Her Plus One: Stand-alone Friends to Lovers, Military, Boy Next Door, Home for the Holidays (Pine Haven Holiday Romance Book 1)

by Jenn Sable

  I reached out and took hold of her shoulder. “Tess?”

  “What’s up, buttercup?”

  “Do you think somehow, someway, Clay might stay?”

  She smiled, crossed her fingers, and sent a prayer up to heaven.

  Chapter 8 – Clay

  It was a little before seven when I pulled into Melissa's drive. I laughed when Tess York stepped out the front door and smiled at me knowingly. I was confident Tess knew more about how Melissa felt about me than I did. I tamped down the impulse to ask her what she knew and if she thought I had a real shot with Melissa.

  "Melissa's almost ready. She's just putting on her earrings. Clayton, I must say, you clean up nice."

  I ran a hand over my freshly shaved jaw. "Thanks, Tess. I hope Melissa thinks so, too."

  Tess's eyes zeroed in on the flowers. "Lavender roses. You're swinging for the fences tonight."

  There was no reason to deny it. "The florist said that lavender roses symbolize love at first sight and enchantment. I thought they would be perfect for Melissa, given how I feel about her."

  Tess arched a brow. "That's incredibly sweet of you. I'm impressed, and Melissa will be blown away."

  I inclined my head, grateful for her honesty. "Thank you. Do you have any plans this evening?"

  "Yup, it involves my couch and a romance novel."

  I chuckled. "Nice."

  "I will be living vicariously through you and Melissa. So out with it, where are you taking her to dinner?"

  My cheek rounded in a half-smile. "I was able to get us a table for two at Felix's."

  Tess's eyes went wide, and she played with her necklace. "Oh my God, on such short notice? How?"

  I ran a hand down the back of my head. "I know a guy who knows a guy."

  She laughed and narrowed her eyes. "One of those guys wouldn't happen to be Scott Dunn, would they?"

  “Maybe.” I winked.

  Tess shook her head, stunned. "God, Scott knows everybody in Pine Haven and Greenvale. All right, I hope you and Melissa have a wonderful evening. Remember, don’t keep her out too late. She’s starting a new job tomorrow."

  Shit, I forgot about that. Melissa was about to get a whole lot busier. Tess swung a gigantic purse around to the backside of her shoulder and opened her arms. I leaned forward and gave her a friendly hug before she walked toward her car.

  "Clay."

  I looked over my shoulder. "Yeah?"

  Tess wrung her hands together, uncharacteristically anxious. "Melissa's really excited about tonight, and this is the first time that I've seen her this happy in a long time. Please be careful with her feelings. She's precious to me."

  I nodded in complete understanding. I didn’t want my feelings to confuse Melissa or end up hurting her, either. I also wanted to avoid getting my heart stomped on in the process as well. "She's precious to me, too."

  Tess clapped her hands together in one finite motion. "Okay then, you two kids have a great night."

  I turned back to Melissa’s front door, and my heart palpitated. Although I’d made love to Melissa last night and woke up with her in my arms this morning, standing outside her front door, getting ready to take her out for her birthday, and have a serious conversation made me nervous as hell.

  I stared at the door and wondered about the woman on the other side. For years, I’d chased adventure and extreme experiences. And I did. But now I wondered what kind of adventures I’d have in Pine Haven putting down roots.

  I stepped forward and knocked on the door and nearly dropped the bouquet when Melissa opened the door. She wore a midnight-blue dress that hugged her curves in a way that made me jealous. She looked like a goddess with her hair swept back and up, away from her face. Her earrings fell from her earlobes like shiny drops of rain.

  She’s gorgeous. I grazed my fingers along her side, pulling her close enough to brush my lips over hers. "You look beautiful. And that dress, well, let’s just say that I’m finding it a little hard to breathe right now.” All I want to do is take you inside and remove everything that stands in the way of me and your beautiful curves.

  Her laugh was musical, and her eyes fell to the bouquet. Her whole face brightened. I thanked my lucky stars that I’d found a florist who knew how to help me make a good impression. “Clay! You brought me flowers. Oh wow, violet roses? They are stunning. Thank you. You’re in the running for making this one of my most special birthdays ever.”

