Beauty and the Grump by Winter Travers

Author:Winter Travers [Travers, Winter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-12-13T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

Claus

“Oh my god.”

All I could do was just sit back and watch.

“Sweet Jesus, Claus,” Stevie moaned.

“Good, sweets?” I asked.

Stevie closed her eyes, and her head dropped back. “How did you do that? I have never in my life had anything like that before.”

“There’s a lot of things you can do to jazz up a tin of tomatoes and some noodles, Stevie.”

She opened her eyes and looked me dead in the eye. “You are a miracle worker, Claus. Whatever Matt Miles is paying you is not enough. Tell him he needs to double it, or you’ll never cook for him again. I am not your agent, and I say you need to be paid a ton more.”

“Sweets,” I chuckled. “I am paid fairly, but I will let Matt know my services are in high demand with you.”

Her cheeks tinged pink, and she wiped her mouth. “Um, okay.”

“You up for some dessert?”

She licked her lips. “Um, well, what did you have in mind?”

I chuckled and nodded to the fridge. “Well, you do have a freezer full of ice cream, but if you’re looking for something else…” I trailed off.

“Ice cream is great,” she jumped. “Uh, let me clean up, and I’ll get you a bowl.” She reached for my plate, but I grabbed it before she could. “You’re not cleaning up after me or fixing me a bowl of ice cream, Stevie.” I wasn’t kidding when I told her last night she wasn’t going to make a plate for me again. “I will take you sitting at this table sipping your wine while I clean up. It’s always nice to have company.”

She licked her lips and nodded. “Uh, I think I like that arrangement. I could put on some music if you want.”

I nodded and gathered our plates. “Whatever you want, sweets.” I dropped our dishes in the sink full of hot, soapy water and rolled up my sleeves.

A few seconds later, the festive opening notes of I’ll Be Home For Christmas started.

“Are you really surprised I picked Christmas music?” she laughed.

I glanced at her over my shoulder and couldn’t help but smile. “Not at all, sweets. Though I was hoping you’d put on something we could dance to, but I can make this work.” I dried my hands on the dish towel and sauntered over to Stevie. I grabbed her hand and pulled her into my arms.

“Claus,” she gasped.

“Shh, Stevie. I can’t tell you how long I’ve wanted this.”

Her eyes widened, and she tipped her head to the side. “Dancing with me?” she whispered.

She laid her hands on my chest, and I wrapped my arms around her waist. “Among other things, sweets.”

We swayed back and forth, just enjoying the slow tempo of the song and the feel of Stevie in my arms.

“What are we doing, Claus?” she asked as the song faded out and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas started.

My eyes connected with hers. “Something I’ve wanted to do for a while but never had the balls to do it.

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