Page 24 of Yours to Ho Ho Hold
He reaches over and squeezes my hand, then slides his thumb over my bottom lip. “You’ve got to stop doing that. You’ll hurt your pretty lips, and then I won’t be able to kiss them.”
I slap his hand away playfully and smile, thinking about all the kissing things I want Drew to do to me—and not just my mouth. Truly, I think the man’s short-circuited my brain because I haven’t been able to think about anything other than sex after he rocked my world last night.
We live over two thousand miles apart for Christ’s sake. It’s not like this could ever really work. Besides, I can’t forget I’m unemployed and need to be figuring out my next move. I’m not exactly in a position to make major life changes when I’m unemployed with virtually zero job prospects. I’m not exactly the catch of the century, no matter how much Drew likes to make me feel like I am.
“Here we are.” Drew pulls up to a light blue, three-story house on a private beach, and my mouth falls open. Not because of the breathtaking view, but because I’ve never seen so many Christmas decorations on one home in my life. And I thought my parents were obsessed with the holiday.
Rows and rows of different scenes light up and animate as lights flash and Santa’s wave. They’ve got a whole beach Santa theme going, with a surfboard sleigh and a Hawaiian shirt wearing Santa with white chest hair and the buttons undone.
“Is that … the Beach Boys?” I shoot a glance over my shoulder, and Drew gives me a slight nod.
“I know. It’s a lot.” His face breaks into a huge grin like he’s proud rather than embarrassed, and it only makes me like him more. I love how he owns his little quirks and isn’t embarrassed to embrace the things he loves. It says so much about his character that he’s not afraid to be himself, and I’m so envious of that. What must it feel like to be accepted completely and fully for who you are, to feel so comfortable in your own skin? Though, I guess he isn’t completely comfortable, considering the secret he’s keeping from his family. And I don’t know why, but the thought of Drew feeling like he needs to hide a piece of himself breaks my heart.
He lifts a brow. “Are you ready? My family can be a lot, but they mean well, so just warning you.”
I nod. “I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.”
“That’a girl.” He winks and comes around to open my door. As he leads me up the steps, my stomach does a backflip. I feel like a thirteen-year-old girl with a movie star crush. Only, in my scenario, the movie star is a cover model, and he’s actually real. And for reasons I still can’t comprehend, he seems to like me back.
“Merry Christmas,” a man says as he swings the door open just as we get to the top of the stairs.
“Merry Christmas,” Drew says as his dad pulls him into a hug. “Dad, this is Holly, the girl I told you about.”
“Holly. What a beautiful name. It’s so nice to meet you. I’m James.” James is tall, with broad shoulders and a neatly trimmed white beard. I can’t help but notice how his muscles fill out his flannel shirt, though he’s got a few extra layers covering his muscles. It’s clear Drew’s built just like him, and for some reason, that little bit of knowledge excites me. Is this what I’d have to look forward to? I shake the thought away as soon as it comes. Don’t be ridiculous, Holly. This is why you don’t have one-night stands. You’re not built for casual; you’re too loyal.
But I still can’t help but notice James bears a striking similarity to—
Drew’s eyes send daggers my way, and his lip curls up in a knowing grin as he loops a finger around my belt loop and tugs me closer.
My cheeks heat from getting caught checking out Drew’s dad, but I do my best to play it off. Better to not look guilty, so hopefully, no one else picks up on it. This Christmas is plenty awkward enough as it is.
“And this is my beautiful wife, Charlotte.” He wraps an arm around her and steps to the side to let us in.
I shake both of their hands. “Nice to meet you both. Thank you so much for having me. I hope I’m not imposing.”
Charlotte waves the tea towel in her hand. “Oh, please don’t apologize. We’re just happy to have you. And happy Drew was able to make it home today.” She kisses Drew on the cheek and whispers something in his ear. When she pulls away, he looks between his parents and nods.
I don’t know what they’re talking about, but whatever he told them seems to have made them happy because they both break out into giant grins, and Charlotte flies into the kitchen in a frenzy.
“Why don’t you introduce Holly to the family? I think I need to go check on your stepmother before she puts the remote in the freezer again.”
I eye Drew, and he shakes his head. “Char sometimes loses things when she’s excited. One Easter, we couldn’t find the TV remote. Dad was so mad he had to replace it, and then Char found it a week later in the door of the freezer. Now, we always check the freezer anytime something goes missing.”
“That’s cute.”
“I not want to take a baff!” A little blonde girl wearing pink footy pajamas screams as she bursts into the room, a giant black dog fumbling behind her. She collides into Drew’s legs and wraps her arms around his knees. “Help, Uncle Doodoo. Tell Daddy no!”
The dog slides to a stop when he sees me and rolls onto his back at my feet, presenting his belly. I happily oblige as I bend down to scratch him. “Uncle Doodoo?” I lift a questioning brow, and Drew shrugs.
“I’ve come to embrace it. She can call me whatever she wants. Besides, Doodoo was her fourth word after Mama, Dada, and cheese.”
“Cheese?”
“Oh, yes. Nothing comes between my girl and her cheese. We all have our vices, though. Don’t we? Indie loves cheese, and some of us love pu—”
“Doodoo! Hold me. Hold me. Hold me!” She reaches her little arms up, squealing like her life’s in danger.
He gives me a wink before scooping her up … and now my vagina has a heartbeat. Seriously, I’ve never really been a kid-person, but seeing Drew looking so natural with this adorable little girl in his arms has my ovaries screaming.