  I smiled. “Good.”

  She shook her head. “You’ve already done way too much.”

  I smirked. “I'm a little crazy about you, in case you didn’t notice.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Well, back at you. Hang on. I want to put these flowers in a vase before we go.”

  Melissa had been delighted by the lavender roses and flabbergasted when we strolled into Felix’s. “Clay, I have no idea what you did to arrange tonight, but I’m glad you did! I’ve never been to Felix’s because I never planned several weeks ahead enough to pull the trigger and make reservations. This is . . . I’m speechless.”

  I gazed into her chocolate eyes curtained by long, black lashes and felt myself slip further under her spell. The waiter appeared with a hundred-dollar bottle of red wine. “Compliments of Mr. Dunn. He wishes Miss Monroe a very happy birthday.”

  Melissa looked across the table, wide-eyed at me, and I chuckled. “We’ve got great friends who love us.”

  She pressed a hand to her breastbone. “Yes, yes, we do.”

  The waiter poured two glasses and then left the bottle on the table. Melissa sipped at the wine and smiled warmly. “I don’t know how this night could get any better. Thank you, Clay. I’ll never forget this.”

  I gazed across the candlelit table. “I’ll never forget last night.”

  Melissa’s eyes snapped to meet mine, and I smiled wolfishly. “Last night was unforgettable. I’m just sorry that I slept so late this morning. I had no idea you moved the rest of my boxes from my master suite upstairs or that you had placed mimosa ingredients in the fridge. I’m kind of alarmed that I slept through it.”

  I leaned forward and lowered my voice. “You make soft, little, funny noises in your sleep. Did you know that? And I learned when you first roll onto your belly, you rub the top of your feet against the sheets.”

  Even in the dim lighting, I enjoyed watching the color heat her cheeks.

  Baffled and embarrassed, Melissa set her wine glass down and cupped her steaming cheeks. "Clay, stop, you’re embarrassing me. I’m not used to being observed in my sleep. What did you do, lay there and watch me?”

  I shrugged one shoulder, and she laughed. “I woke up hours before you did. I must say it was nice to hold you close to me throughout the night.”

  She cast her eyes down, and her voice lowered. “It was . . . very nice to be held by you.”

  My chest swelled with the need to pull her close. “Did you ask anyone to attend the awards dinner with you after Thanksgiving?”

  It was an abrupt shift in the conversation, and she wrinkled her brow. “No, I still need to get a hold of Tess’s brother, Cameron, to see if he’ll be available to be my date.”

  I leaned even closer, and she automatically tilted forward in her seat. “Would you like for me to take you?”

  She sat back immediately. “It’s the day after Thanksgiving. You’ll be in Scotland. So, there’s no use in questioning it.”

  I reached out across the table and took her hand in mine. Curiosity flashed across her features. “I’m not flying to Scotland for Thanksgiving with my family. This year I’ll be staying in Pine Haven.”

  Her face went blank, and then hesitancy clouded her warm-honey eyes. “Why? How?”

  I smiled and ran my thumb softly over her knuckles. “There is an opening at Lyons Medical, so I applied. It’s a long shot, a real Hail Mary since I don’t have the required years of experience, but they invited me in for a first-round interview. I go the Monday after Thanksgiving.”

  Melissa looke
d giddy. “Clay! That’s fantastic! Congratulations.” She raised her wine glass, and we clinked.

  We stared at one another over the rims of our wine glasses.

  “So, you’re really going to stay for Thanksgiving?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. Since I’ll be here the day after, too, I’d love to take you to the awards ceremony. What do you say?”

  Her smile lit up the room. “I would absolutely love it."

  *****

  Heeding Tess’s reminder not to keep Melissa out too late since she started her new position at the Socialite the next day, I ended up driving her home directly after dinner. I didn’t want to, though. I wanted to take her dancing, get drinks, and spend the night in an expensive hotel where I’d slowly reveal each creamy inch of her curves that her tantalizing dress kept covered.

  Instead, I walked her up to her door and pressed a kiss along her knuckles.

