How could I say that to him? How could I look him in the eye, after every moment he spent with us in the past, and make him feel like he wasn’t important to us?
Forcing a deep breath through my lungs, I whisper, “I’m sorry about what I said yesterday. It was cruel, and I didn’t mean it. Christmas wasn’t the same without you.”
He nods, fingers digging into his thighs. “Don’t worry about it. Already forgotten.”
Maybe for him.
But that pained, haunted expression on his face has been seared into my memory, and I don’t know if I can ever forgive myself for being the one to put it there.
6
LENA
Who the fuck isthat?
Stopping in my tracks at the edge of the bread aisle, I find Gavin crouched on the floor, a bag in each hand. But his eyes are on a woman in a tight royal-blue dress, jacket looped over her arm, and heels too high for a Washington winter.
How did she even get through the snowy parking lot wearing those?
Her burgundy-painted lips move as she points to the bread in his hands, but I’m too far away to hear her. He nods, and her cackling laughter drifts down the aisle to me.
I leave this man alone for five minutes in the Fern River grocery store, and he’s already got a woman fluttering her eyelashes and probably asking to have his babies.
Digging my nails into my palms, I start toward them. On my way, I snatch a tin of cookie sticks off the shelf and toss them into the basket hooked over my arm, hoping they don’t crumble to powder on the rough landing.
I paste on the brightest smile I can. Maybe my teeth will blind her momentarily, and we can make our escape.
When I reach Gavin, I set my basket beside his with a dramaticthudand shoot the woman a look that saysleave this man alone. I’m not sure where the line is between that andthis is my man, but I hope I’m getting it right.
It’s not like I’m trying to claim him or anything. I’m simply trying to protect him from this—I scan down her body and back up—honestly very beautiful woman.
But frankly, I’m not in the mood for her.
“Did you find what you needed?” I ask Gavin, putting as much innocent sweetness into my tone as possible.
One side of her annoyingly perfect lips kicks up as she watches me. I try to keep my chin high, daring her to test me. I’m not sure what I’d do if she did, but I’ve been in a few fights in my life. I think I can handle her. As I learned in college, when an asshole was manhandling a girl at a bar, my curves are packing some scrappy muscle behind them, so I think I can take her.
Wait. Why thefuckam I even thinking about fighting this woman?
Gavin obstructs my view of her as he stands, turning to look at each of us. He gives me a knowing smirk with a stupid glint in his whiskey eyes.
I blink a few times, trying to clear away whatever he thinks he sees written on my face, because absolutely nothing about this situation should be smirked at.
“You done here?” I ask, lacing my words with a little more sass.
“Yeah,” he chuckles, keeping his focus on me as he grabs the basket from the floor. “Let’s go.”
The urge to touch him as we pass Miss Blue Dress is so severe that I have to shove my hands into my jacket pockets to stop myself. She has a tight pucker on her lips as she glares at me, but it seems I’ve won this interaction.
I’ll have to report this to my friends later. I’ve successfully protected Gavin from Christmas Barbie by perfectly executing my role as annoying little sister.
My heart twinges at the thought of being his little sister, but I brush it off, walking with my head held high toward the cashier.
As our checkout lady scans the food we’ve chosen, she offers each product to Gavin at the end of the station with a littletoomuch attention.
Bag of gluten-free rolls. Her dark lashes flutter. My head tilts.
Box of butter. She bites into her bottom lip. My vision narrows.
