“Everyone’s supposed to have a soul mate, right? Why can’t Nick Santos?”
“Because,” she said slowly, still bewildered. “You’re...Nick Santos.”
He grinned. “So you know how persuasive I can be when I set my mind to something.”
She nibbled her lower lip. Then she smiled. “We’ll see.” Her tone turned playful. She went off to the kitchen, presumably to get the champagne.
Nick’s pulse jumped and his palms were a bit sweaty, something he’d never experienced before. But this was his golden moment, the one chance he had to prove to Vixen he meant every word he said to her. He wouldn’t blow this opportunity.
As it stood, he’d waited much too long to tell her how he felt. He wouldn’t mess this up now that he’d come so far.
Pulling the long stem from his back pocket where he’d concealed his second gift for her, he laid the red rose on the coffee table, hoping she’d see it for the metaphor it was.
His “final” rose—like from the show that hadn’t even been around when he’d started his tradition. It’d been Mrs. Ivy’s idea to spread a little cheer with flowers.
Ironically, similar to the
The Bachelor
, this last bloom came with the commitment of a lifetime.
* * *
Vixen’s hands shook as she pushed aside containers she’d meant to clean out of the fridge recently, but hadn’t found the time with her constant belaboring over the book she still hadn’t written.
Midway through her agonizing over what to write about, she’d thought of her conversation with Jenny in the square and all the sudden changes of late.
It had occurred to Vixen that perhaps the days of writing children’s books were behind her. Perhaps she needed an adult genre.
Not only was Christmas in the air in North Pole, but so, too, was romance. She decided it was worth a try. Not just with her next story, but also in reality.
With a smile, she reached toward the back of the bottom shelf, spotting the remaining unopened champagne bottle left over from a birthday party she’d thrown for a friend over the summer. She popped the cork, grabbed two crystal flutes and headed into the living room, her heart pounding and her skin tingling.
Nick easily had that effect on her on any given day, but tonight...
Her breath was scarce and all of her erogenous zones prickled with desire.
Rushing back into the room where Nick stood admiring the tree, she drew up short and let out a surprised “
Oh
!” when her gaze landed on the long-stemmed red rose lying on her coffee table.
Nick turned from where he’d been inspecting the tree and grinned at her.
Vixen blurted, “My granddad didn’t warn me about
you
. He warned me about myself.”
He frowned. “I don’t get it.”
She sighed. Pouring a glass of champagne, she handed it over. Then she splashed some bubbly into her own flute and set the bottle on the coffee table. She lifted the rose with her free hand and held the bud to her nose, inhaling deeply.
She savored the lovely fragrance, then said, “After I sold my first book, I was bombarded with all those signings and personal appearance opportunities. All that travel and no real time for anything other than school and guest spots and working on the next book with my granddad—I think he encouraged all of that to help take my mind off of who my father was, because that thought always ate at me. Anyway, he knew I secretly had a crush on you, and he told me I’d only hurt you if I ever started anything with you. Even back when we were kids. He knew I didn’t have any time left over for a boy, and I guess that’s what his warning was all about.”
“He tried to keep
you
from hurting
me
?” He took a long sip from his glass, shook his head. “That’s a new one.”
Vixen laughed. “I know, totally bizarre. But my grandfather was pretty intuitive. One of the reasons he was such a great Santa and all the kids believed in him.”
“He was a pretty awesome man.”
Nick set aside his glass and took hers as well. He lifted the hand not holding the rose and brought it to his mouth. His lips brushed the skin in a whisper of a kiss, but Vixen felt the emotion and the warmth behind the gesture and it made her toes curl in the slippers she wore with her yoga suit.
He said, “I know it’s an exaggeration, but it seems like I’ve waited my whole life for this moment. I think I fell in love with you in kindergarten, Vix. And all those others girls were just poor substitutes because I couldn’t have the real thing.”
“We never seemed compatible.”
“It was more circumstantial than anything else. Obviously.”
“Nick,” she murmured his name as her body gravitated to his and her breasts pressed to his chest.
