In the picturesque town of Winter Grove, broken-hearted college student Celeste has to team up with lone wolf Sterling for a fake relationship in hopes of making her ex-boyfriend jealous and saving her Christmas.
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Overachieving college student Ce...
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Sterling
Sterling followed the two girls down the snowy sidewalk, wishing he could duck down a dark alley and disappear. This morning, he had just wanted to get out of there but instead, he'd been roped into getting coffee. At least it was coffee, not brunch like Alicia had originally wanted. Brunch would've taken forever, and he needed to get back to Olly's so he could get some proper sleep in case he needed him for tonight's shift. So, he at least owed Celeste something for that.
He shifted in his new coat. Alicia had loaned him one, a shearling-lined jean jacket some long-forgotten boyfriend of hers had left behind. It was a little big, even on him, but at least it was warm. His hands were freezing without gloves, though. He couldn't wait to wrap his hands around something warm... A hot cup of coffee was beginning to sound really good.
As they walked, Alicia and Celeste kept glancing back at him as if they were making sure he was still there.
If I made a run for it, he wondered, would they chase me down?
Well, maybe not Celeste, but he knew Alicia would.
"Are we there yet?" he asked.
"Almost," Alicia called back in sing-song.
Another half block, and they finally came to a stop in front of a cozy little diner. It wasn't the generic, efficient coffee shop he had been hoping for, but it didn't look so bad either. He had a soft spot for greasy-spoon diners.
Alicia grabbed the door and swung it wide, holding it open for him and Celeste, ushering them in. He stepped forward, but at the same time, so did Celeste. Their shoulders bumped, and Celeste bounced off, staggering back. Without thinking, Sterling reached out to steady her, wrapping his arm around her waist.
When she realized where his hand was, Celeste went bright pink.
"Sorry!" she cried and slipped out of his grip.
He wondered if she was still flustered from their kiss. Why? She had said herself that the kiss didn't mean anything...
But he gave her some space, stepping back from the door and waving her through. Cheeks still burning, Celeste muttered a small something—whether it was another apology or a thank you, he couldn't tell—and hurried through.
He blinked for a moment and then followed after. Alicia smirked at him as he passed.
Inside, it was like he had stepped through time. The diner looked like it had been ripped from the fifties and plopped down onto Winter Grove's main street in the modern day. There were rows of red-vinyl booths, a scattering of matching aluminum tables and chairs, and one wall dominated by a long, snowy-white counter that curved around a corner and stopped right next to the door. The place had been decorated for Christmas in the same retro theme—lots of silver garland, space-age aluminum decorations, and bright primary colours.
