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I couldn’t even see Drew anymore, thanks to Kerr shielding him from view. He might have moved away for all I knew. I pulled my eyes from Kerr and over to the brightly lit decorations clinging to the lampposts around the square. They were lit up in white and gold, silver shooting stars with golden tails, alternating with giant white snowflakes. I let out a breath. “I love them.”
“Good,” he said, squeezing my hand. “Now, do you want to stay on any longer, or go back to yours for the treat you promised?”
I flicked my eyes back onto his, the heat that had been doused by Drew’s arrival making a reappearance. “Treat?”
“Mm,” he said, suppressing a smile as he took his bottom lip between his teeth. “The chocolate treat.”
“Ah, yes,” I said, watching the movement of his mouth. “That treat. Let’s go.”
He pulled me into his side, turning with his back to the relevant section of the crowd so that I didn’t even have the opportunity to see if Drew stood there, and I gratefully pressed myself into his side, my arm around his waist and his over my shoulders.
We made our way through the celebrating crowds toward the other side of the square. Someone reached out to grab Kerr’s arm as we went past.
“Kerr! Hi,” the young woman with curly blonde hair spilling out of a sky-blue bobble hat said.
Kerr ran a hand over the top of his black wool hat. “Hi, Stacey. Enjoying the festivities?”
“Yeah, thanks. I brought my wee nephew. He’s just getting some cotton candy.” She eyed me with an air of curiosity.
“Sorry,” Kerr said, seeming a little flustered. “Stacey, this is my . . . date, Nisa. And Nisa, this is Stacey, my veterinary nurse.”
“Great to meet you,” I said, thrusting out my hand with a big smile for a hearty shake.
Stacey smiled back, raising an eyebrow as she shook my hand. “Out of the witness protection program now?”
He coughed hard, and I schooled my mouth to stay in a straight line rather than give in to the laugh attempting to bubble out of me.
“I’m afraid that Ranjeeta has a bit of a wild imagination,” he said somewhat sheepishly.
Stacey raised both eyebrows. “ ’Kay. You can tell me the story behind that at work tomorrow.”
His face was beetroot red, and I had a feeling it wasn’t due to the cold. “Sure.”
Stacey gave me a wry smile. “Well, you two enjoy your evening.”
“You too,” I said, giving her a wave as we walked off. I nudged his arm as we headed out of the square. “What was that all about?”
He shook his head. “I’ll tell you on the way home,” he said with a sigh as we made our way through the freshly fallen snow up the hill.
Once we reached our street, we were greeted by the twin sight of our houses twinkling across at each other. A bit like the way I felt Kerr and I now sparkled with romantic tension toward each other.
The other houses on the street displayed a smattering of subtle decorations, with icicle or fairy lights strung over windows, but none of them were as striking as ours and none had entered the competition.
I paused at the end of my driveway, stopping Kerr via our joined hands as he took a step ahead of me. I eyed my final setup, with the addition of the bauble garland and large LED star in my living room window. “Ah,” I said mischievously, giving his hand a squeeze. “The winning entry.”
He rolled his eyes playfully as he let go of my hand to put his onto his hips, facing my house to examine the display. “Nah. Still looks pretty weak compared to mine.”
Kerr took a couple of steps up my driveway, and I took the opportunity to stoop and grab a handful of snow, quickly forming a ball and then lobbing it toward him, where it smacked into the center of his back.
He whirled around, eyes bright and dancing. “I see. You want to play?”
He stooped to grab his own handful of snow, and I squealed as I sprinted past him and up to the front door, scrabbling to get my keys before he could have a chance to aim and fire. There was a soft thud on my back as I pushed the key into the lock, and I turned to shoot him a mock glare just as he stepped right up behind me and landed a soft kiss on my lips, which melted me faster than the snow now sliding down the back of my winter jacket.
Insides all warm and fuzzy, I led him inside, where we got rid of our outer layers and made for the kitchen so I could prepare our hot drinks.
*
“Two signature hot chocolates,” I said, carrying the mugs loaded with whipped cream, marshmallows, and chocolate curls into the living room where Kerr was sitting on the sofa with Izzy purring away against his chest. I glanced at the cat as I placed the mugs onto the coffee table, feeling irrationally jealous of her position snuggled into his broad chest.
