All you need this Christmas are these sizzling stories full of love and a touch of holiday magic...

Just for the Holidays by Nana Malone

Justin Morrison would do anything to make his ailing grandmother happy. Even if that means inventing a fake girlfriend to take home for the holidays. His best friend, Alex Winters, reluctantly agrees, but it’s not easy to keep her long-buried feelings for Justin under wraps when they’re sharing a room...a bed...a kiss. Christmas in Catalina is turning out to be hotter than anyone expected, but is theirs a love for all seasons?

His Holiday Gift by Reese Ryan

Pleasure Cove’s prodigal son just got the ultimate Christmas surprise—Madison, his five-year-old daughter he knew nothing about. Maddie’s aunt, Mikayla Mitchell, was once one of Dash Williams’s best friends...and his secret admirer. Now, seeing the sexy, ambitious lawyer with his little girl, Mikayla’s more smitten than ever. And Dash is starting to realize Mikayla’s the only one who could make his days merry and bright, and fill his nights with bliss...

Just for the Holidays

by Nana Malone

“Justin, last night was better than anything I could’ve ever imagined.”

His lips lifted into a smirk. “So you imagined us together, then?”

She couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips. “I plead the fifth.”

Justin laughed. He strolled over to her and took her hand. And pulled her forward about half a foot. Then, before she could gather her thoughts or catch her breath from having him so close, he dipped his head and kissed her.

His Holiday Gift

by Reese Ryan

She forced an incredulous laugh, her heart racing. “It was a teenage crush. Ancient history.”

The corner of his sensuous mouth curved into a grin that did things to her. Made her want to do things to him. “If it’s ancient history, why’d you kiss me last night?”

“I didn’t.” Her cheeks stung with heat and her defiance faltered. “You kissed me.”

“It was definitely a two-person operation.” He stepped closer, leaving little space between them.

NANA MALONE is a USA TODAY bestselling author. You’ll find Nana working hard on additional books for her series. And if she’s not working or hiding in the closet reading, she’s acting out scenes for her husband, daughter and puppy in sunny San Diego.

REESE RYAN writes sexy, contemporary romance featuring colorful characters and sinfully sweet romance. She challenges her heroines with family and career drama, reformed bad boys, revealed secrets and the occasional identity crisis, but always rewards them with a well-earned happy ending.

Connect with Reese via Instagram, Facebook or at reeseryan.com.

Never Christmas Without You

Nana Malone

Reese Ryan

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Table of Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

Introduction

About the Authors

Title Page

Just for the Holidays

Dedication

Dear Reader

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

His Holiday Gift

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Dear Reader

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Epilogue

Extract

Copyright

Just for the Holidays

Nana Malone

For all the best friends who’ve ever dreamed of more.

Dear Reader,

Alex and Justin have loved each other since college. They are the best of friends, and now he needs her more than ever. Too bad if she does him this favor, he’ll see how she really feels about him. How she’s always felt. I’m so thrilled to bring you Justin and Alex’s story. It’s about finding love right under your nose.

If you don’t want to miss a single Nana Malone romance, make sure you join my newsletter here: eepurl.com/blicGL.

Happy reading,

Nana

Chapter 1

Justin Morrison ran through the hallways of the hospital, nearly tipping over a gurney at the nursing station, narrowly missing an orderly and then actually tripping over a wheelchair someone had left in the hallway.

He scrambled to get back on his feet, his heart beating a frantic tattoo against his ribs. He had to get to her. After everything, he couldn’t lose her.

His cousin’s words on the phone still rattled around his brain. She’s in the hospital. You need to come quickly. He took the stairs two at a time to the fourth floor, where they’d directed him at the main reception desk. Oh God, please let her be okay. Please, please, please let her be okay. His grandma Lucy was the only person on this planet who understood him. Well, next to his best friend, Alexandra, whom he affectionately called Alex. But Grandma Lucy, she was his heart. She was the sole reason he was where he was today, even when no one had believed in him.

Growing up, she’d been his rock. She’d scolded him when she felt it necessary, hugged him when he needed it and always told it to him straight. She was outrageous and said the most inappropriate things. But man, she was fantastic.

Grandma Lucy had been the one to tell him to stop trying to seek his father’s approval and follow his own path. She was the sole reason that any banks would even talk to him when he wanted to build a boutique hotel.

His family was known for their hotels the world over. But investors didn’t want to finance the first solo venture from the prodigal son. So his grandmother had made sure that several banks knew that while his would be a separate business, he was backed by the matriarch of the family.

As family went, the only one he ever counted on was his grandmother. The rest of his relatives, he could take or leave. His mother hadn’t come from money and had left him with his father when he was eight because the old man could provide a more stable environment for him. Most of his family never approved of her. As an adult, he could see how being around the Morrisons had been very difficult for her. But as a child, he’d just missed her. She’d died in a car accident just six months after she’d left. A part of him had never recovered. As for his father, well, Jack Morrison wasn’t exactly warm. But up until the reading of the will, Justin would have said they got along well. Boy, were you wrong.

He and his cousin Martin had interned at the flagship property on Catalina Island. Justin’s father had always made it clear that Justin should be the one eventually running Morrison Hotels. Somehow Martin became the more favored and had shoved Justin out of what should have been his birthright.

That knowledge that his own father wouldn’t trust the Morrison legacy to him still burned, like a fire in his gut. It was what spurred him on. Prove the old man wrong. He’d always thought his father loved him. Then why cut you out? The fact that he could do that to him, shut him out without a word... The fact that Justin had to hear about it in the reading of the will, that was a special kind of hell.

Justin tugged open the door to the fourth floor from the stairwell and ran down to room 406. He found Martin, his uncle Lester, his aunt Mary and a few of the household staff who had been with his grandmother for years all around his grandmother’s room.

Grandma Lucy tried to push herself to sit straighter, but when she winced, he ran to her side. “I don’t think you’re supposed to move.” He turned his attention to Martin. “What happened? What did you do?” he yelled.

Martin rolled his eyes. “I didn’t do anything. I’m the one who found her collapsed in her office. I called an ambulance to get her to the hospital in LA. Then I called you, her precious grandson.” The note of jealousy rang clear as a bell.

From behind, a voice said, “If I were you two, I’d keep it down. Your grandmother needs rest. If you can’t give her that, I will have security escort you out.”

Justin turned to find a petite woman in a white lab coat, her dark hair pulled back off her face into a bun, her expression solemn. Her name tag read Dr. Jesslyn Wells.

“Are you my grandmother’s doctor?”

She gave a brusque nod. “Yes, I am. Now, can you and the rest of your family please give me some space so I can check my patient?” Her voice was stern, clipped. It told Justin that she was well versed in dealing with difficult people.

“I’m sorry.” The group backed away, but Justin moved to the foot of the bed. “I just don’t know what happened.”

Grandma Lucy waved her hand. “What happened is your cousin overreacted. My blood pressure’s just low, that’s all. I’m fine. I do not need to be in this hospital. Matter of fact, if you can get these IVs out of me, I’ll be on my way. I feel like a damn pincushion.”

Dr. Wells clucked as she checked his grandmother’s vitals, then wrote something on her clipboard. “Now, Lucy, we’ve had this conversation already. I’m not unhooking the machines. You need to stay for observation for at least a couple of days. You’re slightly dehydrated, and I’d like you to start eating a little bit more. Your blood pressure is low, and you’re fatigued. You really need to rest.”

Justin’s grandmother was having none of that. “Listen up, young lady, I’ve had more years on this planet by three times longer than you have. I know how I’m feeling. I was a nurse when I was young. So I know that I’ll be fine. You don’t need to keep me in here. You just want to bill insurance.”

Dr. Wells’s lips twitched. “Lucy, this is my area of expertise. I want to make sure you stick around to see any future great-grandchildren you may have. So I’m going to need you to listen to me right now.”

Justin had never seen anyone handle his grandmother so effectively. Because Grandma Lucy did not offer an argument. She frowned, closed her mouth and sat back. Dr. Wells had used the magic words. Great-grandchildren. His grandmother had been after him, Martin and their other cousins to procreate as quickly as possible. Justin was in no hurry. Hell, he was only twenty-five. Martin was older by a couple of years. She needed to direct her energy at him. The rest of their cousins were scattered in age, but there were some who were over thirty, and Grandma Lucy really should have been focused on them doing the marriage-and-kids rodeo. Not him, never him. He wasn’t going to mess up some poor kid, like his father had screwed him up. No way, no how. Plus, children involved settling down and that was certainly not going to happen. He liked his women available, flexible and transient.

