Under the Mistle-Foe (Christmas Falls: Season 2)

Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

JETT

I must have died and gone to heaven because there was no way I would be so lucky to have Remy Trentvoluntarily cook for me in my kitchen and invite me—more like demand, and I was swooning—to spend Thanksgiving with his family.

It was probably a pity invite, one he extended when he heard my sorry ass was going to be spending Thanksgiving alone, but I couldn’t bring myself to care. Not when I got to spend the day at Remy’s house, eating his cooking. Or I assumed he would be cooking since Adam was kinda out of commission for a while.

I was on a high the rest of the day, made even better by getting to spend most of it with Remy. He said he’d come over to help me decorate for the light tour, but I hadn’t expected him to stay the entire time—and it took all day to set up because of the sheer amount of decor and lights I’d ordered. I had to make our house so perfect that Mom couldn’t pick out a single thing to complain about.

The task didn’t even feel like work, with time passing quickly as Remy and I shot the shit, talking about TV shows we’d been obsessed with recently and what we’d been up to since high school. The conversation flowed easily, and I was surprised that I didn’t put my foot in my mouth even once. Maybe it was all the tense nerves that had always made me say the wrong thing around him, but there was none of that today.

I would almost dare say that being with him felt natural as we worked together, him holding the ladder and handing me items as I hung them around the house. Night came a little too quickly for my liking, and when it was time to get the first look with all the decorations lit up, we stood in my driveway, side by side, Remy so close I could smell the detergent that lingered on his clothes and the slight heat exuding off him that had me forgetting how cold it was now that the sun had gone to sleep for the day.

“Ready?” he asked, holding the switch that would turn on all the lights.

“Ready!”

He flipped the switch, and the house in front of us glowed. The blow-up elves and snowmen had a snowball fight on the front lawn while the snowflakes we’d hung up along the front of the house flickered in a pattern to look like it was snowing.

I’d decided on a winter wonderland theme after studying all the previous light tour winners, so most of the lights were a muted blue with accents of different colors that were cohesive to the theme.

“I think we did it,” Remy started. “It’s gonna be the best one of the year.” He turned to me with a smile that looked so excited and carefree. It was one I hadn’t seen since he’d been back here. One that lingered on my mind, even into my dreams that night.

I wondered if he’d be that excited to see me for Thanksgiving the next day. Which then had me freaking out about the idea of spending the holiday with him and what to bring as a guest. I was muddle headed throughout the entire day, contemplating if I should make something with my limited skills or just buy something from the grocery store.

I was so distracted that even when Nikita called to invite me over to spend Thanksgiving with his family—since he knew my parents wouldn’t make it back to Christmas Falls for the holidays—I couldn’t come up with a proper excuse and truthfully told him I was going to the Trent house instead.

“When did you and Remy get so close? I thought you guys didn’t like each other?” he asked, shocked. Which wasn’t surprising, considering we hadn’t much to do with each other, even in school.

“We’re friends,” I replied with a smile stretching my lips. It was a milestone I thought would never be possible for us after four years of trying when we were in high school.

Nikita was skeptical and kept bombarding me with questions, but I somehow managed to avoid them all. Ending the call with the excuse of heading to the store, I entered Tidings & Joy with the list of ingredients needed for an apple pie.

Since they had the sincerity to invite me to Thanksgiving dinner, then it was only appropriate to return that sincerity with something homemade. That was what I thought…but six hours and a messy kitchen later, I’d finally made an apple pie that wasn’t burnt.

The top was a brownish color, not the alluring baked brown like the crusts you see on those baking shows, but one that looked slightly overcooked…better that, than burnt, though. And instead of those elaborate cross-pattern crusts, it was just a single sheet that spread on top,ladened with holes, and apples peeking through them, from where I’d accidentally ripped it.

By the time I had the kitchen cleaned, all I had the energy to do was fall on my bed and pass out. Thankfully, I’d gotten the project for work done quickly and was able to take the holiday early, because I didn’t have the brainpower for anything else but sleep right now.

The next day around noon, I was ringing the doorbell to Trent’s house with a bottle of wine and my poor attempt at an apple pie in hand. The door swung open, and Remy—with his shoulder-length hair tied out of his face, looking sexy as fuck—looked at the items in my hands and smiled.

