Ask Her at Christmas by Christi Barth

Author:Christi Barth
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2012-10-15T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

Kyle paced the sidewalk, watching his black patent dress shoes smoosh into the flurries of snow. It had been exactly seven minutes since he’d ducked out of the LTS Industries Christmas party, and he was positive his father had noticed his absence by now. Another tick in the minus column against his least-favorite son. He clamped the phone tighter to his ear to better hear over the howling wind.

“Caitlin, what the hell is taking you so long?”

The phone line practically crackled with her exasperation, practically as high as his. “In case you haven’t noticed, the snow’s kicked up to practically blizzard conditions. Chicago traffic sucks under the best conditions. You really think my taxi is going any more than a rocking five miles an hour right now?”

Kyle didn’t care how unreasonable it might be. He needed Caitlin on his arm, and back up at the party as of, oh, twenty minutes ago. About to bark out another plea to hurry, he slid the phone into his pocket as a taxi double honked its arrival. Kyle thrust a handful of bills at the driver and yanked open the door. “The whole point of tonight is for me to have a date. Did you have to take so long getting ready? The party started half an hour...” his voice trailed off as Caitlin got out. Or had he actually swallowed his tongue? He’d looked at her so often over the years. Half the time he barely noticed what she looked like. Caitlin was always just there, like his three computers, iPod and Xbox. But then a night like this came along, and she blindsided him with her beauty.

She’d done something fancy with her hair that clustered red curls on one side and left the other side of her neck bare. Bare and inviting. The deep green of a holly sprig, her dress pushed her breasts up onto a ruffled display shelf. Look, but don’t touch, he told himself. The strapless top was cinched in by a black velvet ribbon around her tiny waist, then poofed out into a wide skirt. Happily, it stopped at her knees. Caitlin’s legs looked a million miles long, ending in super-high black heels. Deep red nails peeped out of a cut out at the toe. Kyle would happily give up his iPad for an entire week just to glimpse the rest of her toes.

He scrambled to find words that would do her justice. “You look amazing.” Yeah, he wasn’t any good with words. Now, if he could craft an equation that transformed her beauty into the simplicity of numbers, then he’d be eloquent. Except she wouldn’t understand it. And he’d win the prize for biggest nerd ever.

“Good. Then stop sniping at me. You’re lucky I’m here at all.”

“I know. I owe you big. I owe you...whatever you want. Sky’s the limit.” Truly. He’d freaking buy her a car for coming out tonight and saving his ass, if she asked for it.

Caitlin gave him a veiled look.

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