Except Alex. Alex was different. She had been his best friend since college and was the most influential female in his life besides his grandma. And he liked her. There had never been anything between them. Which was their saving grace. Not that she wasn’t hot. She was. With those big brown eyes and dusting of freckles on her nose, Alex was gorgeous. In the beginning, he’d flirted with her, but she’d ignored him. Told him she couldn’t take him seriously. Best thing she could’ve ever done for the two of them. They were closer now than they would have been if she’d tried to explore the possibility of a relationship. He’d have slept with her, then run...very far away.

“Dr. Wells, can you tell us what happened or what’s going on?”

She sighed as she clicked her pen and tucked it back into her pocket. “Your grandmother is suffering from exhaustion. She’s been doing too much and taking on too much stress. Her blood pressure is all over the place. It was low and that’s why she collapsed, but since she’s been here...it’s spiked up, then shot down. I need to take a look at her medication. She will be fine, but she has to cut back from her daily activities and relax. That’s very important.”

The steel bar constricting his chest since Martin’s call loosened, but only a bit. “Okay, so what do we need to do for her?”

“Keep her relaxed, and her mind off the hotel business.” She put a hand up to stop his grandmother from talking and continued, “We don’t need her experiencing anxiety.”

Justin nodded. “Yeah, we can do that.” The relief washed over him like a tidal wave. All they had to do was keep her calm. That was his new number-one mission. He resided in San Diego, but with his hotel up and running now, and profitable after only a year, he could take more time away to see her; Catalina wasn’t far. He’d make the drive to LA, take the ferry over to the island and put in the quality time with her.

It sounded simple enough, except for one little fact... He never went home. Hadn’t gone home in a long time. But for Grandma Lucy, he could do it. He could put up with Martin and the rest of his family. For her, he’d do anything.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to continue making my rounds. Visiting hours are over in ten minutes, so now might be a good idea to say your goodbyes.”

As soon as Dr. Wells was gone, his grandmother started tugging at her IVs, and Justin put a hand over hers to halt her. “You heard the doctor. And you agreed. So stop that.” She grumbled but sat back, crossing her arms. “Now, Grandma, tell me what you need.” Whatever she wanted, he would make it work.

“I want everyone out.” Martin looked like he was going to protest, but she set her lips, and he knew better than to argue. When Justin made to go as well, she reached out an arm and held him back. “Not you.”

With everyone gone, he turned his attention to her. “What’s up, Grandma?”

“I didn’t want to go embarrassing you in front of the rest the family. I know how difficult it is for you to be around them. Especially Martin.”

And that was why he loved her. She would always go out of her way to protect him. “It’s okay, Grandma. Whatever you need.”

“Well, the doctor’s right. I do want to be around to see my future great-grandbabies. And given what’s happened, we can’t keep procrastinating things. I want my family around me. You haven’t been home in a long time. I want you to come for the holidays.”

Shit. That was last thing he wanted to do. Checking on her from time to time was one thing, but a big old holiday-family-dinner type thing? Not his bag. But it was for his grandmother. And she never did ask for much. “Okay, I’ll make that work.”

She nodded with satisfaction. “Good. I may not be able to travel for a while, so our trip up to Hawaii and my surf lessons will have to wait.”

He laughed. “Okay, I’ll take a rain check for now. But I think you’re gonna love it.”

“I don’t doubt it. Oh, and, Justin, make sure you bring that girlfriend of yours. I can’t believe I still haven’t met her. After all this time. I’d like to see the woman who’s going to be getting my ring one day.”

Oh no. He shifted on his feet. So what was the harm of one little white lie? And honestly, all he’d done was shield his grandmother from disappointment. Liar. He’d done it for himself. To keep her from meddling in his love life.

The woman was relentless. She kept insisting that he needed to be dating someone. Every time they’d been on one of their trips, she’d tried to set him up, so he’d made up a girlfriend. He never thought he’d have to produce her. But now she wanted to meet her. He was screwed.

“Oh, I don’t know, Grandma, she usually spends the holidays with her family.”

And then his grandmother pulled her trump card. Not only did she give him the big, sad brown eyes, but she sniffed. “You heard the doctor, Justin, I’m an old lady. I don’t need the stress. Now I want to meet her. I want to make sure she’s good enough for you.”

Damn it. “Okay, I’ll bring her with me over the holiday.” Now all he had to do was find someone who fit the bill. Because Grandma was too important for him to not make this happen.

* * *

Alexandra Winters was pretty sure this was not how osso buco was supposed to look. This wasn’t her fault. She didn’t cook. She did excellent takeout. Copious amounts of takeout. Cooking wasn’t her thing.

You have your first gallery opening to prepare for. You don’t need to be creating a dish for this man. Or rather, if she cared about him at all, she wouldn’t be attempting to make a meal.

His grandmother was in the hospital. And, since Justin was the closest thing to family that she had, she had to at least try to look out for him. Cooking was what you did, right? She’d learned about this ritual from movies. Not from her parents.

Her mother was always gallivanting around the world for her photographs, leaving Alex in the care of nannies when she was a child. And her father, he’d preferred his string of girlfriends to parenting, so she rarely saw him. She stared into the pot. Damn it. She’d screwed this up. But hey, it was the thought that counted, right? Besides, it wasn’t like Justin didn’t know that she couldn’t cook. They had no secrets. Except for the one she’d been holding on to for years.

From the moment they’d met, when he and his stupid frat brothers were trying to steal the fine-arts department’s founder’s statue, he’d known her through and through. And he’s been dragging you into his antics ever since.

Justin was good for her. She might be an artist, but most people told her she was far too serious. She never let go. Except in her art. Never had any fun. Yeah, fun was reserved for people who knew what the hell was going to happen the next day. Since she never knew growing up, she liked to have control over her destiny. Justin was the risk taker. He could go into any scenario without a plan and still come out smelling like roses.

The door to Justin’s condo swung open and immediately Justin started to cough. “Oh my God, did someone break in here and try to smoke me out of my own apartment?” He dropped his bag by the door and came running into the kitchen. “Alex, what the hell are you doing?”

She stopped stirring and turned to him. “I’m cooking?”

“Is that what we’re calling it?”

Alex wiped her hands on the apron, which had an attractive nearly naked guy on the front. “I was trying to make dinner so you didn’t feel too much pressure with everything happening.”

Justin stared at the stove for a long moment. Then his eyes darted to her, then back to the stove again. And finally, he just came over and wrapped his arms around her.

Alex automatically hugged him back. She didn’t normally do emotional displays. She wasn’t much of a hugger. The one exception was Justin. If he was giving out hugs, she was first in line to get one. Because you’re pathetic.

No, she wasn’t pathetic. They were friends. Best friends. Which is why you’ll never, ever be with him. She shook off the thought. She didn’t want to be with Justin. Liar. Okay, so there was a part of her that at one point had thought she could be with Justin. That part had died a long, slow, lonely death. It was never going to happen. Justin was not hers. He was her best friend, and she’d seen what happened to a woman who got too close to the flame. She was never getting burned like that. And the more honest she was with herself about that, the less getting embraces from Justin hurt on an emotional level.

“I’m so sorry about your grandmother.”

He shook his head, moving his chin back and forth over her hair. Her wild mane of curls was already a mess. She was dreading wash day, but she didn’t complain that his actions were inducing more tangles. “What do you need me to do?”

“You’re already doing it. Just being here. And even though your culinary skills need major help, the thought is really what counts. How do you feel about takeout?”

“Now, that I can do. Sorry I tried to poison you.”

He chuckled. “It’s not the first time. I don’t know why you insist on trying to cook me anything ever.” Then he added, “Not to worry—bag’s by the door. I had a feeling you’d be here.”

And just like that, Justin had reversed the roles. The man was all things to all people. “You weren’t supposed to do that. I was supposed to be looking after you. Not the other way around.”

He shrugged. “For the record, we’re best friends. So we take care of each other. When I moved out here after grad school, who actually had a place to stay and let me crash on their couch for six months?”

Yeah, the early days. She’d been apprenticing to a painter, Peter Maine, at his gallery here in San Diego. She’d sold a piece early and those proceeds covered school. She’d saved all her money and was able to afford a decent place to stay. It had been like summer camp.

“How is she?”

Justin let her go, then leaned back against the fridge, one leg propped back against it. “She’s actually not terrible. She’ll stay there a few more days for observation. But the doctor thinks there might be a problem with her medication, so they’re trying to figure out the right dosage. Until they do that, they said no stress, no running around, she’s to take it easy.”

