The office Christmas party is one disaster after the next for Maisie - especially when she has to leave early and her only option for a ride home is the biggest 'what if' of her life: Zach. Stuck in the car together (and stuck in traffic) who knows what could happen with a little Christmas magic? After all - there's no time like the present...

Part Two, as promised!

"What can I say? You stole my heart."

Zach lets out a breath of laughter. "You wish."

Maybe I do wish. Just a little. There's always been that little niggling what if... but it was always pushed aside very quickly by my stubborn attitude that a guy who wouldn't text me back wasn't worth my time.

Now he's pointed it out though, I may have had more to do with that than I realised. I thought I was just being upfront and honest at the time. After Zach stopped replying to me, I realised how much I'd wanted something more to happen with him.

The worst part of it was that I couldn't talk to Isla about it.

Obviously I never mentioned to her while we were at uni that I thought her brother was cute. (He'd had a girlfriend the majority of the time I'd known Isla anyway.)

The first time I saw him and we were both single was at New Year's during my third year of uni; I'd stayed with Isla at her parents' for the night and we'd gone to a club with Zach and his mates. A cheeky kiss at midnight wasn't anything the others even thought twice about at the time, but the chemistry was just... wow.

I saw him over the Easter break. Nothing happened, but I could tell we both wanted something to happen.

And then, of course, there was graduation week back in the summer. A group of us had gone out for a celebratory cocktail, I'd not fancied a big night out, Zach said he was too old at twenty-four to go out with uni students, so he offered to walk me back home, and...

I shake myself.

But now I'm thinking about it, and can't help but notice that Zach smells so good, and I can't believe I got doused in red wine.

Isla mumbles in her sleep from the back seat. I twist to look at her. She looks so sweet and peaceful – not at all the chaotic drunk from ten minutes ago.

"Oh, shit."

I turn back around as the car slows to a stop. We're on the motorway now and...

...at a complete standstill.

Cars are stopped as far down the road as we can see. Traffic nips along on the other side of the road. A few horns beep around us. A sign flashes up overhead: Queues likely.

Yeah, no kidding.

"Shit," I echo, slumping back in my seat. This is just the cherry on the cake of a crappy night. I press the heel of my hand into my forehead, groaning. "Tell me that's not a traffic jam."

"That's not a traffic jam."

The handbrake creaks, and he nudges the gearstick into neutral.

The adverts on the radio end, the familiar tune of a Christmas classic starting up.

I drop my hand and stare ahead for a moment in disbelief.

Zach starts laughing.

"No," I say, because – no.

Zach just laughs louder, but it's not enough to drown out the sound of Chris Rea's Driving Home For Christmas.

"This is just what I need. It's like the universe is out to get me. I didn't even want to go tonight. Explain why I gave up my night for the privilege of some canapes at some stupid country house in the middle of nowhere and seeing my colleagues get smashed on an open bar and make idiots of themselves? Do you know how much I had to fork out for this dress? And the taxi there?"

"Don't forget the taxi back. It's the Friday before Christmas, I'm charging double."

"Ha-bloody-ha."

"I didn't realise you were so bah humbug."

"I'm not. I just..." I sigh, twisting in my seat to face Zach better. "If I tell you, you have to promise not to laugh at me."

He grins his stupid, beautiful smile. "I can try."

"And you have to promise not to get unbearably jealous," I add, trying to keep it light – if only to distract myself from how annoyed I am about it.

He smiles wider. "Cross my heart."

"I went on a few dates with one of the guys from our HR department. Not that it was anything serious, so I didn't mind too much when he called it off a couple of weeks ago. I wasn't exactly that invested, you know?"

"What, and you got jealous when you saw him snogging someone else under the mistletoe tonight?"

"Worse. I heard him talking about his plans for the holidays. With his girlfriend. Of nearly two years."

Zach looks away from the sea of brake lights in front of us to gawp at me, mouth hanging open and eyes bulging for a good few seconds before he says, "Noooooo."

"Yup."

"Did you say something?"

"And be that person causing drama at the office Christmas party?"

Zach raises his eyebrows and nods to his sister passed out in the back seat.

"Proper drama," I clarify. "No. Isla did, though. Obviously. She told him that if he didn't tell his girlfriend, one of us would. And – it's not like I was still interested in him, I just feel so awful about it. And mad. What if I'd been really serious about him? What if I'd thought he was The One? And the whole time, I was just – ugh," I break off with a grunt, pressing my hands against my face, wishing I could forget the whole thing ever happened.

"He's the one who should feel shitty," Zach says. "He's the one cheating on his girlfriend. And it's not like you knew."