“You didn’t have to bring anything,” he said and let me in.

“I can’t freeload a meal for nothing,” I teased and followed him into the kitchen. Adam was hovering over the stove, stirring something in the pot.

“Dad! What did I tell you about staying out of my kitchen?” Remy grumbled and rushed over to steal the spatula from Adam’s hand. “Isn’t Uncle Rob supposed to be watching you?”

Adam rolled his eyes. “Am I some kid that needs to be watched?” Remy gave him a look which had Adam muttering, “Actually, don’t answer that.” He turned to me. “Hey, Jett! Glad you could make it! Yum, is that pie?”

He hobbled over on his crutches to get a closer look. With him owning the diner for many years, I was sure he could instantly see howamateur my baking skills were, but he didn’t point that out and nodded instead. “Apple pie. My favorite,” he said with a toothy grin. “Alright, let’s get out of his kitchen before he blows a casket.”

Adam gestured for me to place the items on the kitchen counter, then pulled me along with him. “But shouldn’t we help?” I asked and looked over my shoulder to find Remy waving us off, not even looking away from his prep work.

“Just let him be. He’s a stubborn one,” Adam said. Despite relying on crutches, he was practically speed-walking into the living room .

A snort greeted us. “And I wonder where he gets that from?”

Adam hobbled closer to the man who spoke and stole the remote from his hand before landing on the spot beside him and elevating his leg in front of him. “Tell me again why I put up with you when all you do is rob away all the fun.”

The man rolled his eyes. “How are you not tired of making the same jokes after all this time?”

“How can I get tired when I’m a hoot?” Adam replied as he switched to the sports channel. “Jett, come sit. This pain in my ass here is Rob.”

“You mean the better version of you,” Rob retorted, which only made Adam snort.

I knew Adam had lost his wife a few years back, but I wasn’t aware that he found a new partner. Still, they seem like a good fit. “You two make a cute couple,” I said casually. Apparently, it was anything but casual as both their heads flung toward me.

“Me? And him?” Adam started, then faced the ceiling with a loud belly laugh. “Don’t give him any ideas. I know he won’t be able to resist all this .” Adam gestured a hand down his body.

Rob grabbed the pillow beside him and whacked him with it. “The only thing I’m unable to resist is the urge to throttle you,” Rob grumbled, then turned to me. “Don’t mind him. He’s so full of himself he can’t see left from right.”

They started arguing about who was the better catch between the two of them. I smiled as I watched them bicker like an old married couple, and I found it hard to believe they weren’t together.

A few minutes later, they were still debating their points, not even noticing me when I slipped out and made my way back to the kitchen.

Remy was leaning over to check the food inside the oven. From my current position, his ass, perfectly outlined in those sweats, was in my direct sight.

I tugged on the collar of my shirt.

Was it me or was it getting hot in here ?

I told myself to look away, that it wasn’t proper to be eyeing my host, but my eyes remained stuck on his firm bottom. Then, suddenly, like he could feel the burn of my hot gaze, he spun around, catching me red-handed.

My eyes instantly flicked to anywhere but at him, finally landing on the counter filled with food covered with lids, probably to keep them warm.

I cleared my throat, trying to act casual as I walked over to the food and lifted a lid to take a peek. “It smells delicious in here.”

Remy’s hot eyes scrutinized me under his fogged-up glasses. I shifted under his gaze, but thankfully he didn’t mention anything and only hummed at my comment before returning to his cooking.

His actions were so smooth as he flitted through the kitchen, juggling between prepping, cooking, and even cleaning as he went. It was a stark contrast to my clumsy attempt at baking yesterday, where making one item had my kitchen looking like a tornado had run through it.

I was momentarily stunned watching him, and by the time I’d returned to my senses and asked if I could help with anything, he’d already finished making another dish.

He paused his chopping as he looked up at me with surprise, as if he’d forgotten I was in the room. Now I felt bad for disturbing him while he was in the zone.

“Uh, sure. Do you want to wash the lettuce for the salad?”

