Page 43 of Holiday Crush
“Oh, and Court, since you’re suddenly in a holiday mood, can I volunteer you to help hang lights and garland on Main—”
“Sure, Mom. Gotta run.”
I kissed her cheek again, said hurried good-byes to everyone in the kitchen, then grabbed my jacket and headed into town.
* * *
Twenty minutes later,I was on a stepstool in the middle of Rise and Grind, tacking elaborate paper snowflakes onto the ceiling while “A Holly Jolly Christmas” played on the overhead speakers. Ivan fussed with a strand of garland, glancing up occasionally to direct snowflake placement. Which apparently was very important.
“Will you move that one over an inch to your right? No, the other way.”
“You mean my other right,” I snarked without heat, adjusting the snowflake.
“Perfect. I’m going to grab the other stool and tackle the area around the register.” Ivan beamed a sunny smile as he waltzed toward the counter, humming along to the holiday classic. “Oh, my gosh! I almost forgot our Santa hats!”
“No Santa hats.”
“You’ll change your mind when you see how cool mine is.” He dug through a box filled with holiday stuff on the counter and unearthed a basic-looking Santa hat. “Check this out.”
He pulled the hat on and pushed some secret button, and sure enough, the fluffy white brim lit up.
“Wow, that’s…something.”
“I told you so. Here’s yours.”
I caught the hat Ivan flung at me to avoid getting smacked in the face with it. “I’m having an artistic moment. I can’t do that with Santa shit flying at me.”
“Put it on.”
“No, thanks.”
He cackled merrily. “At least let me see what it looks like on you.”
I rolled my eyes, stuffing the snowflake in my left hand into the apron he’d given me to use as a makeshift utility belt, then propped the hat onto my head. It barely fit and no doubt I looked as ridiculous as I felt, but it was worth Ivan’s over-the-top reaction. He gasped and flattened his hand over his heart.
“C’mon, it’s dumb and you know it,” I chided, heat crawling up my neck.
He hopped off his stool and rushed over, waving his arms manically when I started to take it off. “Don’t! It’s not dumb, it’s the opposite of dumb. It’s holiday cheer and rugged hockey-elf hotness.”
“I am not a hockey elf.”
“You kind of are, and I’m here for it! Leave it on for a little while…just for fun.”
I let out a resigned sigh, but I left the hat on. Sure, I looked like an idiot standing on a stool hanging paper snowflakes like a North Pole dropout, but that smile…
My gaze strayed his way as I tacked another snowflake to the ceiling, admiring his perfect ass in his snug-fitted jeans, his long legs, and trim hips.
But there was so much more here. Ivan’s puzzling contradictions were laid bare under the guise of holiday cheer. He was dressed in black and if I wasn’t mistaken, he was also wearing a hint of eyeliner…like he had when we were in high school. The dark exterior didn’t hide his sunny nature. The grown-up version of the quiet kid who’d been in a few of my classes was colorful and vibrant.
Ivan oozed joy. And fuck, it felt so good just to be near him.
“Have you always been this into the holidays?” I asked, tacking another snowflake to the ceiling.
“Most definitely. My family goes all out. I grew up with a nativity under the tree, stockings on the mantel, advent calendars, Christmas carols. A lot of our traditions were religious. My grandparents on my dad’s side are from Italy, and they’re very Catholic. They go to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, eat panettone on Christmas Day, and keep the tree up until the Epiphany.”
“Do you still do all that too?”
“My family does, but I don’t have time to partake of every tradition. Still, Christmas is in my blood. Maybe like hockey is in yours,” he offered.