Page 11 of Christmas Agreement
“Good. Because I’m going to hold your hand and maybe kiss you if I can find some functioning mistletoe. Or maybe, even kiss you without it.”
“Kiss me?” she echoed. Her tongue darted across her lip as she looked up at me. That was need in her eyes, an invitation.
“Yes.” The single word was all I needed to say. It conveyed all my intent. Well, enough of it anyway. “Are you going to back out on me, now?”
“No. It’sThe Nutcracker.” She said the name as if it were sacred. “If I have to endure some hand holding and kisses, I can manage.” She bit her lip, and I had to kiss her right then. No more fighting. No more resisting.
I grasped her hand, lacing our fingers. I brought them to my lips, my eyes pinned to hers as I kissed the back of her hand. We were shoulder to shoulder on her small couch, and it took nothing to lean into her.
My lips brushed over hers and I had to fight back my groan as the tingle that zinged across the connection. Katie wrapped her arms around my shoulders and I buried my fingers in her hair, deepening the kiss and absorbing the sensations of Katie exploding across my senses. Her soft skin. Her vanilla scent. The taste of her tongue sliding across mine. The sharp intake of breath as our mouths moved.
When I pulled back, we stared into each other’s eyes, surprised and overwhelmed, breathing heavily.
“Movie,” she whispered. “Let’s watch the movie before we… I’m not ready for more.”
Cupping her face, I stroked my thumb over her flushed cheek. “I’m not going anywhere. We can go however fast or slow you want.”
She nodded and we sat in silence, watching the movie she’d turned on. I couldn’t say what it was really about otherthan some prince falling in love with some American girl at Christmas. I was more interested in the girl beside me.
Eventually, my arm was around Katie’s shoulders and she rested against my chest, her arms around my waist. She’d drifted to sleep at some point, and I didn’t dare move. I wanted to savor this moment of holding her cuddled to my side. I’d even endure another movie about some high-powered business woman falling for the local carpenter. A movie where the cute college student fell for her hockey player friend would be better, though.
* * * *
Something was completely wrong. There was a weight on my chest, and something hard was poking into my chest. No…two somethings. And the room was way too bright. Not to mention my legs were contorted into some strange position.
I opened my eyes to find a disheveled angel staring down at me. Katie was lying atop me, and her elbows were propped on my chest while she stared down at me.
“Good, you’re awake,” she said as if it wasn’t her fault.
“Yeah. Good morning, Edward Scissor Elbows.”
“Oh, oops!” She adjusted so her forearms were crossed over me instead. I was glad she didn’t move off me. “Better?”
“Mm-hmm.” My hands bracket her hips as I considered waking up like this every day. In a bed would be better. In a bed with her. Even if we got together, those days were a long time off, what with my upcoming travel schedule and her schooling.
“So we fell asleep,” she said, stating the obvious.
“Guess so. Next time, let’s fall asleep on my couch. It’s bigger and more comfortable.” I shifted, pretty sure a spring was wedged against my ass. “Where’d you get this one? A rock quarry?”
“Ha-ha. No. It’s from my parents’ basement. Now, we all know why they shoved it down there.” She moved to get off me, but my hands tightened, and she stilled. Her wide blue eyes stared down at me. “I’m going to make breakfast for us, then you need to go home, so I can get ready,” she whispered.
Reaching up, I cupped her face and dragged my thumb along her cheek. “Okay, but I can’t believe it’s going to take you all day to get ready, Katie-Kat.”
She rolled her eyes at the nickname, but her dimples appeared, and I knew she didn’t mind the moniker as much as she pretended to. “I have to work at the candy shop for a few hours today, then I’ll cull through my closet and find something appropriate to wear to the ballet. I might even have to go to my mom and dad’s, because not all my clothes are here.”
“‘Kay.” Without thinking, I leaned up and kissed her soft, warm cheek. My nose traced along her skin as I moved sideways then pressed my lips to her temple. I drew in a contented breath, inhaling more of her vanilla scent. “I’ll pick you up at five. I’ll make reservations atMangiamo’s,so we can grab a bite to eat before the show.”
“You don’t—”
“Trust me. I do,” I insisted. “Make no mistake, thiswill bea date.”
“It’ll be date number three,” she observed quietly. “I thought we agreed to two, and now, it’s more like…five.”
I shrugged, though I wasn’t as nonchalant as I tried to appear. When it came to her everything was important. “You can have as many dates as you want.”
She gave a quick nod and climbed off me, while I suppressed a moan at the loss of the heat and contact from her body. I couldn’t hide my sucked-in breath at the brush of her thigh over my dick when she moved.
Something had changed this morning—no, last night. Though my feelings were the same as always, and I believed hers matched mine, tension had bloomed between us. Anticipation. Static energy …as if we were waited for an incoming storm.