I quickly sprang into action, eager to be of some help, and grabbed the items out of the fridge. “Thanks again for inviting me. Nothing beats a homemade Thanksgiving dinner,” I said after I finished washing the vegetables and worked on assembling the salad beside him.

There was a beat of silence, then a soft, “Yeah, I’m glad you’re here.” If he’d said anything after that, I didn’t catch it with how loud the sound of my heartbeat was. It was a wonder Remy hadn’t pointed it out. I was so sure everyone could hear it.

We continued working like that, neither of us talking, my heart pounding harder with each second, and the heat of the kitchen warming me to the point I swore I was blushing anytime I sneaked a peek at Remy.

He seemed completely unaffected by it all, still perfectly put together as when he’d opened the door for me an hour ago. How he hadn’t gotten a single stain on his clothes while cooking was beyond me.

Rob helped us move everything to the dining table, and by the time everyone sat in their seats, there was barely any space for our plates with how full the table was. The turkey had to be placed on a small folding table.

“With this much food, we’ll be eating it until next week,” Adam commented as he plated himself a big ol’ helping of mashed potatoes and pineapple ham.

I helped myself to the food too, my taste buds exploding at the first bite. I shouldn’t have expected anything less from Remy’s cooking. The man knew his way around the kitchen, but I already knew that. He used to help cook at the diner in high school, and I’d had more of my fair share of food cooked by him back then too.

Instead of grabbing food, Remy pulled out his phone and tapped out something. I was curious about what he was doing on it, but manners kept me from asking, so I focused on my food.

Then, like he was reading my mind, Adam piped up, “Boy, why do you have your phone out at the dining table? Didn’t your mama teach you better than that?”

Remy glanced up from his screen. “Sorry, I was just sending out Thanksgiving greetings to some friends.” He pressed something else on his phone before slipping it back into his pocket.

To my absolute horror, my notification went off at that exact moment.

Remy glanced at me. “What a coincidence,” he commented. I chuckled nervously. “Speaking of which, have you seen Ford around?” He turned to his dad. I tried to blend into the table. Maybe if I shoved enough food down my throat, I’d become one with all the other dishes in front of me.

“FordDonnelly? The one who used to visit the diner all the time?” Adam furrowed his gray brows in thought. “Now that you mentioned it, I haven’t seen him come by all that much recently.”

“Heard he has his hands full with his ex-wife’s daughter. Cute as a button, she is,” Rob added.

Sweat trickled down my back.

“I didn’t know you two got close,” Adam asked, forking a piece of turkey into his mouth.

“We’re not close exactly. He reached out to me after I moved away, just checking in, and we started messaging each other every so often,” he said with a shrug. “I saw him in town the other day with his daughter chatting to that new Holiday Hope Foundation guy. They looked busy, so I left them be.”

A sigh of relief came out of me, so loud that it caught Remy’s attention. “You okay?” he asked with a brow raised.

“Huh? Yeah! Just, you know, really enjoying the ham!” I squeaked and helped myself to another piece of the sweet meat. And if Remy was giving me weird looks, ignoring the awkwardness had become my new superpower.

The conversation moved along, thank fuck, to business at the diner and the card nights Rob had been hosting. Apparently, Adam had found his new talent in cards, wiping the others out of their beer money, something that greatly annoyed Rob, which also made him demand a rematch right after dinner.

Everyone helped to clean up and set the dining table as our new battle arena for Bridge . We played for a few hours, Adam kicking everyone’s asses. It didn’t matter who paired up with him, Adam’s team was always guaranteed to win, which really irritated Rob.

We moved on to second dinner when it got dark out while chatting about the game. Rob kept accusing Adam of cheating somehow, while Adam took great delight in taunting his friend. Remy and I laughed at their antics as he shot me little knowing smiles. It all felt very…domestic, and a little part of me never wanted the night to end.

“December’s right around the corner.” Adam’s change of topic seemingly came out of nowhere. He took another bite of my apple pie, humming with approval, probably for my benefit, then continued, “We need to get Isabella’s mistletoe arch up soon. She always had it up on the first of December and said it was the season of love and peace. Remember how Isabella would always drag us under the mistletoe whenever we got into a fight and demanded we couldn’t leave until we played nice?”

