Read Online The Billionaire's First Christmas - Contemporary Romance by Holly Rayner - Free Book Online

having lunch?”
     
    I slipped on my boots and stood up.
“We’re going to the Christmas market. We can get some food from the
vendors there.” Aaron made a face. I doubted that he’d ever bought
anything from a street vendor.
     
    He finally got the skate he was
struggling with off and then he said, “Are you sure? You’re never
sure what they put in things.”
     
    “Oh please, people eat vendor food all
the time and live through it. You’ll be amazed at how good it
is.”
     
    He didn’t look convinced, but he
didn’t argue any further. He slipped on his boots and stood up.
Grabbing on to me he said, “Ouch, I may not be able to get out of
bed tomorrow.”
     
    I laughed, “Yes, I thought of that
too. But now that the initiation is over, you can skate more and
your body will get used to it.”
     
    “Hmm, I’ll have to give that some
thought,” he said it like he was going to give it no thought at
all. That’s okay; I wasn’t looking to turn him into a professional
ice-skater. I was just really hoping to help him learn how to have
a little fun. “I have a meeting on Monday afternoon with some
really important people coming all the way over from China.
Hopefully I’ll be there and not writhing in pain and agony in
bed.”
     
    “I’m sure by Monday you’ll be as good
as new,” I told him.
     
    We turned in our skates and walked
over to the area of the park where the fair was happening. There
were more than 125 boutique-style shops in the park. The aisles
were made from festively decorated trees and the shops carried
everything that a person might need to complete their Christmas
shopping and a lot of it was handmade, which I loved. Personally,
I’d so much rather receive something hand-made than something
designed and built in a factory. The sights and smells of Christmas
were overwhelming. It all made me happy. I looked over at Aaron and
realized it was having the opposite effect on him. His glow from
the ice-skating seemed to be fading.
     
    I saw a hot dog vendor and looked at
Aaron.
     
    “Hot dogs?” he said,
grumpily.
     
    “Are you too good for a hot
dog?”
     
    “Absolutely not,” he said. “But, I did
see a sign for steak sandwiches. Doesn’t that sound
better?”
    “Oh, I see what you’re doing. I said
I’d buy and suddenly you want the steak. You’re not a cheap date,
are you?”
     
    He threw his head back and laughed.
That was encouraging. “I admit it, you have me. I have hot dogs
every day. I was trying to get my hands on a steak on your
dime.”
     
    “Well, as long as you’re willing to be
honest about it,” I told him.
     
    “I’d even be willing to pay for half,”
he said. “Please don’t make me eat a hot dog.” It was my turn to
laugh. He sounded like an insolent child.
     
    “Okay, steak sandwich it is. I’m
paying for all of it though,” I said. He opened his mouth and I
said, “I won’t accept any arguments.” He opened his mouth again and
I said, “Huh uh I don’t want to hear it.”
     
    “But…”
    He stopped walking and I said, “I’m buying, Aaron. That’s
final.”
     
    “That’s fine,” he said, pointing up. I
looked up and saw the sign for the steak sandwich vendor. I’d
walked right past it.
     
    “I was just going to turn around,” I
told him. He laughed, but to his credit he didn’t make fun of me.
We ordered two sandwiches and two coffees. When they were ready, we
carried them to one of the park benches and sat down to
eat.
    Aaron took a bite from his and said, “Oh my God.”
     
    “What? What’s wrong?”
     
    “This is the best steak sandwich I’ve
ever tasted,” he said. “I’ve had them in more than one country and
in more than one gourmet restaurant too.”
     
    I smiled and said, “Told you so.
You’ll be an addict before long.”
     
    We finished our lunch and I had to
agree with his assessment. The sandwich was delicious. He collected
our trash and deposited it in a nearby can. Then turning to me he
said,