A Little Bit of Christmas (A Crystal Lake Novel Book 3) by Juliana Stone

Author:Juliana Stone [Stone, Juliana]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Juliana Stone Publishing
Published: 2019-11-25T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

They waited a good hour by candlelight for the hydro to come back on, and when it was apparent it wasn’t happening anytime soon, the Christmas Eve celebration at the Crystal Lake Motel Diner came to an end.

Joely and Steve locked up and headed to his suite, which was double the size of a regular room, along with Ted, who Joely insisted stay with them because no hydro meant no heat. Cash and Chess walked the elderly couple back to their room and then stomped through two-foot drifts until they reached theirs.

The snow seemed to pull what little light there was from the surrounding darkness, making Chess look ethereal in its reflection. He snuck a look at her as she fumbled in her coat pocket for her room key. “We’d have a better chance of keeping warm if we stay together.” It wasn’t a line or anything like that. It was the truth.

She paused and exhaled, twin plumes of air billowing around them. “You’re probably right,” she said softly. She fingered the key. “I’ll just change into warmer clothes first and come over.”

He got the feeling she was about to bolt or, worse, shut down, so he backed away and headed to his own room. “The door will be unlocked. Let yourself in.”

He’d grabbed a couple of candles from the diner and now lit them, placing them on the dresser. It wasn’t much, but they filled the room with a warm glow. A part of him thought Chess would bail, and he didn’t realize how much he wanted her in his room until he heard the door open behind him.

She closed the door, arms laden with extra blankets, and he took them from her, tossing them onto the bed and moving aside to give her some room.

“You want a drink?” he asked casually. Why the hell did everything feel different? Hadn’t they just had a nice evening at the diner? Hadn’t they had some laughs and nice moments with ease?

“I’ve got beer and…” He flashed a smile. “Beer.”

She accepted a can of Bud Light and sat on the edge of the bed. They made small talk as if they were strangers getting to know each other. Which, in a way, they were.

“So,” he said watching her closely. “Your name.”

She frowned and looked confused. “Yes?”

“I’m going to assume Chess is short for something.”

A small smile drifted across her face, and in that moment, Cash thought he could watch that smile all day long. And then some. It changed everything, and if anything, the bruises that were still visible gave her a touch of frailty that called to him.

I want her.

And not in a one-night-stand kind of way; he wanted more, and that surprised the hell out of him. Cash wasn’t that guy. He was a loner, and this situation was complicated.

“Francesca.”

“What was that?” He blinked away thoughts of her naked and tangled up with him in bed.

“I was named after my dad’s great-grandmother, Francesca Davis Somers. She was a pilot in World War II, if you can believe it.

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