A Curvy Carol (A Curvy Girl Christmas #2)

13. Carolynn

13

CAROLYNN

M om texted me, asking if I wanted to grab a bite to eat at Scrooge’s. So Whit and I decided to take a break for lunch and meet up again after.

It was a quick walk to Scrooge’s, but I enjoyed walking around town anyway, even if I didn’t always like doing all the Christmas things.

My stomach grumbled by the time I met Mom there, and we headed inside.

Thinking of the last time I’d been here had me close to laughing at the memory. I picked up the menu in an attempt to cover my smile.

Still, Mom hardly missed a beat. “Having a good time with Whit?” she asked, glancing down at her menu.

I kept my eyes on mine. “Yeah, he’s nice.” Which was true.

I told her about the candy-making class we’d gone to that morning.

“I can’t believe old Neve Cole is still running that place,” she said. “He’s gotta be as old as Saint Nick.”

Meanwhile, my mind went to Whit. He seemed different from the rest of the guys at my school, and I only hoped things stayed the same between us once school started back up.

Although my stomach turned at the thought of that not being the case. Whit was a cute guy. He’d fit right in at Garland High.

Why would he stick with me when he was sure to have other girls all over him?

I shook my head instinctively, trying to put that thought out of my head.

Even though we both studied the menu, we ended up getting our usual: burgers and fries. Scrooge made the best burgers and fries in town.

While I sipped on my orange soda, Mom told me all about what was going on at work. It was nice to hear her talking about her life for a change, instead of having her pepper me with questions about mine.

When we were done, Scrooge stopped by our table and dropped off the check without a word.

Mom took out her credit card. “Garland would not be Garland without Scrooge,” she said.

I nodded. “You’re right. You went to school with him, right?”

“He was a few years older than me, but yeah. It’s terrible what happened.”

We all knew Scrooge had gone through something, but I knew better than to ask. No one talked about it, especially not Scrooge.

* * *

After lunch, we headed our own ways again.

“See you at home for dinner,” Mom said, giving me a hug. “Have fun. Whit sounds like a good boy.”

He was, but I wasn’t about to tell her that—especially since I’m pretty sure she was the one who left out mistletoe for us. I told her goodbye then I headed to the ice rink to meet Whit and check off the next item on our list.

Fall La La La La wasn’t far, definitely closer than the lodge, but when I got there, Whit was already inside.

He stood at the railing, gazing at the skaters on the rink as I came up behind him.

“Boo,” I teased.

He looked back at me with a smile. “Hey, Christmas Carol. How was lunch?”

“Good,” I replied, almost surprised at my own great mood. “How about yours?”

“Fast,” he said. “But also good.”

“Scrooge says hi,” I teased.

He gave me a friendly nudge. “Does he now? I’ll have to stop by and say hi back. Or should I say ‘Season’s Greetings’?” He smirked.

I laughed, almost surprised how easy it was to let go and just enjoy my time with him. Usually it took me longer to open up and make friends, but things were different with Whit.

He smiled at me and then turned to the rink, something in his expression I couldn’t quite read.

“You ready?” I asked.

Whit gave me a nervous look. “Actually, I’ve never been ice-skating before,” he confessed sheepishly.

“Really?” I asked.

“Really,” he replied. “Not a lot of snow in Houston. We did go skiing one time in New Mexico, but my dad got hurt, so we never really did snow sports again after that.”

“Well,” I said, grabbing his arm and pulling him toward the front counter. “You live in Garland now, so skating is practically a requirement.”

He followed along, still looking hesitant. “Carolynn, I’m going to make a fool of myself out there. That preschooler over there is going to be skating circles around me, I just know it.”

I glanced back. “You’re probably right,” I replied, which made even more color drain from his face. “But luckily, you’re in the presence of an expert.” I grabbed his arm again, trying not to think about how much I liked the contact. “Come on.”