Page 10 of Mary had a Little Harem

"Just wondering..."

"If I were gay, why would I be on a date with you?"

"Cause you're grandma made you?"

"Well... Yeah, but still. I wouldn't have gone if I was gay?"

Mary scratched her chin. "So you just don't find me attractive? Am I not your type? Or just not beautiful enough?" she inquired, already cringing at the prospect of getting an actual honest answer. Maybe she didn't want to know why after all. Ready to take her questions back, she opened her mouth.

"What? Oh my God, of course I find you attractive. Hell, you're gorgeous," Louis uttered surprised, not believing how this girl could actually think she was anything less than breathtaking.

"You think so?" Mary asked from under her eyelashes, her cheeks heating up from his sincerity.

"You're absolutely my type," he assured her, smiling at how human she was. "Beautiful, witty, and just a little bit mean."

"Oi!" Mary smacked his chest in mock-hurt, but the curl around her lips betrayed her amusement. "We were having such a nice moment and you just had to ruin it, didn't you."

Louis smiled, admiring the twinkles in her grey eyes. "I don't think I ruined it."

Mary bit her lip, silently admitting that Louis maybe wasn't that bad of a guy after all. "Maybe you didn't."

Louis grinned, stepping closer to Mary. If she was saying what he thought she was saying, he was gold. Maybe this "date" would turn out better than most of his genuine ones.

As careful as he could, much more gently than he'd expected from himself, he cupped Mary's face. He swiped a thumb over her cheek, studying the silver swirling through her eyes. He waited, for her to pull away, for another snarky remark, for something. But as she sighed into his touch, he couldn't contain himself.

A stray snowflake landed on Mary's bottom lip, melting away before Louis crashed his own lips on hers.

"Blah," Mary spluttered, pulling away from him as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

Gutted, Louis darted back, immediately hitting himself for taking a chance. Why did he think this was a good idea again?

"Beard," she coughed, pointing at the itchy, white drape of polyester covering the bottom side of his face.

"Oh fuck," he exclaimed, not believing he actually forgot he was wearing a Santa Costume with a fake beard. "Did I actually try and kiss you with this beard?" he asked, his ears turning red in embarrassment again. She seemed to be able to bring that out of him.

Mary snickered. "I was wondering if you forgot."

He narrowed his eyes. "So you were just waiting to see if I'd kiss you with my Santa beard?"

"Maybe?" she shrugged, but the lights of joy twinkling in her eyes said "definitely".

"I can't believe I just did that," he muttered to himself, the urge to slam his head into a wall bubbling up in his stomach. Just his luck. Here he was, standing next to a beautiful girl in a beautiful night. And he cocked it up by forgetting about his stupid beard. What an idiot. There went all his chances of impressing the dark-haired beauty.

"Here, let me," Mary suddenly whispered, gently pulling the beard down. The cold winter air was in stark contrast of the isolated warmth underneath his beard. But not for long.

Pressing herself up on her tippy toes, Mary snaked one arm around Louis' neck, tangling her hand in the little hairs of his nape. As quickly as the cold came, it disappeared as she pressed her lips against his, sealing the gap between their bodies. The winter breeze no longer able to pass through them.

Louis’ burlap sack slipped out of his hands as he curled them around Mary's waist, pulling her harder into him. With the beard out of the way, he finally found out how soft and warm Mary's lips were against his. Both tender and passionate, surprisingly, they both found the kiss to be the perfect match between hot and cold, hard and soft, desperate and gentle.

Almost reluctantly, Mary pulled back for some fresh air. With glazed over eyes, she stared at the handsome guy in front of her. Even the ugly red costume, the ridiculous beard dangling underneath his chin, and the tacky pointy hat couldn't hide how beautiful he was. How his sharp and chiseled features stood out. How mysterious and deep the midnight blue in his eyes was.

Louis tangled one hand in her dark locks, guiding her face back to his. Playfully, he nibbled on her bottom lip, groaning as she granted him access.

Mary grinned against his lips, pressing herself harder into him. She pushed his Christmas hat out of the way and tangled her hands in his hair. Annoyed by his prickly beard, she yanked it all the way down, the knot untangling behind his head. Without tree branches or silly Christmas garnish hiding his face, Mary was able to admire Louis' face. She briefly noted that he was honestly, really beautiful and backed up that statement by passionately answering his kiss.

"So... Your place or mine?" Louis proposed, raising his eyebrow cockily. Mary snorted, pushing him away.

"Both. I'm going to mine and you back to yours," she retorted. Even though the date had gone well and she certainly had warmed up to him, she wasn't ready to just jump into bed with him. Even though she was sure that underneath his Santa suit, he was sculpted like a Greek God.

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