Rob chuckled. “We’d be stuck in the cold standing under that damn arch for hours because of your stubborn ass.”

Adam glanced at him. “I’m the stubborn one, huh? Who’s the one who keeps demanding rematches? Can’t stand being a sore loser, can ya?”

The bickering started again between them, but my focus was on Remy, who’d suddenly gotten all quiet. He pushed the food on his plate around for a few seconds before excusing himself from the table. The two older men didn’t even pause in their argument as I got up as well to follow Remy.

I found him in the backyard, back leaning against the wall, a lit cigarette between his lips. He blew out a puff of smoke when he caught sight of me, which turned into a laugh when I tried to offer him one of the lollipops I had in my jacket pocket. I popped the sweet candy in my mouth when he shook his head.

“Your candy addiction can’t be any healthier than mine,” he commented, with another puff of smoke billowing past us. I laughed, leaned beside him, and watched him suck on the stick. His cheeks hollowed and thick lips puckered at the action.

I had to resist the urge to offer him something else to suck on. Something hard and desperate for him. I quickly shook off that thought and looked up into the night sky.

One of the things I loved about living in a small town was the lack of light pollution that the big cities had. We could actually see the stars here, and, while not as bright as in my memories, they still flickered above us.

We stayed like that for a little longer. Me, shivering, and my nose wrinkling from the smoke. Remy sighed when he noticed and opened the sliding door back into the house to the red scarf and beanie that were hanging on the coat rack near the entrance. Hehaphazardly fit the beanie onto my head but was gentle as he wrapped the scarf around my neck.

White plumes of smoke drifted above us, as hazy as this dreamlike moment was for me.

“Are you okay?” I asked in a whisper. Remy still stood close to me, his hands on me as he arranged the scarf. Would it be inappropriate if I covered his hand with mine?

He dropped his arms and a huge sigh left his body as he snubbed out his cigarette. He half-faced me, his long hair casting his face in a shadow. “Sometimes I turn the corner and I think she’ll appear, you know?”

I didn’t need to ask to know who he was talking about. I was fortunate enough to have never lost anyone close to me, so I couldn’t fathom how much pain he was going through to lose someone he loved so dearly. I couldn’t understand it, but I could sympathize and be there for him, and let him know he didn’t have to grieve alone.

Not knowing what to say, I grabbed his hand, and for a split second, I thought he would throw me off, but he let me hold it.

He looked at our combined hands, his hair blocking me from seeing the emotions in his eyes. It felt like a thousand years, but was probably only a couple of seconds before he flipped his hand over and twined our fingers together.

Neither of us spoke. We didn’t have to. We stayed there in silence, watching the stars. The lollipop’s sweetness invaded my mouth as the heat from his hand traveled past my fingertips and warmed my heart.

It wasn’t until a loud clatter from inside that we broke apart. Remy rushed into the house to check on things while I lingered outside. The cold wind hit my face, but all I could feel was the warmth he’d left on my skin.

Adam had apparently tripped and toppled over the dining room chairs while Rob was using the bathroom. Remy wasn’t happy, to say the least, but I knew his anger stemmed from worry over his dad. He guided Adam to the couch, giving firm instructions to keep his butt planted there unless necessary.

Rob smirked like a Cheshire Cat, watching his old friend being scolded.

It was getting late, and not wanting to overstay my welcome, I said my goodnights to the men and thanked them again for having me over. Adam and Rob waved goodbye from their seats on the couch, and Remy called over his shoulder for me to wait as he disappeared into the kitchen. He returned with one of those large reusable bags filled to the max with containers of leftovers and handed it to me when we reached the front door.

Once outside, I turned to him. The door separated us, feeling like a chasm that I couldn’t cross, but then he reached over the imaginary separation and straightened the beanie on my head.

I shot him a quick goodnight and turned away before I was tempted to never leave.

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” he called to my back, making my steps falter for a second and my heart shoot out of my chest.

“Tomorrow,” I replied over my shoulder and gunned it for my car before I said something mushy and totally inappropriate.

I felt light as air the entire drive home, Remy’s scarf and beanie warming my skin, and knowing that I had alegitimate excuse to see him again the next day.