The Christmas Playbook (Shadow Valley U)

Chapter 8 Despite sharing a bed with Rhys, I actually slept like a baby. That's not to say I didn't have an extremely inappropriate dream that had to do with a hot tub, but I keep that information to myself because my fake boyfriend is not privy to knowing just how turned on I was after our impromptu kiss. Kiss? More like sex. I was a disoriented afterward. My vision was hazy, and even though I opted for a cold shower, I was still sweating afterward. Rhys can kiss. "Okay, so fill me in on your fam. Give me all the tea." Rhys steeples his fingers together and taps them excitedly.

Is he eager for breakfast with my family? Because I'd rather take the lift up to the highest peak and attempt to ski it instead of playing twenty questions regarding our fake relationship over pancakes and coffee. "We don't have enough time for that," I say. The walk to the restaurant is less than five minutes. It'd take five hours to name everyone and explain the moving parts of our blended family. "Going in blind," he says. "I like your bravery, Mira." I laugh sarcastically.

"That's the only way to be when you're walking into a war zone." Suddenly, Rhys's arm falls to my shoulders, and he pulls me in close. My body comes to life, which is a rare occurrence without any caffeine. "Don't worry. Your secret weapon is here, Frostbite." From my shorter frame, I glare up at him. He winks when he catches my scowl, and damn him. My lips twitch, and I break into a smile. "You're irritating." "That's no way to treat your boyfriend," he muses. He pokes the side of my belly. A high-pitched laugh rushes from my mouth at the same time I try to escape his grip.

Except, the ground is slick with ice, and I nearly bust my face. Rhys's arm wraps around my waist, and we're suddenly flush. We're both wearing coats, but I swear the ridges of his toned muscles are pressing against me. Last night totally messed with my head. He grabs my chin. "Be careful, Mira." A tight breath whooshes from my lungs. His warm eyes shift back and forth between mine, and there's a protectiveness to his tone that seems awfully real. I glance around to see if my family is nearby, but we're surrounded by random resort guests who are paying us no attention.

"You can let me go now," I say. "I'm fine." Rhys shoots me his golden-boy smile. "I know. I was just deciding if I should kiss you or not. You know... for practice." My heart stalls. The idea of him kissing me isn't as off-putting as it was yesterday. "Mira!" Cammie's voice grates my nerves like no other. She would interrupt this. "Damn," Rhys mutters, letting me go. He sends me a look that says he'll resume this later, but I'm pretty sure that's just my raging hormones talking. "We were afraid you'd skip out on breakfast like you did with dinner." Oh, trust me. I tried. Rhys wouldn't let me.

He went on and on about how I didn't eat dinner last night and how he wasn't going to let me skip another meal. It was sort of cute, but irritating. "Figured we'd better make an appearance, or you'd come searching for us again." Rhys intertwines our fingers and guides me toward the restaurant, not really caring to see if my sister follows. Unfortunately, she does. Official source is FindN0vel.net "I got enough of an eyeful yesterday," she jokes. She elbows me and wiggles her eyebrows when Rhys isn't paying attention. I roll my eyes. I know what she's getting at.

She's in disbelief that Rhys is my boyfriend. I can't really blame her, though. He's way out of my league. As soon as we enter the restaurant, I drag Rhys toward the back. From the loud laughter, a wailing cry from my nephew, and nails-on-a-chalkboard voice from Rachel as she scolds my brother-in-law for something, I know exactly where to go. Cammie rushes in front of us and takes her seat, making way for the entire family to pause what they're doing when they see us. Rhys squeezes my hand, and it's the reassurance that I need to keep pushing forward. "Good morning," I say.

Dragging my attention from the gaping mouths of ninety percent of my family, I hunt for two open seats. Surprise, surprise. There are none. "Oh, seems like there isn't room for us! We will catch you all later." I try to turn away with Rhys's hand in mine, but he grips it tightly and clears his throat. "May we borrow two chairs?" he asks a couple sitting close by. The woman stands eagerly. "Take all of them." Then she grabs her husband by the hand and finds a different table, halfway across the restaurant, away from the chaos.

I don't blame her, but she's totally losing out on free entertainment. "Problem solved." Rhys winks at me while pushing two chairs up to the end of the table. I begrudgingly move to pull my chair out, but he scolds me under his breath. "Absolutely not." His eyebrow flicks upward in some sort of challenge. My cheeks warm, and I take a seat. Cammie clears her throat. "Well..." I lock onto her from across the table and refrain from throwing a fork at her head.

"Are you going to introduce your boyfriend?" "Everyone, this is Rhys." My family mutters a hello in sync, except for Liam, who is too busy screaming at the top of his lungs. I resonate with him because I, too, would like to scream at the top of my lungs. Rhys leans across the table and puts his hand out for my father to shake. "It's nice to see you again, sir." "Again?" Marcus, who can't even look me in the eye after yesterday, seems suspicious. "Ah, that's right." My dad squints. "You used to be our neighbor." A murmur travels across the table.

I reach for the coffee, as if I'm not jittery enough. My leg bounces while my dad and Rhys reminisce about the past. My mom and stepparents join in the conversation, too, but I remain quiet. Rachel and Cammie are talking quietly to themselves while glancing at Rhys and me every few seconds. I try to kick them under the table, but my leg doesn't reach. Rhys, who must notice my movement, places a hand on my knee and gives it a gentle squeeze, all while carrying on the conversation. They ask him about his parents and school and nearly fall out of their chairs when he mentions the pros.

Marcus sits up straighter, forgetting all about my sister's gossip over my new relationship. After we've given our orders and the conversation dies down-along with my nerves, thanks to Rhys's comforting rubbing against my knee-Cammie places her elbows on the table and rests her chin in the palms of her hands. "Are you a skier, Rhys?" Rhys leans back in his chair, giving a full view of how his hand is on my thigh under the table. "I've skied, but snowboarding is more my thing." Cammie immediately flicks her amused gaze to me. "Mira, too.

She always chooses to snowboard when we go skiing." Cammie twirls her hair in her finger. "Actually, we've never even seen her snowboard. For all we know, she hides out in the cabin, pretending to hit the slopes." Rhys's hand travels up my thigh, and I'm sure he's trying to distract me, but sadly, nothing can distract me from my sister's annoying laugh. "That's not true," I argue. "You're just too busy dry-humping Andrew to know what's going on around you." "Mira," my mom warns. Rhys's hand clamps onto my leg, and he clears his throat. I'm pretty sure it's to hide his laugh.

"Okay, fine." Cammie leans forward with a fake smile, and I know she's baiting me. "Andrew and I will come with you and your boyfriend to Bear's Peak, then." "Bear's Peak?" Rhys repeats. "That's the highest⁠-" "We meet at ten." I raise an eyebrow at my sister, and pride swells in my chest. Unfortunately, that pride disappears as soon as I realize that I've just signed my own death warrant. I've never snowboarded in my life.