Free Mistletoe & Hollywood by Natasha Boyd, Kate Roth Page A

future bullshit.”
    His mouth quirked in a sexy grin. “Seriously? I’ll have to try harder next time.”
    “I guess you will.” I widened my eyes and shrugged, pretending nonchalance. “Now, come on.”
    He let out a deep laugh and dropped his head back on the bed. “You don’t need to come with me to get the car. I can be back in a couple of hours.”
    “Well, I want to meet Max, so I guess you’ll have to endure my company. We’re having lunch with him.”
    “You do? We are?” A large smile spread across his unfairly handsome hungover face as he propped himself back up. “But that’ll be like…” His eyes widened dramatically. “ In public, ” he whispered.
    “ I know. ” I smirked. “See you downstairs.”
    “Wait,” he said and sat up abruptly, then winced and grabbed his head. “Damn.”
    “What?”
    “Damn it. We are finally alone in the house together and there’s not a chance I could lure you into this bed with me is there?” He reached for another sip of juice.
    “Answer me this. Does your alcohol pickled mouth feel like the bottom of Gandhi’s flip flop?”
    Jack snorted and choked on his juice.
    I walked over and thumped his muscly back, shaking my head in mock pity. “Well, there’s not a chance I’m kissing it.”
    “You mean-spirited hoyden,” Jack griped.
     

     
    THE DRIVE DOWN to Hastings took a little over an hour. Jack with a full belly and some painkillers was feeling better, and the two of us lounged in the back, me leaning against him, my back held tightly to his chest in a comfortable embrace. I wanted to watch the scenery but we both ended up dozing.
    It was cold and clear down at the coast.
    “The town is technically St. Leonards-on-Sea. On really clear days, you’re supposed to be able to see France,” Jack murmured, following my gaze out the window as we arrived. The sky reflected blue flakes twinkling across the water. Upon closer inspection, after Nigel let us out by the sea wall, the English Channel was as brown and churned up as the ocean in my part of the world. But there were no marshes here. Just rocks, pebble beaches, and a shit load of seagulls perched on pier pilings. In the distance was a fleet of brightly painted fishing boats. It was bracingly cold, the wind off the water whipping my hair across my cheeks.
    I turned away from the water and the wind. The town was nestled in by sheer cliff faces. The road along the sea wall was lined with lampposts wrapped in Christmas greenery and lights that were probably beautiful at night.
    Max’s place opposite us was a renovated Victorian townhome, painted pale grey and retrofitted with huge windows. It was beautiful. The sea views must be stunning from inside. Jack had explained that far from an inn, it was more of a luxury boutique hotel. There were hardly any pedestrians around, this being a mostly residential section of the town. The odd person may take a picture with their smartphone if they cared to notice us, but the chances of a paparazzo finding us seemed remote.
    “Do you think Max would mind if we took a walk on the beach first?” I asked. “With such a pebbly shore line, I’m positive there must be some sea glass to be found here.”
    He took his phone out. “I’ll text him and tell him we’ll be there in about… how long?”
    “Half an hour?”
    He gave a nod and his thumbs went to work. Then we said goodbye to Nigel and found a set of stairs leading down to the stony beach.
    “This cold won’t let me stay out here long.” I gasped as a particularly frigid gust permeated my jeans and thick sweater. We’d left the waxed jackets at home due to the clear forecast. “At least I know England is actually capable of a blue sky, though.”
    Jack took my hand. “So why the change of heart about being seen in public?”
    I sighed and tried to organize my thoughts. After Charlotte and I had spoken last night, it was the first thing I’d thought about upon waking. Was my fear of the publicity