Read Under the Mistletoe for Free Online Page B

reason you're still here?” he asked, fighting to keep
his eyes open.
               
“You matter to me,” I admitted. “You're emotional health is
dwindling. You need a little extra love and care--”
               
“Gran has plenty of love--”
               
“I can leave--”
               
“No!” His eyes widened and he sat forward. “I don't want you to
go... I'm just saying... this is usually about the time the running
starts...”
               
“I'm sorry?”
               
“When the going gets tough,” he said. “Women don't like to have
their Christmas spirit killed by... unnecessary emotions, to say
the least.”
               
“Yeah, I walked in on that very fight today--”
               
“Did she leave him?”
               
“Mom? Leave Calvin? No way. He's a keeper. But she wasn't
happy...”
               
“ They never are .”
               
He was obviously speaking from experience. “Who left you?”
               
“Huh?”
               
“You had your heart broken,” I said.
               
“No,” he said. “We'd only dated a few months. We weren't in
love.”
               
“So?”
               
“The moment that first flake of snow hit the ground... I'm not a
nice person this time of year,” he shook his head and wiped away a
single tear. “I hate Christmas, Steph.”
               
“ You hate what Christmas reminds you of ,” I corrected
him.
               
“No,” he remained adamant. “I hate the songs, the cheer, the trees,
the gift exchanges...”
               
“I don't believe that,” I said. “And Adriana seems to believe the
six-year-old boy who lost his parents thrived on the magic of the
holiday.”
               
“She told you?”
               
I nodded. “You need a tree.”
               
“No--”
               
“Decorations.”
               
“Forget it--”
               
“Candles, cookies, presents!”
               
“No, Steph,” he said. “I don't do Chri--”
               
“ You know what ?” I said, pointing my finger in his face.
“You are the most kind and caring person I've ever met. But
somehow, you're also the most stubborn. If you just applied your
fun-loving, goofy, childish attitude toward Christmas... you'd be
unstoppable.”
               
He managed a half-hearted smile. He looked at the papers in front
of him and threw his ink pen on top of the stack. “I hate grading
these essays...”
               
“Good,” I said, happy his mind was elsewhere. “Because we hate
doing them.”
    Friday December 09
               
“Steph, sweetheart, wake up.”
               
“Go away.”
               
“Time for school, sweetie,” Adriana said.
               
“ Go away ...”
               
“Abcdef Ghijk,” she said sternly, snapping me awake immediately.
“Breakfast is on the table. Calvin will be here in ten minutes with
a change of clothes and your school bag.”
               
I rolled off the couch and trekked slowly to the bathroom outside
Alex's bedroom. Once inside, I shut the door and turned the sink
on, splashing cold water onto my face. I looked in the mirror and
couldn't help but smile. Here I stood, in a man's bathroom, wearing
his college tee-shirt and sweatpants after a long night of peaceful
sleep... My mother would be so proud.
               
I pulled my hair out of the bun and ran my fingers through it. I
wiped away a small smudge of makeup and stepped back to assess the
damage. After ruling myself as acceptable, I walked out of the
bathroom, bumping into Alex on the way.
               
“Steph,” he said, biting his lip. “Good