Alice bit back a protest, conceding the point for now. She couldn't suppress a smile at the gesture, hopelessly charmed.
They waited at the side for their order. Grant leaned casually against the stall, angling his body subtly in her direction, his eyes seemed to linger on her lips whenever she spoke.
“Well, if you're paying, then at least allow me to get you something.” She nodded towards the glass display case housing an array of festive baked goods. “What's your pleasure? Gingerbread man? Sugar cookie?”
Grant glanced at the selection thoughtfully before pointing out an oversized frosted Christmas tree cookie, nearly the size of her hand.
She chuckled. “I get the sense this is one tree that won’t be surviving the holiday season.”
“And you would be right.” He broke off the top half of the cookie and offered it to her. “Here.”
They collected their treats, complete with copious whipped cream, and meandered companionably through the crowd. Alice grinned up at him.
“We make quite the team. Brains and brawn. Cocoa and cookies.”
Oh, hell, had she just called him dumb? She replayed the words quickly in her head, looking for a way to moderate them, but Grant just smiled.
“I like the sound of that.” His voice dipped lower. “The team part, I mean.”
A new carol started and they paused to listen, standing shoulder to shoulder. Grant's free hand rested lightly at the small of her back, sending tingles across her skin even through the layers of her coat and sweater. She was hyper aware of him beside her. The heat from his body. His woodsy, masculine scent. The way he kept shooting glances at her, looking at her in a way no-one had for a long time.
When the song ended, she turned towards him. His handsome face was aglow with reflected lights from the tree, his eyes dark and gorgeously entrancing. He was looking at her the same way, she realized. Like he was seeing her, and only her, in the entire crowded square.
Her mouth went dry under the intensity of his gaze. She licked her lips nervously and his stare dropped to follow the motion. Heart pounding wildly, Alice opened her mouth to break the suddenly charged silence.
“I...uh...” she faltered, at a loss.
Abruptly, her bladder made itself known, insisting it had been far too long since her last restroom break. Way to kill the moment, she thought wryly. But the interruption was probably for the best before she did something impulsive, like spontaneously kissing Grant in the middle of the festival. No matter how tempting the idea.
With a self-conscious laugh, she gestured vaguely over one shoulder. “I'd better run to the little girl's room. Be right back!”
Before she could second guess herself, she slipped away through the crowd, moving briskly towards the area she remembered passing restrooms on her earlier wanderings. Away from the main square, the streets became rapidly more deserted. Shivering against the cold, Alice quickened her pace. She was sure it had been around here some place…
She thrust her hands deeper into her pockets, the pleasantly warm glow from the cocoa—okay, and from Grant’s touch—fading rapidly. With the sounds of the crowds and carolers fading into the distance, the town seemed much quieter and more eerie than it had in daylight. She hastened her pace, keen to do what she needed and get back.
With a flash of relief, she spotted the restrooms and hurried inside, glad to see they were well-lit, both inside and out. When she cleaned up a moment later she was feeling much better, but as soon as she emerged from the room, the feeling of being watched settled over her again.
“Hello?” she called out, looking around, and nothing but silence and the muted sounds of carolers in the distance answered her. Right. What had she been thinking? She chuckled at her foolishness. She was alone, and it wasn’t like anyone was going to go to the trouble of following her to the restroom just to get her alone.
Right?
She took a step forward and something grabbed her, throwing her back against the wall, one hand covering her mouth to stifle her yelp.
Chapter Six
Grant
Our mate needs us.
Grant kept from rolling his eyes if only because Mrs. Thompson would think it was directed at her, while she was recounting a last minute issue she’d had with the stage dressings. It wasn’t like he could explain to her that the grizzly in his head was getting antsy because their soul mate had stepped out of sight for two minutes.
More like ten.
It has not been…He frowned. This was, what, the second song sing she’d left? Third? Maybe she’d gotten lost.
Mate needs us. Now.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Thompson,” he said, touching her arm gently to interrupt her flow—she could easily go on for another twenty minutes if he let her, and his bear’s urgency was starting to sink in. “Please excuse me for just a moment. I think I saw someone pulling at one of the trees. I’d better go take a closer look.”
