Booked for Christmas by Kalayna Marie

Author:Kalayna Marie [Marie, Kalayna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-12-20T16:00:00+00:00

Maddie helps me put the cookies in the oven while Hadlee and Morgan debate over which movie to watch. It’s been about forty-five minutes since we started, and it only took two tries to get the cookie dough rolled out and cut into the shapes the girls wanted.

“Thanks, Maddie,” I say as she closes the oven. I set my little kitchen timer and show it to her. “Ten minutes, and then we can get them out. Why don’t you go watch a movie with Morgan and Hadlee while your dad and I talk?”

“Okay, Miss Jana,” she says, a wide smile on her face. I watch her run into the living room with a smile. I’ve grown attached to her and her sister. I would hate to lose the relationship I’m building with them.

“You’re good with her,” Alex says, coming up behind me. I turn around, meeting him head on. He’s close enough I need to tilt my chin up to meet his gaze, and I’m overwhelmed with the woodsy-citrus scent that is Alex.

“It’s easy with her,” I reply, clutching the dish towel I’m holding tighter. “She knows what she wants and what she likes and she’s not ashamed of it. You’ve done a brilliant job with her—with both of them, really.”

“Thank you.” His lips tilt up, and I watch the movement in rapt attention. His lips are full, and I wonder if they’re as soft as I imagine them to be. “Should we start then?”

I blink, lifting my gaze to his. He waits patiently for my response, his smile morphing into a smirk the longer it takes me to answer. “Brainstorming, yes! Let’s do it.”

“I think it’s important that we include elements of both the bakery and the bookshop,” Alex says, walking to the other side of the island. He sits on a stool and opens a notebook I didn’t see before. I follow, sitting beside him and scanning the notes.

“That’s a good idea.” My arm brushes his, and I pull away quickly. Heat blooms from where we touched, and when I lift my gaze to his, he’s already watching me with an amused smile. “Um, what do you think of a prize wheel?”

“Spin the wheel, get a prize—that sort of thing?” he asks.

“Yeah, only instead of candy, you get treats from the bakery,” I say, nodding as more ideas come. “And we could get specialty bookmarks and pens too.”

“Do you think we should have anything else at the booth?” Alex asks, his hand moving across the page.

“We can sell our goods.” I lean my head on my hand, watching him. “Like gingerbread cookies or apple pies. You could do books—oh! Have you seen those ‘Blind Date with a Book’ things?”

“What is that?” He’s been scribbling in the notebook but looks up in curiosity. I laugh, folding my arms and resting them on the counter.

“Exactly what it sounds like,” I reply, tilting my head to look at what he’s written. His handwriting is little more than chicken-scratch. “You wrap a book and write the very basics on it.

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