‘Mum died, Shan. You can hardly hold a grudge for that.’
‘Can’t I?’
He had no argument for her. She felt how she felt and there was nothing he could do about that. ‘Hope you have a nice Christmas, Shannon,’ he said, following her to the front door.
‘I think you’re an idiot staying here, Jamie, but if that’s what you want, then I hope you have a nice life.’ She reached out and touched his arm; her way of affection. ‘Stay out of trouble.’
He watched her walk away, knowing that was probably the last time he’d see his twin.
‘Everything okay?’ asked Alice, coming out the back room.
Jamie turned to smile. ‘Shannon just popped in to say goodbye.’
‘Oh, and the money?’
He shook his head. ‘She’s walked away from that, too. She was just trying her luck while she was around.’
Alice moved around the desk. ‘Jamie, do you ever want to walk away? I know we made arrangements about you living here, but do you ever have moments of regret?’
‘No. I want to be here.’
She glanced over at the Christmas tree. ‘Well, it was your home for so long.’
‘I want to be here because of you.’
‘So, if I lived somewhere else, you’d be happy to live with me there?’
Jamie breathed out a small laugh. ‘I thought we only made the arrangement of me staying here because you have the room.’
Alice shrugged. ‘Wherever I am, there’ll always be room for you.’
Her words just blew his mind, taking away all breath and heartbeats. She really was the sweetest person he knew, and he had to wonder how he got so lucky having her as a friend.
‘I just want to know if you’re happy,’ she added.
‘I’m always happy when I’m with you, Angel,’ he told her softly, taking a step closer.
‘Do you want to talk about anything? Shannon, the B&B, us, anything at all?’
There was a lot he wanted to say, but he didn’t know what was for the best.Oh, just change the subject.
‘You fancy a sleigh ride?’
Alice chuckled. ‘The one going around Anchorage Park?’
‘Yep.’
‘Right now?’
Jamie bobbed his head. ‘Yep.’ He watched her chew her lip for a moment before agreeing.
‘I’ll get my coat.’
‘And scarf and hat,’ he said, heading for the stairs. ‘It’ll be cold.’ He went to his room, grabbed his outerwear, then met her back in the foyer.
They headed outside and noticed Demi drive by as Alice was locking up. He stuck out his thumb, laughing as she stopped. ‘Couldn’t give us a lift up to the park, could you, please?’
Demi smiled. ‘Sure. Hop in.’
