Page 26 of Valentine Nook (The Valentine Nook Chronicles #1)
“How long have you been doing this?” Holiday asks, spearing a piece of steak.
“Doing what?”
“Running everything, being a duke. How do you become a duke anyway?”
Putting down my cutlery, I pick up my wine and sip. “My dad was the tenth Duke of Oxfordshire. He died in a car accident when I was fourteen. I became the eleventh that day and officially took over Burlington Estates on my eighteenth birthday.”
“Your dad died?” Her voice becomes a whisper. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know. I figured your parents were divorced or something, and that’s why he wasn’t around.”
“It was a long time ago but thank you.”
“You’ve been in charge of this since you were eighteen?” Her hands sweep around the pub. “Of the village, and your house . . . and everything?”
“Yes.” I nod. “I have a lot of help. I don’t do it by myself. But the final decision falls to me.”
She’s quiet again, pondering as she takes another mouthful.
“I guess that’s kind of the same as me.” She sighs. “I started auditioning when I was fourteen. I had my first proper movie role at seventeen, and it’s been my life ever since. I have a team helping, but all final decisions are mine. It’s hard sometimes, huh?”
No one’s ever asked me this before. Not one person has asked if I enjoy what I do. Or even if I wanted to do it in the first place.
I am the eldest child. Therefore, it’s my birthright.
There’s a burning sensation behind my eyes that I need to blink away. “It is hard, yes.”
Holiday sits back and pushes her plate aside. “It’s why I’m here.”
“Because your industry is hard?”
“It’s exhausting . Before I arrived, I honestly thought I could leave acting for good.”
I pick up the bottle and fill our glasses. “And now?”
“I earn a lot of money.” She peers at me over her wineglass, and her eyebrow rises again. “Not as much as you, obviously, but it’s hard to walk away from it. This new contract will enable me to pursue other projects, such as theater. But on the flip side, I still need to work to stay relevant.”
I nod. I know exactly how she feels, which is surprising because a month ago, I would never have thought I’d have anything in common with a Hollywood actress. However, Holiday is the first person I’ve talked to in a long time who has made my life seem less lonely.
That someone else understands the pressure.
“How do you deal with it?”
My mind drifts to the waterfall, which reminds me of the last time I was there, and a chuckle escapes.
“What’s so funny?”
“Remember the day we first saw each other?”
Her expression flickers, and then her cheeks tint. I wonder if she turns that shade everywhere . “Yes. The waterfall. ”
“I go there to think. Something about that place clears my head. I also take Thunder out for a ride, and I remember the many reasons I love Burlington so much.”
“Maybe I need to borrow Thunder.”
“I’m sure he’d love that.” I laugh. “And if that fails, I tag along on one of Alex’s overseas trips.”
We both glance up at Eddie as he collects our plates.
“Thanks, Eddie. That was the best steak pie I’ve ever tasted.” Holiday beams up at him, and one more victim succumbs to her charms.
“Shout if you want anything else,” he gruffs out as he walks off.
“Does he have a girlfriend?”
“Eddie?”
“No, Alex.”
I shake my head. “Nope. He’s hung up on a girl he met last winter in Aspen on a family ski trip.”
“They’re dating?”
I shake my head. “No, again. He’s tried to get in contact with her, but she’s ghosted him.”
“I love Aspen. It’s so pretty.”
“Then we shall go.” The words are out of my mouth before I even think about what I’m saying.
That I’m planning any trip with Holiday is preposterous, especially since I have no idea where she’ll be in December, because it won’t be Valentine Nook.
And the idea of that makes me unbelievably sad.
Her finger is back to running up and down her wineglass. “What did you think I was going to ask you earlier?”
“When?” I reply, trying to shake the thoughts of Holiday leaving.
“In the car, when I asked if you had a lot of cash. You thought I was going to ask something else.”
The journey back home feels like eons ago, and I wrack my brain. When I remember, I wish I hadn’t.
I could say I’d forgotten, but she’ll find out sooner or later, and I’d rather it was from me.
“I thought you were going to ask about Caroline.”
Holiday’s jaw flexes. “Your ex? Do you miss her a lot?”
I shake my head. “No, not really. Not at all, actually. In hindsight, we weren’t well suited.”
“You were getting married?”
“That was the plan.”
“And you got cold feet?”
I shake my head again. Holiday’s looking down at her wine, trying to come across as casual in her questioning, but I can see how badly she wants to know.
Except I get the impression it’s not for the same reasons as everyone else—for idle gossip. And when I open my mouth to tell her, I realize the humiliation I usually feel is missing.
“I visited her the night before our wedding and found her screwing my best friend.”
Blue eyes flare impossibly wide, and I brace myself for the same reaction everyone else likes to give—the pity, the head bob. What I don’t expect is Holiday smothering a laugh.
But that’s exactly what she does.
She tips her head back and laughs. It’s one of those laughs that begins deep in your belly until it rumbles up your throat and bursts out.
“Oh, man. That’s spectacular. I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t be laughing.
It’s not funny. But also, wow. That sucks.
” She wipes a tear away, trying and failing to contain her amusement as she waves a hand in front of her face.
“Please ignore me. I laugh at the most inappropriate things. Sorry, are you okay?”
“Yes,” I reply truthfully.
The anger I’ve been holding on to since December is absent. I don’t even feel annoyed. Holiday’s laughter is so infectious that I start to chuckle, which sets her off into another round of loud, uninhibited, raucous laughing.
Fuck me if I don’t enjoy watching her.
And that’s how Eddie finds us.
“Are you going to let me in on the joke?”
Holiday shakes her head, wiping away tears, and squeaks out, “It’s really not that funny.”
“Hmm. Well, the bar’s closing soon if you want anything else.”
“No, thank you, just the check. I have a voucher.”
“Do you now?” he replies, trundling back to the bar.
“Come on, I’ll leave the car and walk you back to Bluebell. It looks like it’s stopped raining,” I tell her, and after we’ve settled up and said goodbye, we make our way outside.
I don’t even look at the whiskey still waiting on the bar.
The rain has left a chill in the air, but after the warmth of the last few weeks, it’s a welcome change. The scent of the wet ground settles around us.
There’s something else too.
Expectation. Anticipation. The buzz of electricity.
We’re walking so close to one another I can feel the heat coming off her body. It’s followed by the slip of her soft hand in mine, and I glance down to find her smiling at me.
It’s so small yet monumental at the same time, and the surge of happiness is almost overwhelming. I want it to last forever.
We pass the fountain, and out of habit, I stick my free hand into my pocket. My fingers brush against the cool edges of a coin, which makes a soft plop as I toss it.
Holiday’s gaze follows the movement, and she turns to me. “What did you wish for?”
I don’t tell her. I just stop us walking. My hand’s still curled around hers, and I lift it, placing it on my chest. I want her to feel my heart thudding as clearly as I can .
Her soft mouth parts, her tongue darts out, and she slowly wets her bottom lip.
I step farther into her space.
I don’t ask permission because I don’t need to. Her eyes, expressive to a fault, give everything away. She wants this as much as I do.
I think about how fucking beautiful she looked through the spray of the waterfall the first time I met her. I think about the day she was talking to Thunder and the kiss she pressed on his nose and I wondered what it would feel like if that were me.
And when it finally happens, and her tongue slips alongside mine with a soft moan, I realize that I must have been doing it wrong my entire life.
This is how kissing should feel.