Home For The Holidays

by Elena Aitken

  He wrapped his hands firmly around her waist and lifted her up off her feet, the movement both swift and sudden. She drew in a sharp breath, which he felt because their lips were still pressed together. It sent a rocket of sensation running all the way down his spine.

  He turned and set Luna down on the hood of the car and then stepped immediately in between her knees so that their bodies were pressed together again.

  Even those few seconds that they’d been separated while he lifted her up on the car had been torture for him. Now that he’d felt her against him again after all this time, he wasn’t going to give that up easily.

  “Yes,” she murmured. “Oh, God, Connor. Yes. Please. Make me forget. I just want to forget.”

  He didn’t know what exactly she wanted to forget, whether it was the stress of her grandfather’s hospitalization, or the years of separation and distance between them. Either way, he was happy to help. Hell, if it was the second one, he definitely wanted to forget that, too. He’d be helping both of them.

  Kissing his way down her neck, Connor couldn’t get enough of the smell of her perfume, the warmth of her skin against his lips. She was fucking intoxicating. She was a wet dream come to life.

  Using one hand, he unsnapped her bra and slipped it off her shoulders. He stared at her breasts, so creamy and full, tipped by hard nipples. Fuck. She was so beautiful. An angel. A goddess. How had he ever gotten so lucky? What could he have ever done to deserve her?

  He lowered his head to them, then, taking those hard pink buds into his mouth, one after the other. He swirled his tongue around them, running his hands up and down her back as he did. Her muscles bunched and tensed under his hands. Her back arched, driving her breasts harder against him, and he increased the suction he applied.

  Everything about this should’ve felt wrong. He knew that in a corner of his mind. The suddenness. The shed. The unresolved God damn issues. But none of that mattered. It felt one hundred percent right. In fact, it made it seem like the last ten years had been muted, in black and white. Just a limbo period, a waiting game until she came back into his life and exploded it into vibrant color again.

  He knew that kind of thinking was dangerous. He’d worked so hard to spackle over the holes she’d left in his heart so that it would at least semi function again. Putting all that in jeopardy was reckless, to say the least. Potentially disastrous.

  He didn’t fucking care. She was in his arms right now, her body warm and vibrant, and that was all that mattered. His world had shrunk to the size of her naked skin, his mouth, her body, his hands.

  She’d started out by asking him to make her forget. It had definitely worked both ways. He was forgetting everything outside the confines of these four makeshift walls, and loving every damn minute of it.

  Chapter 5

  Luna

  Luna threw her head back and moaned, a deep and throaty sound that filled the shed. Her fingers tangled into Connor’s hair like they had a mind of their own and she relished the thick, lustrous feel of it under her hands. It had been so long since she’d touched it - touched him - but the minute their bodies came into contact, it all came rushing back. Every feeling, every memory.

  It was like the time and distance between them disappeared into a cavern, leaving only their connection.

  And holy cow, what a connection!

  Her entire body trembled as his hands moved over her skin, and she was nearly overcome when he took her sensitive nipples into his mouth.

  God, she’d always known that her body responded to his in a powerful way. Almost too powerful for her to control - he was her Achilles’ heel, in that respect. But there was a big difference between remembering it intellectually and feeling it in the moment.

  Right now, she was overwhelmed with sensation, not able to think straight - and, as far as she was concerned, that was a bonus. She didn’t want to think. She only wanted to feel.

  Connor’s hands slid up her legs, under her skirt, caressing the tender flesh of her inner thighs, coming closer and closer to the hot center of her pleasure with each sweep of his fingers. Finally, he touched her there, his fingers running up and down her seam over the soaking wet fabric of her underwear.

  It drove her crazy. She could feel his touch, but it was muted by her panties. Completely maddening! She drove her hips forward, pressing herself into his fingers for all she was worth.

  She could think of nothing else but feeling his strong fingers buried inside her, her inner walls gripping them as he caressed her outer folds with his thumb. She decided that the only thing to do was to take matters into her own hands.

  Releasing her fever grip on his hair, she moved her hands down to grip the sides of her panties. Shimmying her hips to help free them, she slid them off and kicked them to the side.

  Connor lost no time in driving his fingers into her, crooking them again and again once they were buried inside her velvet walls, tweaking her inner spot again and again.

  With his thumb, he rubbed firm rhythmic circles around her sensitive pleasure button. The dual simulation was almost too much to take, especially when it was combined with the incredible treatment that his tongue was still giving her breasts.

  Her head spun in circles, and white sparkling stars shimmered behind her eyelids. Part of her was afraid she might pass out. Part of her wanted to, just for the pure pleasure of surrendering to such a powerful compulsion.

  With every movement of his fingers inside her, she felt closer and closer to cresting the mountain of climax. It was amazing, yes - but that wasn’t how she wanted it. Not now, not this time. She wanted him inside her. She wanted them to be connected.

  “Do you have condoms?” she gasped with the last bit of will she still had control over.

  Instead of answering, he merely pulled back from her and took his wallet from his back pocket, fumbling around inside it until he pulled out a foil-wrapped disc.