"Yeah, I know that, but... God, I just feel like such an idiot."

"You're not an idiot."

I scoff, shifting in my seat. "Sure. Between dating a guy who I didn't realise had a girlfriend, and thinking you ghosted me out of nowhere..."

He pretends to think for a minute. "Okay, maybe you're kind of an idiot. But in an endearing way. I mean, I'm totally willing to give you another chance. I'm expecting a grand gesture though. I like roses, in case you were wondering. Red, naturally. I'll accept nothing less."

Despite the knotted feeling in my stomach over the whole thing about George, Zach makes me giggle. "Another chance? That's so generous of you."

"Hey, 'tis the season."

"If only we had some mistletoe," I joke, but – not really. I've twisted enough in my seat now that I'm facing him, and I can't help but glance at his lips.

"If only," he murmurs back and – is he leaning closer? He's definitely leaning closer. And I am too. My heart is racing and my breath catches with anticipation.

He kisses me, and it's electric. That chemistry we had before is still there, his kiss every bit as good as I remembered it being, his lips soft against mine. I melt into it like a snowflake on the palm of your hand.

We jump apart at the beeping of a horn.

The traffic has moved on a whole five meters. Zach waves vaguely to the guy in the car behind us, even though he probably can't see it, and puts the car back in gear to close the gap.

"Bout fucking time," a voice mutters from the back.

We both look back to see Isla looking at us through half-closed eyes.

"You heard me," she mumbles, yawning widely.

I flush, stammer, not sure what I'm meant to say. (I'm sorry? I can explain? This isn't what it looks like?)

"Mum's been asking me for ages if you two are going to get together," she tells Zach, rubbing a hand over her face and smudging her makeup worse than it already is. "The way you were going on and on and on about Maisie. She's always asking me if she should buy a hat yet, for the wedding."

I can't help but break into a wide smile, biting my lip. Lit up by the dashboard and brake lights, I can see Zach blush, and the glare he shoots his sister. "I'm sorry, you were what now?"

"You're one to talk, missy. Like you weren't asking after him every chance you got. Ooh, is Zach seeing anyone? Is he single? How's Zach, what's he up to these days?"

My turn to glare at her now, as Zach smirks at me, gleeful.

"You didn't say anything," I tell her.

Isla shrugs, closing her eyes and nestling back into a comfy position across the back seat. "I'm not bloody Cupid." She throws her arms out, not caring when they hit the seats, swiping them back and forth. "I'm a Christmas angel."

The traffic starts to move after a little while, and the journey doesn't take too long after that. We switch the radio channel over, only for Driving Home For Christmas to start playing on there, which drives me berserk and has Zach singing along loudly just to annoy me even more. It's a quiet drive for the most part, conversation alternating between Isla winding us up about our lovesick and blatantly obvious crushes on the other, and Isla groaning with embarrassment over all the things she said at the party.

Zach pulls up outside my block of flats, and there's a beat where none of us move. I'm not sure what comes next – if it's weirder for me to kiss him goodbye, or if I should just get out of the car with a thanks, see ya. Zach looks at me like he's not sure either, his lips moving as though he's about to say something, and his forehead puckering into a frown.

I decide to turn back to Isla. "Message me in the morning, hon. I hope the hangover's not too bad."

"I hope so," she mutters. She's sat up now, buckled in and looking worse for wear. "Although it might distract from the shame. I can't believe I did my impression of Jeremy in front of everyone. God. Why did I do that? Why?"

I reach to squeeze her knee. "Nobody will care, come January. It's all good."

"Mm."

Conversation over, apparently.

Making it my cue to turn back to Zach.

"Well, er..." I swallow. "Thanks, um, for the lift."

"Sure. Any time."

"Great. Yeah. Well."

I'm terrible at this.

"Bye."

With that, I get out of the car as quickly as I can, shivering against the freezing cold and digging through my bag for my key. I hear Isla snapping something after I close the car door, and Zach climbing out of his seat a second later, leaving the car idling on the side of the road while he strides up to the doors to the flats – to me.

"What are you doing tomorrow?"

I blink in surprise. "Um... I don't know. Wrapping some presents?"

"Do you want to go grab a coffee? Tomorrow, I mean. Not now. Obviously. If you've got time, I mean."

He's as terrible at this as I am.

I know Isla would be telling me to play it cool, not to seem too keen. But I can't help the way my heart picks up and the smile that spreads over my face. "I'd love to."

Zach's smile widens, mirroring mine, his eyes glittering in the dark.

This time, I kiss him first.

Hope you all enjoyed this year's Christmas short story - leave a comment and let me know what you thought!