Her Pretend Christmas Date by Jackie Lau

Author:Jackie Lau
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Christmas romance, humor, fake relationship, fake boyfriend, opposites attract, forced proximity, Asian romance, Asian hero, Asian heroine, Canadian romance
Publisher: Jackie Lau Books
Published: 2020-12-08T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

“What are these other challenges?” Julie asked, rather afraid of the answer.

“Don’t worry,” Mom said. “They are shorter than two and a half hours. For the second challenge, you will each make eggnog. This time, your father and I will stay in the living room, so we will not know whose eggnog is whose when we judge.”

“I think you two”—Julie pointed at her parents—“should be the ones making eggnog. The four of us will be the judges.”

Charlotte nodded. “Excellent idea.”

“We’re not prepared to make eggnog,” Dad said.

“And we’re your elders,” Mom said. “You should respect us.”

“Combined,” Julie said, “we spent five hours in the kitchen making gingerbread houses under your scrutiny. We really weren’t prepared for that.”

“What do you think, Mike?”

Mike shoved his hands in his pockets and smiled. “I think I’d enjoy it if someone else made me eggnog.”

“Tom?”

“Whatever Julie wants.”

“And Julie wants the same thing as me,” Charlotte said. “For once, we agree, so you have to listen to us. You don’t know when this rare occurrence will happen again.”

“Fine,” Mom grumbled. “I suppose we can do this.”

“Excellent.” Julie took Tom’s arm. “Let’s sit on the couch and wait for our eggnog.”

Now that she didn’t have to worry about being distracted from making royal icing or buttercream, she allowed herself to remember the kiss they’d shared in the snow...

“Kiss, kiss, kiss!” Mom said, clapping her hands.

What the hell? Was Mom reading her mind?

This was most disturbing.

“Mom and Dad installed mistletoe in the doorway,” Charlotte said, smirking.

Julie looked up, and sure enough, there was mistletoe.

They definitely couldn’t kiss the way they’d kissed earlier. She was not unleashing that side of Tom here.

It was for her alone.

“We’re not kissing in public,” Julie said.

Charlotte cocked her head and looked at Julie suspiciously. Had Charlotte figured out that Julie and Tom weren’t actually together?

Well, Julie wasn’t having any of that. She stood on her toes, cupped Tom’s face in her hands, and kissed him. Not a long kiss, but right on the lips.

“Try to look a little less stunned,” she hissed in his ear, then dragged him toward the couch in the living room. Charlotte and Mike followed. Since there wasn’t a ton of space on the couch, Julie shifted onto Tom’s lap. She heard his sharp intake of breath before he rested his hand on her waist.

“Alright,” Charlotte said, loudly enough for their parents to hear. “I have no idea how long it takes to make eggnog, but how about half an hour?”

“It should be at least an hour,” Mom said, “so the eggnog has time to chill in the fridge. It will be better this way.

“Okay, one hour. Starting...now.”

There was some noise in the kitchen, followed by shouting.

“You stepped on my foot!” Mom said. “No running in the kitchen.”

“You’re hogging the cream,” Dad shot back.

“I’m not hogging the cream.”

Julie and Charlotte burst into laughter.

* * *

An hour later, each judge was presented with two glasses of eggnog. One was garnished with nutmeg and a cinnamon stick. The other looked slightly less appetizing.

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