And their kiss intensified into something beyond strangers. Beyond friends. Something meaningful and lasting. That lingered and searched and learned. Both gave and received. Something that sent hearts soaring above the clouds.
Nichole surrendered completely.
A pounding echoed on the front door. The doorbell chimed as if set on repeat.
Nichole jumped back, flattened her hand over her racing heart. “They’re early.” And she was caught.
Chase held on to her waist and her gaze. “You have to get the door.”
And catch her breath. Her gaze dropped to his mouth—only a quick dip—and kick-started her heart again. “That was...”
“Something we’ll definitely be discussing later.” Chase gripped her shoulders, turned her toward the door before she could finish her thought. He whispered, “We might need to add new options to our agreement.”
Or not. And kissing definitely could not be repeated. No matter how much she wanted to. Nichole opened the door to two excited boys and Brooke, holding twin grocery bags.
The boys asked to pick out their bedroom first, tossed their snow boots on the deck and raced upstairs. Nichole led Brooke into the kitchen.
Chase dried his hands on a towel and greeted Brooke. “I’ll go help Dan with the rest of your stuff.”
Brooke hefted the bags onto the counter and nudged her elbow into Nichole’s side. Her eyebrows raised. “Did you celebrate last night?”
“No.” Nichole shook her head. Not last night. And right now, she’d lost track of their business arrangement and broken her own rules. She’d warned Chase to keep his distance. He’d listened. Now she had to heed her own demands. “We had no heat.”
“Sounds like the perfect time to make your own together.” Brooke laughed.
Dan wrapped his arm around Brooke’s waist, Brooke leaned her head against his shoulder. Both nodded in unison and worked to keep their own grins restrained. They were a couple—united and in love. Chase and Nichole were united in their business arrangement.
“Make your own what?” Chase stood in the doorway leading to the laundry room, snow in his hair and a one-sided grin on his face.
“Never mind.” Nichole filled a pot with water, turned the burner on high and blamed the warmth in her cheeks on Alden. He’d fixed the heater too well. “I need to make the mac and cheese.”
Wesley slid across the hardwood floors in his socks and grabbed an apple off the counter. “Don’t forget the hot dogs.”
“Already on it.” Nichole smoothed out her smile, squashed the triumph in her voice. “We have two options for dinner. Mac and cheese with hot dogs. Or...”
“Baked pasta with a meat sauce,” Chase said.
With her next words, Nichole would wipe away Chase’s expanding grin. “With broccoli and spinach.”
Wesley scowled as if his apple suddenly turned rotten. “There’s spinach in the pasta?”
“And broccoli?” Ben stepped beside Wesley and wrinkled his nose.
“Vegetables are good for you,” Chase offered. “And you won’t even know they’re in there.”
Wesley bit into his apple, chewed slowly. His gaze remained fixed on Chase as if he’d suddenly turned into one of his puzzles. “How do you know?”
“You’ll have to trust me.” Chase closed the distance and held out his fist. “At least try it and if you don’t like it, your mom will finish it.”
“Cool.” Wesley fist-bumped Chase. Both wore matching grins as if they were suddenly united.
She wasn’t helping Chase win. Nichole pressed her hand over her stomach. “I don’t know. I’m going to be pretty full after eating all that yummy mac and cheese.”
“What’s going on?” Dan looked at Nichole, then Chase and back to Nichole. Suspicion wove through his voice. “What are we missing?”
Brooke tapped her finger on her mouth. “We’re definitely missing something.”
“Nothing is going on.” Nichole spread her arms wide and added a more lighthearted note to her words. “We just have options for dinner. Everyone likes options.”
“Like at a restaurant,” Ben added.
“Only at this one, you can eat all you want.” Chase fist-bumped both boys, then opened the oven to peer inside. “How’s that mac and cheese coming, Nichole? Baked ziti is just about ready.”
“Only need seven minutes and the feast can begin.” She poured the noodles and hot dogs into her pot and grinned at Chase. “Funny. I’m already considering what sounds good for breakfast tomorrow.”
“Who’s cooking?” Wesley asked. “’Cause if it’s Mom, you can have toast or cereal. Those are her specialties.”
Chase swiped his hands over his mouth as if catching his laugh.
Ben stuffed his hands in his back pockets. His toes wiggled inside his socks. “My dad’s specialty is funny-shaped pancakes.”
“With chocolate chips,” Dan added. “Those are the best part.”
Nichole drained the noodles and prepared the mac and cheese according to the directions on the side of the box.
Chase pulled his casserole out of the oven and set it on the counter. “We haven’t determined who’s cooking breakfast tomorrow.”
“We’ll know soon enough.” If cooking breakfast meant another stolen kiss, Nichole might not object. But kisses and cooking together had never been part of their original agreement. And amendments had to be avoided. Other options need not be discussed. After all, Nichole’s heart had no veto on their agreement.
Brooke handed out plates to the boys. Dan located the silverware and napkins.
“Remember, it’s all you can eat. Don’t stop until you’re full.” Nichole pulled a serving spoon out of a drawer and waved it over the dinner options like a wand. But there was nothing magic in her and Chase cooking together or their kiss.
How many lies could she tell?
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“TEN MINUTES LEFT,” Dan yelled from a ladder and set the head on their towering snowman. “Better get those finishing touches done. Losers have to clean up the breakfast dishes and that syrup has been hardening on the plates all morning.”
A snowball bounced off Nichole’s shoulder. She glanced over at Brooke, her snowman-building teammate, and brushed the snow off her jacket. “Hey. What was that for?”
“We aren’t going to win if you keep sighing and daydreaming about your new husband.” Brooke sorted through a pile of clothes they’d
