‘Tis the season of Wicked Deeds (A Holiday romance Book 1)
‘Tis the season of Wicked Deeds: Chapter 31

I don’t know about anyone else, but I declare the view from the trains in Switzerland as the best in the world. It’s unimaginable how one place could hold so much beauty and enchanting landscape.

It’s like being transported into a painting.

“Here, darling,” Kingston murmurs, drawing my attention.

I look at him holding out a simmering cup of coffee. Taking it from him, I reply, “Thank you.”

I take a long sip and admire his profile. I’ve been stealing glances since we left the cabin because I’m obsessed and cannot stop looking at him.

He looks like he stepped straight out of a mountain man magazine.

The leather jacket is gone, replaced with a dark brown plaid flannel jacket thrown over a fitted black t-shirt that brings out the color of his eyes. Dark denim jeans stretch over his muscular legs as he reclines against the seat while letting me sit by the window. He does this all because he knows I love staring out at the view.

Yet I’ve spent the last half hour gazing and chatting with him.

Meanwhile, an invisible clock keeps chiming in the back of my head.

Tick. Tock.

Tick. Tock.

Tick. Tock.

I should be overjoyed that in a few hours, it’ll be a new year. Yet I’m dreading it. To distract myself, I peer at Kingston. The stubble around his jaw has grown over the past week and is on its way into a full beard, complementing his outfit.

His dressing style is so versatile and fashionable that everything suits him without taking away from his bad-boy ruggedness. Be it rough and leather attire, elegant and sexy business suit, or the one today. It’s too hard to pick a favorite.

Men and women alike kept giving him long awe-filled glances at the train station while we waited. Some even stared with keen curiosity as they tried to take a peek at his face under the baseball cap he wore before taking it off as soon as we stepped on the train. He, on the other hand, remained blind to the attention of strangers.

“Aren’t your grandparents going to miss you?” I ask, feeling a tad guilty I’m keeping him away from his family on the night leading to New Year’s Day. “I hate to be the reason you aren’t celebrating with them.”

“I told you not to worry,” he reassures me, his brown eyes warm and sparkling. Hair mussed from when I ran my fingers through them while kissing him. “They like to have a simple evening and go to bed early. I would’ve gone to meet them in the morning, even if we didn’t have plans.”

Aware he’ll never lie, I relax.

“I need to thank your nana,” I tell him. “She was the one who encouraged me to call my mom, and I’m so glad I did.”

Surprise flickers on his face. “Really?”

“Mmhmm. Will you thank her for me?”

“I’ll give you her number and you can text or call her yourself,” he suggests. “She was asking for yours the other day to send you recipes.”

“Oh yes, I completely forgot about those.”

“Give me your phone. I’ll do it right now.”

I take it out from my mini purse and pass it to him after unlocking it. He quickly programs the number into my contact list and returns it.

“I’ll talk to her tomorrow,” I tell him and sip my coffee before it gets cold. “Now will you tell me where we’re going?”

He chuckles and runs a finger up my arm resting on the handrest between us. In a teasing manner, he murmurs, “So impatient.”

“I can’t take the suspense.” I pout and express just how much with an example. “I really can’t. I don’t even start watching a show unless the full season is complete. Cliffhangers are the worst.”

“You’re a cute little weirdo.”

I roll my eyes and glare half-heartedly.

“I’m still not sharing,” he says with glee, and shrugs. “So, you’ll have to wait and see.”

“So mean.”

“Do you not know how surprises work?”

“I think we’ve had enough surprises between us to last a lifetime.” I think about the biggest one about me not being Tina on my first night here. Curious, I ask him, “Did you really believe all the things I said on our first date, including the one I said about not liking you?”

A speck of tension flits in his pupils before blurring away as he meets my gaze. The corners of his eyes crinkle as if he’s recalling the memories. A small smile curls his mouth, and he replies, “You had me doubting my instincts, I won’t lie. One moment, I’d swear you were flirting back, and the next, you’d blurt out the rudest but funniest thing I’ve ever heard, making me question if I imagined the former. At the end, when we were leaving, you made a little sound and when I glanced over, I saw a tinge of the disappointment that I was feeling too. I knew I couldn’t walk away without trying one last time. So, I took a shot and kissed you. I was prepared for you to push me away or slap me, but then you kissed me back.”

“Then why didn’t you try to set up another date?”

What looks like regret shades his face, and he glances away for a beat before confessing in a deep voice, “Because the look in your eyes after we pulled apart was pure panic. The kind one has after making a mistake. I didn’t want to be a mistake to you.”

My heart pangs at the pain reflecting in those words.

He’s right, but not for the reason he thinks.

Placing the coffee cup down in front of me, I intertwine my fingers with his and erase his doubt that I thought our kiss was a mistake. “I panicked because I wanted to tell you the truth, but I became scared about how you’d react, and I also didn’t want to feel like I was stealing you from my friend. Otherwise, I would’ve kept imagining if you two would be together had I not come between you. Even if we had managed to get past it and gave us a chance, I still didn’t want a marriage.”

“I know that, Twinkle.” Lifting our joined hands to press a kiss on mine, he skims a finger down my cheek and tucks a wayward strand away. “I felt in my bones that you and I met for a reason, and that if we were meant to be, we’d replace our way back to each other.”

And look how we did.

In another country, no less. In true Hallmark movie style.

This whole week has been a dreamy whirlwind romance.

