Chapter 13
Six Days Before Christmas
Me:
New plan.
Piper:
It’s about time. I hated to tell you this before, but Operation: Naughty List was never going to work.
It actually worked a little too well, I think. But that’s another story.
Another one? You should be an author at this point.
Funny. As I was saying, Operation: Naughty List is now Operation: Jack & Sally.
New phone who dis?
You can’t pretend that now!
Well if there was ever a “nightmare before Christmas,” this is it.
Me:
Trust me, this is the logical next step. Ryan got off scot-free. We’re just going to mess with him a little. Let him think his little matchmaking scheme worked, and then some.
Piper:
There is nothing logical about revenge wars at Christmas. Besides, shouldn’t you be looking for a job?
No one is going to hire over the holidays. I won’t even have a chance to send my resume anywhere until after New Year.
And that’s the reason you’re putting it off? Not because it’s more fun to focus on pretending to be in a relationship with a hot, flannel-wearing, Christmas-hating “Jack”?
Hold up. I said I experienced a moment of attraction. I never said Nick was hot.
You can’t pretend that now!
You’re nicer in person.
Think of me as the guardian angel on your shoulder telling you to drop this charade and give everyone the gift of honesty this Christmas.
Did you steal that line from a country song?
I can see you’re not going to change your mind.
No harm in a few white lies during a white Christmas.
Now THAT sounds like a country song.
Have fun, Sally.
Breakfast time. Which meant showtime.
I slipped my phone into the side pocket of my leggings and ignored the fluttering in my stomach warning me of the myriad ways Operation: Jack & Sally could backfire.
But it wouldn’t. Ryan had this coming, and if I was being totally honest with myself—which I’d officially stopped doing around midnight when I figured no one wanted to pretend to date someone with dark circles under their eyes—it would be nice to have an excuse to get to know Nick better.
Which we could do, now that everything was out in the open between us.
He’d apologized and clearly felt horrible for going along with Ryan’s plan.
Granted, now he was going along with my plan, but that was different.
I took a quick peek in the bathroom mirror.
I couldn’t use the full-length one in my room without climbing over Chloe’s air mattress, so I had to make do with standing as far back from the counter as the wall would allow and jumping to see the majority of my legging-clad thighs.
My outfit was nothing fancy—just another tunic sweater that hid my extra five pounds, and my favorite broken-in boots, though I had tucked cute little leg warmers to peek over the top cuff and stolen a swipe of Chloe’s pink lip gloss while she slept.
Other than that, I looked ready to enjoy a normal day with my family.
Pretending I was madly in love with Nick Kinsley.
I pressed my hand against my stomach as I stared at my reflection. Part of me still couldn’t believe I’d confessed last night. That Operation: Naughty List was truly over.
And that round two was about to begin.
“Ready or not—Oops.” I leaned in and brushed a rogue flake of mascara from my cheekbone. “Okay. Now ready.”
Time to pretend to be in love.
I took the stairs quietly, hoping to get a chance to talk to Nick alone and figure out a game plan before my family descended for the day.
Mom had said she’d like to go horseback riding while the trails at the equestrian center still had snow.
I smirked as I rounded the stairway into the living room.
It was almost too bad Operation: Naughty List was over, because there would have been so much opportunity to torment Nick while horseback riding.
But Nick and I were on the same team now. Christmas was no longer a weapon…it was just back to being something to survive.
I was in luck. Nick stood alone in the kitchen, hovering over the coffeepot as it gurgled to life. He must have found Mom’s stash of beans she always kept hidden on the top shelf of the pantry for emergencies. I hesitated in the kitchen doorway. Should I confess I knew that too?
Nah. Some things might be more forgivable than others.
“Good morning.” I reached around Nick to pluck a mug from the stand, then realized he’d already set out two red-and-green-polka-dotted Christmas mugs. My stomach seesawed. He’d been preparing to have coffee with me?
The guy made a pretty good non-boyfriend already.
“Morning.” Nick stifled a yawn. He hadn’t shaved, as evidenced by the dark scruff on his jaw.
He had, apparently, showered, because he smelled like soap and the forest and a little like my favorite car air freshener.
“I found coffee.” He gestured needlessly to the dark brew finishing its drip into the carafe.
“I see that.” Holding my breath so I didn’t inhale too much forest and give my brain the wrong idea, I bent to rummage in the cabinet by his knees.
