Page 26 of Bear for the Holidays

“Only if you get naked too.”

“Deal.”

Skin against skin, Nik was a revelation, dark hair a rough mat on his chest with a trail that led down.

“Furry,” she murmured with satisfaction, running her fingers through as she had when he was a bear.

“So glad you approve. Can I kiss you everywhere, darling?”

“Oh yes–”

His mouth moved over her, as slow and sweet as honey, and she melted for him, sinking down into the rug, letting him touch her wherever and whenever he pleased. Once or twice, he set his teeth to her lip piercing, making them both shiver with pleasure. She didn’t know if she had ever been so aroused and relaxed at once. It was good, so good, his mouth, the slight scratch of his stubble coming in, the soft murmur of his voice as he told her over and over again how good she was and how sweet, how perfect.

He kissed his way down her thighs to her knees, and when he came up again, he was spreading her legs apart to settle between them, laying long, wet licks along the crease where her leg met to her body.

“So incredible,” he murmured. “So perfect, and all mine, sweetheart.”

She might have replied, but then he was kissing her deeply between her legs, nuzzling as close as he could get and taking all the time in the world. His tongue was clever and the almost sleepy pleasure from before took on an electrified urgency. Sparks shot through her, bright as fireworks on the Fourth of July, bold enough to singe and set the rest of her aflame.

Her hands came down to tangle in his hair, not to pull away but to urge him even closer, and now she could hear him as well as herself, the wet, lush noises of him enjoying her body in this amazing way, and ohGod,but she loved this man, needed him, wanted him, and she had him, she really had him–

On that thought, her body clenched and then she was shaking, calling his name desperately as the pleasure surged and did not come down. It shattered her, and then it put her back together, and because she was still herself, she rolled with it and came up to grab Nik by the hair.

He yelped as she hauled him to his back, and then she was sprawled over top of him, kissing his face wildly. She could feel his arousal, as large and broad as the rest of him, pushing insistently against her thigh, and she grinned wickedly. She could smell and taste herself on his lips, and she couldn’t wait for the moment when they didn’t have to worry about condoms any longer.

“You ready for me, baby?” she asked, squirming so that her soft belly pressed down over his cock. She watched with giddy pleasure as he shut his eyes and groaned at the sensation, his hands closing over her hips.

“Never. I will never in all my life be ready for you,” he said, and they laughed and kissed, and they were going to be just fine.

Epilogue

∞∞∞

They pulled up to the Shevchenko house on Christmas Eve, laden down with bread, sausage, and presents.

“Properly, we celebrate Christmas in January,” Nik said, “But my parents have been in the country so long that we sort of picked up celebrating on December 24th, too. And on the 25th.”

“Ooh, triple holiday,” Deanna said. “I can dig it.”

The Shevchenkos held an enormous Christmas party every year. Nik had apparently made it to the last one, where Deanna had stayed home with the flu, and while she had made it to the one before that, he had been in Florida counting crabs.

“You know, I wondered why my mom was so grouchy at me that year,” Nik mused as they made their way up the walk.

“Yeah, she kept texting to ask if I was really that sick.”

“Did she really?”

“Well, it was more like unhappy face, unhappy face, unhappy face, doctor emoji, doctor emoji, lots of question marks, but I think that was the gist.”

Deanna was a little startled when Nik paused before they entered.

“What are you worried about?” she asked. “The kids are fine.”

They absolutely were. The four kittens, two with bat wings, were thriving at the cabin, guarded by their mother Your Highness and their father, That Cat. Pearl said the names were great, they would absolutely help them when they went up for adoption, but as attached as Nik was to the two adult cats, Deanna was beginning to wonder if they had already found their forever home.

“No, I know they’re all right. But is this going to be okay, you spending Christmas Eve with my folks? You’re not missing out on any of your own traditions?”

Deanna grinned, going up on tiptoe to give him a kiss on the cheek. He smelled like bay rum and the chocolate-dipped peanut butter cookies they had made that afternoon. Delicious.

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