Page 76 of Mistletoe Face Off
“I'm as ready as I'll ever be,” he says as he switches the ignition off.
“Man, this house is the size of the White House!” I exclaim, staring out the window at the sheer enormity of the place. “It’s even bigger than yours.”
Harry laughs as a man in a black coat and gloves approaches the car.
“He has avalet?” I choke out.
“Only for the party.” He pulls me into a soft kiss that makes my entire body hum. “I’m the luckiest guy in the great state of Illinois to have you in my corner.”
“I would do it all again if I had to. For you.”
“Thank you.” He brushes another soft kiss against my lips. “Shall we do this?”
“I think we shall,” I reply with a smile.
Snow is still falling as we walk up the path to Dan’s house, where we’re greeted by a grim looking bouncer who looks Harry up and down as though he's considering whether or not to let us in. Which eventually he does, without any trace of a smile.
“Close call,” I say as we check our coats. “Good thing you could take that guy if you wanted to.”
Harry laughs, and it's a sound I've missed these past days since Stephen’s story broke. But I'm confident that it has all been at least explained in my article, if not fixed altogether.
I can tell Harry is feeling nervous by the way he holds tightly onto my hand. I whisper into his ear, “You've got this,” giving his hand a squeeze.
He shoots me a grateful look, and together we enter Dan’s huge living room, in which I could fit my entire apartment probably a couple times over. I try not to stare, but it's hard not to when the room is filled with Blizzard players and their wives and girlfriends, everyone dressed up in either cocktail dresses, tuxes, or Christmas themed outfits. The overall atmosphere is festive and fun, and a few people turn to look at us.
Chase is the first to greet us. “Harrison Clarke and his beautiful date,” he says, pumping Harrison’s hand before he drops a formal kiss onto the back of my hand, like some kind of prince in a movie.
“Who said you could kiss my girl?” Harry says.
“I figured she deserved it after what she did for you today,” he replies.
“You read the article?” I ask.
“Of course I did. I can do more than push a biscuit around the ice, you know,” he replies with a grin. Placing his hand on Harry's shoulder he adds, “I'm real sorry you went through that,man. You're a good guy and you don't deserve that kind of crap in your life.”
“Thanks, man,” Harry replies.
Before too long, a bunch of the Blizzard team have greeted us and talked about the article, everyone positive and supportive—other than Lorcan and a snarly looking guy everyone calls Celine.
But those two don't matter. What matters is the rest of the team supports Harry, and watching them together, it's hard not to let my heart swell.
I might have been the one to write the article, but these guys have totally got Harry's back.
A pretty blonde woman in a gorgeous pale green cocktail dress introduces herself as Keira Johnson, Dan’s girlfriend.
“Your boyfriend sure has a gorgeous home,” I tell her.
“He has great taste, but I can't wait ‘til we’re back in our hometown,” she replies with a smile, and it's clear to me how much she loves him.
“Where's that?” I ask as I take a sip of the drink Harry handed me.
“It's a little town called Maple Falls in Washington state. It's pretty small, but it's home to us and we love it. We were high school sweethearts, you know.”
“Is now the time I admit that I knew that? I'm a journalist,” I reply.
“You're not just any journalist, Holly. You're the journalist who cleared Harrison’s name. We all read your article, us girlfriends included. What you did for him? Wow. You must really love him.”
That four letter word sets my heart racing, and I look over at Harry. He’s talking with some of his team mates. His eyes find mine, and a soft smile lights up his face, a smile I know that isonly meant for me. It sends a jolt right through my body, and in that moment it hits me like a slapshot to the chest.