Holiday Fling by Victoria H. Smith Read Free Book Online

door. But why? He should be furious with her. She didn’t know if she had the strength to let him in, but he let her back into his life earlier when he was mad at her to hear her out, so she owed him at least that.

 
Chapter Seventeen
    Colbie Caillat’s “Mistletoe” played on the clock radio as Tarrah nervously opened her door.
    Chase stood there in the hall, head hung over his cell phone. He looked up from the screen, and she was surprised to see he didn’t look angry. He was actually… smiling.
    Tarrah didn’t understand, but figured she would soon enough. She stepped aside in silence and let him into her dark room. He came inside willingly and when she turned after closing the door, the tears of her shame flowed instantly.
    He shook his head at her slowly and brought her into his arms without question. “Oh, Tarrah,” he said, running his hands up and down her back.
    She gasped, choking on her tears as she clinched his shirt. “I’m so sorry, Chase. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to make you my fling. I didn’t mean to.”
    “I know, Tarrah.”
    How does he know? Why isn’t he mad? “I’m sorry, Chase. I just can’t do this. I can’t be with you. I didn’t mean to hurt you. But I just can’t. I’m so sorry.”
    “Shh... It’s okay,” he said, his voice calming.
    She glanced up at his blue eyes, sniffing. “Why aren’t you mad at me?”
    He let go of her to reach into his pocket. When he lifted his hand up, he had her cell phone. “Because I think everything you said to me earlier this evening is exactly what you want, but you just have a couple of hurdles to get over before you get there.”
    She didn’t understand what he said. She told him just now she didn’t want any of that. What did he mean and how did her cell phone tell him those things? The only thing that stupid phone told her was that her parents weren’t coming to see her. The only thing it said was that she was going to be alone again and she was stupid for getting involved with someone, because she would be alone when he left her. “I don’t under….” She shook her head at him in confusion.
    He smiled and put his arm around her, leading her to her bed.
    The two sat down and he handed her the phone.
    She tossed it on the bed without looking at it.
    “It took me a minute. I had to get over the initial shock of waking up by myself after you committed to me.”
    She glanced up. “Chase—”
    He shook his head, giving her a half smile. “But after I got over that, I decided it wasn’t that simple. You leaving wasn’t that simple. You really wanted this. I know you did. I could feel it when I made love to you.”
    “But Chase—”
    He shook his head again.
    Why wouldn’t he understand her? She didn’t want what she said earlier.
    “That’s when I found your cell phone. Women never leave their cell phone. But for some reason, that was the only thing you left. After I read the text message on the screen from your parents, I wondered if you leaving had anything to do with that. So, I decided to do some digging by calling Georgia.”
    He called Georgia?
    “Well, needless to say she almost cried through the phone herself when I told her about the text. She said you had been looking forward to them coming because you haven’t seen them in years and they never come to visit you on the holidays because they live overseas.”
    She fumbled restlessly with her hands. “What does them not coming have to do with me leaving you?”
    He slipped his hand into her hair and ran his thumb along her cheek. “Everything, Tarrah. Everything.”

 
Chapter Eighteen
    “Have you ever thought about the reason you feel like you have to have a fling every year, Tarrah?”
    She shook her head.
    He pointed to her phone she’d tossed aside. “Because you don’t want attachment. You don’t want anything permanent because every time you have that you get hurt. Like with your parents letting you down.”
    She put her hand to her head. Is