He stepped back to give me room. “I already got us cups.”
“I see that too.” I straightened from my search and set two plain black mugs in front of him, then shot him a wink.
Relief sketched Nick’s face. “Oh good. I wasn’t sure if last night…if we were…” He cleared his throat, pointing to the polka dots. “If you were still…” He waved his hand through the air.
“If Cindy Lou Who was still at large?” I laughed as I hung the tacky Christmas mugs on the display tree. “Don’t worry. She’s safely locked away.”
“Feel free to lose the key.” Nick poured coffee into one of the black ones and handed it to me.
“Thank you.” I inhaled the steam and took a cautious sip, grateful for the caffeine.
Or maybe it was the way Nick was being so considerate and putting me first that had my brain fully awake and aware.
Piper’s text danced through my head. Not because it’s more fun to focus on pretending to be in a relationship with a hot, flannel-wearing, Christmas-hating “Jack”?
He just had to be wearing flannel today too, dang it.
I tried to subtly eye him as he poured his own coffee.
The navy and green plaid complemented his eyes and complexion.
Which was most unfortunate, as this was the same man who had to be talked into going on a date with me.
Twice, actually. First by Ryan, then by me.
I paused, my mug at my lips. Maybe I hadn’t thought through that part of Operation: Jack & Sally. My stomach clenched. Did I still look pathetic and desperate to him?
Nick smiled at me over his mug as he downed a long sip.
He could have said no to my new plan, yet he hadn’t.
The knot in my gut loosened. Obviously, he felt Ryan had it coming.
And maybe Nick figured he owed me after getting busted—but the idea of fake-dating me couldn’t be too repulsive or he would have just gone home.
After all, he had no other reason to stay at the farm for Christmas.
Right?
Nick leaned against the counter, clutching his coffee close to his chest. “I’m glad you’re up. I thought we should get started early this morning.”
“Get started?” I faced him, matching his pose.
“Yeah.” He shrugged, as if it were obvious. “I figure if we’re going to pretend to be a couple, we have to start learning things about each other like a real couple would.”
“Right.” My shoulders lowered. I hadn’t even realized I’d been so tense. He was really on board—to the point he’d spent time thinking it through. “That makes sense.”
“So how do you want to play this?” He hooked one ankle over the other, looking completely comfortable with discussing how to fake-date me. “Just start acting like we’re together and let Ryan figure it out?”
“If we’re going for insta-love, I’m thinking it’s gotta be a big announcement.” I set my mug back on the counter to draw an arch with my hands. “Over the top.”
Was it my imagination, or did his throat just bob?
“Sort of like Operation: Naughty List, then?”
He was definitely clenching his mug handle tighter. I nodded. “The Jack & Sally version.”
“I’m still not fully convinced of that name.” He jutted his jaw to one side.
“They’re Christmas romance icons.” I squinted at him. “Have you even seen the movie?”
“It seems like you’ve watched enough movies for both of us.” He topped off his mug— wow, that was fast. He really did love his coffee. “Speaking of movies, I have a confession while we’re getting to know each other.”
Uh-oh. I ripped open the package of store-bought powdered donuts on the counter and reached for one. “Do tell.”
He snagged a donut too, sugar coating his fingers. “Remember when you talked about that movie where the guy bet his friends he could make any woman fall in love with him in ten days?”
“Yeah.” I stiffened before slowly taking a bite. Had I been a bet between him and Ryan after all?
“Since we got here, I’ve been comparing you to that love fern girl.” He winced.
I snorted, powdered sugar flying. “You have not.”
He dipped his chin toward me. “Come on. All that Christmas stuff? You were very love-ferny.”
I snorted again. Powdered sugar coated my throat and I coughed twice. “FYI, I do not need the Heimlich,” I sputtered. Though honestly, now that I wasn’t super ticked at Nick, I wouldn’t have minded him standing that close again.
I should probably still be a little mad. But it did seem more productive to team up with Nick and channel that anger toward Ryan instead.
Productive, fun. Tomayto, tomahto.
Nick’s eyes danced as he took a bite of donut. “Admit it. It was bad. I didn’t know Christmas itself could be love-ferned.”
“And I didn’t know ‘love fern’ could be used as a verb.”
“How are we ever going to convince your brother we’re in love if you’re always correcting my grammar?”
I brushed powdered sugar off my hands. “You’ve obviously never been in a real relationship.”