Page 15 of Claiming Candy

“Nonsense,” Ethan says, dipping me down and making me squeal in surprise. “You haven’t stepped on me yet.”

“Yet is the operative word,” I say, loving the way a genuine smile spreads over his handsome face.

“I have faith in you, Candy,” he says, leaning in to kiss me sweetly.

I give myself over to him, letting him swing me around the floor as his mouth presses softly against mine. It feels like I’m floating. My feet barely touch the ground, Ethan’s strong arms keep me upright. His mouth transports me far away from the crowd we’re spinning through.

He pulls me even closer against him, and all of the breath is stolen from my lungs. Despite all of my previous nervousness, I feel myself starting to get keyed up from his proximity. Something about him is so intoxicating that it’s easy to forget everything that isn’t him.

The Christmas music swells, and my heart is full. The magic of this holiday that I’ve always loved is imbued with every single move that we make. I want nothing more than to bottle this moment so I can relive it whenever I’m feeling down.

I need to be closer to him, immediately. My arms snake around his neck, pulling my body flush against his. He makes a low, satisfied noise into my mouth and tucks me even tighter against him.

We continue to sway in place, but we’re no longer taking the long, circular strides we were when our lips first touched. His focus is entirely on me. It’s like I’m the only thing in the world that matters to him, and he’s the only thing that matters to me. I can’t stop myself from smiling into our contact.

All of a sudden, our kiss gets even more heated. I gasp at the feeling of his tongue swiping against my bottom lip. He moves in quickly, taking advantage of the opening. His tongue presses against mine, and the touch makes heat pool between my legs.

Ethan’s hips grind forward, and I realize that he’s getting hard. My head swims with desire, and I find myself not caring that we’re in the middle of a huge group of people. I want him, and I want him now.

After a few more moments of making out fervently, he pulls away. His pupils are blown, and I can barely see the color of his irises. He looks wrecked, and I’m sure that I don’t look much better.

The band changes gears, playing something much slower. The couples around us sway in time to the music, but the two of us have stopped. We stare at each other, and even though there aren’t any words exchanged between the two of us, a conversation happens. We’re on the same page with this.

“I can’t stand to have anyone else seeing you right now,” he says, leaning in so close that his breath ghosts over the shell of my ear.

I shudder, sucking in a harsh breath. His proximity is so much. I know that he’s waiting for a response from me, but I can’t seem to make my mouth work. I’m swimming in his senses. The only thing I’m able to do is nod and make a noise that’s more than a little embarrassing.

“What do you say we get out of here?” he asks, already starting to lead me away. “Technically I’m supposed to stay until the end of this thing, but I don’t care. I don’t want anyone else to see you. You’re mine, Candy.”

“I am yours,” I squeak, nearly knocking into another one of the guests as he pulls me through the crowd.

“That’s what I like to hear,” he says, drawing me into another fierce kiss as soon as we’re out in the icy wind.

Snowflakes swirl around us, and I feel like we’re in a snow globe. If it weren’t for how insistent his hands are on my body, I’d have a hard time believing that this is real, that this is something that I get to have.

“Give me a second,” he says, pulling out his phone when we part. “I need to get our driver. And have someone bring us our coats.”

I want to offer to go back inside to get them, but I don’t want to leave Ethan for even a second. He doesn’t want to leave me either. So, when he finally hangs up with his driver, I smile as I’m dragged back into another searing kiss.

Chapter Nine

Ethan

I can barely keep my hands off Candy once we get into the car. The only thing stopping me from taking her right there in the back seat is the fact that she deserves privacy after having to share a space with others for so long. She deserves to have our second time together be as romantic as our first.

When the driver pulls into the garage, I waste no time getting out and dragging Candy with me. As soon as we’re inside the mansion, I pick her up off the floor, loving the way she laughs. Actually, it’s dawning on me that maybe I just love everything that she does.

“Candy,” I say as I drop her onto the bed, looming over her with unconcealed desire on my face. “I love you. I love you so much.”

Her breath hitches and a huge smile spreads over her face. Then, her mouth cracks open and she says the words I’ve been desperately wanting to hear since I first laid eyes on her.

“I love you too, Ethan,” she whispers. “I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone or anything in my life.”

“Good,” I tell her before I’m attaching our mouths in a kiss much hotter than anything we exchanged at the event.

Candy’s hands are burning and insistent on every inch of my clothed body. All at once, I realize there’s too much fabric separating the two of us. As much as it pains me to do it, I break off our kiss and pull away, stripping away my suit jacket and removing my button-up shirt with so much force that I end up breaking a few of the buttons.

Her breath catches at the sound of threads ripping. Apparently, my show of strength and need is only heightening hers. With my shirt off, I pull her to her feet and make quick work of the dress she’s wearing, leaving her in nothing but her panties.

---