A Christmas Date Read Free

amusing. “Even so, don’t say it around the
two notorious matchmakers in there.” He nodded toward the closed door of Sean
and Lillian’s bedroom.
    Angie
groaned as she settled back onto the small loveseat and covered herself with a
soft warm blanket and plumped up her pillow. Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all, there might even be a hint of humor under that glacial
façade. The lights were out, and only the glow of the fire remained. “Do you want
to chat?” she asked.
    “Sure.”
    Silence.
    “Well?” she prompted.
    “You
first.”
    “Fine,” she sighed. He
couldn’t even make this easy on her, they’d spent the whole evening sparring
and barely shared more than a few words over dinner. “I’m twenty-eight.”
    “Wow, a glut of
information, watch out I might steal your identity!”
    Angie snorted and
tossed a pillow at him. “Thanks!” he said and tucked it behind his head.
    “Hey, that’s mine!”
    “So come and get it.”
    “What is this, a
teenage sleepover?”
    “Feels
like it. In that case,” he said, hands folded across his middle, stark jet
black hair contrasting against the white of the pillow, and blue eyes
glittering in the firelight. “I’m going to need a forfeit.”
    Angie
hopped up from the loveseat and starred distrustfully down at the man who had
gone from cold and austere to warm and…almost playful. Then abruptly turned
around and jumped back into her makeshift bed.
    “Chicken,” he laughed.
    “How
much did you drink tonight?”
    “Half
a glass of mulled wine. It was terrible stuff!” he groaned.
“It smelled great, but tasted like cough syrup, or worse.”
    “Tell me about it!” she
exclaimed.
    “Want a glass of
brandy?” he offered. “I know where they keep it.”
    “Sure.”
    Luke rose and padded barefoot
into the kitchen and grabbed two small glasses, he poured them each a hefty
shot and when he returned to the living room she was seated on the rug by the
fire. He handed her the glass, and clinked his own to hers.
    “To
our well-meaning friends?”
    “Our well-meaning
friends!” she agreed.

 
 
    Chapter Three

 
    Lucas awoke to the
aroma of fresh baking and coffee, something he definitely wasn’t used to.
During his time in Milan, he’d always simply walked down to the nearest café on
his way to work in the morning for a double espresso and a croissant.   He rarely stocked his kitchen, he had no
interest in cooking, and the women he’d known who’d occasionally stayed over at
his place, weren’t exactly the homely, cook his breakfast type. He wondered if
Angelina was? He was strangely sorry to find her gone
when he awoke.
    She’d loosened up and
talked to him for a while last night mainly about her new business, a florist
shop, but he could tell that she was still wary. He wasn’t proud of his
arrogant dismissive behavior when she’d arrived but he’d wanted to merely nip
this thing in the bud. But now, somehow, he was kind of wishing he hadn’t. Not
that she’d expressed any interest in him, but still…
    “Good
Morning!” Lillian said cheerfully walking in with a plate of fresh homemade
cinnamon rolls. Sean sat down beside her on the loveseat looking content. For
the first time in his life, Luke wanted this. The two sat cuddly-close side by
side, waiting for him to get up, unfortunately, he couldn’t. His morning
hard-on was still raging out of control, due to some explicit and strangely
erotic dreams, brought on by listening to the gentle breathing of one soft
armful of woman, who had slept only feet away from him. He rose to a sitting
position beneath the camouflaging blanket and wished with all his heart he had
someone to wake up with, roll over and make love to when he awoke feeling like
this. He must have been looking dazed because Sean eyed him curiously. What the
hell, he had to ask. Didn’t he?
    “Where’s Angelina?”
    “Gone,” Lillian
replied.
    “Luke? What did you
do?” Sean quizzed leaning forward, elbows on his