Page 9 of Merry & Wild

“Cool.”

I pull a shirt out of my drawer and pass it to her. She unfolds it and then smiles at me.

“It’s a Van Halen concert T-shirt.”

“I saw them last summer. They were awesome. You get changed, and I’ll go make us some hot chocolate.”

“That sounds great. Thanks, John.”

I lean in to kiss her softly. “Get comfy, sweetheart.”

I leave her in the bedroom and hurry out to the kitchen. What I said earlier is true. I’m not a great chef, but my grandmother did teach me how to make hot chocolate on the stove. So, I get to work melting chocolate into milk, and when the two steaming mugs are ready, I walk back to the bedroom and just about spill hot chocolate all over me.

She’s turned off the overhead light, and instead, just the sidelight is on, casting the room in soft shadows. Joy is in my bed, wearing my shirt, her long hair down and tousled around her face.

When she sees me, her eyes light up like it’s Christmas morning.

“You were gone a long time,” she says.

“It takes a while to melt chocolate,” I reply and step into the room.

“It’srealchocolate? I thought for sure you were making it from a mix.”

“My grandmother would not approve of that,” I reply and pass her a mug as she sits up straighter and leans back on the reclaimed wood headboard. “You look damn good in my shirt.”

“It’s really big on me, but I think that’s the point.” She sips the chocolate and then sighs. “Is there anything better than a hot drink on a stormy night?”

“Yes, a half-naked woman in my bed,” I reply without thinking. “You’re welcome to look away if you don’t want to see me strip down to my boxers and join you.”

Her gaze doesn’t leave me as I whip my shirt over my head, not even bothering to unbutton it, and toss it into the hamper. The jeans follow, along with my socks, and I notice that Joy’s eyes are roaming over me as if she’s ravenous.

So rather than hurry to climb in bed, I brace my hands on my hips and let her get her fill of me.

“Wow,” she whispers, and my cock immediately responds. I’ve been semi-hard for hours, but now, with the way she’s watching me, it’s at full alert. “You should probably get into the bed. It’s nice and warm.”

I don’t have to be told twice.

Joy peels the covers back in invitation, and I slide between the sheets, cover myself to my stomach, and reach for my own mug.

This isn’t how I pictured it when I thought of bringing her back here. No, that scenario had me already inside of her, making us both crazy with lust.

But I have to admit, I don’t mind it. I don’t mind it at all.

“This is delicious,” she says, watching me over the rim of the red mug. Her gaze falls to my throat when I swallow some of my own hot chocolate.

“What?” I ask.

“Nothing.” She glances down, but I reach over and tip her chin up and toward me.

“What is it?”

“Your throat is sexy when you swallow.” She licks her lips as if she’s embarrassed that she said it out loud, and I just smile at her.

“Why?”

“Because your Adam’s apple moves, and it’s muscular and…I just like it, that’s all.”

I set my mug aside, then reach for hers and do the same, and when I turn back to her, her eyes are round, but this time it’s with excitement, not uneasiness.

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