I also can’t help but think that, just like in the movies, we have our biggest test waiting for us tomorrow.

Am I brave enough to take a leap? I haven’t shied away from a challenge, but the stakes have never been higher. After all, matters involving the heart are never small.

The train screeches to a halt an hour later and I glance out the window, not seeing the town sign to guess where we’re at.

“Come on, this is us.” Kingston tugs at my hand, rising to his full height.

I snatch my purse and step into the aisle with him. A warm sensation engulfs my entire body from his protective proximity. We get out of our train’s cabin and I look around curiously. Tourists crowd the platform, walking left and right.

Kingston laces our hands together, seemingly knowing where to go.

“Have you been here before?” I ask him, leaning against his side as someone in a hurry whips past me. I guess one thing’s common at every railway station.

“Yes.” Kingston curls one brawny arm around my shoulders. “A long time ago with my friends.”

“To celebrate New Year’s?”

“No. We came for skiing.”

The two of us exit after zigzagging through the horde of people and I catch the word Alpine written on a sign.

“Don’t tell me you’re taking us skiing tonight,” I warn jokingly.

“But you’re so good at it.”

He says it so seriously that for a second, I’m speechless. I meet his gaze, humor shining in them, and it intensifies my worried expression.

“No, thank you.”

“Not even under the fireworks?” He quirks a brow enticingly. “It’ll be fun.”

“I’d rather not defeat you in a race on such a special occasion,” I sassily retort.

His chest vibrates with laughter, making me smile.

Outside the parking space, we stop and Kingston takes out his phone and starts typing while keeping my front pressed against his. I circle my arms around his waist and prop my chin in the middle of his pecs.

I’m assuming he’s calling us a cab. Instead, a shiny SUV pulls up in front of us five minutes later. The driver gets out, rounds the hood, and hands the key to Kingston without a word.

I stare at his back, frowning as I watch him walk away.

“I rented the car for the night,” Kingston explains.

“Oh… Nice.” Except the vehicle looks super expensive. I know he does well for himself, but I still don’t want him to spend his hard-earned money on me. He’s already done so much on your previous dates. Each more romantic than the last.

I never even asked how he managed to book an entire restaurant as well as the movie theater. I can’t even imagine what it must’ve cost him.

Deep down, I know he isn’t doing it to impress me or show off. It’s him simply being thoughtful and spoiling me.

Even if he hadn’t, I’d still be as smitten and obsessed with him as I already am.

I open my mouth to offer splitting tonight’s expenses, but he reads my mind like an expert and steels his expression sternly.

“You aren’t paying for anything,” he softly commands. “Call me old-fashioned, but if I’m taking my woman out, I’m paying.”

Smacking a kiss on my lips, he opens the passenger door and gently helps me sit on the comfiest leather seat. Rounding the front, he gets in on his side and starts the engine. The smooth purr pulls me out of my reverie.

After maneuvering out of the parking lot and onto the road with thick snow on both sides, his free hand captures mine and places it on his thick thigh.

I smile, feeling content, and enjoy the scenic view out the window.

After passing through the small town, we take a right up a hill with narrow turns. Kingston drives expertly, looking sexy and manly as hell. Still, my heart travels to my throat every now and then as I stare below us into the deep end of the cliff on my side.

Soft acoustic music plays low on the radio in the car, providing wonderful background noise as Kingston and I enjoy the quiet ride.

Sometimes, peaceful silence is more comforting than words.

The sun descends, stars glittering in the dark blue sky by the time we reach the surprise location.

It happens to be a beautiful, rustic resort called Alpine Paradise, with a rooftop restaurant visible from below. I see people mingling and laughing while sitting at their candlelit tables.

Butterflies dance in my stomach as I turn to my right just as Kingston reaches it. Our eyes lock through the windowpane, and I swallow upon seeing the desire mixed with reverence staring back at me.

He has a way of taking my breath away with a single glance.

Its power of hasn’t lessened since the first time we met.

He opens the door and I take his offered palm. My small hand gets swallowed in his as he curls his fingers around it. The big, flowy skirt of my dress swishes as I step out, and it falls just above my ankles once I stand on the ground.

I wore another red dress with a corset-style bodice and a sweetheart neckline. The beautiful necklace Kingston gifted me rests in my cleavage, which I paired with my favorite pearl earrings.

Instead of backing away, he cages me against the door and bends to brush his mouth over mine. Just touching, not kissing. Goosebumps rise along the tops of my breasts when he traces the sparkling pendant.

“Did I tell you how gorgeous you look tonight?”

I graze his beard with a fingertip and murmur, “You did.” I’m reminded of the way his eyes darkened with that feral look as soon as I walked out of the bedroom all dolled up. It still makes me shiver just thinking about it. Smirking, I huskily say, “But I don’t mind hearing it again.”

“It’s worth repeating. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. I think you bought all the dresses meant to make me lose my mind.” A groan leaves his mouth as he kisses my neck and growls in my ear, “I’m seriously going to have a hard time focusing on anything else tonight.”

“Then you’ll know exactly how I feel around you, King.”

With a harsh suck on my collarbone that makes my toes curl in my heels, he steps back. His gaze heats possessively as he looks at the spot, and I just know he gave me a hickey that I can’t even hide because I’ve put my hair up.

I shouldn’t replace him branding me like this hot.

“One less thing to worry about,” he utters in satisfaction.

“What’s that?”

“Nobody will doubt you’re all mine.”