Stranded for Christmas with my Boss (Forbidden Billionaire Boss Daddies)

19. Alyssa

Chapter nineteen

Alyssa

T he sound of my yawn fills my entire studio, but I blink my tired eyes and keep flipping through all the file folders I brought home from the office.

The workload was piling up, so I took some files home. At first, Jensen sharply protested, encouraging me to spend time with my parents or enjoy all the holiday cheer going on throughout the city. He even hinted that I should go ice skating again.

His concern means a lot to me, but I like the work I do. I like helping my colleagues if they’re falling behind or need a break. After a bit of a rocky start, I think I’ve finally found my groove at work.

I rub my eyes, but a flicker of determination still burns within me as I sit cross-legged on my bed with documents strewn across the covers. Tonight, I just want to organize Jensen’s receipts and documents into labeled piles. There has been way too much clutter in his office between all the documents he has been reviewing and signing off on and the Christmas party invitations that have been sent to him.

I felt a little bad having to decline all of them on his behalf. Even if he’s the CEO, he should still try to find time to have fun during the holidays. They’ll be over before we know it!

“Premiere Auto…Eddie Vance…” I murmur to myself as I read over a copy of a receipt. My eyes then widen.

Why does that name sound so familiar?

I grab my phone and open up my text messages with my dad, scrolling past our conversations about the New York Rangers’ season and how he won a large Christmas ham in a local raffle. Finally, I find a picture he sent me when the car was being repaired, my fingers moving to zoom in on the letters plastered on the building above the garages.

Premiere Auto.

“He did not,” I gasp as I snatch up the receipt again to check the date.

My body locks up in shock as the pieces finally fall together. We never did figure out who exactly paid for the repairs on my parents’ car, and I’m sure the owner dodged their questions because Jensen asked him to keep quiet.

Why would he hide this from me? Why would he do something so sweet and selfless?

I swipe out of my messages and call Jensen, putting it on speaker so that I can still look at the receipt in case he tries to deny me. I have the proof in my hand!

The ringing stops as he answers, but the screen suddenly fills with Oliver’s face as the call switches to FaceTime. “Hi, Alyssa!”

I’m so stunned that I can’t even think of a reply for a second. When my brain does decide to work, I smile and lift my free hand in a little wave. “Hey, Oliver. I haven’t seen you in a while!”

Jensen’s face soon appears next to Oliver’s. “Hey, sorry. I’m watching Ollie tonight. Holly is having a girls’ night out.”

As if my heart wasn’t already consumed with warmth.

“Are you having fun with your uncle, Oliver?” I ask him with a light laugh, watching Jensen playfully roll his eyes at me.

“Yes! My birthday is on Saturday!”

“Wow, really? Just a few days before Christmas!” I tell him. I’m sure it’s magical and fun now for him to have a birthday so close to the holidays, but I know quite a few people who gripe about their birthdays being close to the holidays.

“He’s turning seven and growing way too fast,” Jensen says as he ruffles Oliver’s hair, their laughter sounding over my phone speaker.

A fluttering sensation erupts in my chest and floats down to my stomach. I don’t know if he ever plans to have kids of his own, but Jensen would be a good dad. He was really candid with me the other night about his rocky relationship with his parents.

I truly didn’t see that coming. The confession, or his past. But I am grateful that he trusts me enough to talk to me about things like that because I know they’re hard. I’ll never understand what it’s like to grow up with parents so selfish and neglectful, but I sympathize with him.

He went through a lot, but I think he wouldn’t ever be anything like his parents if he had a kid of his own.

“What is your party theme?” I ask Oliver as I sit up straighter in bed, holding my phone up to keep my face in front of the camera.

“Elves!”

A surprised look fills my face. “Elves? Like Santa’s village?”

“Pretty much just elves,” Jensen replies with a light laugh. “He has always liked elves.”

That was one of the cutest things I’d ever heard.