Alex snorted. She might not know Grandma Lucy personally, but from everything Justin had told her, the old lady was never slowing down. “How’d she take that?”

Justin shook his head. “About as well as can be expected for her. She was in no kind of mood for that noise.”

Alex cocked her head and studied his face intently before hopping up onto the counter. “Okay, spill, Justin. You always have that look when you aren’t sure how to get out of a problem.”

He rubbed the end of his nose, and Alex wondered just what kind of trouble he’d gotten himself into.

“So you know how Grandma has been trying to get me to settle down?”

She nodded. And every time Justin brought home some blonde with big boobs and an attitude, she often had to bite her own tongue. But that was neither here nor there. “Yeah, what’s that have to do with anything?”

“Well, I might have told her I had a girlfriend to get her off my back.”

Alex rolled her eyes. “Of course you did. Why would you do that? Because at some point, she’s going to request to see this girl.”

The look on his face told her that something just like that had happened. “Justin. Spill it.”

“I know it probably wasn’t a good idea, but I was desperate. She was constantly trying to set me up with girls. They would show up at the hotel. At my gym. I had to get her off my back. So I made up the perfect girl that would never have to be seen. One that was so busy with her career. Problem is, now Grandma Lucy wants me home for the holidays. And she wants me to bring said girl.”

Alex stared at him for a long moment. Blinked several times, tried to open her mouth to say something, anything. But nothing came out. Finally, she managed, “Justin. She’s sick. What are you going to do now? You clearly can’t tell her that you made up a girlfriend. That will stress her out.”

“I know. I know. I should never have lied. But now I can’t just tell the truth because she’s sick. She’s supposed to stay calm. So I’m caught between a rock and a bad situation.”

Alex tried to force her brain to work. “You need to figure this out. Is there someone in your roster? Is this a couple of days including Christmas?”

“Christmas.” He nodded.

“Well, I’ll think of something before then.”

“You don’t have to think of something. I already have a solution.” Justin grinned.

“Yeah? What’s that? If it involves hiring a hooker, you’re crazy. Maybe it’s better to tell her the truth and not dig a bigger hole for yourself.”

Justin’s brows snapped down. “No. I’m not telling her the truth. She needs me to have a girlfriend, so I’m going to have a girlfriend. I’ll do anything to make sure she gets better and on the road to recovery.”

And that was part of Justin’s problem, he was always wanting to be all things to all people. But he never spent too much time worrying about what would actually make him happy.

“So what can I do?” she asked.

“Well, since you’re trying to make me feel better and you are my best friend in the entire world, I was sort of hoping you’d pretend to be my girlfriend.”

Her heart leaped in an attempt to escape from her chest, beating so hard and so fast, Alex was sure there would be splinters and shards of her rib cage floating around. He was asking her out? No, silly. Listen to his words. Pretend. Girlfriend. And suddenly her heart stuttered and skipped to a stop. The pain was so immediate and so hot, she had to fight to not show any expression.

He wasn’t suddenly going to ask her out. Out of the blue. No, he was asking her to be his girlfriend because he needed a way out of this mess. Under normal circumstances, she would do anything for him. Except this. Because if she did this, then he would know.

He’d know that she’d been lying this whole time. And she wasn’t going to expose her soft side. “Justin, I love you. And you know that. But I’m not going to pretend to be your girlfriend.”

Chapter 2

Hell. She’d said no? Justin really hadn’t considered a negative response. “Alex, look, I know. I know you hate to lie. You’re not very good at it. But I am up the creek with no paddle. I need my wing-girl. Wing-woman. Whatever, you know what I need. It’s just for a couple of days, a week tops, and it’s not like we weren’t going to spend the holidays together anyway.”

They did have a plan for Christmas. Christmas Eve would be at her place and there would be takeout and alcohol and holiday movies. Then Christmas Day, they would start at his place; he was pretty good at breakfast. His grandmother had taught him. That was the best day, opening presents.

Most of the artwork he had in his place were her pieces. And though each of them had been given as gifts, he knew full well how much they were worth. Even though to him they were priceless, to the rest the world they were...expensive.

In the evening, they would go to the big Christmas spread at his hotel. It was a tradition he’d started the first Thanksgiving they were open. It was so successful, he did it again for Christmas, with employees and guests alike.

So far, he hadn’t been dating anyone over the last few holidays. Which was fine by him. But if he ever was, she’d just have to get used to the fact that Alex was in his life. Yeah, how well do you think that’s going to go when your new girlfriend realizes that sometimes you have inappropriate thoughts about your bestie?

He shoved that thought aside. And to be fair, he hadn’t had inappropriate thoughts in, oh, days now. That was good. It wasn’t his fault. She was stunning, with all that beautiful café-au-lait skin that always seemed to glow, it looked so healthy. And her hair that always smelled like lemon-meringue pie. He knew it was her hair products. But he almost loved hugging her just for that. Almost. There were other reasons he liked having her in his arms. Reasons he wasn’t going to explore right now. He needed to get her on board. “Look, I know. This is a huge imposition.”

“Justin, you know I would do anything for you. But this is ridiculous. I’m a bad liar. And Grandma Lucy will be able to tell. And I’m pretty sure they’ll notice when you bring me home and I’m like ‘Hey, my name is Alex.’ They’ll put two and two together that the person that you’ve been calling Alex all this time is somehow standing in as your girlfriend.”

Okay, he hadn’t really thought of that. But that could work. ’Cause he could just pull the “Yes, we’re best friends. We also started dating” card. No biggie. That would totally work. “Relax. I doubt anyone will find it hard to believe that we started dating after being friends for a while.”

Her tiny frown only deepened and she opened her mouth, then closed it again. Please don’t say no. Please don’t say no. Please do not say no.

She chewed her bottom lip. “Justin, this is such a bad idea on so many fronts.”

She didn’t want to do it. Not that he blamed her. She understood he had issues with his family.

“Look, it’s fine.” He pushed off from the refrigerator and came over, took her hand and laid his head on her shoulder. When in doubt, use charm. Lots of charm. He’d gotten used to it. And could generally talk his way into or out of any situation. All he had to do was find the precise button to push. Figure out the right person to be. He was brilliant at determining what people needed. And being that person for them.

What does that mean for you? Who do you want to be? Well, the person he wanted to be and who he was were two different types of people. The man that he really was, no one loved back. No one except Grandma Lucy. And right now, he would do anything to make her happy. And keep her healthy. And if that meant begging, then he would gladly get on his knees.

Justin lifted his head. Alex was scant inches away from him.

His first thought was God, I wonder how her lips taste. The next thought was also not helpful. They look soft. And then the next one was far less helpful and was way more naughty. That wasn’t so much of a thought as it was a visual of what they might get up to after their lips connected. He shook his head. Damn it. He’d been doing so well, managing to go whole days without a sexual thought about Alex. Because as much as he loved her, if he ever acted on even one of those notions, that would end everything. “Tell me what you need, Alex. And I’ll make it happen. Right now I’m pleading with you. As my best friend, I need your help.”

* * *

The man was good. Only problem was, Alex couldn’t do what he wanted. She couldn’t just give in. Because then he’d know. For the most part, she’d hid it well. That ridiculous sliver of hope she carried around that one day the sexy Justin Morrison would look at her like he did the string of women he brought around. He never looked at her like that. He viewed her like she was family. Which was nice. And important. But that deep, dark hidden part of her wanted so much more. If she pretended to do this, then she was going to expose herself. He was going to see.

“Look, I think this is a bad idea, and I’ve got the gallery opening on New Year’s Eve. I can’t drop everything just to go to Catalina for a few days.”

“I know. I will do everything possible to help you with this. You tell me what you need and I’ll give you hotel resources. I will make it happen so you can do this. I will clear any schedules, get a helicopter to fly you back to San Diego for meetings, whatever you want.”

Alex shook her head. The man was exasperating. And sexy. And sweet. His dark brown eyes, the color of melted chocolate, implored her. And she wanted to give him anything. She wanted to give him everything. No. We are not giving him everything. This is a way to get your heart broken. Yes, yes, it was. And she was not going to be one of the many who had their heart broken by Justin Morrison. Of all the women in his life, she stuck around, because they hadn’t gone there with each other. They were friends. Just friends. “Okay, look, I know you need the help, whatever. Sheila, she’s your PR person. She’s smart, fun, and she’d totally get it. She is all about the image. Me, I constantly have paint under my fingernails, and generally somewhere else on my body that I don’t even notice, until you tell me.”

“Sheila? Have you forgotten that she is a lesbian?”

