Chloe

Chloe had never felt so uncomfortable in her own house before. Breakfast, which was usually a simple bowl of oatmeal, had turned into a gourmet affair. Her father was making pancakes in the shape of poorly crafted Christmas icons, while her mother piled plates of bacon, grits and cinnamon buns on the table.

They were really pulling out all the stops for the Hall boys. And had it not been for Chloe’s awkward moment with Ethan last night, she would’ve been ecstatic about the breakfast spread. But as it was, she could hardly keep her orange juice down. Her stomach was in knots as she sat next to Ethan at the table.

She was perched on the edge of her chair as far away from him as possible, but it didn’t really help. Even if he were ten feet across the room she’d still feel his presence. Every time she closed her eyes she felt his lips pressed against hers. Which was precisely why she got no sleep last night.

She’d tried writing in her journal, but recounting the kiss had made her even more jittery. Even her favorite novels hadn’t been able to distract her. How could they? She’d just experienced the best kiss of her life. Nothing on paper could ever compare.

Strangely, kissing Ethan had helped reconcile Chloe’s pain over getting dumped by Brady. Because never in the entirety of their summer full of kissing had Brady ever made Chloe feel like Ethan had. Was it just because Ethan was new and exciting? Or was it something more?

With the way Chloe was acting, she’d never find out. She jumped every time someone said her name. Ethan probably thought she was crazy, but Chloe had convinced herself someone was going to find out she’d kissed him last night.

Things only got worse when her hand accidentally brushed Ethan’s as they reached for the syrup at the same time. She pulled her hand away so quickly she knocked the whole jar of syrup over on top of his plate.

“Omigod! I’m so sorry,” she said, jumping up to grab a napkin at the same time he did.

They banged heads and for a moment, Chloe saw stars, but a loud bang brought her focus back. In her fumbled attempt to steady herself she’d put her hand in Ethan’s plate and knocked the entire thing onto the floor.

Darcy was in his glory as his little tail swished back and forth while he lapped up bacon, eggs and pancakes like a furry hoover.

“Geez,” Margot teased. “You two are one stooge short of a whole act.”

Everyone at the table thought Chloe’s uncharacteristic Calamity Jane act was hilarious. Everyone but Chloe. Laughter chorused around the kitchen as she felt her cheeks heat, which meant they were probably glowing atomic red about now. To make matters worse, Ethan was still standing by her side.

“Are you okay?” he asked softly, his hand brushing her elbow as it slowly traveled up her arm.

“I’m fine,” she said, hurriedly taking a step back before he could touch the throbbing spot on her forehead.

“Stop moving,” her mother warned as Chloe stepped in a glob of syrup Darcy hadn’t gotten to yet. “Here,” she said laying a series of dishtowels on the floor. “Socks and slippers off you two. Follow the towels to the living room. Margot, get them some ice packs, will you?”

“Mom, I don’t need an ice pack,” Chloe argued.

“Sweetie, I can see the goose egg forming already. If you don’t want a big red lump for the party, you’d better use the icepack.”

Chloe glanced at Ethan. His forehead was barely red. He stuffed his hands in the pockets of his university sweats. “I’ve got a hard head,” he replied, reading Chloe’s mind again.

“To the couch, both of you,” Chloe’s mother ordered.

Knowing arguing would only prolong the awkwardness, Chloe slipped out of her sticky slippers, grateful she at least hadn’t been wearing her favorite toasty cocoa pair, and followed the towel trail out of the kitchen.

Ethan

Ethan watched Chloe from the corner of his eye. They each held a frozen icepack wrapped in a holiday dishcloth against their foreheads. Chloe’s head was back against the couch, her bright eyes closed. Ethan wished she would open them. Her eyes made her easier to read.

Last night, he’d realized that was another difference between Chloe and Margot. When Chloe looked at him everything she was feeling was written in her gorgeous hazel eyes. It was like each fleck of gold held a secret and Ethan found himself desperate to learn them all.

That’s why it’d been driving him nuts that Chloe wouldn’t look at him at breakfast. He’d only gotten one brief glance when she walked into the kitchen and it said everything he feared. She regretted last night.

He’d been trying to catch her eye all morning, but she wouldn’t even look at him. Which was probably what led to the syrup catastrophe that landed them in this situation.

