Page 43 of The Mistletoe Trap
Sugary-sweet, just like her.
Her lips parted with a ragged breath, and his cock twitched. Regardless of the fuzziness that’d invaded his entire body, he needed to say something—without giving away too much.
“I’ve never been bored with you, that’s for sure.” He swallowed, hard. “As for that other part, I think we have some sexy pills around here somewhere. One bite and the spell some asshole put on you to make you think something so foolish will be broken.”
Blindly he reached back, aiming for the bowls of candy. Only his hand found frosting instead. “Damn it,” he muttered, shaking off bits of the green goop that looked remarkably like the face mask Julie had forced upon him the other night. So much for his smooth delivery. “That was supposed to go differently. The point is, it’s all in your head, babe. You’re really fucking sexy. Just trust me on that.”
For several seconds, he didn’t think she would respond. Was she even breathing? Blinking? Had the poisonous mistletoe cookies kicked in?
The silence was nearing frantic territory when her eyes flicked to the green frosting on his fingertips. He was about to wipe the mess on his pants, but then her fingers circled his wrist. She lifted his arm and studied his hand like she’d never seen one before.
Another inch higher, and time ground to a halt as she flicked her tongue over the pad of his greenest fingertip. “Since you helped me with my frosting issue,” she rasped.
With his hand already poised next to the lower lip he couldn’t stop obsessing over, he gave in to the urge to drag his thumb over it, the softness and the accompanying dilating pupils completely hypnotizing.
A heated exhale whispered across his wrist as he continued down, down, down until his palm rested against the side of her neck.
“Looks like I didn’t quite get it all, though.” He drew her closer, eradicating all but the last inch of space between their mouths. He held the intimate position for a beat, giving her a chance to pull away if she wanted to. Then he angled his head and flicked his tongue over the corner that was perfectly clean but hadn’t been taste-tested yet.
“Well, now you have some on your lip.” Her tongue darted out, the tip barely hitting the seam of his mouth. The lowmmmnoise that followed the featherlight touch left his throat sandpaper dry.
Usually Julie was the one who analyzed, applied logic, and kept them out of trouble. He should return the favor, but his thoughts weren’t sticking properly. A haze of lust shrouded his mind, and instead of attempting to clear it, he wanted to sink in and live in this dream for a while.
Doubt crept into her expression, his formerly unsure best friend rising once again, and that wouldn’t do. Besides, didn’t they owe it to themselves to see if they had any chemistry? Maybe acting on his impulse would confirm they were better as friends, and they’d blow it off as a cleaning session that went too far.
His delusional brain grasped onto the iffy logic, and he slid his hand from the side of her neck to cup the nape of it. The world narrowed to her mouth and his, and then he was guiding her face to his, testing the limits of their dangerous game.
The fuse on his nerve endings lit up like a sparkler, burning fast and bright. She parted her lips, andboom. No going back after an explosion like that. His tongue swept inside as if it already knew its way around and couldn’t wait to get reacquainted.
Both of her hands gripped fistfuls of his shirt at either side of his waist, and she tipped onto her toes. As she draped her entire body over the front of his, she amped up her level of participation. Each stroke and corresponding moan sent him circling higher and higher.
A grunt slipped out when the resistance of his shoulder brace prevented him from reaching around and planting a hand on her ass to press her even closer, so he pivoted her around and against the counter to gain more traction and control.
As they continued their give-and-take dance with their mouths, her hands drifted to his chest, over his shoulders. Plastered together, and yet she still wasn’t close enough. She linked her fingers behind his neck and tilted her head a couple more degrees, allowing him to deepen the kiss.
A groan vibrated through him as she rolled her tongue over his, andholy shit, the woman could kiss. A fleeting thought about her ex being a fucking moron flitted through his head, but then she repeated the move, and he lost himself to the euphoric sensations coursing through him on full blast.
He ran his hand down her back, planted a hand on her ass, and heaved her up onto the granite. There. Now he wouldn’t have to stoop so low. Better yet, it allowed him to settle himself between her open thighs.
The fire inside him stoked that much hotter, and he was afraid to stop. The vague thoughts attempting to break through might get to him then, and he hadn’t nearly gotten his fill of kissing Julie yet.
He doubted that was even a thing.
She linked her ankles behind his waist, fitting their bodies together, and he tumbled headfirst into desire.
A noise tapped at his brain, and he swatted it away.
It wasn’t until the metalliczingof the key going into the doorknob rang out that he realized he’d heard a car drive up. “Shit,” he said, yanking her off the counter and putting as much space as he could between them before the door swung open.
Both he and Julie were still breathing heavily, and the kitchen was a messy disaster. The two of them undoubtedly were as well.
The loud chatter of his parents and hers, along with Niki’s and Granny Frost’s died as they blinked at them.
“Hey,” Julie said, her voice several octaves higher than usual. “You guys are home already. We, uh…didn’t get much cookie decorating done. Gavin’s shoulder is bothering him, so I was just…icing him—er, it.”
Gavin managed to turn his snort of laughter at her play on words into a grunt as he rubbed at his shoulder. “Feels much better now. Not sure it’s good enough to decorate cookies, mind you, but—”
“You go rest up, young man,” Gran said, and Mom echoed the sentiment and shooed him toward the living room. He planned on replying he’d just head to his room and give Jules a wink to convey she should follow him up a few minutes later. But Gran grabbed Julie’s hand and patted it. “You leave me and Julie to it. I’ve hardly gotten a chance to chat with her, and I could decorate cookies all night.
