Escaping Christmas (Contemporary Romance) by Charlotte Ashwood

Chapter One
    Angie stepped out of the elevator, staring eagerly at the take-out container of Baskin-Robbins ice cream in her hand, and promptly tripped over her own feet. For a fraction of a second she registered the fact that her ice cream was not going to survive the fall before she bumped into something hard.
    “Oomph!”
    “I’ve got you.” A sexy voice reached down and caressed her as she felt strong, muscular arms breaking her fall.
    “My ice cream!”Angie couldn’t hide her relief as she caught the container before it hit the ground. What was that scent? She inched closer so she could get another whiff. Hmm, smelled like spice. There was a woodsy aroma there, too. And he definitely smelled like a man. She inhaled again and almost jumped when he let out a sexy chuckle.
    “I promise you, I wash regularly. I’ve even been known to take a shower on occasion.”
    Her face flushed with embarrassment, Angie stiffened and realized she was still in his arms. She took a step back and felt strangely bereft when his arms fell away. “I’m sorry, I’m quite clumsy,” she said, looking anywhere but at her rescuer, trying to figure out why her pulse was racing.
    “Hey, no sweat. It was entirely my pleasure.”
    She lifted her head then and stared into the sparkling brown eyes of her next-door neighbor. She frowned. They had met a couple of times around the elevator, and something about this man, with his roguish good looks and curly black hair, had always rubbed her the wrong way. Probably because she kept wondering what it would be like to kiss him, and images of him naked kept flashing up at unwanted times. She needed to extricate herself from this situation if she didn’t want him to see that those images had begun flashing once more.
    “Well, thanks, anyway. I need to go.” She fidgeted with her purse strings while carefully holding on to the container of ice cream. Realizing how ungracious she sounded, Angie sighed, and before she could stop herself she blurted out, “I don’t mind sharing this.” She lifted the container slightly.
    His eyes widened, and for a second he looked like he was going to say yes, but then they clouded with regret.
    “I would love to, but I need to be somewhere else. I’ll take a rain check.”
    That was when she took in the fact that he was dressed in a tailored shirt and what appeared to be designer jeans. He looked ready for a night out. The tightness in Angela’s stomach eased a little, and she couldn’t hide her relief. She’d regretted her impulsive offer almost as soon as she’d made it.
    “No problem. Thanks for saving my ice cream.” She turned to leave.
    “Wait!”
    Damn. She’d almost escaped. Slowly she turned back to face him, one eyebrow lifted in inquiry.
    “What’s your name?”
    “Angie Scot.”
    He closed the gap between them. “I’m Alex Farhadi.”
    He stretched out a hand and waited till she reluctantly placed hers in his. Her skin tingled where their palms touched.
    “I meant what I said about taking a rain check,” he said slowly, looking straight into her eyes.
    Angie gazed into his eyes and felt her stomach give a slow flip. That was not a good sign. First the tingle, now a flip? She was beginning to get warning signals, the big, blinking, neon-colored kind. His eyes were doing funny things to her, too. They were deep pools of caramel, and he was looking at her intently, as though she were the only woman in the world. Of course, she was the only other person standing there, just outside the elevator. At that reminder, she blinked and realized her hand was still enveloped by his much larger one. She tugged gently, and he let go immediately, but her hand still retained the warmth of his.
    “I’ll be seeing you around, then.” He flashed a smile at her.
    Not if she saw him first, she decided. But she just shrugged and nodded. “Sure.”
    She felt his eyes on her as she turned and walked the short distance to her door. While she searched her