His arms wrapped around her waist and he held her tightly to him. Nick’s warm lips on hers made all thought flee her head. He kissed her passionately, conveying red-hot desire. An intense need for her that mirrored her own.
A sharp moan lodged in her throat and excitement shot through her body, making her tremble in his arms. Nick deepened their kiss, and Vixen held on for dear life as exhilaration trilled down her spine and every inch of her became hypersensitive to his touch. One of his hands eased upward, beneath the hem of her tight-fitting jacket and tank top. His fingertips brushed her skin, sending a wave of warmth rippling through her.
Against her lips, he whispered, “There’s certainly something to be said for Christmas miracles.”
“Indeed.”
He kissed her again, then added, “You’re making me hard.”
“So much for sweet pillow talk.”
He groaned. “Seriously, Vix. You can bring a grown man to his knees with just a kiss.”
“Then we should make ourselves comfortable.”
Working her way out of his embrace, she grabbed the thick, faux fur throw from the hall closet, which she hadn’t needed yet this year, but the temperature dipped significantly this evening. She spread it out in front of the fireplace and it looked like a plush blanket of pristine snow.
“Nice touch.”
Nick stoked the fire as she snatched a couple of toss pillows from the sofa and dropped them on top of the throw.
Then he lifted a hand and grasped the zipper on her yoga jacket. He slid it slowly down the track until the jacket fell open. His large hands slipped behind the material at her shoulders and he pushed the sleeves down her arms and then tossed the garment toward the couch.
Anticipation swirled in her belly, making Vixen nervous and excited...and so very aroused. She toed off her slippers and sank her bare feet into the soft blanket. Nick’s head bent to hers again and he kissed her, this time softly and sweetly. His fingers twined in the narrow straps of her tank top and he slowly eased them over her shoulders and let them fall against her biceps.
He palmed her breasts and massaged gently, making her burn. His thumbs whisked over her nipples, pebbling them tight against the thin material covering her.
Nick broke their kiss and his lips glided over her jaw and down the long column of her neck. Her fingers threaded through his lush hair. She’d experienced the thundering of her heart and the soaring of her pulse enough times because of Nick to not be overly alarmed at the moment, though it seemed every response to him was intensified tenfold this evening.
“You’re so beautiful.” His warm breath teased her sensitive skin. He nipped tenderly at her neck, jolting her. “All I’ve ever wanted.”
She melted. Her inner thighs quivered. Her knees practically liquefied.
“Nick,” she whispered. “I’m about to fall at your feet.”
He chuckled. “Fine by me.”
He knelt on the fur and tugged on her hand.
A thought instantly occurred to her and she frowned. “One sec.”
She left him and ducked into the bathroom to grab a towel. Returning, she laid it out. “Just in case.” This was her first time, after all.
As she joined Nick, he asked, “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”
“Trust me,” she assured him as she grabbed fistfuls of his sweater and hauled the material over his head. “I am more than ready.” Her hands splayed over his well-defined pecs and she kissed him. Proving her point, she hoped.
Nick guided her down, onto her back. He shoved up the hem of her tank top, momentarily breaking their kiss to whisk it off. Then his tongue tangled with hers again as he deftly sprung the fastening of her bra and slipped it off. When he cupped her bare breasts, Vixen thought she just might incinerate. A blaze roared through her and an incessant, demanding throb between her legs nearly had her begging Nick to skip the foreplay and bury himself inside her.
But she couldn’t tear her mouth from his to speak. She was too caught up in the most searing kiss ever. One that made her want to claw at him, to press her body to his, to get as close to him as humanly possible—and even that wouldn’t be enough, she was sure.
He turned her restless, breathless.
Made her so very, very hot.
He continued to kiss her as his hand eased down her stomach to the apex of her legs. He stroked her through the thin material covering her, slowly and tantalizingly.
Fire roared through every inch of her. Her hands gripped his strong biceps, holding him tightly.
Pulling her mouth from his, she said, “Nick... Make love to me. I want to feel you inside me. Please.”
He stared down at her, emotion swirling in his hazel eyes. “I could never deny you anything, Vix. But it’s also what I want. More than you’ll ever know.”
