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“Um, Bryce? What are we doing here?” I ask. This has to be a joke.
He grins. “We’re getting our picture taken with Santa. Duh.”
“Seriously? This is what you had the appointment for?” I narrow my eyes at him.
“Yup. Let’s go, Kitty Kat. It’s our turn to sit with the big guy in the red suit. Question is, have you been naughty or nice?” Bryce says that low and sexy, and then he winks at me. Again, asshole.
I smack his shoulder. Before I know it, we’re in front of the mall Santa. I cannot believe he’s making me do this.
“You’re crazy.” I rub my temples. My hands are shaking.
“Come on, I just want a picture of us with Santa. It’s not like we can get one with him all year long.” He awkwardly rubs the back of his neck with his hand.
“People are staring at us.” I can feel my panic creep up again. There is a huge part of me that wants to run.
“Look at me, Kat. They stare at everyone who sits on his lap. Trust me.” He moves a lock of my hair behind my ear. I shiver at his touch. “Do you trust me, Kat?” Bryce asks.
I say nothing, but I nod. I move gingerly towards the mall Santa and stand next to him. Bryce stands on the other side. The mall Elf stands behind the camera and tells us to smile. So we do.
Afterwards, Bryce and I walk over to the mall Elf as she prints out the pictures. She’s saying things, but I’m too on edge to even notice what is being said. I clench my fists, digging my nails into my palms to distract me. Bryce grabs the pictures and thanks her.
Once we walk away from the crowd waiting, I let go a shaky exhale. We walk further away from Santa’s Village when Bryce pulls me in close and turns to me.
“How are you doing, Kitty Kat?” He presses a kiss to the top of my head.
“Um.” I wipe my palms on the front of my jeans. “I’ve been better.”
“Here, look.” He hands me the pictures.
I stop dead in my tracks and look at the photos. They’re adorable. A bit ridiculous, but absolutely adorable.
“These really are cute. Wow. And now we have a brief memory of the time you forced me into a mall where everyone stared at us and we had to make nice with the mall Santa and wait for an unhappy elf to print the pictures.” I look up at him and force a smile.
Bryce gives me one of his deep laughs and we begin our stroll around the mall. His arm goes back around me in a protective move. I love being wrapped up in him.
“Do you want to leave? Or would you like to shop? I mean, I still don’t see a gift with my name under the tree. Just saying.” He smirks.
“Your gift is being taken care of, don’t worry. You will have a gift on Christmas morning. Um, we can do a little shopping. Let’s try to stay away from the small stores.” The smaller stores make me more nervous. Everyone’s so close, there’s no room to spread out to get away from people. “But I think I’m good for now. If something happens, I’ll let you know.”
“I won’t let anything happen, Kitty Kat. You’re safe with me.” He squeezes me tight.
“I know I am.” I feel him kiss the top of my head again, and we venture out to explore the crazy Christmas madness all around us.
* * *
Once we make it back to the apartment complex, we head to my apartment. Before I can even say anything, Bryce fires up the Hallmark channel. I smile to myself, thinking how lucky I am to have him in my life.
In the kitchen, I go through the options of what I can make for dinner. I decide on some spaghetti. Easy, simple, and who doesn’t enjoy a carb overload? This girl definitely does. I dump some sauce in a pot and pull out a box of pasta.
In all my past relationships, there weren’t many homemade meals that I shared with my partners. The guys I dated always wanted to go out. I never felt comfortable enough to do that. So, I would eat alone at my place while they went out. Sometimes, they would come over, other times they were too wasted from a night at the bar. That’s another the reason I’d rather be alone. Less disappointment.
“Hey, are you all right?” Bryce leans against the counter, pulling me back to reality and away from the bad memories.
“Uh, yeah.” I shake myself out of it, putting the pasta in a tiny pot of boiling water and checking on the sauce. “Just fine.”
“Really? You know I can tell when you lie to me. What’s going on?” He steps closer to me, his face full of concern.
“Ugh. My mind sort of started thinking about the past. The guys I dated. You know I’ve had more meals with you than I did with them. They never understood my social issues. They never understood me.” I run my hand over my forehead.