Beyond the Mistletoe: A Christmas Romance (Beyond Love Book 7) by Karice Bolton Page A

hated to admit it, I loved watching Derek crouch down to examine the situation. There didn’t seem to be an inch of softness settling around his abs, and it was impossible not to imagine what it might be like to glide my fingers down his—
    “I’ve got to fix this,” Derek said, standing up too quickly for me to hide my ogling.
    “You know… I thought the tree had a bit more lean to it than when I first put it up, but I didn’t want to think about it.”
    “Did you hear that, Bodie? Your mom put you in jeopardy.” The smile he wore told me he caught me looking and enjoyed it, but he shook his head and knelt down to look under the tree. “I can go ahead and get this tree straightened up, if you’d like.”
    “I’d love. Are you serious? Do I need to take off the decorations?”
    “Nah. It’ll be fine. I’ve got it.”
    Derek took out his pocketknife and cut the string with one hand while holding the Christmas tree with the other. Bodie hopped off the couch and came into the kitchen where I watched Derek seamlessly right the tree in the stand. He grabbed the trunk of the tree, picked it up, and slammed it into the tree stand with only a few of the ornaments bobbing. He then inched his way down, still holding the tree with one hand as he somehow finagled the limbs and screwed the stand tightly into the trunk. No string needed.
    “You’ve got to be kidding me.” I poured the hot chocolate into our cups and walked over to Derek, who was now wiping his hands off. “You have no idea how worried I’ve been over that darn thing crushing Bodie or my parents.”
    Derek took his cup of hot chocolate and took a sip. “Of course. Glad I could help. It should hold until after the holidays now.”
    “Thanks.” I glanced at the tree before bringing my gaze back to Derek’s. “Thanks for everything, actually.”
    “Anytime.” His smile made me light-headed, and I shook my head in disbelief as I sat on the couch. I was too old to be swooning over a man.
    But it was Derek Binterelli. No. That had absolutely no bearing on why I was falling for Derek. It was because he was kind, thoughtful, and sexier than anyone I’d ever laid eyes on. The attraction was strong with this one.
    “What?” he asked, taking a seat next to me.
    I shrugged and took a sip of my drink. I’d always prided myself on doing things on my own. I didn’t need help to keep the yard up, paint the house, or refinish a table. But having someone take the time out of their own busy life to do something so nice was refreshing, and it also made me wonder what Montana was like this time of year.
    “You can’t leave me hanging like that.” His brows came together as he studied me. “I can tell something is going on in your head.”
    “Fixing the tree was just a really nice and unexpected gesture. Nothing more.” I didn’t really want to fill him in on the fact that I thought he should grace the Sexiest Man Alive cover.
    “I thought it would be fun to keep you on your toes. Plus, it gave me an excuse to put off packing.”
    “That’s never fun,” I agreed. “Even if you’re excited about where you’re going.”
    He looked like he wanted to say something more, but instead, he pressed his lips together and nodded.
    “This really was kind of you, and I know my family will appreciate the light show as much as I do. My dad always goes all out when it comes to lighting up his house for the holidays so I’m excited he gets to see my place lit up for once. We used to have decorating competitions years ago.”
    “Really?” Derek’s brow quirked. “So you got out there on the ladder?”
    I froze, realizing exactly what spilled out of my mouth. I didn’t go on many dates, but I knew better than to bring up ex-husbands and past traditions involving them. It was usually a mood killer, but now I had no choice.
    I shook my head. “No. The competition was more between my ex and my dad.”
    “Who won?”
    “My dad always outdid us. He’s got a