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Coda Books 04 - Strawberries for Dessert (MM)

Coda Books 04 - Strawberries for Dessert (MM)

Titel: Coda Books 04 - Strawberries for Dessert (MM) Kostenlos Bücher Online Lesen
Autoren: Marie Sexton
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surprised to find two large shopping bags on my bed. “What are these?” I asked as I hung up my suit jacket.
    “You said you needed shirts.”
    “Well, yeah. But I didn’t mean for you to buy them!”
    “You hate shopping. I don’t. I have time. You don’t. It seemed like the obvious solution. It’s not a big deal, love.”
    I started looking through the bags. There were at least a dozen shirts. Only three of them were white, which was what I normally wore.
    And there were five ties in colors that were all well outside my comfort zone. “I’m not sure I can wear these.”
    “Oh honey, just once in a while, can’t you loosen up? Try something new? Maybe live a little?”
    A dozen shirts, five ties, and all from a store I knew to be fairly expensive. “This is too much for a birthday gift.”
    “They’re not for your birthday.” He pulled a receipt out of his pocket and handed it to me. “I knew you would make a fuss about it, so I’ll let you pay me back.”
    The total on the receipt was high, but not outlandish for what he had bought. And it would save me the trouble of shopping for myself.
    “Thank you,” I said, “for the clothes and for not arguing with me about the money.”
    “You’re welcome, love.” He took another envelope off of the dresser and handed it to me. “ This is your gift. And don’t you dare ask to reimburse me for this, too.”
    “I won’t,” I said, but I hoped he hadn’t gone too overboard. I opened the envelope and pulled out a card. And a gift certificate.
    “ Skydiving ?” I asked in bewilderment.
    “Yes,” he said, smiling at me. “I thought you might enjoy it.”
    Just the thought of it was enough to make my stomach turn somersaults. The idea was horrifying. “Are you kidding?” I asked.
    “Not at all,” he said, obviously amused.
    “Are you coming with me?”
    He shuddered dramatically. “Honey, please! Can you even imagine me jumping out of a perfectly good airplane?” He shook his head at me as he started to undo the buttons on my shirt. “Sometimes I think you don’t know me at all,” he teased.
    That seemed like the pot calling the kettle black. “What makes you think I want to jump out of a perfectly good airplane?”
    He stopped and seemed to think about it for a moment. When he looked up at me, his eyes weren’t laughing at all. “You’re so serious all the time, love. You’re the most down-to-earth person I know.” He shrugged. “I thought you might long to fly.”

Date: December 4
    From: Cole
    To: Jared
    I’m in Paris now for the holidays. Don’t act so surprised. I know you think I live only for Jonathan these days, but I assure you, that is not the case. I find it amusing that your sense of romanticism is so heightened now that you have that big mean cop in your life. It’s adorable, really.
    I came to Paris like I always do for Christmas. I must admit that it’s dreadfully dull. I find the company of my usual friends here rather tedious, and I’m just not inclined to hunt down anyone new. I suppose I’m also a little put out because I was supposed to meet my dear mother here, and she of course made an excuse at the last minute, as she always does. I expected it, although I must say, it still annoys me more than it should. At least I no longer have to feel guilty for not having put much thought into her gift.
    Speaking of gifts, I have absolutely no idea what to get Jonathan. And lord knows I can’t spend too much money on him. Everything about that man is a struggle.

    COLE’S announcement shortly before Thanksgiving that he was leaving the country for the holidays took me completely by surprise.
    When we had first started seeing each other, he had been away as much as he was home. Coupled with my own frequent traveling for work, we had only been able to see each other erratically. I realized now that over the last few months, he had been in town more often than not. And nearly any night that I was in Phoenix, we spent together. I was surprised at how much I missed him.
    For better or worse, I was away myself for the better part of the first three weeks of December. Half of that time was spent in Vegas and half in LA. I arrived back in Phoenix on December twenty-second.
    The good news was there were no plans to send me back out of town for at least a month. I breathed a mental sigh of relief over that.
    I spent Christmas Eve with my dad like always. We exchanged gifts and went out to dinner, then attended a

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