Sarah Morgan - Christmas Ever After

Merry Christmas, Alec.

SKYLAR’S HEAD POUNDED, as if a thousand elves from Santa’s workshop were hammering on her skull. There was a tickling feeling on her face and she kept her eyes closed, drifting in and out of sleep, lulled by the hum of the engine and the low murmur of male voices.

Alec’s voice. Alec Hunter.

She lay against his shoulder, the strength of his arm keeping her locked against a chest that was solid muscle.

He was an academic. A man who spent at least half the year delivering lectures and studying papers. He wasn’t supposed to have the body of a fighter.

She knew she should pull away but she didn’t have the energy.

Had she been in a better state she would have laughed.

Of all the people who disapproved of her, her parents and Richard included, Alec Hunter led them all. He made no secret of the fact he thought she was shallow and frivolous.

Princess.

It was the cruelest irony that he’d been the one to be by her side at her lowest moment.

At some point during the journey she felt him move. She assumed he was about to push her onto her own side of the seat, but then she felt him applying a soft pad to her head and realized that the tickling feeling was blood coming from the wound.

He’d given her his coat, she remembered, which meant that her head was rubbing up against the pristine white of his shirt.

Pristine no longer.

Even knowing that didn’t motivate her to move.

She would happily have stayed in the cab forever, all her problems suspended.

Eventually they came to a standstill.

Alec eased her away from him and pushed her hair back from her face.

“Sky? We’re here.”

She was surprised by how gentle his fingers were.

She opened her mouth to ask where “here” was, but he was already leaning forward to pay the driver and then there was the sound of the door opening followed by a rush of cold air that made her gasp.

She was about to tell him she could walk but he scooped her up without asking and carried her into what was obviously a hotel.

Bright lights dazzled and she screwed up her eyes against the light, thinking not for the first time that Alec Hunter had a touch of caveman about him.

She was treated to a close-up view of the stubble that shadowed his jaw.

He smelled dizzyingly good, a mixture of lemons, winter forest and delicious man.

He didn’t pause at the reception, spoke to no one, simply strode through a marble-clad lobby and into the elevator with the same cool authority he seemed to show in everything he did.

“I can’t believe they didn’t challenge you,” she muttered. “You could have drugged me, or kidnapped me for your pleasure.”

“They probably took one look at you and knew that no man in his right mind would take you on.” He paused outside a door, shifted his hold on her so that he could slide the card into the lock and carried her into the room.

“You’re so wrong about me.” Her stomach was rolling ominously. “I’m adorable when you get to know me.”

“I won’t be getting to know you.”

“Your loss.”

With an exasperated sound, he lowered her carefully to the bed and adjusted the dressing on her head. “It’s bleeding again. Remind me why I didn’t take you to the hospital?”

“Because I asked you not to and you listened.” It felt as if thunder and lightening were exploding in her head. “Do you have any painkillers?”

He disappeared into the bathroom and returned a few moments later holding some tablets. “Paracetamol.” Instead of giving them to her, he put them down next to the bed. “Look over my shoulder.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and switched on the flashlight function. He flashed the light over her eyes, checking her pupils. “How many of me are there?”

“One. But that’s more than enough so don’t go cloning yourself anytime soon.”

He didn’t smile. “Were you knocked out? Did you lose consciousness?”

“I don’t think so.” She winced as he took a photograph. “Are you going to post that to Instagram?”

“I’m not posting it anywhere. I’m keeping it in case we need it as evidence.”

“Evidence for what? That I look stunning with a black eye?”

“Evidence against your boyfriend.” His tone was hard. “Can you remember everything that happened?”

Her stomach roiled.

She thought about Richard. About the things he’d said and the expression on his face when he’d said them. “Yes, unfortunately. I’d give a lot for amnesia right now.”

She felt humiliated and irritatingly fragile.

The truth was she’d been completed deluded.

For once her creative brain had worked against her.

Alec hesitated. “Do you want to talk about it?”

He was obviously hoping she’d say no and she was touched that he’d even asked.

“No.” She decided to give him a break on that one. “I want to clean up and shut my eyes for a while. I’m sorry to have troubled you.”

“It’s no trouble.”

“Liar.”

He shone the phone’s flashlight at her head. “That bruise isn’t looking good. Do you know who you are? What day it is?”

“I’m the non-prodigal daughter and today is the day I ruined my favorite dress, realized I was in a relationship with a dumbass and ended up in the hotel room of a man who hates me. I’m telling myself things can only get better.”

She bit back a hysterical laugh. At least now she knew it wasn’t love. No more doubts on that score.

Alec handed her the pills. “If you’re going to be sick, I want to know.”

Despite their less than perfect history, she almost felt sorry for him.

She knew what Richard was like with anyone who was ill. Instead of sympathy, his mind ran to vaccinations and quarantine. “It’s fine. Go check into another room. I’ll pay.”

“What’s the point in that? I brought you here to keep an eye on you.”

“But you want a sick warning.”

“Because it’s a bad sign with a head injury,” he said patiently, “and if that happens I’m taking you to hospital.”

“Oh. I thought—” She didn’t tell him what she’d thought. She was starting to wonder if her time with Richard had twisted her view on the world. “I don’t need to go to the hospital, but thank you.” She lifted her palm to her mouth but her hand was shaking and one of the pills slid onto the floor and vanished under the bed. “Sorry.”

He said nothing. Simply disappeared for a moment and returned to face her. This time he put a fresh pill in her palm and guided her hand to her mouth. Then he handed her the water. “What happened, Sky? Why did he leave you there like this?”

“Because he’s a jerk. Because he cares more about the media and his public image than he does about me. Because I didn’t do and say what he wanted me to do and say. Because he’s in love with my father.” It was all so ridiculous she started to laugh.

Alec looked bemused. “Your father?”

“Never mind. It’s complicated. You have no idea how complicated.” Even she couldn’t unravel what was real and what wasn’t. How many of their conversations had been false? If their relationship had been a movie, she would have watched it again with subtitles to see what she’d missed. “Do we have to talk about this?”

“No. Stay there. I’m going to clean up your head.”

She closed her eyes, heard the sound of running water from the bathroom, and then he was back with a washcloth and a towel.

“I’ll try not to hurt you.”

She didn’t tell him that most of the hurt was on the inside. Trying not to wince, she sat still as he gently cleaned her forehead. “I bet I look good. Black and red are my colors, and so is blue.”