He closed the distance between us slowly, his voice low and rumbling. “Please.”
My hands trembled as I reached for his face. His fingers slid down to encircle my wrist. I was sure he could feel my pulseracing. We pulled each other closer and leaned in, our heated breath mingling. I exhaled steam, closed my eyes, and rolled onto my toes to kiss Harvey.
It was perfect pressure. Total bliss. Mistletoe magic with no plant necessary.
He opened his mouth a little, drawing me in. I barely even felt his lip ring amidst the searing heat of our kiss. A second after we eased away, we dove back in. He braced the back of my neck. I wanted to get wrapped up in him, ditching our coats in favor of each other’s body heat.
“The car,” I whispered between deep, cinnamon-tinted kisses. “We could–”
“Shelby,” someone cried out.
I gasped and pulled back, covering my mouth to preserve the swell of Harvey’s kiss. “Oh no.”
The trot of small feet in the distance trampled over all my plans for the evening. “I found her, everybody!”
Harvey backed up and frowned. “What’s happening?”
I held his hand and spread my stance. “Brace yourself. It’s my family.”
20
Babysitting
I trudged a few feet closer to them to block Harvey and said, “Hey, everybody.”
Two kids launched themselves at me. I slid back a few inches in the snow, but managed to keep them somewhat away from my date, who tilted his chin up, tough and sharp in contrast to the warm guy I’d been kissing.
My second-littlest cousin, Joon, ducked under my arms, pushed up his glasses, and squinted at my date. “What happened to your face?”
“What happened to yours?” Harvey shot back. Apparently, he wasn’t used to kids.
My hands were full with the other cousins, so I ushered Joon away with my foot. “Remember what we said about commenting on people’s bodies?”
“No,” Joon lied.
There was nothing wrong with Harvey’s face. It was as beautiful as always. And I hadn’t left lipstick on him during ourkisses, so I snuffed out my cousin’s questions with the easiest answer.
“My friend likes ornaments, so he got some piercings. Like your sister in her ears. Don’t you think he’s pretty?” I kept my tone light more for Harvey than the kids, though there was the slightest growl of warning underneath.
“Yes,” Joon's sister May said.
Joon shrugged. “I guess so.”
“Hey, you brats. I told you, no running,” Zack thundered, marching over to us.
May ran to him to get picked up, then clamped her hands over her ears just in case he shouted anything else.
“Why are you here?” I asked.
“Why do you think? I got roped into babysitting," Zack grumbled.
“Don’t you mean spying?” I hissed.
“Hey, I covered for you. You’re lucky I convinced the rest of them not to come hunting.” He glared at Harvey. “You’re the guy?”
Harvey offered him his hand. “Hey, how’ve you been?”
Zack narrowed his eyes and hoisted our little cousin higher on his hip. “Busy consoling my cousins about jerks who don’t deserve them.”
