Unintended Consequences

Chapter 30

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"Come on Archer, smile!" my mom laughed from behind her phone's camera. Oliver chuckled from his place next to me, loving every bit of Archer's discomfort.

It was an Avery family tradition to wear our matching Rudolph sweaters on Christmas day. They were obnoxiously wonderful with the 3D reindeer face popping off the red knit with green specks. My mom had surprised the Johnson family with their own set this year when they came over—much to the chagrin of Archer and his father.

Mr. Johnson had completely refused to put his on—resulting in a few awkward seconds when we all realized how serious he was. Archer had tried to say no as well, but he was much easier to convince. Annie and I had pouted for about two minutes, refusing to talk to him and he folded like a lawn chair.

Now all four of us kids were lined up in front of the tree, while our moms snapped pictures of us. I was tucked under Oliver's arm, with Archer holding Annie on my other side. His large hand was innocently pressed to my spine, but it still brought a rosiness to my cheeks.

"Arch, my man, the sooner you smile the sooner it's over," Oliver laughed as he punched him in the arm.

I looked up at Archer to see him grimace as he pulled at the collar of his sweater. I caught his eye and stuck my tongue out. He rolled his eyes but a tiny smile tugged at his lips.

"Get it! Get it!" Annie yelled, jumping excitedly in Archer's arms as we all laughed at her.

Christmas always made my heart happy and full, but this year really was special. My grandparents were in Arizona all winter so it was just our family and the Johnsons. It was surprisingly easy to be around Archer and my family without spilling the beans. I guess because we would never usually be physical in front of them anyway, so besides not touching—we acted natural. I had to deal with teasing from my mom and Mrs. Johnson the whole time, but they promised they'd keep it a secret.

Archer and his dad seemed to have some kind of unspoken agreement to not discuss what happened at Thanksgiving. In fact, they didn't interact at all. I kept forgetting that Mr. Johnson was even in our house. He was like a ghost, skulking around in the background. But other than that, this was the best holiday to date; filled with laughing, eating, and love.

Before I knew it, it was New Year's Eve and time for the banquet. The Johnson's would be at our house soon, so we could all leave together. My foot tapped obsessively on the bathroom tile as I tried to do something with my hair. I really wasn't good at going outside the box with it, but my usual style didn't fit my dress.

I grabbed my jar of bobby pins with a big huff. I just needed to start something. I twisted random strands of hair then pinned it to the back. By the time I was done my curls were all piled on top of my head. wispy pieces fell out around my face and a few around the curve of my neck.

    Once I was dressed I was pretty impressed with myself. The deep green of my dress paired with dramatic lashes made the brown in my eyes seem brighter. This is so flipping elegant, I smiled as I spritzed myself with perfume.

Voices drifted up to me as I left my bedroom. Everyone must already be gathering downstairs. As I came into view my gaze was immediately drawn to Archer. My eyes greedily scoured over him before anyone else noticed. He somehow managed to make even a stiff tuxedo seem cool and relaxed. The perfectly tailored suit accentuated his broad muscles and lean waist. I laughed lightly when I noticed that his unruly waves had gone untouched.

The sound drew attention to me at the top of the stairs. I made my way down to where my mom and dad were waiting for me. I returned their smiles as my dad pulled me into a tight hug. His lips were pulled into a tight line as he blinked several times and cleared his throat.