  She had to smile. She’d always liked that he was a man of action versus words. You could tell a lot more about a person by what they did than what they said, and it was a much more solid foundation to build trust on, as well.

  He undid his fly and freed his erection, ripped open the condom wrapper and slid the tube down over it. Watching him, a flutter of anticipation filled her belly at the idea that he was about to be inside her, filling her up. She wanted him so bad. She couldn’t wait.

  He glanced up, meeting her eyes, an earnest look filling his. “Are you ready?” he asked, his voice raspy and rough.

  She was touched. It really was just like him to take time out to check in with her, even though it couldn’t have been easy to do in his very obviously aroused state. He had always thought of her first, taken such good care of her. Her belly fluttered even more at that thought than the idea that he was about to penetrate her.

  “I’m ready,” she assured him. “More than ready.”

  He nodded and pulled her hips forward, positioning himself at her entrance. She leaned back on her elbows and watched him. She wanted to see him thrust into her, get that visual pop at the same time as the physical one.

  With a powerful thrust, he pushed into her, stretching her to the limit. A cry escaped her, as raw and feral as the feelings rushing through her.

  Everything about this was intense. She couldn’t believe that she’d spent so many years convincing herself that she could live without this, the powerful connection that only she and Connor shared. She’d been fucking fooling herself. She understood that now, with him inside her. It was like he’d opened her consciousness at the same time he’d opened her body.

  Holding onto her hips to keep her from slipping around on the slick metal, he pounded into her again and again. Her skin was slick with sweat, the same sweat she saw forming on his forehead as he thrust into her.

  Her belly was filled with electric pulses that burst into flame with every stroke. Her orgasm was building, she could feel it in every cell of her body. Part of her was happy about that, obviously - pleasu
re that intense was obviously worth chasing.

  But another part of her didn’t want this to be over. Not now…and maybe not ever. God, if she could just bury herself in the protective cocoon of Connor’s arms forever - shut out the rest of the world and all of its problems - let him do the hard work of sheltering her from anything that could hurt her…damn, that was the dream!

  Two small tears escaped from the corners of her eyes and she shook her head to flick them off, then squeezed her eyes closed to stop any more that might get the bright idea of trying to show up.

  Fuck!

  She’d gone into this with the idea that it would help her escape from the strong emotions threatening to overwhelm her, not add to them. There was only one thing to do.

  She relaxed her entire body, letting every sensation that Connor’s masterful thrusts sent through her fully resonate.

  It didn’t take long. Before she knew it, every muscle in her body was clenching. Her inner walls gripped Connor’s cock. Her hands flew to his back and dug into the muscles there, even through his shirt.

  A guttural cry escaped her as the orgasm overtook her, and more tears squeezed their way past the paltry barrier of her eyelids despite her best efforts.

  “Oh, fuck, yes,” Connor growled, and his back muscles spasmed under her fingers.

  Damn. If she’d thought that what they’d been sharing was intense up until then, it was nothing compared to how hard the intensity of their shared orgasm hit her. It rocked her to the very core, infiltrating every muscle and bone in her body.

  She rode it out, drinking it up and taking it in, letting her breath bring her down slowly.

  Before she’d even completely returned to the real world, though, she was seized by the urge to flee. In some ways, it was the same urge that had sent her running ten years before. The fear of being trapped. Of intimacy.

  A voice in the back of her head begged her to respond differently, this time. She was ten years older now, the voice argued. Couldn’t she be ten years wiser? Was that too much to fucking ask?

  Apparently it was.

  Before Connor’s breathing had completely slowed, before clarity had returned to his eyes, she wriggled out from underneath him. In what seemed like a flash, she had gathered her shirt, bra, and underwear and returned them to fairly close approximations of their original places on her body.

  “So,” came his dry voice behind her. “I take it you’re leaving?”

  She turned to face him, doing her best to mask how uncomfortable she was. She hoped to God she was pulling off a passable job, but she could feel how badly she was failing. Her facial muscles were just as shitty at lying to her as they were to Connor.

  “I…um. Yeah. The visiting hours start soon. I guess I…”

  Her voice trailed off. She was knocked too far off balance to be able to think of a plausible ending to that sentence.

  Hell, any ending. Plausible would’ve just been bonus points.

  “Lost track of time?” he supplied, an amused smile tugging at the edges of his lips.

  She laughed. The tension was broken. He’d always had a magic way of doing that. “Yeah. Good way of putting it.”

  He nodded, then stepped over to her and kissed her gently on the forehead. “Go. Visit your grandfather. Call me if you need me.”

  Relief washed over Luna, so tangible that she could feel it, like a warm bath she was lowering herself into. She breathed out, and all of her tension went with the air as it bled out of her lungs.

  She turned and walked toward the doorway, and just as she was about to walk out of it, Connor said, “Hey, Luna?”

  She turned, saw that he had a playful half-smile on his face. “Yeah?”

  “It was nice seeing you again.”

  Chapter 6

  Luna

  Luna kept her eyes glued to the green line on the floor of the hospital, following the trail it led her down as if it were the Yellow Brick Road itself. Concentrating so hard on that thin line kept her mind from drifting to the other places it would’ve been tempted to go.