“Ironically, I have an elf costume from a community theater play I did a few years ago,” I say, making Jensen laugh a little harder. “I played elf number three, and I was, admittedly, pretty good.”

“Can you come to my party?” Oliver suddenly begs, making my eyes widen. “I want an elf at my party!”

My gaze shifts over in Jensen’s direction as I wait for him to reply. Of course, I’ll take any excuse to dust off my elf costume and partake in a little holiday spirit, even if it’s at a birthday party, but I don’t want to invite myself.

Jensen lifts an eyebrow at me. “Got any plans for this Saturday at one o’clock?”

My heart races. He wants me to come.

“Nothing besides the best birthday party ever,” I say, making Oliver throw his fists up in victory.

Jensen chuckles and places his hand on Oliver’s head. “I’ll talk to your mom, okay? Why don’t you say bye and go brush your teeth?”

“Bye, Alyssa!” Oliver calls out before rushing away.

“Bye!” I call back, not even sure if he heard me or not. Laughter bubbles from me as I shake my head, wondering what in the world I just got myself into. “Are you sure it’s okay that I come? Won’t that seem…weird…me being there because I know you?”

Jensen shrugs. “Holly has heard of you. Austin will be there. If you’re not comfortable coming, it’s okay, but…I want you to come.”

I raise my eyebrows in surprise. He knows how complicated this may make things. It’ll be obvious that we’re at least friends because who brings their co-workers to their nephew’s birthday party? “Are you sure?”

Jensen cracks a grin. “Yes, Alyssa. I’m sure. Besides, there is no way in hell I’m missing out on seeing you in an elf costume.”

“Well, it’s not a sexy one if that’s what you’re getting at.”

Jensen laughs as he moves to sit on a couch. “Please tell me you’ll have pointy ears.”

“Maybe…”

“Saturday can’t come fast enough.”

Our laughter mingles as we smile at each other over video chat, a curious silence soon taking over. Why does he want me to come so badly? It can’t just be because Oliver asked and because I’ll be in costume.

“Is everything okay? I forgot to ask why you called.”

My mind zips right back to the purpose of this whole phone conversation that got way off track. I lift up the receipt so that he can see this. “I found this while organizing your files. It’s a receipt for Premiere Auto on the same day my parents’ car started being repaired.”

Jensen glances away from the camera. “You weren’t supposed to find that.”

“You paid thousands of dollars so that my parents’ car could be fixed,” I tell him, disbelief lacing my voice. “Why?”

Jensen shrugs. “Because a terrible thing happened to good people who didn’t deserve it. You were…distraught. I realized I had been dragging you over the coals for no good reason while you were already dealing with a lot on your plate. I just…wanted to make things a little easier.”

My eyes start to sting a little. It’s like someone is squeezing my heart in their hand, their grip tightening with each word he speaks. “Thank you. I mean it. I…I wish there was a better way to express my gratitude, but you really helped us. And we can pay you back down the line.”

Jensen shakes his head. “Don’t pay me back. It’s…a gift.”

A small smile crosses my face as our eyes finally meet once more. “Like an early Christmas gift?”

Jensen chuckles as he nods. “Yeah, something like that. You can’t give back Christmas gifts.”

Does he even realize how incredible he is? How much he has already impacted my life in the span of a few weeks? I can barely wrap my head around it, but my heart has been reacting to him for a while now.

Racing. Pounding. Skipping. Fluttering.

I can’t control it.

“Thank you, Jensen,” I say in a soft voice as I share a warm look with him. “You’ve already made this holiday one I won’t ever forget.”

Jensen’s face softens. “So have you.”

Silence lingers after his words, but we both smile, reveling in the warmth of the moment as snow blankets the city outside of our windows. We may be in two different parts of the city, but I can’t help but feel close to him right now.

I can’t help but want to be right there in his arms, shielded from the frigid cold outside and all the worries that surround us.