Ethan couldn’t help feeling like a toddler in time out. The feeling was foreign, yet strangely amusing. The entire morning had been, actually. He’d always wished he’d been a part of a normal family that had big messy meals—a family full of love and laughter.

That hadn’t been the case in his house. Even before the cancer, his parents hadn’t been the open or affectionate kind. They’d always been more concerned with appearances.

Ethan sighed, adjusting the hideous holiday dishcloth. A fat Santa Claus riding a reindeer had been embroidered onto it. He couldn’t help the smirk that tugged at his normally stoic lips when he looked at it. His parents would’ve never had something so tacky in their home. But that only made Ethan love it more. In fact, he loved all the over-the-top Christmas decorations in the Price home. It was hard not to stare at them.

He wondered which handmade ornaments and trinkets that adorned the three Christmas trees had been made by Chloe. He was dying for clues as to what had made her the irresistible girl he now found himself so desperate to know. He also wondered how long it took to pack all of this stuff up after the holidays. And where the hell did they keep it all? From what he could tell, the tiny log cabin didn’t have more than the few rooms he’d seen. He found himself wondering a lot of things and when he looked at Chloe he couldn’t help asking the current question that was on his mind.

“So,” he said, causing her to open those gorgeous hazel eyes. “When’s the party?”

“Huh?”

“Your mother said you don’t want a big lump on your head for the party.”

“She means the Christmas Eve party,” Margot replied, walking into the living room with Owen by her side.

They sat in the plaid loveseat together, Margot curling her legs up as she snuggled on Owen’s lap.

“You never told me about a Christmas Eve party,” Owen said.

“That’s because I wanted it to be a surprise,” Margot said, rubbing her nose against his like they were bunnies.

The ridiculous display of affection made Ethan frown and turn his attention back to Chloe. He wanted to talk to her, not Margot and Owen.

“Not everyone likes surprises,” Chloe muttered.

Ethan furrowed his brow. Was she talking about him and their surprising kiss last night? If she would just look at him . . . He tried again. “So this party . . . Who's going?”

Again Margot answered for her sister. “Everyone!”

Ethan raised his eyebrows still staring directly at Chloe.

Seeming to sense he wasn't giving up until she answered, she sighed deeply. “My parents throw a party every year on Christmas Eve for family, friends and employees that work at the tree farm and lodge all season. It's kind of a ‘we survived the holidays’ party.”

“It's so much fun,” Margot exclaimed. “There’s a band and dancing and karaoke and food and my favorite . . . mistletoe!” She swiped a bough of the green-leaved parasitic plant from the basket of cinnamon scented pinecones next to her chair and dangled it above Owen until he kissed her.

Seeing Margot was finally occupied, Ethan turned back to Chloe. “And you’re going to this party?” he asked quietly.

“Of course she is!” Margot called. “Oh, and you guys will finally get to meet her boyfriend!”

Ethan’s heart thumped to a stop. Boyfriend? His eyes met Chloe’s.

You have some explaining to do, Chloe.

Chloe

“Where is Brady anyway?” Margot interrupted, getting to her feet. “Is he coming with us to pick out a tree today?”

“No,” Chloe said, standing quickly and pulling the icepack from her head. She scanned the room ready to make her escape. She’d waited months to have this discussion with Margot, but funny enough, Brady was the last thing Chloe wanted to talk about right now. She didn’t want to have this conversation in front of Owen and Ethan. Especially Ethan, who was looking at her with those piercing green eyes of his and an inquisitive frown that made her want to kiss him again until he gave her that rare, almost-smile.

But Margot wouldn't let it go. “Oh, no! Does he have practice today or something?”

Chloe shrugged. “I wouldn’t know.”

Margot frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I mean I don't know what he's doing today.”

“Why not?” Margot asked.

Chloe’s emotions were too close to the surface and she couldn't keep them bottled up anymore, not with Margot's questioning poking holes in the fragile dam keeping Chloe’s tears at bay. She wanted to escape to her bedroom, but Margot was moving toward Chloe, blocking the stairs.

“Chloe, what’s going on?” Margot asked. “Is everything okay with Brady?”

“You’ll have to ask him.”

“Why?”

“Because we broke up, okay?” Chloe shouted, shoving past her sister and dashing up the stairs.

Ethan

Ethan knew it was a terrible reaction, but the moment those words left Chloe’s mouth he felt a smile slip into place. ‘We broke up.’

I knew you weren’t too good to be true, Chloe.