  Like what had just happened between her and Connor. Or the fact that she was about to see her grandfather lying in a hospital bed.

  Nope. Best not to let her thoughts turn either to the past or the future. Just focus on the present and that little green line.

  There. Room 103. She’d found it. She had to stop and take a deep breath before walking in. She was dreading what she was about to see, and she knew she couldn’t let that show on her face. To think about seeing her strong-as-a-bear Grandpa Serge pale and weak, hooked up to machines…God, it was unthinkable!

  Growing up, her grandpa had always been as solid as an oak tree in her eyes. Barrel-chested and muscular, he’d swept her up into his arms when she was a little girl, swung her around as she shrieked in delight. It was like she weighed nothing to him.

  Even as he’d gotten older, she would’ve still bet good money that he could beat most of the guys she dated in an old-fashioned arm-wrestling match. No contest.

  Except Connor…

  Nope. She shut down that line of thinking. She wasn’t going to think about Connor’s rippling and sexy muscles while she visited her grandfather. She just wasn’t.

  “Well don’t just stand there all day with your mouth open, girl. Come in give me a hug.”

  She stepped into the room, a blush spreading across her face. “Hey, Grandpa Serge. Sorry. I was…” She trailed off. She didn’t know how to put it into words, and even if she had, she was struck still by the sight of him, pale and more frail than she’d ever seen him, hooked up to wires and tubes.

  She’d known it was going to be something like this. She’d tried to prepare herself. But actually seeing him there, in the flesh, looking twenty years older than he had the last time she’d seen him…well, it was just about all she could do to keep from bursting into tears. Explaining her hesitation outside the hospital door was suddenly the last thing on her mind.

  “Now, stop, Sugar Plum.” His use of her childhood nickname nearly did her in entirely. “Everybody looks like they’re at death’s door when they’re wearing one of these hospital robe things. Even you probably wouldn’t look good in one and you’re the prettiest thing in the state of Oregon. Now come on over here and give me a hug.”

  She obliged, wrapping her arms around him, tight. It was hard to let go. The urge to burst into tears was even stronger, but she didn’t know if it was all about the reality of him in the hospital bed, or how overwhelming it was to be back in Valentine Bay.

  Or what had just happened between her and Connor. That was a definite possibility. Obviously.

  She sat down in the visitor’s chair and grabbed her grandfather’s hand in both of hers. Two tears escaped and rolled down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away. Hey, at least she hadn’t completely dissolved into tears as she’d been tempted to do. But, still. She didn’t want Grandpa Serge to see her cry. She was here to take care of him, not the other way around. She had to be strong.

  “So,” she said, adopting an air of exaggerated nonchalance. “What’s new with you?”

  He grinned. “Still a spitfire.”

  “I try.”

  “Sorry for ruining the holidays, Sugar Plum.”

  “Now who needs to stop?” She chided. “You didn’t ruin anything. In fact, it’s kind of nice being back here again. Weird. But nice.”

  “Well, if I’d known all it would take to get you back to Valentine Bay was a little heart attack, I would’ve done it sooner.”

  She squeezed his hand hard. “Don’t even joke about that.”

  “Sorry, hon. Tell you what. Let’s talk about something happier. How long do your grandma and I have you for?”

  “As long as you need me. I’ve already talked to my boss. He gets it. I already had vacation scheduled through next week. If I’m still here after that, I can start working remotely. We’ll figure it out.”

  “Now, honey, don’t you go and do anything to put your career in j
eopardy. That’s important. You need to focus.”

  Two more tears slipped down her cheeks and, again, she brushed them away, even more annoyed by their presence than she had been by the two that’d come before. She’d never been a big one for displays of emotion. She liked to keep it locked down tight. That was tough to do when it came leaking out all over her face.

  “Grandpa Serge, you’re what’s important. Don’t even talk like that.”

  He smiled at her and she didn’t feel like crying anymore. He’d always had that effect on her, ever since she was a kid. From little things like skinned knees to big traumas like her mother leaving her. Whenever he gave her that grin she felt safe, like he was in control and would make everything okay.

  Of course, now that she was an adult she knew it took more than that to set the world back on course. If she’d learned anything, it was that sometimes nothing could make things right no matter how hard anyone tried.

  That’s what her head knew, anyway. Her heart still believed that Grandpa Serge could fix anything and at that moment she wasn’t in the mood to argue the point.

  “So,” her grandfather said, a twinkle in his eye. “Have you seen any old friends since you’ve been back, honey?”

  She shrugged. “I went by Gen’s this morning.”

  Damn. Her carefully constructed plan of playing it cool was, she could tell, being totally dismantled by the telltale blush spreading its way up her cheeks.

  Grandpa Serge chuckled. “And did anybody happen to be there when you dropped by? Say, one of Gavin’s buddies?”

  She rolled her eyes, abandoning the facade. “All right, we can stop dancing around it. Connor was there.”

  “I’ve always liked that young man.”

  “Oh, believe me. I’m aware.”

  “He’d make a good husband.”

  “Oh, Lord. Within two sentences we’ve gone from asking if he was at Gen’s house to marrying me off to the man?”