Page 9 of Christmas Replay
And I did. I’d thought of him nonstop for the last year, as well. Standing there in his arms, I had no idea how we could make this work. I owned a store that was way too far from here to commute. We didn’t know each other. He wasn’t even fully moved in. There were a million reasons this was a terrible idea.
But the one reason it had to work overshadowed all of that.
I’d fallen in love with Cliff in an instant. And his return to me proved that it wasn’t a fluke. He was mine. Now I just had to figure out how I was going to keep him without losing myself in the process.
Six
Cliff
I could see the wheels turning in Alissa’s ahead, and I didn’t know how to stop them. We had a couple things going for us and about a million obstacles in our way. But if nothing else, I was someone who knew how to overcome.
Growing up, I’d been a combination of shy and insecure. That problem was only exacerbated by me being dyslexic and having trouble in school for a few years until my teachers and parents figured it out. Yet, I’d turned it around. I’d jumped those hurdles to graduate valedictorian of my high school class and then excel in college and law school.
I was still socially awkward at times. I hadn’t been able to fully shake my shyness or the insecurity that sometimes took me by surprise. But I’d learned how to pretend really well and thereby circumvent it.
Because of that, I was completely sure Alissa and I could figure out anything that might be a problem. Proximity was a major factor; I knew that. And I wasn’t fully moved here. My practice wasn’t yet set up, either. If those were our only issues, we were golden.
“What are you thinking?” I asked.
She lifted a shoulder. I’d noticed she did that when she tried to make light of something. A single shoulder raising, a half-smile-part grimace. “Just thinking about your house here and my shop…there.”
I nodded. “Would it help to know I’m setting up my practice in town? I’ll have a place there, too. This will be…more for weekends and vacations.”
“You’re serious?”
I nodded. “Completely. Plus…there’s this coffee shop near the office space I’m renting. I really like it. I think the prices might be good, too, even though they’ve yet to let me pay.”
“Cliff…I…” Her eyes were glossy with emotion as she gazed up at me. There was no way she didn’t know all these plans I’d made were directly related to her.
“Can I kiss you?”
“I think I might hurt you if you don’t.”
I grinned, then my smile faded as I tipped my face toward hers. Our lips meeting was…coming home. She felt perfect against me, made to kiss me. My fingers traced her cheeks then moved around to thread into her hair. The silky strands were soft against the back of my hands, and I wondered how the rest of her would feel.
My whole body was tensed, aroused, reaching for her. Even understanding how fast things were moving between us because they were justmeant to be, I knew we couldn’t have more than this kiss tonight. My tongue skimmed along hers, tasting,exploring. Her lips were as soft as her hair—different, but pillowysoft.
A sated sound rumbled in my throat while we kissed. An answering sound murmured from her, urging me on, as did her hands clinging to my shoulders. Her chest pressed into mine, and I wondered if she felt the thundering of my heart.
“Alissa,” I whispered. My mouth made a trail across her jaw. She tilted her head, and I followed the path down her neck. Her pulse throbbed under my lips, and I breathed in her sweet sugar cookie scent and just the faintest trace of coffee. I could gobble her up and never get enough.
“Cliff,” she replied, when I didn’t finish my thought. She distracted me, and I feared I might never have a clear thought again.
“We should go to bed—separately, I mean. It’s late, and before we rush into something we shouldn’t yet…”
“Okay.”
I looked down at her, seeing heat blooming in her cheeks. Arousal? Embarrassment? I hoped not the latter. Her lips were swollen and pink, her eyes slightly glassy and her pupils dilated. The back of my curled index finger caressed along her cheekbone, noticing the porcelain smoothness.
“So beautiful,” I murmured, almost to myself.
“Have you looked in a mirror?” she chuckled. “Seriously, that night you walked in last year, I was stunned. And then you seemed interested in me—”
“I was way more than interested.”
She had to know that. She knew that, right?
“I couldn’t believe a man who looks like you would give me the time of day.”