  Her brow wrinkled. “Where are your clothes? Aren’t you staying tonight?”

  I smiled. “I didn’t want to make any assumptions. You’ve got a big day tomorrow, and I didn’t want to overstep my bounds.”

  She nodded, and I immediately felt disappointed, although I had no right to be. Melissa cleared her throat. “Well, thank you for taking all of that into consideration, and I do have a big day tomorrow. In fact, I’ll probably go in and change directly into my pajamas and call it an early night.”

  I chewed at the corner of my lips and nodded. “All right, Mel. That’s probably a good idea. We want you well rested for tomorrow’s big first day.”

  I felt the soft brush of her fingertips on the back of my neck, and I locked my gaze with hers. “Will you come in and just hold me tonight?”

  I looked at her from under my brows and considered admitting that I would, but I’d be fighting off one hell of a case of blue balls by morning. “Yeah, of course.”

  She fought away a smile. “You know, I like it when your voice gets low and little scratchy like that. It gives me goosebumps along the backs of my arms.”

  I smirked and continued to speak at a low volume. “That’s good to know, Miss Monroe. How about we go inside, and I’ll whisper sweet nothings in your ear while you fall asleep in my arms.”

  A shiver crawled up her spine, and I chuckled.

  “Now, you’re going to use that information against me.”

  With my hand at the small of her back, I pressed my lips to ear. “No, love. I’ll use that information for you.”

  She bit her bottom lip, and I immediately knew that I probably wouldn’t get much rest.

  Now that Melissa’s master suite was empty of moving boxes, I rested back against her headboard and surveyed the room. Melissa washed her face and slipped into her pajamas in the bathroom.

  “We could easily get another dresser in here and even a small desk.” As soon as I said it, I wanted to swallow my words. I hadn’t been actively thinking, just musing, but it sounded like I was sizing up the place to move in.

  Mel strolled out of the bathroom, still dabbing her cheeks with a small hand towel. “Yeah, I think you’re right.”

  Oh good, she didn’t take it as though I were interested in invading her space.

  “What made you think of it?”

  Shit. “I don’t know. I just saw the empty space and thought about how to fill it.”

  “Well, thank you for filling the empty space in my bed tonight.” Her smile was sassy and sexy, and when she sat on the bed, I pulled her to my chest and loved feeling her softness against me.

  “Come here, you. Tonight, I’m going to behave myself, but I am going to play the big spoon.”

  “Big spoon? You’re going to curl up to the backside of me?” She looked amused.

  “Yeah. Would you like that? I’ll keep you warm. Stroke up and down your arms, say a few things in my low, scratchy voice, and give you goosebumps.”

  She laughed. “Okay, big spoon. I’ll play your little spoon.”

  I was a perfect gentleman for the first two hours of lying in bed with Melissa and cradling her in my arms. We eventually drifted off to sleep even, but when the rumble of thunder beat overhead, and the first crack of lightning illuminated the entire room, my eyes snapped open.

  The forecast had been calling for a rainstorm, but I didn’t realize it would be a thunderstorm. Melissa moaned in her sleep and nestled her sweet, plump bottom against my crotch. My arm tightened around her waist, and I pulled her closer, although I knew it was going only to cause me pain in the long run since my shaft was already starting to thicken.

  The thunder boomed once more, and then a heavy sheet of rain started to fall.

  “Clay?”

  I rubbed the tip of my nose along the delicate edge of her ear. “Hmm?”

  “I wondered if you were awake. That thunder is loud.”

  I was secretly thrilled over the fact that she had woken up, but I knew it would be in her best interest if she fell back asleep. “It is. I’ve got a hold of you. Go back to sleep.”

  She made a mewling sound in the back of her throat and ground her bottom harder against my crotch. I groaned and she continued to push against me with a small smile on her lips.

  “Sweetheart, careful, or else you’ll find your pajama bottoms pushed down and sweet core filled.”

  Her breath hitched. “Clay, I can’t sleep. The storm woke me up. Will you help me fall back asleep?”

  I growled in her ear, and she giggled. “You’re trying to push me to the brink.” I smoothed my hands up and down her arms and over the graceful curve of her spine. “So beautiful.”