Good point. But she might still be willing to help out her boss. Although, that wasn’t ideal. Because then Sheila would really be lying. Plus, the two of them would have no chemistry and it would show.

“Okay, so no Sheila. What about Madison? Madison likes you a lot.”

Justin scoffed. “Madison? Are you insane? It took me months to get her off of calling me three times a day every day. Bunny boilers need not apply.”

Despite herself, Alex laughed. “You are so wrong. Just because she made it known that she was totally into you did not make her a bunny boiler.”

“It makes her clingy. And I don’t need to confuse matters. You’re the perfect choice. No waters to muddy. You know me better than anyone. You could help me navigate the obstacles of the family. I need you. Not Sheila, or Madison, or some other hired hand. I need my best friend.”

She knew it was an honor. She’d give him anything. He didn’t need to know that. Because she was never going to tell him. “Justin, this is a bad idea.”

“It’s only for a week. Just for the holidays. I’ll make sure you get to LA to do everything that you need to do for the gallery opening. And I’ll give you all the support you need. I just need three or four days. Catalina. And technically you’ll be just as far away from LA as you are now, so it’ll be fine. Please, Alex, I need you.”

And because she was a fool, and because she cared too much about him, Alex sighed. “Okay, fine, I’ll do it.”

Chapter 3

“You agreed to do what?”

Alex shifted under the scrutiny of her assistant Cassie’s gaze. “I said that I would pretend to be his girlfriend for a couple of days. It’s no big deal.” Alex busied herself getting the gallery ready, fiddling with Bubble Wrap on the corner of a canvas.

Cassie put her hand on her hips. “Look, I know I’m just the assistant here, but I’d like to think we’re friends, too. After all, we survived working for Peter together. He was a miserable old goat, but he put us together. Now I’m about to way overstep my boundary here.”

Alex shifted on her bare feet. If Justin saw her, he’d roll his eyes. But she preferred to work without the restriction of shoes. It was more comfortable, and something about it made her feel free. “Okay, let’s have it.”

“How long have you been in love with him?”

The heat hit Alex first. Then embarrassment that her deep, dark secret that she’d been holding back from everyone, for years, was plain for someone to see. She and Cassie had known each other since she’d moved to San Diego. At the time, Cassie had worked for the artist Alex apprenticed for. When he’d moved to Europe, Cassie had stayed on to work with Alex.

“I—What—I don’t know what you mean.”

Cassie wrapped the next canvas like a pro. The medium-sized painting, featuring streaks of reds, blues, purples and golds and titled simply Closet, was one of her favorites. The closet was the metaphor for her life and the jumbled mess that it was. And now you’re putting it on display to be judged by everybody.

“Okay, look, I’m totally out of my lane here. But I like you. And I know you’re not one for, like, oversharing or getting real close and whatnot, but I’m worried about you. If you think you can go to Catalina and be a stand-in girlfriend, you’re nuts. I see the way you look at him. I’ve looked at one too many guys like that. Like they walk on water.”

Alex winced. “Is it really that obvious?” she whispered.

Cassie shook her head. “No. No, don’t worry about that. It’s just I spend a lot of time with you. And Justin is always here. So I spend a lot of time with the two of you together. I just see these things. What I know is that with proximity, stuff is harder to hide. So what is your plan? Because I’m not letting my boss lady go to Catalina with a piece of toilet paper stuck to her shoe.”

The metaphor gave Alex a great idea for a painting. Focus on what the girl is asking you.

“Look, I get what you’re saying, but what was I supposed to do? He is my best friend. And he is as close to family as I’ve got.”

“So you can just pretend to be his girlfriend and hope he doesn’t notice that, hey, you’re in love with him?”

“I’m not in love with him. I just—”

“Sometimes you hold on just a second too long when he gives you a hug. When you think he’s not watching, you inhale deeply just to get a contact high from his cologne. Every time he holds your hand and pulls you close, you imagine being with him and what it would be like if he finally one day turned to you and said ‘Let’s do this. Give it a go?’ I’ve been that girl. A lot. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

Her heart thundered against her chest. If Cassie had seen it, she had no hope being locked in on the island with Justin and all his relatives. He’ll find out. And then your friendship will be over.

Alex flushed. “Oh no, this is a disaster. What was I thinking?”

Cassie busied herself. She set another canvas aside, then marked it off her checklist before placing it in its location in the cart. She had a system. When it came to the creative side, that was all Alex, but the organization, the getting pieces to where they needed to be, the customer service, that was all Cassie. She ran everything behind the scenes and Alex would be lost without her.

“I’m not in love with him. We are best friends. And he is like my family. And I wanted to help him out.” Damn, that sounded lame even to her ears. She was so totally screwed. “Oh my God. Would have I done? How do I get out of it?”

“Well, honey, I’m not sure you can get out of it. He said his grandma’s really sick, right? You must’ve had a plan when you said yes.”

“I don’t know. I was sort of gonna do what I’ve always done. You know, pretend it’s not there, bury the feelings deep under years of dirty laundry, where no one should ever go. That was my whole plan. That’s it.”

Cassie shook her head. “I swear, for someone so bright and intuitive, I’m surprised you really don’t want to do anything about your feelings.”

“You don’t understand. I’ve only ever had Justin.” And now Alex could see the problem with that. She’d never really had any close girlfriends. She’d never let anyone get close. Except, Cassie was trying to be a friend right now.

Maybe it was the desperation, maybe it was her spiking blood pressure or the blood roaring to her head that made her think twice. But all she knew was that Cassie was offering some kind of life preserver. And it was nice.

If you get too close, she could hurt you, too. But before Alex could latch onto that thought, Cassie smiled at her. “Look, I’m here if you want to talk about it. I think you and I could be friends. Besides, one of these days, you might need someone more than Justin for advice and stuff.”

Cassie had a point. And for once, Alex liked the idea of having someone else to confide in. Because right about now, she needed all the support she could get.

Chapter 4

“I don’t get it. Explain to me why I need to buy new clothes?”

Justin tapped Alex on the nose. She really was adorable. “I think you look awesome. No matter what you wear.” Even now, with her hair up in a messy bun and dressed in a long-sleeved T-shirt and baggy boyfriend jeans, she was cute. Actually stunning, really, bare of any makeup; this was how he liked her. But on closer inspection, there was some paint in her hair. And on her jeans. And also on the hem of the camisole she wore under the long-sleeved T-shirt, which was sticking out. And of course there was paint on her nails. But, well, he was used to that by now.

“Honey, you’ve got paint all over you.”

Her eyes went wide. “I do not. I cleaned up well this time.” He subtly pointed out the jeans and the camisole. And she cursed. “Damn it. I swear I put on clean clothes. I don’t know what happens. Between actually getting dressed in the confines of my bedroom from naked to out the door, something goes very wrong. Every time.”

The moment the word made it past her lips, his brain offered all kinds of visuals and how she would look naked. His favorite was Alex in bed, her dark hair fanning out over the pillow. Paint in all sorts of strategic places that he wanted to kiss. What the hell was that? He shook his head. This was Alex. Why did he want to kiss her? The best part about them was that they were friends. He’d never gone there with her. And he never would. He was not looking to screw that up. Except...that naughty image of Alex wouldn’t go away. And this time the paint was replaced by chocolate. Damn.

“Okay, fine, I guess I need to get some new clothes.”

“Honestly, Alex, you always look great to me. Paint and all. But you don’t know them. Martin, his parents. All except Grandma Lucy. They’re a bunch of vipers.”

She shrugged. “It’s okay, between you and Cassie, I’m getting some truth that I wasn’t ready for over the last couple of days.”

“What did Cassie have to say?”

Alex’s brows furrowed, and she took a moment too long to answer the question. “Just that I’m by myself a lot. And it wouldn’t hurt to have more than just one friend.”

“You have more than one friend. You have lots of them. We were hanging out with a group of them at my house the other night.”

She shook her head. “Your friends. I go along for the ride because I get to kick it with you, so I tolerate other people.”

“You’re crazy, everyone likes you.”

Justin laughed even as he shook his head. She might think she was a loner type but people naturally gravitated toward her. She could be serious, or silly, or just thought provoking. She was so layered. And not just about art. As long as he’d known her, she’d been obsessed with music of all kinds, except country, she liked to say. And books. They were an escape, she’d explained, but painting, painting was life.

She shrugged again. “Yeah, but you know that saying, ‘Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you.’”

He laughed. “So you’re okay with doing this?”

“I can be easy, just as long as you’re not trying to replace my entire wardrobe. If it’s just a couple of things, then no big deal.”