Nick peeled away the rest of her clothes and stripped down as she admired the mouthwatering view. Then he stretched alongside her, kissing her as his hand skimmed over her body, massaged her breast, teased her nipple tighter, then swept lower, between her legs again. The pads of two fingers glided over her sex, stroking seductively, heightening her arousal.
“You’re already wet for me,” he murmured.
“I’ve wanted you for a long time, Nick.”
“If only I’d known...”
He eased a finger inside, pumping slowly, making her whimper.
“God, that feels good,” she said on a sharp breath.
He worked in a second finger and stroked faster. His head lowered and his tongue curled around her nipple before flicking it in a beautifully tormenting way that made her burn even brighter.
“Nick.” She moaned. Erotic sensations swelled within her, mixing with all the feelings she had for him—all the emotions she’d kept locked in her heart.
He worked her a bit more feverishly as he gently suckled her nipple, and all the sensations collided and erupted. Vixen cried out as she came on a rush of heat and moisture, her inner walls clutching his fingers as she rode out the powerful climax.
“Aw, damn, Vix,” he muttered in his sexy voice. “There is nothing hotter than you giving into me.”
Her eyelids drifted open. She could barely catch her breath, but managed to say, “I need you.”
“Yeah.” He gave a slight nod. His eyes smoldered as he stared down at her. “I need you, too.”
He withdrew from her, dug a condom out of his jeans pocket and sheathed himself.
Surprisingly, Vixen wasn’t the least bit nervous as he returned to her and settled between her parted thighs, propping himself up on an elbow.
She knew what she wanted—Nick.
And, finally, nothing would keep her from having him.
“This might hurt a little,” he warned, a hint of concern in his voice. “At first.”
“I trust you.”
“I’m glad.”
He sank slowly into her. If there’d been a pinch, she missed it entirely. All that registered in Vixen’s mind and radiated throughout her body was the way Nick slowly stretched and filled her.
“Oh, God,” she gasped. “That’s...incredible.”
Nick’s hand moved around to her backside, cupping a cheek and coaxing her to lift her hips as he moved inside her, pushing deep, then nearly pulling all the way out of her, only to thrust back in, deeper and deeper with each full, powerful stroke.
Vixen’s eyes fluttered closed and she lost herself in wave after wave of sensation that flooded her body and clouded her mind. Nothing could ever feel so amazing, so thrilling, so...
right
.
Their bodies melded together, fitting perfectly, as though they’d been made for each other. Nick’s mouth pressed to her neck. His tongue teased her skin, his teeth lightly nipped and his lips gently soothed. All the while, she followed his lead as their hips rolled in unison and their bodies moved in a synchronized rhythm that had Vixen barreling toward another earth-shattering orgasm.
As much as she wanted to hang onto the glorious sensations consuming her, she was in desperate need of the release Nick silently promised.
She whispered in his ear, “Come with me.”
He groaned. “Not yet. It feels too good, Vix.”
“We have all night, Nick.”
“You little vixen,” he mused.
Then he thrust deep and she couldn’t hold back the scream of delight that tore from her lips, or the magnificent climax that exploded deep within her.
She held Nick, squeezing him tight as her body quaked.
“Jesus, Vix.” He seemed to swell even more inside her and he pushed deep again, until his body convulsed and a primal, satisfied sound filled the cozy living room. “Nothing feels better than you.”
She continued to embrace him. Nick’s forehead dropped to her shoulder, his breathing as ragged as hers.
He asked in a muffled voice, “Are you okay?”
“Never better.”
“It didn’t hurt too much?”
“It didn’t hurt at all. A little discomfort at first, maybe, but I really couldn’t focus on anything other than how amazing it is to have you inside me.”
“I’m an instant addict.”
She laughed softly. “Tell me you brought more than one condom.”
His head lifted. He grinned mischievously at her. “One time could
never
be enough with you, Vix.”
“I’m happy to know I didn’t disappoint.”
“Not a chance. And... Let me just say, I definitely saved the best for last. You’re all I’ve ever
truly
wanted, Vix. All I’ll ever need.”
Chapter Eight
Vixen woke to an empty bed the next morning.