  Melissa sat up and pulled her pajama top over her shoulders and off, letting it drop to the floor beside the bed. She quickly retreated under the covers with me. “I want sleepy sex, Clay.”

  The muscles in my body instantly tightened when I heard her say she wanted sex. I was being flooded with adrenalin. I groaned. “Okay, but you’ll have to tell me what sleepy sex is.”

  “It’s soft and slow. It’s quiet. We make love and drift off.”

  I was so hard and to hear Mel tell me what she wanted was incredibly hot. “How do you want it, sweetheart. You tell me, and I’ll give it to you.”

  My little spoon twisted back far enough that I could see her dark shiny eyes in the dim light of the bedroom. “I want to stay just like this. I want you to do what you said you would, pull down my pajamas and fill me.”

  I bit down on my lip to the point I feared I’d draw blood. The nightstand’s drawer creaked open, and my fingers found a condom. With painstakingly slow movements, I rubbed my hands up her arms and down over her back a few times, and on the last glide down her spine, I let my hand keep going. I slid my fingers past the waistband of her PJs over the sweet curve of her incredibly sexy ass and let my fingers glide along the wet seam of her womanhood.

  She was ready. She’d been ready, and I softly growled my pleasure into her ear while she smiled and squirmed and kept her back to my chest. I eased her pajama bottoms down around her thighs and eased my boxer briefs down far enough that my shaft sprang free.

  Melissa made soft circular motions with her hips. She was melting my mind. Not wasting any time, I tore open the condom, rolled it down over my thick shaft, positioned myself at her slick entrance, and slowly pumped. She moaned, and I groaned, and then we settled, laying together, joined, and loving the sensation of being intimately connected. I eased in and out of her, sliding my hand between the apex of her thighs, and rubbed her swollen nub until we were both gasping for air and taken over by the strong current of our release.

  Barely conscious of my movements, I gently pulled Melissa’s pajama bottoms and my boxer briefs back into place and curled my arm tightly around her waist. I want to make love to this woman every night for the rest of my life. It was the last thought I had before I drifted into the waiting darkness of deep, restful sleep.

  Chapter 9 - Melissa

  The Jeep looked out of place in the U-shaped driveway in front of the Grove residence. I stared
at the lake house that was supposed to be my dream home. Now all I could see was a place Michael and I had used as a way to distract ourselves from the fact that our relationship was falling apart.

  The house was beautiful with its eaves, graceful windows, and stone facing. The place was perfect. It was too perfect. I shuddered inside. I loved the idea of driving home at the end of the afternoon back to my little cottage at the edge of the forest.

  Or was it so special because I knew Clay would be there making us dinner tonight? We would eat, slow dance in the living room, then make love. It'd become our routine, and oddly enough, I stopped caring that I had a photoshoot with Michael Grove or the awards ceremony. Clay and I had fallen into a natural flow of life together so seamlessly it scared me.

  As much as I was looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with Clay, I knew that soon after, he’d interview at Lyons Medical. If he didn’t get called back for a second round, he’d have to leave. His mother had made him promise to fly to Scotland to be with their family as his sister neared her due date the second he had a definitive word about his job. Mrs. McCade knew her son was talented, but she viewed his interviewing at Lyons Medical prematurely as something that stole their precious family time together.

  As though Clay felt me thinking about him, my phone buzzed with a text.

  Clay: Sweetheart, you forgot your cell phone charger. Do you want me to run it over to jerk face’s place and drop it off?

  I smiled. Clay had grown increasingly bothered by my scheduled photoshoot with Michael Grove. Whereas, I was just the opposite. The photoshoot that initially had me dreading taking the Socialite job was the furthest thing from my mind now. I wanted to produce great photos, but now that my life was so full and rich, I stopped caring about the fact that I’d have to face my ex. I had far too many beautiful things to occupy my mind, like my family, new home, new job, and Clay.

  Me: That’s a sweet offer, but I’ve got my car charger.

  Clay: I just want to come over and be there if Grove tries to give you any crap.

  Me: *winky face emoji* I know.