“That’s the spirit.” He took her hand, the zing of electricity coursed up his arms, and he flexed his hand around hers. Dude, get it together. This is Alex. More and more lately, whenever he was around her, the current was too much to contain. It was also getting hard to ignore. He seriously considered cutting down on their hanging out sessions. Problem was he liked being around her too much. “Let’s go shopping.”

“Fine. Alex Winters reporting for torture.”

After an hour and a half, his feet hurt, and the more dresses that Alex tried on and came out to show him, the more irritable he got. Not because she looked bad in any of them. Quite the contrary. That was the problem. She modeled dresses that showed a little more skin than he was used to seeing from her. Because she was painting all the time, she kept her wardrobe simple, usually leggings, tank top, T-shirt, occasionally she’d toss on a sundress, but nothing like what she’d been trying on at the upscale boutique he’d taken her to. Everything was short and formfitting or cleavage baring and had a slit up to here that nearly showed all the lady parts. Damn, those were his favorite parts. He didn’t want the world to see them. She came out in another red number, the vermillion shade complementing her café-au-lait skin and dark eyes. His mouth watered.

With cutouts at the sides, it showed just the right amount of skin, too. And as for length, cocktail. Her legs were mile high.

He cleared his throat. “That one. That one definitely has to come to Catalina.”

Alex tortured him some more by twirling in the outfit. “Are you sure? Doesn’t exactly say Christmas.”

“It’s red. Red equals Christmas.”

“But you don’t think it’s too...?”

“Sexy?”

She nodded.

His dick agreed.

“It’s perfect. You’re getting the dress. Deal with it.”

Alex wrinkled her nose. “When did you get this bossy? I have my own dresses.”

“Oh please. When we get back to your place, show me one dress that does not have paint on it.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but then quickly snapped it shut again. She narrowed her gaze at him, and her lips were twitching.

After he paid for the red dress, she insisted on paying half for the simple green one. He didn’t want to let her do it, but he knew how important it was to her to pull her weight.

On the pavement, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She turned her face up at him, her gaze warm and light and happy, and, oh hell, he really wanted to—What in the world was wrong with him?

“Well, if it isn’t the Siamese twins. I see you didn’t trade up after I left you, Alex.”

Justin held back a groan as he and Alex turned. Her ex stood on the sidewalk glaring at them. “Brian, still a prick, I see.” He had to fight the overwhelming urge to hit the guy. He’d hurt Alex bad and didn’t deserve to walk the earth.

Alex was unusually taciturn. She was generally quick with the comebacks. When it came to this guy, it was like she had nothing. He still had no idea how Alex had ever dated him. He only ever thought about himself, and to make matters worse, he didn’t handle his responsibilities with the bills. And Brian was one of those artists who thought his talent was on the same level as hers. He eventually gave up and became an art dealer. He didn’t deserve her. And you do?

Brian’s smirk morphed into a sneer. “Alex, if you finally dump this loser, you could have a real chance. I might still consider taking you back. You have to get rid of him first, though.”

That did it. “Listen, you little prick—”

She put a hand on Justin’s chest and nuzzled close. “Justin, sweetheart, calling him a prick is an insult to all pricks.”

Justin bit back his chuckle.

Brian, though, didn’t seem amused. “You know, I was the best thing that ever happened to you, Alex. If you’d just paid a little more attention to me and hadn’t been so selfish—”

And that was the fundamental problem with Brian. He believed everything he needed had to come first.

Justin tightened his arm around Alex’s shoulders and pulled her close before kissing her forehead. “Then, Brian, I want to just say, you guys breaking up was the best thing to ever happen to me. Because she realized what a loser you are, and she’s mine now.”

Brian’s brows shot up. Alex snuggled into his side. And when she tipped up her megawatt smile at him, Justin couldn’t help himself. He told himself it was practice for what they would have to do in a few weeks. The truth was, the membrane between them that was a separation between friendship and something more was getting thinner and thinner these days. He dipped his head and slid his lips over hers.

With a surprised gasp, Alex parted her lips, and all doubts terminated on Justin’s end.

All thought. All breath. All basic bodily functions ceased. All that mattered to him, in this moment, was the feel of Alex’s soft lips under his. The slide of her tongue over his. A deep shudder racked his body in the instant his lips touched hers.

Alex wrapped her arms around his waist, and every nerve cell in his body shouted Yes. He knew they had an audience, so he had to make it good, right? Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. He slid his tongue over hers, tangling and retreating, coaxing her tongue into a dance.

She made this sexy whimpering noise at the back of her throat, and it was all he could do to not glide his hands over her perfect ass and press her flush against him, into his erection.

And then the warning bells clanged in his head. This was Alex. But this felt so good. So damn good. Especially when he could feel her nails digging into his back. He pulled away. But still held on to her, for the benefit of Brian.

Apparently, her ex was not pleased about their new relationship.

“You told me. You swore to me there was nothing between you two.”

Alex shrugged, giving Justin that sweet smile again, and he couldn’t help himself—he squeezed her into his side. He needed more of her. He wanted to hold her tighter.

“What I do with my love life is no longer any of your concern. Now, if you’ll excuse me, Justin and I have somewhere to be.”

As they walked away, Justin felt her muscles relax marginally. Brian was such a jerk. He’d always treated her like he should be the primary in the relationship. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. He’s just a blowhard. Besides, that was totally worth the look on his face.”

Her grin was friendly and bright, and he wanted to kiss her again. But that was not going to happen. A simple kiss from her had felt better than anything he’d shared with anybody in months, maybe years.

Didn’t matter. He was not going there... All he had to do for the week they’d be away was not kiss her again. That couldn’t be that hard to do. Could it? He hoped not. “Yeah, that was totally worth the look on his face.”

Chapter 5

“Are you okay with this?”

As the wind blew Alex’s hair around her face, she tucked the errant strands behind her ears. She’d opted for a straight look today, figuring she didn’t want to scare the Morrisons with her wild curls just yet. Christmas Day she’d introduce the full Afro. “Yeah, fine. Just trying to settle in as Justin Morrison’s girlfriend.”

Justin laughed. “You realize you’re closer to me than any other girlfriend I’ve ever had in my life?”

Alex chewed her lip. That was not exactly what she wanted to hear. But whatever. It was too late to back out now. She could do this. Besides, push come to shove, she could always call Cassie for an SOS. An emergency that required her to come home. “You realize that’s not promising to me, right?”

Justin laughed. “Well, it’s the truth. We Morrison men can be hell on women.”

“Why do I have a feeling that’s more about you than being a Morrison?”

He grinned. “Because you know me.”

That stupid grin got her every time. The butterflies whacked their wings low in her belly, and she would do anything to see that expression again. Yeah, she knew it. She needed help.

They pulled up into the marina, and she couldn’t help but be struck by the sheer beauty of it. Granted, they lived in San Diego, so a picturesque sunset over a marina was nothing new, but Catalina certainly was breathtaking.

Justin helped her with their bags and she had no choice but to follow him outside. She expected to see someone. Family, even Grandma Lucy. From what she’d heard about the old lady, she’d have fought tooth and nail to meet Justin at the ferry stop. But there was no one there, save a single chauffeur, holding up a sign that said Morrison. Seriously? Not one person in his family could be bothered to drive over and pick them up? Okay, then. She needed to do a quick mental recalculation on his family and what it meant. Norman Rockwell would not have painted this family.

As if Justin could read her thoughts, which was, hello, scary, he said, “Don’t bother being surprised that no one came here to meet us. I’m not.”

That single line told her everything she needed to know. No one besides his grandmother was looking forward to Justin coming home. And no one in the family was deserving of his love and affection. She would just have to take over the caring duties, then.

The car wound around the island, driving along the coast before finally pulling up to the Morrison estate, which sat behind the Morrison Hotel and had a 1930s F. Scott Fitzgerald glamour to it. Justin opened the door for her. “The palace awaits, milady.”

When they made their way to the front door, it opened and Alex plastered what she hoped was a winning smile on her face.

Out walked a man who could’ve easily been Justin’s brother. Their frames were similar, but while their eyes were the same shade of brown, Justin’s always looked warm like melting chocolate, and this guy’s were flinty, dark and cold.

“Well, I would say the prodigal has returned, but no one wanted you home.”

Alex scowled at the guy. She was trying to be on her best behavior as she waited for Justin to say something. Even better to knock the guy on his ass. But her best friend did nothing. Merely clenched his jaw and ignored the comment.

Well, she couldn’t stand for that. “Justin, sweetheart, who’s this asshole?”

