The Billionaire Scrooge Next Door by Olivia Hayle

Author:Olivia Hayle [Hayle, Olivia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-11-20T00:00:00+00:00

I wake up to harsh light. Without curtains, the living room is so bright I want to shield my eyes. It’s also cold, and the tip of my nose is freezing above the edge of the comforter.

The mattress is empty beside me. But Adam must have gotten up recently, because I’ve been aware of him all night. Lying cramped together on his mattress wasn’t particularly good for sleep, but it was cozy and comfortable and I didn’t mind one bit. Having him behind me, or around me, his arm over me, was the most restful thing I’ve experienced in weeks.

Something cold and wet licks my cheek. I laugh, pushing Winston away. Dark doggy eyes meet mine beneath two bushy Schnauzer eyebrows.

“Good morning. Sleep well?”

He jumps onto the mattress and curls into a ball where Adam had slept. He gives a victorious sigh and closes his eyes, too cute for words. I leave him be and hunt for my camisole and underwear. Then I wrap a blanket around myself and head in search of Adam.

I find him in the kitchen. His hair is mussed and he’s in the same sweater, holding a phone to his ear. His eyes light up when he sees me. “Good morning.”

“Morning.”

“Sleep well?”

I nod. “Yes. I was very warm.”

“So was I.” He looks down at my bare legs and his smile widens. “I’m trying to sort out our situation,” he says and gives his phone a little wave.

“Our situation?”

“With the power outage. At least the snow plowers are on their way here. You should be able to make it to your home by midday.”

“My parents!” I reach for my phone, forgotten on the kitchen counter. They’ve left me several unanswered texts. I respond and tell them I’m okay and not to worry. Drive safe, I write too, because Lord knows how much snow there is on the roads between Fairhill and Loncaster.

Adam finds a pot in one of the cabinets and fills it with water. “Want some coffee?”

“Sure. But how will we heat it?”

He grins. “The fireplace.”

Thirty minutes later and he’s mixing instant coffee in a very ashy pot. I sit cross-legged on his mattress in front of the fire and admire the winter wonderland outside the windows. The backyard is covered in a blanket of the whitest, freshest powder. It’s a day to drink hot cocoa and play games. To put on a Christmas movie or decorate a gingerbread house.

Adam sits down next to me and I lean my head on his shoulder. He grows still, a hand coming to rest on my bare knee.

“Thanks for yesterday,” I say.

His hand squeezes. “Thanks for keeping me company in here.”

“The tree, the food, the… whiskey. All of it. I think that counts as a second date, doesn’t it? With the Christmas Fair being our first.”

He’s silent for a long moment and my heart clenches in my throat. Perhaps that was presumptuous of me. His talk of dating yesterday might just have been caused by too much whiskey.

“Okay,” Adam murmurs.

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