To celebrate Christmas alone?” he deadpans.

“You’re going to be alone on Christmas?” I ask him, about to start crying again. I may not know a lot about his home life, but I do know that he has no immediate family. I do remember him hoping his foster brother would make it home in time for Christmas. I can’t even imagine not having a family. That’s one thing I’ve never had to experience. I have a large one, and we spend every holiday together. Just the idea of him spending Christmas alone makes me want to hug him right here and now.

“I’m always alone. Who did you think I would spend Christmas with? My foster brother doesn’t know if he’ll be home in time for Christmas.”

I shrug my shoulders and feel my face heat. “A girlfriend, maybe? I don’t know.” I get all panicky feeling when I think of him dating someone. I’ve never seen him go out with anyone, but I only see him at the office. There has to be someone. I mean, he’s the total package. Well, he is if you can get past the bah humbug attitude at Christmas.

His lips turn up a little on the sides. “Nope. No girlfriend. I was planning a TV dinner and looking to see if I could find some old Andy Griffith reruns.”

“Andy Griffith? I love Andy Griffith,” I tell him.

“See, already we have things in common. It won’t be so hard to convince anyone we’re together. So when are we leaving?” he asks me again.

I hold my hands up in front of him and almost put them on his chest. I stop suddenly and let them fall. “Wait! So you understand, right? You will have to act like my boyfriend. You’d, uh, have to act like you like me,” I say hesitantly.

“I can do that,” he says, looking into my eyes. I’m looking for hesitancy or a little doubt, but I don’t see any. For a second, I think I see a flare of interest, but that disappears quickly. “What about you? Can you act like you like me?”

My mouth drops open. Can I act like I like him? I have no worries on whether I can act like I like him. My family even knows how much I like him. When they came to visit me right after I got my job, they came to the office, and I introduced them to Baker. Right away, my mom knew I had a thing for him. There was no convincing her otherwise. So acting like I like him is not going to be a problem. My problem is that I’m going to look like a fool because I’m sure it’s obvious to anyone that pays attention that I’m already half in love with him. “Yes,” I stutter to him.

“Good. It’s settled.” He puts his hand on my shoulder and squeezes. Like a moron, I look over at his hand, and he drops it quickly, making me wish I’d never even brought attention to it. I like having his hand on me. “So when do we leave?”

I shake my head, still not believing that this is truly happening. “Tomorrow. I was going to leave after work. And then I was coming back the day after Christmas,” I tell him, thinking he’ll rethink it after hearing how many days and back out.

“Sounds good. I’ll be ready.”

He walks into his office and closes the door, leaving me to my thoughts. I still can’t believe what just happened. Did my boss really just offer to be my boyfriend? Well, fake boyfriend. Don’t let yourself forget this is fake, Tara, I tell myself.3Baker“You can still back out. I promise I won’t hold it against you,” Tara tells me.

All day she’s tried to convince me that I don’t have to go. But I’m going. The only thing that would stop me at this point is if she point blank told me she doesn’t want me to go.