The other man cocked his head. “Well, this one is feisty. I do like feisty. Pretty, too. Sweetheart, are you sure you’re supposed to be with this guy? I’ve got more money. Better looking, too. I’m Martin.”

Alex twitched to slap him. If only Justin would let her hit him. Justin grabbed the last of the bags from the valet and tipped him. Before Alex could open her mouth, he leaned down and whispered, “Remember, we’re here for Grandma Lucy. Ignore him. You’re only succeeding in giving him what he wants.”

The problem was, ignoring idiots was not her strong suit, except for Brian. Damn. Her big mouth was why Justin liked her. It was also why a lot of other people didn’t. You came for him. She sighed. She had come for him. So she’d have to play his way. “I’m Alex, Justin’s girlfriend.”

She would just go ahead and ignore that happy buzzing feeling those words gave her.

Martin grinned at her. It was more leer, really, than grin. “I’m Martin. And I’m CEO of Morrison Hotels.” He said it like he was announcing at some grand ball. She didn’t have the heart to tell him he should wait for someone else to announce him first.

“Well, you must be very proud of yourself.” It was the nicest thing she could think of to say. Because what she really wanted to say was high on the not-appropriate list.

Behind Martin someone put a hand on his arm and tapped him out of the way. When he stumbled to the side, a diminutive woman with a shock of white hair, aviator sunglasses and a wide grin said, “I’ve been waiting for you two to show up.” Considering she’d been in the hospital, Grandma Lucy was spry enough to stride over to her grandson and wrap her thin arms around him, squeezing tight.

Now, this... This was what Alex wanted from his family. The love and devotion were clear and glowing on Lucy’s face. The old woman stepped back and took a proper look at her grandson. “You look like you haven’t been sleeping. I certainly hope it’s not because you’re worried about me,” she said to him.

Justin shifted on his feet and avoided her gaze. “It’s good to see you, Grandma. This is Alex.”

Grandma Lucy turned and scrutinized her. “I do like it when my grandson exceeds expectations.” She reached out and gave Alex a tight hug.

Damn. Wasn’t this woman supposed to be sick?

Grandma Lucy stepped back and nodded her approval. “Oh yes, you’ll do just fine.” Then she turned to her grandson. “Alex? Haven’t you been telling me for years about your best friend, Alex?”

Justin scratched the back of his neck. “Yeah, well, Alex is my best friend. She’s just also my girlfriend.”

Grandma Lucy nodded. “I approve. Now, let’s get on inside. There’s cooking to be done and rooms to be assigned. Martin, stop standing around and come get their bags. Take them up to their rooms.”

Martin sputtered. “But we have valets for that.”

Grandma Lucy leveled a look on her other grandson that made him jump. Martin hopped to it, took the bags from Justin. She gave Martin a satisfied nod as he lugged them inside. She leaned in and said to Alex, “Sometimes you just need to know how to handle men.”

Alex fought a grin. She liked Grandma Lucy. Maybe this Christmas wasn’t going to be so terrible after all.

“Now, Justin, I put you and Alex in the blue room. South facing so you’ll get plenty of light. And you’ll be able to see the shore from there.”

Alex frowned. The blue room? As in one room? “Um, Miss Lucy. I know how traditional you must be—I wouldn’t dream of spending the night in the same room as Justin.” She sent Justin a beseeching glance, silently pleading with him to do something. Justin, come on. Come through for me.

Justin shook his head. “Grandma Lucy. Since when have you been down for cohabitation? With Martin’s girlfriend, you railed about how it wasn’t respectful under your roof. Now you’re sticking me and Alex in the same room?”

Grandma Lucy just waved him off. “I was saying that because I didn’t like the girl. She was a gold-digging wh—”

“Grandma Lucy,” he said with the faintest hint of warning in his voice.

His grandmother shrugged then took Alex’s hand. “Well, I call a spade a spade. And that’s what she was. And that’s why I didn’t want her digging her claws any more into my grandson. But of course Martin doesn’t listen to me. And that, one day, will bite him in the ass.” She led the way to the foyer, then turned around and smiled at both of them. “Go on, now, Justin, kiss your girlfriend.”

Alex froze. What the hell? There was no way she could endure another kiss from Justin. The other day when they were shopping, it was one thing to make Brian jealous. But she couldn’t possibly kiss him just because. Her heart couldn’t take it. Neither could her libido. Incinerating in the Morrison home was not a way to impress, for sure.

Justin shifted from foot to foot. Then leaned in and gave Alex a kiss on the cheek. “Grandma, is there mistletoe all over this house?”

Grandma Lucy giggled. “Just because your grandfather is long gone doesn’t mean I can’t feel the romantic spirit of Christmas.”

“I never thought of Christmas as particularly romantic,” Alex said.

Grandma Lucy patted her hand. “That’s because you never had someone special to spend it with. Now you have my grandson. And, Justin, if you hope to keep a woman, you have to kiss her better than that. Do it again and this time put your back into it.”

Alex couldn’t help it. She sputtered, and the laugh broke free, echoing around the expanse of the high-ceilinged foyer. Yeah, you keep laughing—he’s about to kiss you in a minute, and you two need to make it look real. Damn. She turned to face Justin and licked her lips. His gaze was pinned to her tongue as if his entire focus was on how she might taste. When Justin leaned over, he gently mouthed, Make it look real. And Alex swallowed hard.

When his lips brushed over hers and his hands moved around her waist to pull her close, her mind reeled. As the blood rushed in her skull, her knees felt too weak to support her weight. Right there in the front of Justin’s grandmother, Alex was melting. Into a pool of hormones and need and—But before she could even settle in and enjoy herself, it was over too soon. He pulled back and then brushed his thumb over her bottom lip. All Alex could do was blink in confusion and wonder and—Oh right. Grandma Lucy was saying something to her.

“Now, see, that was a kiss. Justin, honey, you better learn to do that all the time if you’re to keep this beauty.”

“Grandma, no antics. Alex is shy. She doesn’t like flaunting our relationship in front of everyone.”

Yes. That was exactly what they’d discussed. Alex wanting to keep her private life private. As a reason for not showing too much affection to each other. But screw that plan. Alex was now all about demonstrating passion. She might slip Grandma Lucy a five under the table to suggest that she kiss Justin again.

Grandma Lucy just shook her head. “Nonsense. When you love your man, don’t you worry about who’s watching you. Love with your whole heart, honey. Now, you two get upstairs, freshen up and come to the kitchen.”

Justin groaned. “Grandma, I thought the whole point was you were supposed to be relaxing.”

“Oh good Lord, boy, you talk too much, and you worry even more. I have help in the kitchen. I’m just there to supervise, and eat chocolate-chip cookies.”

Justin’s stomach rumbled. Alex shook her head. The man could literally be controlled by his food. “Chocolate-chip cookies?”

Grandma Lucy grinned as she went down the hall. “You two just get settled, then come on down. You can have as many as you can eat.”

Justin took Alex’s hand and squeezed gently. “I’m sorry. My family can be—”

“It’s not your fault. But you know what? I like your grandma. She’s fun.”

“Yeah, but you have a lot of other things to handle. My crazy relatives are not what you should be dealing with right now.”

“It’s fine. So what are we doing with our shared-room situation?”

“Don’t worry about it. From what I remember, that room’s a decent size since it was originally designed as a suite. We’ve got plenty of space and I’ll sleep on the pullout couch.” They reached their room door and found their bags neatly stacked outside. Perfect.

She turned the knob and pushed to open the door, then froze in the doorway. Behind her, Justin groaned. “Alex, what are you doing?”

“Justin, you need to see this.”

Justin leaned around her and peered into the room. There was an enormous king-size bed against the far wall, and a sitting area for reading. The bright, bold colors spoke to her. She loved everything in it. Except for the one little problem. That couch that Justin had been talking about, it was gone. And the floors were not carpeted; they were hardwood. It looked like she and Justin would probably be sharing a bed tonight.

Chapter 6

Justin stewed all the way through dinner. As his grandmother chatted excitedly with Alex, and the rest of his family asked her about her paintings, her career and her upcoming gallery show, he was too busy trying to think of a way out of this predicament.

Martin leaned over. “What’s got your panties in a twist?”

“For once in your life, Martin, shut the hell up,” Justin muttered.

Grandma Lucy looked up. “Justin, honey, are you okay? You barely touched your roast.”

Alex was quick on the defense. They’d been covering each other’s asses for so long, she knew exactly when he needed her. “Um, Grandma Lucy, we did have a really big lunch. And you know Justin when he sees something he wants—he has to have more than one helping.”

