Chapter 6 #2
For the fourth wall, I cut the rectangle into a square as carefully as possible and even carve out a little door. Once that’s in place, Reese hands me a roof piece, which I set aside. “We have work to do on the inside first.”
“On the inside?” she repeats.
I nod and shine my phone flashlight into the house.
“I don’t know if you’ve ever done a gingerbread house before, Cole, but it’s a little different from building an actual home. No one’s going to live in this. It’s literally all about curb appeal.”
“And not collapsing. We need structural support. Grab a handful of those candy canes, would you?”
She laughs but brings over a dozen of them, and we break off the hooked ends to make crossbeams.
She pipes frosting onto the ends of them, and we each hold one side in place.
Our eyes meet over the house, and she smiles. “We’ll have the sturdiest, ugliest gingerbread house in history.”
“Patience, Reese’s Pieces.”
She looks around the room, and her gaze lingers on Brady and Megan. “Everyone else is already decorating. Just saying.”
I keep my eyes on her. “Everyone else is going to lose. Just saying.”
We get the roof supported and in place, and Reese grabs a handful of candy from one of our bowls.
I snatch her wrist. “Please tell me you weren’t about to press gumdrops to a roof that hasn’t had time to set.”
She shakes her head adamantly, brown eyes wide and innocent.
I pry her fingers open. Five pink gumdrops.
I pluck two and pop them into my mouth.
Her gaze follows the motion, lingering on my lips.
“Eyes up here, Reese’s Pieces.”
She puts a finger to the side of her mouth. “You’ve got a little drool.”
I brush at my mouth with a thumb, but there’s nothing there.
She just smiles, the little v for victory lighting her eyes.
I take a step toward her. “You’re mighty bold for someone on the verge of being fired.” Maybe Brady’s watching. Maybe he’s not. I don’t really care at the moment.
Reese stands her ground. “So fire me.”
My eyes rove over her face, then settle on the cupid’s bow of her mouth. “I can think of a better way to teach you a lesson…”
She swallows, the only indication that what I said has any effect on her.
This whole thing with Reese is addicting. I’m not satisfied to just play my part well or to look like Reese’s boyfriend.
I want her to actually want me. I want her to want me to kiss her.
But I’ve never been so nervous about kissing a person I have every excuse to kiss.
Ever so slowly, I lean in.
Her eyelids flutter as the space between our lips disintegrates inch by inch.
Just before our lips brush against each other, I stop.
I can feel her waiting, and the way her breath is stuck in her lungs while she does.
“Roof’s ready.” I step back, unable to suppress my smile.
Her eyes light up with the promise of vengeance. “Joke’s on you. I don’t kiss anyone without a complete dental history.”
“Yeah? Cuz you sure looked ready to give me a full, hands-on workup.”
“In your dreams.”
She’s not wrong about that.
The decoration is where Reese really shines. She took my old house and turned it into something I’d only ever had wisps of in my mind, and she does the same with the gingerbread house.
The roof—a perfectly secure architectural marvel—hangs with little white jelly bean lights attached to a red licorice rope. Powdered sugar snow drifts rise up on either side of an M&M sidewalk, which leads to a door hung with a green lifesaver wreath, complete with Red Hot berries.
When the timer goes off, we’ve just put the finishing touch on the pretzel stick fence.
“Time’s up!” Tess says. “Put down your candy, ladies and gentlemen. Judgment day has come, and the judge should be calling i—ohp! There she is. Right on time.” She swipes on her phone and holds it out in front of her. “Hi, Mama!”
Tess introduces her mom—a totally delightful woman—to Brady and me before she starts the judging—a task she seems to take on purely because it allows her to see our creations.
She oohs and ahhs over the high-rise and raves about the tiered mansion. Brady lets Meg take charge showing their castle concept, which actually looks pretty cool, even if it couldn’t withstand an hour-long Skittle siege.
Finally, it’s our turn.
I nod at Reese to take the lead and can’t stop smiling as, amidst all the decor, she touts the “perfectly level” walls and roof and the foundation to outlast all foundations.
“What you don’t see,” Reese says, putting the phone up against the open front door, “are the exposed candy cane beams inside and the open concept floor plan.”
“Wide open,” I joke.
“A studio mansion, we’re calling it. The exterior is modeled after my house—Cole’s old house—which he actually built.” She holds up a picture on her phone. “He’s a contractor.”
The pride in her voice catches me off guard.
“Would you look at that!” Mrs. Simmons exclaims, squinting through the camera.
Reese smiles and hands the phone back to Tess.
“Well,” her mom says, “to say I’m floored by the teamwork this year would be an understatement. You’ve all created masterpieces! You’re all winners in my book.”
“Okay, but you still have to choose an actual winner, Mom,” Tess says. “You know this.”
Her mom lets out a sigh. “Fine. Well, if I have to choose one gingerbread house amongst all the perfect creations…”
“You do,” Tess affirms.
“It’s gotta be…”
The air in the room thickens, and I look at the three other couples. Hannah and Tyler are crossing all of their fingers. Tess and Dylan are leaning forward with anticipation. Megan and Brady are holding hands and looking at each other.
“…Reese and Cole’s house.”
My hands shoot up in the air, and so do Reese’s. We double high-five each other while the others cheer.
“Good thing you didn’t fire me, huh?” Reese says.
“Losing streak officially over.”
“You didn’t mention you were a contractor,” Brady says, almost like it’s a dirty secret I withheld.
I put out my hand. “Cole Bradley, gingerbread house contractor.”
He chuckles reluctantly and shakes it, and some of the tension simmering beneath the surface diffuses with the gesture.
It’s a lot easier for me to be friendly with Brady when Reese is smiling.
Now, to keep that smile there.