His Last-Chance Christmas Family

by Michelle Major

  “I want you so badly,” Nick whispered.

  “I’m...right here,” she said, even though what she meant was I’m yours. For as long as it lasted, she belonged to this man.

  He looked deep into her eyes as he settled between her legs, and when he entered her, it was like coming home.

  Brynn closed her eyes and let the pleasure of their joining carry her away. Nick covered her mouth with deep kisses. In truth, she was afraid to look at him, afraid of what she might reveal.

  This was about now, and she wouldn’t ruin it for either of them by second-guessing. Not that the force of their mutual desire could be derailed. Their bodies fell into a rhythm, and Brynn wondered if she’d been specifically made to be loved by this man.

  It wasn’t long before pressure began to build, driving her higher until she broke apart. Her body shattered with the pleasure of it and a sensation of completeness filled her as he found his own release. She held on to him, wanting nothing more than to savor this moment as long as possible.

  He shifted to lie beside her, the quiet punctuated only by the sound of their breaths.

  Brynn stretched out her toes and wiggled her fingers, surprised to find that her body looked the same as it had this morning. The last few minutes had changed everything about her. After a moment, Nick turned to her.

  “Should we talk?” he asked, reluctance clear in his tone.

  “Definitely not,” she answered with a laugh, surprising both of them based on his sharp inhale.

  She glanced over to find him staring at her with an inscrutable expression. “I mean it, Nick. My plate is spilling over with worries at the moment. I need something easy and fun. Something casual.”

  “And you and I are casual?”

  “In this way.” She nodded. “You like your women uncomplicated. I’m a tangled mess, but we can make this part of it straightforward.”

  He traced a fingertip along the ridge of her nose. “That’s what you want?”

  Her stomach clenched, but she nodded again. “It’s what I need. What we both need.”

  “Okay, then,” he agreed, although his tone had become strained. He was up and out of the bed an instant later. Her heart tripped in response to how easily he went along with her suggestion. As the door to the adjoining bathroom closed behind him, Brynn pulled off the covers and dressed.

  Naked under a sheet was one thing, but now she needed the armor that clothes provided.

  Nick didn’t seem to share her modesty as he reappeared in all his naked glory. Her knees shuddered in response and she forced herself to look away. She walked to the mirror that hung above the dresser on the far wall and straightened both her hair and outfit.

  Nothing good would come of anyone knowing that she and Nick had been together in this way.

  “I need to get back to work,” he said, and she could hear the frown in his voice.

  “Sure. I’ve got a call scheduled in thirty minutes with Nanci and Mara to discuss a cupcake order for the next concert.” She plastered on a bright smile. “If Remi doesn’t take a long nap, I’ll have time to run to the grocery before Tyler gets home from school.”

  Good lord. She wanted to slap herself. What kind of pathetically boring woman went from the best sex of her life to talking about groceries?

  Nick was probably already regretting what they’d done, although he’d had a good enough time during the act based on his reaction.

  “Not that you’re under pressure to have dinner with us,” she quickly added, unable to stem the tide of verbal diarrhea spewing from her mouth. “Having Remi, Tyler and me here must be disrupting your life.” When he didn’t respond, she continued, “Cramping your style.”

  From the reflection in the mirror, she could see he’d pulled on his boxers and uniform trousers, so Brynn felt it safe to turn around.

  “What style?” he asked as he buttoned his dark navy department-issued shirt. His jaw was tight, his gaze hard.

  “You know...” She laughed nervously. “Dates or whatever it is you do.”

  “Do you think I’m planning to go from sex with you to a date with another woman?” He made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a growl. “Like I’m trying to set some kind of land-speed record for being a heel.”

  “It’s not like that,” she protested. “We’re not like that.”

  He tugged on his shirt cuffs and ran a hand through his hair, once again the tough law officer he’d matured into. “Are you still planning on finishing your twelve dates of Christmas?”

  “The dates were a stupid joke from the start.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

  “Which doesn’t answer the question.”

  “How would I have time to date between work, Tyler and adding Remi and the renovation in the mix? I barely managed it before all the changes to my life.”

  “Still not an answer.”

  “No.” She rolled her eyes. “Not before this Christmas anyway. What man would want me given my current situation?”

  “Any man in his right mind.”

  “Oh.” Although he sounded angry—or at least frustrated—that was one of the nicest things someone had said to her. “Well, I’m putting the dating plan on hold. That doesn’t mean you have to.”

