Total pages in book: 22
Estimated words: 20435 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 102(@200wpm)___ 82(@250wpm)___ 68(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20435 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 102(@200wpm)___ 82(@250wpm)___ 68(@300wpm)
9
PEYTON
I wake the next morning with a big smile on my face. I’m completely exhausted because Ledger and I spent the night reaching for each other. We made love no less than four times. Each time we kept insisting we were doing it for the sake of a baby, but I think we both know that’s a lie.
My phone dings and I pick it up to see the Christmas event in Sweetgrass River is today. It’s already late but if I hustle, I should still be able to make it over there. All of my treats have been made so if I swing by the apartment, I can grab everything in time.
I start to nudge Ledger to tell him. But he’s just as exhausted as I am. We’ll catch up with each other later.
I smile and press a tender kiss to his forehead. He turns over and murmurs something in his sleep. Maybe one day we’ll wake up next to each other every morning. That would be amazing.
Unfortunately, fate is not with me today. I have to leave Ledger’s house in my clothes from last night. Which isn’t a big deal except that my old junker sputters to a stop before I can get a mile down the road. It even has the audacity to break down in front of Mr. and Mrs. Kringle’s house. He’s on the front porch sipping his morning coffee when I flag him down.
“Car trouble?” He asks as steam pours from underneath the hood.
“Just a little bit. Can I borrow a gallon of water?” Ledger has already threatened to call the sheriff and have the car impounded for being unsafe if it breaks down on me one more time.
I wrap my arms around myself and hope Mr. Kringle doesn’t notice my clothing is the exact same as last night. It’s kind of hard to deny that I’m still wearing my ugly Christmas sweater. “I’m trying to get to the big Christmas show in Sweetgrass today.”
“I can do you one better. Let me give you a ride up there.”
I start to decline his offer. The Kringles have always been the type of people that will give you the shirt off their backs. But I’m not used to letting people take care of me.
Still, looking at Mr. Kringle right now, I have the sudden realization that he’ll be my child’s grandfather. One day, I’ll get to hand him a screaming red bundle wrapped in a hospital blanket. I hope that day comes soon.
“Yeah, a ride would be cool. We have to swing by my apartment to get my stuff first,” I explain. He’s willing to cancel whatever plans he has for the day on a moment’s notice just to help me. He’s so much like Ledger.
“One minute.” He holds up a hand and disappears into the house. When he returns, Mrs. Kringle is arm in arm with him. She beams at me. “Tell us what you need, dear.”
Three hours later and the Christmas fair in the Sweetgrass River Elementary gymnasium has barely begun. Yet I’ve already sold half of my gingerbread cookies. They aren’t the ginger dicks that I sell at the bar. No, these are actual gingerbread men.
Still, I’ve sold way more than I normally sell and it’s all thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Kringle. They’re amazing salespeople. They’re warm and friendly, chatting up every person who walks by the table like they’re long-lost friends.
I marvel at the way they work in tandem, genuinely showing interest in the customers while convincing them to indulge in a sweet treat. Maybe Ledger and I can be a team like that one day. We could certainly learn a thing or two from them.
“You guys are wonderful. Thank you,” I tell them as I add another wad of cash to the little metal lockbox I keep at the table. If this keeps up, I could make four figures. That money will certainly come in handy for the restaurant. Or a new crib. Just the thought that I could already be pregnant with Ledger’s child has me grinning.
But the smile fades from my lips when Ledger storms into the gymnasium. Fire is blazing in his gaze and his hair is sticking up in all directions. His clothes look rumpled and that’s when I realize he’s wearing the ones from last night.
Before I can figure out what he’s so upset about, he stomps up to me and announces loudly, “You weren’t in my bed this morning.”
Ledger
I blink awake slowly, aware that something isn’t like it should be. That’s when the events from last night come back to me and I reach for Peyton. I want to touch her again, feel her underneath me. Fuck, we did so many things last night. Things that I want to spend the rest of my life doing with her.