New York Times bestselling author Kelsie Leverich continues her series in her new Hard Feelings novella, where a tempting little lie turns into so much more…

Eva Riley is the maid of honor at her best friend’s wedding and it just so happens that her ex is the best man. Eva’s a straight shooter and definitely not the damsel-in-distress type. But with her pride on the line and her ex’s heart on his sleeve, there might not be enough champagne in the world to get her through this weekend…

Trevor Owens may be one hell of a good friend to Eva, but he’s always wanted to get the fiery redhead between the sheets. So he swoops in and offers a solution to her ex problem: they can pretend to be together—just for the weekend. But when their little game of make-believe is over, will they be able to tell what’s real and what’s only pretend?

Chapter One

Eva finally pulled from Trevor’s embrace after debating whether or not she could curl up inside his coat, wrapped in his arms, and stay the remainder of her leave tucked warmly against him. She was back in New York for crying out loud–and Eva was from the South. Northern winters could kiss her ass.

The airport was packed, and baggage claim was a freakin’ nightmare, not to mention her plane had been delayed for over an hour because of the weather. White Christmases were over-rated.

“I still don’t understand why I had to come here for Christmas. I live in Georgia now, we could have spent our holiday without fear of losing our toes but instead”–she bounced around in her cowboy boots, trying to add circulation to her freezing feet while Trevor opened the truck door for her–“we just stomped across a sheet of ice covered in four inches of snow.”

“If your worried about losing body parts, I have a pretty fool proof way of keeping you warm.”

“Why, Trevor Owens. Are you trying to pull an excuse to get me naked in your bed?” Eva said, leaning into him.

His hands plowed through her curls, dampened from the falling snow. “And if I was?” He brought his mouth to hers, fusing his lips to her jaw. The warmth of his mouth thawed her chilled skin.

“Baby,” she said, rising up on her toes, burring her face into the curve of his neck as he continued to nibble and tease her jaw. “You know you don’t need an excuse anymore, just say the word and I’ll be naked and ready.”

“Word,” he murmured into her neck.

“I’d prefer a bed, with a blanket–but okay”–wiggling from his hold she unzipped her coat and pulled the scarf from her neck–“I could go for a backseat quickie.”

His finger tightened in her hair, her scalp prickling from the gentle tug. “Don’t fuckin’ tease me, Red. I haven’t seen you in a month.”

“Yeah,” she said, unbuttoning the top button of her jeans. “I know. Like I said, I could go for a backseat quickie.”

An anguished groan vibrated through Trevor’s chest. Latching onto her hips, he hoisted her up and put her in the cab of the truck. “Slide your ass over, woman.”

“But–“

“No buts.”

Laughing, she scooted across the old, cracked leather of the truck bench so Trevor could climb inside. “Don’t say I never offered. I was ready to give you hot sex in an airport parking lot…and you shot me down.”

Cutting his eyes to hers, he frowned, his full bottom lip tightening in a line. Whether from amusement or frustration, she wasn’t sure. “Give me the right time and place, and I’ll hold you to that offer, sweetheart. But right now, despite how badly I want to bury myself so deep inside you just to remind you how loud I can make you scream, I can’t.”

“Got any good reasons to go with that little threat of yours?”

“Oh, baby. That wasn’t a threat. That was a promise.”

“Yeah, yeah. Less insinuations and more explanations.”

Glancing at her, he smiled. And God how she missed that smile and those gunmetal gray eyes. They smoldered with mischief, his mouth taunting a scheme with it’s uneven tilt to the corner. 

“Trevor Owens, what are you going to do?”

“Nothing.”

Oh, if that wasn’t a bold faced lie she didn’t know what was. “I’m calling your bullshit, baby. Spill it.”

He adjusted his hands on the steering wheel, angling away from her slightly as he dipped his left shoulder into the seat. Trevor may be a lot of things, but he was a horrible liar. “You’re just going to have to wait and see.”

“Trev!” she whined, the back of her hand thumping against his arm. “I only like surprises if I know about them!”

His deep baritone laugh saturated the car with his elation, fogging the windshield. “You do realize if you know what it is, then it isn’t a surprise.”

“Just tell me.”

“And what fun would that be? It’s Christmas, Red. Let me have my fun.”

Inhaling a deep breath, she huffed out a sigh. “Fiinnne. Because I love you, I will let you have your Christmas fun…”

Straightening back in his seat, he curled his fingers around her knee, pulling her across the bench seat so she was pressed up against his side, draping his arm over her shoulders. This–this is what she needed. What she missed these last four weeks. To hell with the snow and the carols and lights and trees and presents. All she needed–all she wanted–was this man right here.

Cradling against his side, she wrapped her arm around his hard stomach, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Trevor frowned down at her. “You want to tell me what all that was about?”

“What what was about?”

“Your bah humbug, Christmas hating attitude.”

Eva shrugged. “Christmas just isn’t my thing.”

“Not your thing?”

“Not my thing.”

Tilting his head down, Trevor’s lips skimmed the top of her head, kissing her quickly twice. “You wanna tell me why?”

The thing Eva loved most about her relationship with Trevor was how easy it was. After being friends for nearly six years, they knew almost everything there was to know about each other before they broke down the “friends” wall and…well for lack of better words….did it. Okay, there were better words. Screwed, fucked, bumped uglies…Point was, things had always been easy between them. No secrets, no drama.

“You swear you wont laugh?”

“Red,” he warned, narrowing his eyes at her. “You know I wont laugh at you, baby.”

Sighing, she sat up, pulling her legs under her, and faced Trevor. “I never believed in Santa Clause.”

