Page 63 of Jam and Jingle Bells
“If we bring in business the way my model shows then I can. There’s the added benefit that I don’t have to be there all day every day. We can split the load and that allows us more creativity in our offerings as well.”
“You know, I like the idea. It would give us more time to spend together, too.”
He touched my nose and grinned. “Exactly what I was thinking. I won’t have to work every Saturday. I can make sure my Saturdays off are the same ones you take off.”
“Speaking of which, are you going to be able to play Santa on Saturday?”
He stood and grabbed an ice pack from the freezer then took my good hand and led me to the couch. He rested my hand on his lap and set the ice pack over it. “It won’t be a problem pain wise. The problem will be my lifting restrictions until the stitches are out. I haven’t quite figured out what I’m going to do,” he admitted. “I don’t want to let the kids down, but I can’t blow this out,” he said, motioning at his shoulder.
I thought about it for a few minutes while I stared at the TV. “I have a deal for you.”
He raised his brows and grinned. “I’m listening.”
“I have a wedding to attend on Friday night. If you’ll be my date for that, I’ll be your special elf helper on Saturday.”
He kissed my lips once and leaned his forehead against mine. “You want me to go to Mel and Mason’s wedding with you?”
“I want you to be my partner in everything, Ellis, but we can start small if you’re okay with it.”
He cocked his head to the left. “Okay with it? Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You know, everyone in Bells Pass will be there, including my mom and Stan.”
He stroked my cheek lightly. “Honey, I’m well-acquainted with your mom, remember? She already threatened to kill me and hide my body if I hurt you. Seriously, I can handle anything anyone else throws at me.”
I leaned back, my eyes wide. “She didn’t!”
He laughed, his shoulders shaking as he nodded. “Oh, she did. She whispered it as I was going out, but I heard her and she knows I did.”
“I can’t believe she did that,” I said, dumping my head into my hands. “She’s such a—”
“Mom. She’s a mom who loves her daughter. She’s also a woman who was hurt by a man when she wasn’t much younger than you are. I’m sure that weighs on her when she thinks about her daughter getting in too deep.”
“She doesn’t even know the half of it,” I muttered, rolling my eyes.
“Oh, she does. If you’re referring to the fact that I love you.”
“What? You told her?” I asked, my voice an octave higher than necessary.
“In my defense, they gave me something to relax me before surgery. She used it against me.”
I laughed and threw my head back on the couch, rolling it back and forth. “She’s evil. So, so evil.”
He winked and slid his hand behind the nape of my neck. “She loves you, and moms are like that. She told me she’d never seen the look you wore when you walked into my hospital room. I guess we both wear our emotions on our sleeves when it comes to each other.”
I tugged on his sleeve and grinned. “It’s hard not to when you’re by my side. Will you go with me on Friday night?”
He kissed me, his lips determined to turn mine to jelly under his. I let mine fall open and he stroked my tongue at the same time his hand cupped the outside of my breast, his thumb stroking the satin of the bra. He moaned as deeply as I did while his knee snugged up tight between my legs, the kiss deepening when he plastered himself the length of me.
There was a knock on the door and we both froze, staring into each other’s eyes for a beat. I jumped up off the couch to straighten my shirt.
“I can’t walk right now,” he said, adjusting his pants, “you better see who it is. God, I hope it’s not your mom.” He stared down at his pants and I had to hold in a laugh when another knock sounded.
“Coming,” I called casually, buying some more time for both of us to get our breathing under control.
Once he had crossed his legs and focused on the game again, I threw the door open. I was surprised by the visitors at the top of the stairs. “Mel, Holly,” I greeted them. Mother held her daughter’s shoulder firmly. “Is something wrong?”
Mel smiled and shook her head. “Hi, Addie. Nothing’s wrong, but Holly here was worried about Ellis. She’s been asking to see him all week. We were out getting final stuff together for the wedding, so I thought we’d take a chance and stop by. The side door was open so I hope you don’t mind that we came up. We understand if he’s not up for visitors.”