Justin bit back a groan. For once, Alex was not helping the situation.

Martin chuckled next to him. “I’m the same way,” he said to Alex with a smirk. Then when no one was listening, he leaned over to Justin. “I think now that I’ve gotten to know Alex, I can see the temptation to go back for seconds on that.”

Justin knew Martin was deliberately attempting to get under his skin. He would not bite. He would not bite. He could not bite. But damned if he didn’t want to hit that smug expression off his cousin’s face.

Across the table, Martin’s parents chatted amicably with Alex. And interestingly enough, not one of them commented on the fact that she wasn’t the usual socialite blonde that they would’ve expected. Thank God for small favors. Although, his aunt and uncle did occasionally toss out some privileged comment about who would dare send their child to public school, and boarding school was really best for children. Alex just ignored their pretentiousness.

His cousins Jason and Mack wouldn’t be in town until tomorrow, so at least tonight’s dinner was a small group. He didn’t have to pretend for too many people.

He was so good at putting on a show. Depending on the situation. In particular with his family. He deliberately wore that air of being unfazed. He was really good at that one. He’d been practicing it for years. And he was exactly who they needed him to be. The loser underdog. He knew some of the relatives disregarded his father’s marriage, and in turn he felt their attitude toward him was dismissive. Which was fine by him because his boutique hotel was already in the black. He was proving them wrong. Just by existing. Just by having tried and not crumbling under the pressure.

After the plates were clear of the dinner, Scotch was passed around, along with the bread pudding. Alex yawned next to him, which caught his grandmother’s attention. “Alex, honey, you look exhausted. Given that you and Justin were traveling from San Diego, then had to contend with the traffic and the ferry, why don’t you two get up to bed? I’m headed in that direction myself. Doctor’s orders and all that. Can you imagine she told me I need to be in bed by nine every night?” Grandma Lucy shook her head.

Alex laughed. “Yeah, just with this gallery opening, I’ve been burning the candle at both ends. I need to do some hard-core relaxing.”

Martin was there with a comeback. “I can help you relax.” And just when Justin was about to stand and knock him flat on his ass, he added, “A lot of sightseeing to do on the island, all very chill. I can make sure you have the best tour of the city.” He flashed Justin a grin. The jerk was doing it on purpose.

With good-nights said, Justin had no option but to follow Alex up the stairs. The staircase wound from the south around to the east in a gentle curve until they reached the top. With every step Alex took, her heels clacked against the granite. It was funny, he’d never imagined himself coming home, and never with Alex. But somehow they both looked like they belonged. Usually Alex was in something casual, but in her classic A-line dress and her stilettos, she looked the part. More than you do. He shoved that errant thought to the back of his head. He didn’t have time for that right now. Right now, he needed to figure out how he was going to sleep in the same room as Alex for several days and keep his hands to himself.

This all should have been easy. But instead, they were facing the dilemma of “hey, where can we sleep?” If he didn’t know better, he would’ve sworn his grandmother did this on purpose.

When they reached the threshold, Alex put her hand on his arm. “Look, before you start saying crazy things and offering to sleep sitting up on the chair or on the hard floor, we’ll just share the bed, okay?”

His dick twitched as if to say Hell yes, I’m so down with that plan. Justin cleared his throat. “I’m not sure that’s the best idea.”

Alex’s brows furrowed. “Why not? We’ve passed out on the couch together a hundred times. This is no different. It’s totally fine. Unless of course you sleep naked?”

Yes, that was one problem. He usually did sleep naked. But he could toss on pajama bottoms. Although, what if he couldn’t resist giving in to that crackle between them? “Why? Do you want me to sleep naked?”

Even under the soft brown of her skin, he saw her cheeks flush. “I—I—You can sleep how you like. I’m sure me sleeping naked would only make you uncomfortable. So I ask you not to do the same.”

She was right. The idea of her sleeping naked made him all kinds of uncomfortable—in his jeans. “Relax, I’m teasing. You’re right. We’ve done this dozens of times. This is no big deal. Get ready for bed, hit the sack. I swear, I am capable of being a perfect gentleman.”

There was something in her eyes that told him she wanted to ask him something, or tell him something, maybe? But as quickly as it appeared it was gone again. As she was headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth, his stomach fisted then loosened and then fisted again. And Heaven help him, his hands twitched a little.

He changed quickly for bed, checking his clothes and tossing on some pajama bottoms. He was always too hot and liked to sleep with the window open, but he knew that Alex was almost always too cold. So the best he could compromise was to sleep with his shirt off, to at least regulate his body temperature a little bit. When she came out of the bathroom, she was humming, but stopped short when she took one look at him. “Where’s your T-shirt?”

“I get too hot, remember?”

Alex opened her mouth to say something, then shut it again. Then tried one more time, but got the same guppy routine.

“Something you want to say, Alex?” Even as the question rolled off his tongue, his dick stirred and he ground his teeth to keep from groaning. He needed to get to the bathroom quickly before she noticed what was happening south of his waistband. “I’m just going to go brush my teeth.”

“Yeah, you do that.”

As Justin locked himself in the bathroom, he breathed a huge sigh of relief. How in the world was he going to make it through the night sleeping next to her? He was terrified his own inappropriate thoughts were going to soon turn into questionable actions. And Alex was too important to him for that.

Chapter 7

Alex sank deeper into the warmth. When was the last time she’d slept like this? She was usually on the go so much that it wasn’t uncommon for her to get about five, maybe six, hours of sleep a night. Especially when she was prepping for something like a gallery opening or showing.

She nuzzled farther into the warmth then froze. One of her hands encountered something hard, hot... Oh no. Justin. Her first instinct was to jump back, pretend the breach hadn’t happened. The thing she knew her hand had encountered—abs. Rock-hard abs. And yes, she’d seen him shirtless dozens of times. Never lost its impact, though. He was beautiful. And he knew it.

Last night when they’d gone to bed, she’d picked a spot on the ceiling and focused on that, willing sleep to come. Because if she hadn’t done that, she would’ve stared.

Justin breathed deep and rolled over, slinging an arm across her waist. Oh God. Alex could smell the faint hint of his shower gel from the night before.

Okay, no more torturing herself, out of bed. She was going to be productive today. At the very least, she could hop the ferry to Los Angeles and check on the gallery opening and the delivery of her pieces. Yes, nice and focused. And so much better than ogling Justin.

She hated leaving him alone with his family, but a little space would do her some good. The last thing she wanted was for this little venture to be a stressor on their relationship.

She slid out from under his arm, and was in the bathroom in seconds. She snatched up her shower cap out of her toiletry bag and carefully tucked her straight hair underneath it. In and out of the shower in five minutes, she was dressed even faster. By the time she tiptoed out of the bedroom, Justin was still sleeping.

She skipped down the stairs, figuring she’d grab something quick in the kitchen and hit the first ferry for nine o’clock. But she skidded to a stop when she found Grandma Lucy in the kitchen puttering around.

“Good morning, do you need help getting anything? I can help you.”

Grandma Lucy turned around, put her hand on her hip, cocking it slightly. “Honey, this is my kitchen. Nothing you could help me find that I didn’t put there myself.”

“Oh, I know, ma’am, just thought I’d get something for you so you don’t exert yourself.”

The old lady grinned at her. “Ma’am? A long time since anyone called me that. Just call me Grandma Lucy.”

Alex nodded. “Okay. Can I help you get anything before I head out?”

Lucy frowned at her. “Where are you going?”

“Oh, I was going to head into LA and check on the gallery pieces. They were supposed to be delivered today, so I’d like to be there to check things out. Make sure everything’s okay.”

Grandma Lucy suddenly held on to the counter, wobbled slightly. Alex was on her in a flash, scooting a stool underneath her. “You have to sit down. I’ll get Justin. Then call your doctor.”

“Oh stop it. I don’t need a doctor. I was hoping you could help me in the kitchen this morning.”

Alex wavered. “Oh, Grandma Lucy, you should probably be warned, I ruined more of your recipes than I should confess. Even with precise directions, I managed to screw up.”

Grandma Lucy laughed. “Yes, I know, Justin does tell me all the stories about you. The time you tried to make him a stew.”

Alex flushed. “It was not my fault. I swear the oven hates me.”

“Well, we’ll just fix that today.” Her smile was filled with warmth. Alex knew in that moment, there was no way that anyone couldn’t love this woman.

Alex opened her mouth to tell her that she had to get to the city. But Grandma Lucy just clucked around the kitchen handing her things, asking her to open jars, telling her that she was going to show her how to make bread from scratch.