She braced for it, waited for the smirk to form or the laugh–but when he looked at her, sadness inked his eyes. “Never?” he asked.

“Never.”

“So you never sat on Santa’s lap or wrote him a letter or stayed up all night trying to see him?”

“Never. My parents were realists, didn’t want us to put our faith into a fantasy only to be disappointed. So they never did the Santa thing so Christmas was pretty much another Thanksgiving, only our parents bought my sister and I a few gifts.”

Trevor’s hand weaved through her curls, his thumb brushing across her cheekbone. “I’m sorry, Red.”

Well that wasn’t the reaction she anticipated. “Sorry? What are you sorry?”

“Because, you missed out on all the good stuff. You missed out on important childhood memories, baby. You never felt the magic of Christmas. No wonder you don’t like it.”

“I never said I didn’t like it–its just not my thing.”

“Well,” he said, pulling her back to him, tucking her in the crock of his arm. “Good thing you’ve got me this year.” Whipping his truck into his Battalion Headquarters parking lot–a little too quickly given the ice on the road–he parked and nodded toward the building. “Luckily your surprise works as a double for phase one of my new mission to get your sexy ass excited about Christmas.”

“Don’t start, woman. Come on,” he said, stepping out of the truck,then reaching his hand out to her to pull her out.

As soon as they walked inside, Eva’s worries slammed her in the gut. A Christmas party. Complete with a company pitch-in, running, screaming children, presents, and to top it off, Santa. “This is your idea to get me in the Christmas spirit? Seems more like my reason to get drunk tonight.”

Laughing, Trevor grabbed her hand, whispering kisses across her knuckles as he led her through the room. “Trust me, you’re gonna love Santa.”

Digging the heels of her boots into the floor, she planted herself in place. “Santa? Really, Trev? No way.”

“Oh, come on, Red. Everyone has to sit on Santa’s lap at least once in there life.”

She rolled her eyes and slumped forward as she allowed him to pull her to the back of the room where an over-sized candy cane throne resting in the back corner was seating a very jolly Santa with a line of kids stretching across the entire wall. Trevor, always the ladies-man, sauntered to the front of the line where a little girl, probably around six, was standing, waiting for the next turn to sit on Santa’s lap.

Squatting down in front of her he said, “Hey, princess. See this beautifully lady I’ve got with me?” The little girl peered up curiously at Eva, her crisp green eyes probing her with silent questions.

“Yeah?” she asked.

“Well, you see, she’s never sat on Santa’s lap before.”

“Never?” Her little voice was full of sad surprise.

“Never. Do you think you could let her go before her? I’m worried she will chicken out if I make her stand in line.”

The little girl smiled, then reaching out her arm, she grabbed Eva’s hand, tugging her the few feet to Santa.

“Thank you,” Eva said, smiling down at a sweet, chubby faced little girl.

“You’re welcome, And don’t worry” she whispered. “I was scared the first time I met Santa too.” Then turning around she ran back to the line.

“Ho Ho Ho. Come on over here and tell Santa what you want for Christmas.”

Oh great, prime opportunity for Santa to cop a feel.

“Go on, Red,” Trevor encouraged as he stepped up beside her. 

Eva shook her head. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. Santa patted his thigh and Eva sat down on the cheap, rented pants of the Santa suit. “So, tell me young lady, what do you want Santa to bring you for Christmas this year?”

That voice. She knew that voice. Jerking her head to the side to face him, she stared into soft, gray eyes lined with age and fatigue–and the joy of a smile. She knew those eyes too, she stared at a nearly identical pair every time she looked into Trevor’s.

Tears welled in Eva’s eyes. She looked back at Trev who was watching her carefully with a smile on his face–one that matched the one she felt pulled across hers. “Mr. Owens?” she asked.

“You can call me Santa today, young lady.”

She inhaled relief.

Only five months ago she was visiting Trevor’s dad in a hospital while he fought an inoperable tumor, barely even able to recognize his own son. Now he was in New York–dressed up as Santa Claus at his son’s Company Christmas party. That old man had wrapped himself around her finger then wedged himself into her heart, and she was afraid she would never see him again. Yet, here he was, sitting in a candy cane chair, talking to children about what they wanted for Christmas. Magic. That was definitely Christmas magic.

“But how?” she asked.

“I still have my bad days, and I’m not sure how many more Christmases I’ve got. Call it Christmas magic, but Now, tell me what you want for Christmas.”

She smiled, shooting a glance at Trevor. “I think I’ve pretty much got it all. 

After all the kids got hyper and anxious as they waited for their turn, she’s finally said god-buy and made her way back to Trevor. That was definite Christmas magic, seeing him again. “I’ve gotta hand it to ya, Trev. That was a pretty great surprise. I have to say–best Santa. So what’s phase two?”

“Mistletoe. And I’ve hung about fifty above my bed. Think that’ll get me a couple kisses.” 

“Fifty, huh? I think we can do better than a kiss.”

I am a wife and a mommy to two adorable knuckleheads, hair stylist by day, writer by night. My crazy life revolves around my family (to include two dogs and a cat) and most of the time, actually all of the time, it’s a crazy mess – but I love it! Drinking wine and reading books helps 🙂

I’m a sucker for Romance, add some toe curling smut and I’m done for!

My passion is writing. It’s the thing I think about when I wake up in the morning, the thing I think about in between packing lunches and giving baths, and the thing I think about when I close my eyes at night. A book can teleport you to another life, to another world. It can sweep you off your feet, make you fall in love, break your heart and heal your soul. I love reading for those reasons, and I love writing for those reasons.