“Yup, that’s old Sally. She belongs to Tex’s uncle. You mind if we say hi?”
“Sure! I’d love to meet your friend.”
Tex was up ahead, scowling and looking at the sky. The weather was about to turn bad.
I introduced her, then Tex and I talked for a minute. We had some business to attend to, mainly to find out how his uncle was doing. He’d recently gone into the hospital.
When we were done she asked, “What’s that up ahead?”
“That’s the Mistletoe Kiss-Off.”
Robin looked at me curiously.
“Every year they have a Christmas kiss competition. Couples kiss under the mistletoe, and the audience cheers for the couple they want to win.”
“What do you win?” she asked, her eyes shining brightly.
How could she be so damn excited about everything and anything? I had no idea, I just knew my blood was stirring faster in its veins because of her. Being around Robin made me feel like I wasaliveagain.
A tiny smile popped up on my lips. “You win a cup of hot cocoa. The prizes aren’t big on Red Oak Mountain. But the cocoa’s made by Stephanie and Cory. They run the local bakery, and it’s a damn fine cup of hot cocoa.”
“Hot cocoa? Like my dog? Wehaveto do it.” Then, for the first time since I’d met her, she looked nervous. “I didn’t mean to presume. That was a silly thing to say. Of course we’re not going to do the competition, right?”
There was nothing I wanted more than to kiss Robin in the Mistletoe Kiss-Off, even though I knew it would set the whole town’s tongues wagging.
There was no way inhellI’d say no. So I rumbled, “I’m game if you are. You’re on an adventure after all. Might as well kiss the random man you drove halfway across the country to meet, right? Give you something to remember the trip by.”
She stared up at me, hesitation and hope mingling in her eyes in a tangled swirl. I could tell she was considering it.
I kept my eyes trained on her, steady and strong, giving her time to make this decision.
After five seconds, the pendulum swung in my favor.
“An adventure. Yeah, okay, let’s do it.”
Her gloved fingers twined into mine, and we held hands as we headed over to the contestant sign-up spot.
Martha Ellis, one of the town elders, was manning the booth. And she gave me some serious eyes when she saw me walk up holding hands with a pretty woman ten years younger than me.
“Who did you bring to the fair, Levi?” Martha asked.
“This is Robin,” I grunted. “She’s visiting me.”
Martha grinned. “You’re visiting our Levi? Well, Robin, you couldn’t have picked a better man to visit. He’s one of the good ones. Are you two entering the kissing competition?”
Now that I was doing it, I felt like a fool. I was going to stand on a stage and kiss this woman in front of the whole town? But I might not get another chance, so I had to go forward with it.
“Yup, sure are.”
Martha handed us both matching numbers. We were couple number twenty-three. I put the sticker on my coat, then peeled the other one off and delicately placed it on her sweater.
As we headed onto the stage I asked Robin, “Are you sure you want to do this? It’s not too late to back out.”
Concern flashed across her face. “Do you want to back out? I don’t want to be the crazy woman who drove across the country and made you enter a kissing competition.”
She was worried about me. That was sweet.
“No, ma’am,” I rumbled. “Idefinitelywant to kiss you on a stage in front of the whole town. I woke up this morning dreaming this would happen to me.”
