Second Chance Christmas by Betsy St. Amant

Author:Betsy St. Amant
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2022-07-13T20:16:37+00:00

* * *

He looked beat-up—a far cry from the confident, surface-level-access-only Blake she’d run into last week at the college coffee shop. The last several days had clearly chipped away at him, revealing something soft under the hardened shell he’d shown up with. Tulip Mound had gotten to him. Tori apparently had, too.

Dare Charlie hope that she had, as well?

He cared about those teens in there, and she wasn’t surprised. They had a way of sneaking into one’s heart. But why the specific care for Tori? Was it just that she was the youngest, as he’d said about the Christmas tree? Her instincts said no. There was more to the story.

But she couldn’t imagine why Corporate Blake from Colorado would care so much about a foster teen in his hometown.

As her court-appointed advocate, she needed to know Blake’s answer.

She waited for him to respond, noting the way a new coat of dark stubble covered his jaw and the way the dimple in his cheek jumped, as if he were clenching his teeth. He stared back at her, with a look full of intention rather than procrastination—like he was debating something internally before he answered her question.

Standing this close to him in a dim hallway almost made her want to forget their past. Forget the way he’d abandoned her and never looked back. Though even if the past could disintegrate, the present loomed with fresh obstacles between them—namely, his involvement with Paradise Paws.

Yet standing in front of him now, Charlie found it hard to see a callous businessman with dire intentions. She could only see the Blake from eight years ago—the Blake whom Gretchen had encouraged her to see earlier that night. She blinked, but that Blake didn’t go away.

Then something else caught her eye. Something green.

Mistletoe. Hanging right above the door frame heading into the kitchen.

Right above Blake’s head.

The past and the present collided, and all her unspoken wishes and dreams propelled her forward. There was no logic. There was no single thought past that moment.

There were only her lips pressed against Blake’s.

It was everything she’d ever imagined, and at the same time, nothing like it. He tasted like peppermint and smelled like evergreen. That permanent five o’clock shadow scrubbed gently against her chin, but she didn’t care. She was kissing Blake. Her best friend. Her favorite memory. Her history.

Then reality crashed in, and she staggered backward a step. Her history.

“I’m sorry.” She breathed out the word, unable to find any return air for herself. Everything in her seemed to float in the space between them, hovering, lingering, like flakes in a snow globe.

A space that Blake immediately filled.

Before she could protest or even decide she wanted to, he pulled her into his arms, his lips firm yet gentle against hers. She gripped his shoulders for balance as the earth tilted and her head spun. They didn’t speak—but Blake’s kiss said more than he ever could have.

His arms held her steady, despite the spinning of everything she’d ever known. A dozen memories crowded for first place in her mind, a collage of the two of them from years ago.

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