Alex needed to get out of there. But do you really? Cassie’s got it. And she was here for Justin. He wanted his grandmother relaxing. And until he could take care of her himself, it was Alex to the rescue. Besides, she could help out for an hour.

But as Grandma Lucy told her stories about Justin growing up and asked her questions about herself, and her childhood and what her dreams were, Alex realized that there was no way she was going to LA today. And part of her didn’t even mind.

* * *

Justin woke up alone and cold. He was never cold. But when he reached for Alex in the morning, her side of the bed was cool, like she’d been out of bed for a while. Probably running from you.

He flopped back onto the pillows and groaned. He’d expected to be up all night, staring at the wall, kind of like she’d stared at the ceiling. But the moment the light was out, and he heard her deep sigh and exhale, he did the same and was out like a light. His brain offered up glimpses of memory and snippets of bliss of soft, warm skin pressed into his side within fifteen minutes.

Just like every other time they’d crashed together, Alex was like coming home. And even though he’d slept later than he would’ve liked, he felt so refreshed and revived. Eight thirty. Wow, when was the last time he’d slept in that late? He was showered and out the door within minutes, and could hear Alex in the kitchen, laughing with Grandma Lucy. Just the sound of the two of them giggling like schoolgirls made the warmth in his chest spread out like a ball of fire, simultaneously filling him with joy and calm. Like this was the way it should be. Easy there, boy. Don’t go getting all excited. This is just pretend.

The smell of baking bread made his stomach react, and he walked into the kitchen with a smile. “I see you two are happy.”

Grandma Lucy gave him a broad grin. “That’s because your girl here is regaling me with stories of your misadventures. Did you two really meet because you and your fraternity brothers were attempting to steal a mascot?”

He darted a glance to Alex. “You told her that story?”

Alex shrugged. “You know I don’t lie well.” Her expression said it all. Don’t go there. I’m trying to talk about anything but the one thing I can’t talk about.

He cursed his luck. “Yeah, Alex busted me, but then I asked her if she wanted to help. And she helped to cart it all the way back to our fraternity house.”

“Well, the establishment in the fine-arts department was a bit snooty. They certainly needed a shake-up. Besides, I liked the idea of being stealthly and undercover.”

Justin grabbed a slice of the fresh-baked bread and slapped a big pad of butter on it. When he took a bite, he all but moaned around it. And his grandmother looked on with delight.

“Cinnamon bread. Your favorite.”

He couldn’t help but talk around the mouthful. “Grandma, seriously, I don’t know how you do it, but this is amazing.”

His grandmother shook her head. “Wasn’t me. Alex made that.”

Justin coughed. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to swallow the piece now or spit it back out. Thing was, it tasted fine. It wasn’t rock hard; it was soft and warm and moist. Just how he liked it. And it tasted freaking delicious. He opted for swallow.

“Alex made this?”

Alex nodded. “I dunno how it happened, but with your grandmother standing right here, there was no way I wasn’t getting it right. Turns out when she says pinch it’s not an exact science. It’s more like an art. When she explained it like that, it was pretty easy.”

He nodded warily, not sure it was a good idea to take another bite, but his stomach rumbled, begging for more. It was really good.

His grandmother patted him on the back. “And why are you standing up like I didn’t teach you properly? Grab a plate, and coffee and juice. Eggs and pancakes will be out in a moment.”

“Another Alex creation?”

Grandma Lucy shook her head. “Now that I have Marta from the hotel coming on over to cook for everybody, Alex and I got to know each other.” Her smile intensified when she glanced at Alex. “Oh my, I forgot. Justin, I want you to go golfing with Martin today. I think you two can heal your tension. Then when you’re done with that, will you go to LA and check on Alex’s artwork for her? So she doesn’t have to do it herself? You know her nerves.”

Justin looked back and forth between his grandmother and his best friend. And his gaze locked on Alex’s. The crack of a spark was there, just like it had been last night, but today it was worse. He needed to get away from it.

“Okay, I’ll head out there. What time?”

His grandmother grinned. “They started an hour ago.”

Shit. That meant he was late. He grabbed another slice of bread and jogged upstairs to change. When he finally made it up to the golf course, his cousins and uncle were on the fourth hole.

Martin was typically snarky. “Look, the family slacker decided to wake up. It seems the rest of us who aren’t the favorite were up at the crack of dawn.”

“Keep talking, Martin. Grandma’s not here right now, so I will happily break your nose. For the second time.” Justin grinned. He’d been seven when he broke Martin’s nose the first time. Didn’t matter that his cousin was older or bigger than him.

But now Justin had the height and weight advantage. While Martin may have looked similar to him, working out for his cousin consisted of a round on the golf course. Justin wasn’t sure if his cousin had ever run anywhere in his life.

Martin studied him for a moment, unsure if he should take him seriously or not. Try me. There was no way Justin was going to poke at his cousin with his grandmother present, but since Grandma wasn’t here, he was done taking Martin’s insults.

Martin cocked his head and took a step back, conceding the would-have-been fight. “It’s okay, cousin. I mean, I know you probably didn’t get enough sleep, with that hot piece next to you.”

Justin tossed down the five iron he’d picked and got in Martin’s face all close and personal. “What did you say?”

Martin held his hands up. “Sorry. Can’t help it if I notice that your woman is hot. She’s got that sassy thing going for her. I mean honestly, I never thought you were into exotic girls, but man, am I glad you brought her around. Maybe she’s looking for an upgrade.”

If Justin hit him in the face, Grandma Lucy would notice and she’d be upset. As Justin assessed all the points that he could hit on his cousin without his grandmother noticing, his uncle stepped between them. “That’s enough. You two need to stop arguing and learn how to get along.” Uncle Lester wasn’t a bad guy; he was just complacent and let his son have too much freedom.

“Not another word about my girlfriend.” Justin punctuated the point with a glare.

Martin grinned. “That’s fine, I’m happy she’s in my imagination.”

As if Justin would let Martin anywhere near Alex. Luckily for Martin, he narrowly dodged a beat down thanks to an intervention. Justin pulled out his ringing phone and turned his back to his cousin. “Yeah?”

“Justin. Thank God you answered. I didn’t want to disturb Alex. You know how she gets—she’d be freaking out right now.”

“Cassie? Calm down. What’s the matter?”

“The pieces haven’t arrived. No, scratch that. Some of them have arrived. But not all of them. And I watched the guys load the truck myself. Alex is going to kill me. And just when we started to become friends. Oh my God.”

This was so bad. “Cassie, calm down. Were there any other scheduled deliveries for the truck?”

“I was on the phone with the truck delivery people this morning. They’re looking up to see where else the vehicle stopped. But the problem is, I’m here at the gallery and I’ve got maybe two-thirds of the pieces we promised. And I don’t know a way to fix this. Alex put everything that she had at the studio on that truck. I have no contingency if they can’t find the pieces.”

His gut curled in on itself, and the bile rose. Alex had worked so hard for this. She was finally getting the recognition she deserved. She was selling her pieces. This gallery showing was going to open up new opportunities for her. She needed this. “Cassie, calm down. I’m coming. We’ll figure this out together.”

“What about Alex? Will she know there’s a problem?”

“You and I are keeping any problems to ourselves for now. Besides, she asked me to look in on the gallery today anyway.”

He hung up with Cassie and turned on his cousin with a grin. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to go save the day for my girlfriend. You should be so lucky.”

Chapter 8

It had been a long time since Justin had been this angry. “What do you mean you don’t know what happened to the pieces?”

He had the owner of the delivery truck shifting back and forth on the balls of his feet as he tried to explain. “Just that. I don’t know what happened. There were two other stops, but things were supposed to be loaded on there, not taken off. I’m trying to figure it out.”

“You need to do more than try. Do you understand how long Alex Winters has been working for this gallery opening?” Instead of shouting, Justin’s voice went deadly soft. Cold. “You may already think yourself a success with your business. She is meant to do so much more than any of us could do. With her work, she brings joy and light to people’s lives. And you want to tell me that you don’t know where those pieces are? Let me tell you how this is going to go. You’re going to get on the phone, and then you’re going to personally go to those other locations and do a full search for those items. And you will have them here for me tomorrow.”

The guy darted a glance to Cassie, and Justin got in his face. “Don’t look at her. Look at me. I’m the one you have to deal with if you can’t perform the simple task of delivering what you were contracted to do.”

The guy nodded vigorously, the sweat beads rolling down his temples. Granted, it was also unseasonably warm for December in Los Angeles, but Justin wasn’t screwing around.

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