Chapter 23 #2
Before she could overthink it, she leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. “Thanks for the scarf.”
Emma, still watching Liam, whispered, “Did she just kiss you?”
He cleared his throat, ears turning red. “Focus on the snowman, squirt.”
She hurried back to their team, scarf raised high. “Victory!”
“I think you won more than a scarf,” Kit replied with a laugh.
Maybe I did, Cassidy thought to herself.
“Don’t we have a snowman to build?” Cassidy quickly replied.
They got to work immediately. Madison and Zoe began rolling the base while Cassidy and Kit gathered extra snow, determined to keep up with Liam’s team, who were already building a snowman so big Emma was trying to climb on it to adjust the crown.
“You think we can beat them?” Kit asked, eyeing Liam’s towering snowman.
“We have to,” Cassidy said, breathless, snow in her hair. “We can’t let him win.”
Across the yard, Liam lifted Emma onto his shoulders so she could carefully place a button eye, and Emma squealed with delight, her boots swinging in the air.
Cassidy found herself watching them, unable to look away.
Liam’s easy smile tugged at something deep inside her, the way he steadied Emma with careful hands, gently reminding her not to drop the button, letting her take her time.
He laughed at something Emma whispered, the sound soft and genuine.
And for a moment—a single, raw moment—Cassidy let herself imagine what it would be like to have that with him.
To have this. A snowy afternoon, a yard full of laughter, a warm, steady man who would teach a child how to build the perfect snowman while she made cocoa in the kitchen, peeking out the window to watch them.
The thought squeezed her chest tightly with the realization of how badly she wanted that family life. The life that had been stolen from her.
“We’ve got to go bigger!” Kit shouted, snapping her out of her thoughts.
“You’re right. More snow!” Madison agreed.
Thankfully, the storm yesterday had left them with plenty to work with.
Cassidy joined Madison and Zoe in rolling the middle ball, packing it tight and rolling it until it grew nearly too heavy to push.
“Wait—we’re never getting this thing up there.” Kit groaned, eyeing the massive snowball they had created.
“Yes, we are,” Cassidy said, brushing snow from her gloves. “If we all work together! Ready?”
“I don’t know if that’s such a good idea…” Zoe said, the lone voice of reason.
“What? We’ve got this. On three. One, two, three—”
OOF!
They barely lifted it before dropping it back into the snow with a dull thud.
“My back,” Madison wheezed, hunched over.
“My pants!” Kit yelped, reaching behind her to make sure she hadn’t split them.
“Told you it was too much,” Zoe muttered.
Cassidy shook her head, determined. “That was just a trial run. We can do this. One more time!”
Before she could rally them again, a familiar voice cut in.
“Need a hand?” he asked, already reaching for the oversized snowball.
“Hey! You can’t help them!” Emma called from across the yard. “They’re the enemy!”
Liam smirked but didn’t stop. “Let’s call it community service.”
“Careful, watch your pants!” Kit called out.
Cassidy stepped back to give him room. Their eyes met for a beat longer than it needed to be. Her heart thudded. There was mischief in his eyes, and a steady confidence that made her stomach tighten and her breath catch.
Liam bent to lift the snowball, the muscles in his arms and shoulders flexing beneath his coat as he hoisted it up with a low grunt that sent a shiver racing through her.
“Here, this way.” Cassidy stepped in to steady it and guide it onto the base.
It landed with a satisfying thud.
Madison whooped, Zoe let out a cheer, and Kit threw her hands in the air with a “Praise Jesus!”
Cassidy’s pulse was still pounding as Liam leaned in, close enough for her to feel the heat radiating off him, his voice dropping to a teasing rumble meant for her alone. “Think I can get that scarf back now?”
Her breath hitched, her gaze dropping briefly to his lips before darting back up to meet his eyes. “Not a chance.”
His mouth curved into a wicked smile, the kind that made her thighs clench. “That’s too bad. I had plans for it.”
The way he said it left no doubt in her mind that those plans had nothing to do with building snowmen. Heat pulsed low in her belly, and for a split second, she nearly offered it to him just to find out what those plans were.
Twenty-three days until the New Year, she reminded herself, clutching the scarf tighter, even as her mind raced with images she absolutely shouldn’t be having in the middle of a snowman competition.
Cassidy watched him walk away, broad shoulders moving under that flannel-lined coat, snowflakes clinging to his dark hair. She bit her bottom lip, forcing herself to look away.
But it was useless.
Because all she could think about was what it would feel like if he pressed her against the snow-covered fence, those strong hands on her waist, that wicked smile against her mouth.
Twenty-three days.
“Okay, let’s finish this snowman before I do something stupid,” she muttered under her breath.
“Like what?” Kit asked, raising a brow.
“Like tackle him in the snow and make out behind the pine trees,” Cassidy replied honestly.
Kit smirked. “That could be pretty amusing…”
“And probably not fit for a child’s eyes,” Zoe added, motioning to Emma, who was working on the next snowball just out of earshot.
Cassidy sighed. “You’re right.”
She glanced over and caught Liam’s eyes—eyes that said he wanted to kiss her as badly as she wanted to kiss him.
The heat from the barn, from yesterday’s kiss, came flooding back to her.
She didn’t have much experience when it came to men.
There was really only Jean-Paul. But she knew, knew it one thousand percent, that Liam would be a good lover.
The way his hands had moved across her body.
The way he’d pressed her up against that wooden beam in the barn.
The man knew exactly what he was doing.
And heaven help her, because she wanted to let him do everything.
The snowman competition wrapped up as the evening sun cast a soft pink glow over Maple Falls. Children were still darting around the yard, tugging at parents’ hands to show off carrot noses and crooked stick arms, while Mrs. C. snapped photos for the town Facebook page.
In the end, Liam and Emma’s towering snowman, complete with a superhero cape and a lopsided crown, took first place—though Cassidy’s glittery, jazz-hands snowman won “Most Festive” and earned a stack of candy canes.
Liam crossed the yard in just a few long strides, his gloved hands shoved deep in his coat pockets, his expression unreadable but focused on her.
“Who knew,” he said, low and casual, stopping just close enough that the crisp winter air between them practically crackled, “that you are just as competitive with snowmen as you are Christmas lights.”
She raised a brow. “I take my snowmen seriously.”
“I can tell.” He hesitated then looked over her shoulder at the slowly dispersing crowd. “Hey, before everything kicks off again—want to go ice skating on Wednesday morning? Before the shops open. No crowds. Just us.”
She could picture it already—the frozen lake, the morning frost still clinging to the branches, the two of them gliding across the ice as the town slowly woke up. Just them, the snow, and the hush of a new day.
“I’d like that,” she said, her voice soft.
His gaze lingered, warm and unreadable. “Good. I’ll pick you up at six thirty.”
Cassidy nodded, but inside she was already lacing up her skates, breath fogging in the early-morning air, cheeks flushed from the cold—or maybe from him.
And as she watched him walk away, hands in his pockets, that easy, quiet strength in every step, she knew Wednesday morning couldn’t come fast enough.