Frostbite & Mistletoe: A small-town Christmas shifter romance with enemies-to-lovers sparks and fated mates magic (Bearpaw Ridge Firefighters Book 18) by Ophelia Sexton

Author:Ophelia Sexton [Sexton, Ophelia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Philtata Press, LLC
Published: 2025-10-27T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Later that night

Kymberlie stared at her phone. Still no notifications. She’d made lasagna today to thank Gabriel for his generosity because he’d mentioned it was his favorite comfort food, and opened a bottle of the red wine he liked.

But he hadn’t called. Hadn’t texted. Hadn’t shown up for the first time in two weeks. The pan of lasagna and bowl of salad sat untouched on her dining table. The fancy candles she’d lit had burned down halfway.

“I’m such an idiot,” she muttered.

Call him. Her wolf stirred restlessly inside her. You hurt his feelings.

I need to give him some space, Kymberlie argued, knowing she was being cowardly. If he wanted to come over, he’d be here.

What if he hates me now? What if I ruined everything by yelling at him today?

He paid for that new hood, her wolf pointed out. It was a courtship gift. He doesn’t hate you. He just needs time after you almost drove him away.

With a sigh, Kymberlie blew out the candles and packed away the food.

Fine, I’ll be seeing him tomorrow. We can talk then.

Later, she ached at his absence from her bed. It was funny how quickly she’d gotten used to having him here every night. Outside, snow was falling. She shivered and burrowed deeper under her comforter, missing his warmth.

It took a long time for her to fall asleep.

∞∞∞

Wednesday, December 17

The next afternoon, Kymberlie stood in the snow-dusted parking lot of The Hair of the Dog, arms crossed tightly over her chest. Ten feet away, Gabriel leaned against his pickup, his gaze fixed on the road as they waited for Tyler to arrive with the new hood for the kitchen.

The silence between them stretched taut as a wire. When Gabriel had arrived fifteen minutes ago, he’d greeted her with a polite nod. As if they hadn’t been skin-to-skin just two days before. As if he hadn’t spent the last two weeks with his face between her legs, driving her crazy with his insanely talented tongue.

“Tyler’s running late,” she said finally, unable to bear another minute of his stony silence.

Gabriel checked his watch. “Only by five minutes. It’s fine.”

Fine. Everything was just fine with him, wasn’t it? His cool detachment made Kymberlie want to snarl.

“Why didn’t you come over for dinner last night?” The question burst from her before she could stop it.

His eyes snapped to hers, a flicker of something—surprise? guilt?—crossing his face before his expression smoothed out again. “I didn’t think you’d want me there after I failed you. Plus, I was busy with, uh, paperwork. The county has new compliance requirements for—”

“Forget it.” Kymberlie turned away, her chest tight. “And I didn’t mean what I said yesterday about you wanting me to fail.”

“Kymber.” His voice softened. “I’m sorry about last night. I should have called.”

She didn’t turn around. “I made lasagna.”

More silence fell between them. Kymberlie watched the snowflakes drift down, settling on the parking lot she’d just spent a couple of hours shoveling. Is it over? I made a complete ass of myself yesterday.

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