Noah and Blair jumped as the latter's name fell from my lips. They actually jumped, like they truly had forgotten that I was standing right there between them.
Or maybe it was the fact that I was malfunctioning.
"Is she okay?" Blair asked Noah, his bewildered blue gaze fixed on mine.
"Yeah. She just spontaneously combusts sometimes." My friend placed an arm on my shoulder, his sober touch jolting me back to life. "You good, Madi?"
I tried to clear my throat. Tried to regain some semblance of composure.
"Fine," I said, my voice cracking with nerves. "Just, um, did you say Blair? As in ..." As in James' Blair?
As in Blair-with-the-Purple-Heart-Emoji Blair?
As in brunette, D cup, mega-bitch Blair?
As in Blair Blair?
"Blair!" James called. He broke through a group chatting to our right, his smile creasing his eyes before he wrapped up his relative in an affectionate bear hug. "God, it's good to see you. How's my baby cousin?"
"Baby? I'm only one year younger than you." Blair scoffed, rolling his bright, twinkling eyes to the chandelier and back.
But he encased James in a hug just as tight.
Just like that, something released in my stomach. It was like knots had been bundled there—bundled for days—and, suddenly, they'd all been pulled free.
Okay. So Blair was a brunette.
But she was also a he.
And he was definitely not a D cup.
"How have you been?" James asked, admiring his cousin's collection of delicate jewels. "How's business?"
"Great. Lilac Love just hit five hundred followers on Instagram."
Lilac Love ... A purple-heart emoji ...
Idiot. I was an idiot.
Blair motioned to me and Noah in turn. "I was buttering up another client before Jones rudely interrupted—"
"If I remember correctly," Noah drawled, "you didn't mind the interruption."
James' eyes darted between the two of them knowingly. "Well, I hate to ... interrupt," he said, chewing on a grin, "but I was wondering if I could have a word?"
"Of course, babe," Blair replied, taking a sip of his fruity cocktail.
And completely failing to peel his gaze from Noah's.
I'm pretty sure the sparks flying between them could have powered the whole resort.
"Uh ..." James licked his lips. "Privately?"
YOU ARE READING
The Christmas Theory
ChickLitAll Madison wants for Christmas is the same person who once wanted her. Free from the shackles of her broken heart, she's finally ready to give love another shot. But is Madi too late to win back the man of her dreams? SEQUEL to The Heartbreak Hypot...