Snowball's Christmas by Kristen McKanagh

Author:Kristen McKanagh [McKanagh, Kristen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2020-07-03T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 12

Lukas strolled through the hardware store, the air filled with the scents of freshly cut wood as he walked past shelves of different-size beams and planks to the section he needed. In addition to the tasks he’d set for himself today, he’d also talked to Daniel about a few other projects and had a list of items. But his mind wasn’t entirely on the task at hand.

Too distracted by the woman walking quietly beside him.

Rather than have her drop him off first, he’d insisted on helping Emily with her deliveries before doing his errand. Lukas had given up on pretending he didn’t want to spend time with her. When she relaxed around him, he enjoyed drawing out her laugh, and the way she teased back, and the way she asked a ton of questions like she was truly interested. In the car, they’d chatted easily about Christmas gifts and what they were looking forward to over the holiday. He’d wanted to ask if she’d liked what he’d left her in the advent calendar—after all, she’d gone up to shower—but decided that if she didn’t bring it up, he wouldn’t, either.

Maybe she hadn’t seen it.

Or maybe she hated that he was the one leaving her stuff. His initial thought had been a wish to give her something to smile about. What if she took it the wrong way though? Emily wasn’t exactly prone toward giving him, of all people, the benefit of the doubt when it came to intentions.

He stopped and perused the paint supplies.

“Do you need a caulking gun to fix the paint on the kitchen cabinets?” she asked.

Lukas paused and looked at what he’d been about to put into the basket. Nope, he didn’t need that. “It’s for the bathtub in my room,” he made up on the spot, and grabbed a tube of clear silicon for good measure. Surely at least one of the bathrooms in the massive house needed a touch up in the caulk department. Or maybe a windowsill?

Focus, Weber.

Quickly, he made sure everything else that went into the basket was what he actually did need, then he hustled them through check out.

“You hungry?” he asked as they loaded the SUV, the brisk air fogging with their exhaled breath.

Emily paused to look at him over the top. “I have to cook lunch for the guests.”

Her tone said all she didn’t with words. Basically a big question mark floated in the air between them along with their breath, asking if he remembered some people had responsibilities.

He grinned and enjoyed the way her eyes narrowed with annoyance at the sight. “Actually . . . no one will be home for lunch today. While you were showering, I happened to talk to each of the guests, all of whom have plans to eat out. Daniel brought his own, and Aunt Tilly said something about meeting with her bridge group today. So . . . no one to feed but you and me.”

Emily wrinkled her nose, then yanked open her door and got in.

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