The Sheikh's Virgin Bride(113)

“I doubt they would do that here,” Yvonne said.

Mackenzie nodded toward a darker corner of the lobby, where a very large ball of mistletoe hung. Yvonne noticed that several couples were standing just out of reach, as though waiting for their moment to sneak someone under for a kiss.

I wonder if Zadid would be a good kisser, she mused.

After allowing herself a brief daydream of him dipping her beneath that ball of mistletoe, Yvonne looked up once again to see if she could find him there. To her disappointment, he continued to be the one person not in attendance. Instead, the lobby glistened with gold and silver holiday décor—beautiful, except for his notable absence.

“Where do you suppose Zadid is?” she asked her friend.

Mackenzie smirked at her as she took the last sip from her flute.

“Why, looking to get some mistletoe action?” she asked, her tone conspiratorial.

Yvonne’s eyes narrowed as she stared down at the petite woman. Mackenzie’s blond hair and hazelnut brown eyes were a stark contrast to Yvonne’s chestnut hair and crystal-clear green gaze, but the two had been thick as thieves since the moment they’d started their jobs on the same day, years before.

“I think I’m a little more professional than these folks,” she hedged, gesturing toward the room of flirty twenty-somethings.

Mackenzie scoffed.

“Please. Your crush on Zadid has been so poorly hidden, you couldn’t even disguise the fact that you want to kiss him right now. Next time, don’t stare longingly at the mistletoe corner then ask where Zadid is, and I’ll believe that you only think of him professionally.”

“I do only think of him professionally,” Yvonne protested weakly. “I’ve given no reason to believe otherwise. He’s a great boss, and it feels weird that he’s not attending a party that he paid for. That’s all.”

Mackenzie rolled her eyes at her friend’s argument, entirely unconvinced.

“Whatever. You can say what you want, Yvonne, but I know the truth. I’ve known it since the first day I met you.”

“Why are you teasing me? Have another drink and tell me more about how your boyfriend is scheduling his proposal with you on Christmas.”

“He’s not scheduling it with me. He’s discussing it with me. Totally different,” Mackenzie corrected with a laugh.

The two women continued to watch the crowd make some serious social mistakes, sipping their drinks and relaxing for the first time in weeks. Life working at a financial planning firm was anything but boring, and Yvonne had found herself completely swept away from the moment she’d stepped foot in that building. Of course, the feeling hadn’t always been entirely work-related.

“What are you doing for Christmas?” Mackenzie asked, shaking Yvonne from her drifting thoughts once more.

She frowned.

“Nothing,” she replied, and Mackenzie stared at her with narrowed eyes.

“What do you mean, nothing? You’re not going to be alone on Christmas, are you?”

Yvonne shrugged. The holidays had been a complicated time ever since her parents separated and remarried, starting new families of their own. Even though her family was happy, it was convoluted.

“Both sets of parents happened to schedule their Christmas day festivities out of town before they realized that left me with nowhere to go. Instead, they planned two different Christmas Eve meals, which is going to be quite the marathon.”

Mackenzie’s eyes filled with sympathy as she rested a comforting hand on her friend’s arm.

“I’m so sorry, Yvonne! I wish I’d known! I would invite you to spend the day with me, but…”

“But you’ve got a romantic engagement to experience. Don’t even think about letting me butt in on that. Not happening.”

Mackenzie’s smile was still sympathetic as she stared at her friend.

“There’s got to be something you can do. It’s Christmas day!”

Yvonne chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

“Yes, and there will be another one next year, and the year after that. They don’t all have to be special and filled with magic.”

“Nonsense. Every Christmas should be magical.”

“I think Evan agrees with you,” Yvonne said, taking the attention off herself as the two of them watched him lean in to kiss a bright-eyed Candice.

As he cradled her face, his lips touching hers, Yvonne looked away. She was a single woman surrounded by lovers in a place where none of it should be happening. Setting her drink down, she took a step toward the staircase.

“I’d better get going,” she said. “I’ll see you in the new year.”

“You barely spent any time here. At least have some food or something. Zadid set up a whole cookie and milk bar over there.”

Yvonne glanced across the room, where a table filled with glistening milk pitchers on ice was surrounded by warm cookies of every variety. She wondered when she’d walked in how he had managed to get the whole lobby to smell like freshly baked cookies, and the answer had shown itself. Shaking her head, she leaned over to give Mackenzie a hug.

“I’m good. I’ve got a busy day tomorrow and there will be plenty of food, believe me.”

Mackenzie frowned at her friend, unconvinced.

“If you say so. Merry Christmas, Yvonne.”