Page 100 of An Endless Memory

Lily

I woke up in the cocoon of Eliot’s arms. It was Christmas morning. Uncle Darren had been correct. It’d taken the kids forever to unwrap all the gifts from my parents. By the time they were done, Cali’s eyes were drooping, and Kellan was trying to crawl into anyone’s lap he could to go to sleep. Eliot said they could save his gifts for today. My parents were at the motel in Coal Haven. They’d be at the Christmas party Aggie and Ansen were throwing.

There was a frantic knock on the bedroom door. “Mom!” Cali whisper-shouted. “Santa came!”

The strong arm around me twitched. “I guess that means no time for frisky business before Santa’s presents,” Eliot grumbled into the back of my neck.

“You already unwrapped me last night.”

He slid his hand down to my thigh where my shorts had ridden up. “You’re halfway there. I wouldn’t have taken long.”

Another knock. “Mom!”

“We’ll be right out,” I called back. Just how quick could he be? No. It was Christmas. I wasn’t making my daughter wait so I could get an orgasm.

“What if we don’t have time before I leave?” He pressed a kiss into my hair.

Warmth was kindling in my belly. There would be no fanning of those flames today. I wasn’t having a quickie at his sister’s place, and he was driving separately to Aggie’s and leaving from there. With the impending storm and his staffing already short for the holiday, he didn’t want to risk getting stranded.

I reached behind me and stroked my hand down the front of his shorts, loving the way his erection twitched as soon as I touched him. “Then you’ll have to call me later tonight.”

Eliot groaned and rolled up. “You’re a menace. I’ll drive too fast knowing your moans are waiting for me.”

Grinning, I got out of bed and dressed. I couldn’t finish without looking over my shoulder to catch a glimpse of his muscled back. He shrugged into an olive-green, long-sleeved shirt.

Kellan was making noises by the time we exited the bedroom. Cali sprinted to the living room. I cleaned up in the bathroom and Eliot made a bottle, then I got Kellan and dropped onto the couch. Eliot took his turn cleaning up.

Cali pushed a little pile of presents by my feet. One was a hand-decorated gift bag with her gift for me from school. She claimed it was for both me and Eliot.

She grinned as he appeared from the hallway. “Open mine first.”

He sat next to me. I had a wiggly baby who was almost as interested in his bottle as everything else, but I couldn’t take my eyes off Eliot’s finger-combed hair and the way his dark whiskers dusted his jaw. I’d gotten to feel those between my thighs last night.

I tucked my feet under his butt and enjoyed the little smile he sent my way.

Cali dropped the gift bag on his lap.

Eliot held it and studied her drawings on the outside. “You sure you want me to be the one to open this masterpiece?”

She nodded.

He glanced at me, a question in his eyes, more like he was searching for approval. I nodded at him. “She’s been so excited for you to see it.”

I didn’t know what it was, but her giddiness about it had amplified my curiosity.

He dug through the tissue paper and withdrew a mass of brown paper towels. “Just what I needed to dry my hands,” he said.

She giggled. “No, it’s inside.” She was standing right in front of him, practically jumping from foot to foot.

He peeled off a taped-together wad of towels to reveal a red Christmas tree ornament. On the shiny surface were names. Mine. Cali’s. Kellan’s. And the one that Eliot kept staring at—his.

“That’s gorgeous,” I gushed, keeping an eye on his reaction. I loved the handmade craft just as much as I loved seeing all our names written together like a real family. As much as the ornament satisfied me, a spark of worry started that maybe this whole plan was wrong. Cali was going to get attached. Eliot and I had something real, but what if he never acknowledged it? What if he rejected the possibility?

It was Christmas. I couldn’t handle those heavy thoughts today. It was the season of hope, right?

His expression was passive, but several emotions played through his eyes: genuine affection and pride, then a hint of fear that morphed into dismay. Maybe some panic?

“Thank you, Cali,” he said stiffly. “It’s really nice.”

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