Page 50 of The Jinglebell War
She groans into my mouth and tilts her hips to get just the right angle until I’m the one groaning. God, she feels so good.
I need to get us to a bed, immediately.
No sooner do I have that thought than she leaps off me. She lands on her feet, panting, her lipstick smeared, her hair a mess, her eyes wide and almost black with how dilated her pupils are.
I want her more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life.
“We can’t do this,” she says. “I’m the mayor and you’re the asshole trying to run me out of town.”
“I’m not trying to run you out of town right now. I like you here.” My voice sounds rough to my own ears.
“And if the council finds out we’re sleeping together, it’ll just give them one more reason to think I’m unfit. They’ll say I’monly backing your request for permits because we’re sleeping together. They’ll say I’m trading sex for favors.” She tilts her head back. “Or favors for sex.” She runs her hands through her hair, trying to fix it and only making it worse. “You know what I mean.”
“We aren’t in Yuletide. No one has to know what happens here.”
She takes a step back. “That only works if you think what we do here will be enough for you. Men always want more from me.”
I love a challenge. “I can guarantee I won’t want more from you.”
She rolls her eyes. “I’m not saying you’re going to fall in love with me, tough guy. I’m saying I have a magical vagina. It’s addictive.”
She has a what? I snort, then laugh. “I can promise you, I won’t get addicted.”
She shrugs, her eyes alight with mischief, her lips fully kissable. “I’m not willing to take that chance.”
I do not push sex on anyone. Consent is sexy as hell and I don’t touch a woman unless she’s enthusiastically consenting. “Okay. I’ll keep my hands and my lips to myself. Shall we head to bed?”
She grins and I’m very glad I threw on a robe before I came down here so she can’t see what she does to me, even from a few feet away. The woman with the ‘magical vagina’ doesn’t need the ego boost.
“I’d rather have a tour of your family portrait gallery than go to bed.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Blue
Was I talking out of my ass when I told Garrick I have a magical vagina? Mostly. There has been one man in my history of one-night stands and short-lived non-relationships who used that description for my lady garden, but he was… He was later arrested for stalking - not me, thankfully — but he probably wasn’t the best judge.
Still, claiming to have a magically addictive vagina seemed safer than explaining to Garrick that I want him too much. And I like him. I like him way more than I should.
Being with him in the home where he grew up, I’m seeing a different side of Garrick. Worse, I’m beginning to understand exactly why he is the way he is and I’m feeling… things. I don’t like feeling things.
I am not going to fall into the trap of believing I’m in love or happily ever afters.
Love and relationships are coping mechanisms people adopt to survive a scary world. Attraction is scientifically proven tobe real. The rest is a fantasy we make up to comfort ourselves through the hardships of life.
Garrick is staring at me with a horrified expression and I’m not sure if it’s because of my magical vagina or because I want a tour of this portrait gallery.
I’ve known a lot of truly rich people in my life, but I’ve seen the insides of very few of their homes. Do all rich people have a room dedicated to family portraits? Or is Garrick’s family odd?
I’m crossing my fingers for odd.
Garrick clears his throat and looks around the room. “My parents…” He puts his hands on his hips. “They wanted to support local…” He drops his head forward and pulls at his hair. “None of us kids asked for these portraits. It was all our parents’ idea, so if you’ve got some idea I’m a narcissist who—”
“Has parents who love him and wanted to document his stages of growth in a truly epic way?”
He lifts his head, and his cheeks are actually pink. The fact that I’ve made this man blush should be something I can use on a resume. Instead, I’m taking a mental snapshot so I can remember this moment later.
And not for the benefit of my magical vagina. That galaxy shattering kiss will fulfill that need quite nicely.