  “Good to know,” he ground out, then turned for the door before spinning back to face her. “Don’t go to the grocery store.”

  Brynn inclined her head. She knew so much about Nick but could not begin to guess what he was thinking at this moment or why he seemed so irritated with her. Wasn’t it every man’s dream to have permission to date around? That’s what ten years of marriage to a serial cheater had taught her.

  “Why?”

  “The holiday performance is tonight,” he said. “I thought we could go out before heading over.”

  “You’re going to the school?” She couldn’t mask her surprise.

  He tugged at the collar of his shirt like it was suddenly too tight. “Tyler invited me, so I planned on it. Unless that’s a problem.”

  “I’m sure it would mean a lot to him to have you there.” She shrugged. “I figured I could take Remi and give you a night off from—” she waved her hands in the air like spastic birds “—all of this.”

  He closed his eyes for several seconds, and she could almost imagine him silently counting to ten. What was the problem?

  “What time does he have to be at the school?” he asked instead of responding to her comment.

  “Six.”

  He nodded. “I’ll pick you up here at five, and we can get something at the downtown diner. Tyler mentioned he likes the fries.”

  “They’re his favorite.”

  “Great.” Nick’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “If there’s time, we could grab ice cream and drive around to look at lights after the performance.”

  Brynn felt her mouth drop open and snapped it shut. “Sure. That would be great.”

  “Great,” he repeated.

  “Does great mean the opposite in the way fine does?” she asked, referring to his earlier comment.

  He shook his head and his mouth lifted into a half smile. “It means we’re going to have a great time tonight.”

  “Okay,” she agreed, wondering why she was suddenly breathless again. “We’ll see you at five.”

  His grin widened. Had they just made progress on some problem she wasn’t even aware of? “It’s a date,” he said softly, then disappeared into the hall.

  A date?

  Alone in the room, Brynn sank down to the edge of the bed. Could this day get any stranger? she thought, as she smoothed a hand over the comforter. The best sex of her life and now a date—a date—with Nick Dunlap. Talk about checking off the list of Christmas miracles.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Nick walked toward his front door just before five o’clock, nerves dancing thro
ugh his stomach. His friends would get a laugh out of that, and he couldn’t blame them.

  Who got nervous approaching the house they’d lived in for the past five years?

  Night was descending over the town, and already Christmas lights glowed from the homes around him. Starlight might not get much snow or below-freezing temperatures, but its residents still went all out for the holiday like they were living at the North Pole.

  “I’m hungry for fries.” Tyler opened the door as Nick got to the top step. The boy zipped out past him before Nick had a chance to respond.

  “You’re not wearing your uniform.”

  He glanced up to find Brynn standing in the doorway. Remi’s infant seat was on the floor next to her.

  “I keep a change of clothes at the office,” he explained, suddenly self-conscious and not sure why. Instead of his uniform, he’d put on a pair of khaki pants and a button-down shirt. Nothing special, but Brynn stared at him like he’d shown up in a tux and tails. “It’s easier that way.”

  She licked her lips, and awareness zinged across his skin in response.

  “These are for you.” He shoved the bouquet of daisies he’d bought from the local florist toward her.

  Her brows puckered. “Why?”

  Nick scratched his jaw. “I thought you’d like them. I remember that yellow was your favorite. Or used to be. I guess I don’t know—”

  “It’s still my favorite.” She took the flowers from him, almost reluctantly, and lifted them to her nose. “Thank you. They’re beautiful.”

  “Come on,” Tyler called from the driveway. “I’m starving.”

  “I’ll get Remi and Ty settled if you want to put them in water.”

  “Okay,” she whispered, still staring at the flowers.

  “Is something wrong?” he asked. “Did I mess up again?”

  “Not at all.” She flashed a watery smile. “Pay no attention to me.”

  “I don’t think that’s possible. Brynn, what’s going on?”

  “The flowers are beautiful,” she repeated with a small shake of her head. “I love them.”

  She turned for the kitchen. Still puzzled at her response, he picked up the car seat and headed for his truck. Tyler climbed into the back seat, talking about the perfect ketchup-to-fry ratio as Nick clipped Remi into the seat’s base.

  He wasn’t sure what the hell had happened on his porch, but he decided the best course of action was to press forward. Nick had done a lot of thinking during his shift today, about Brynn giving up on dating—which he was all for—and what Parker and Finn had told him about her friends wanting to find a man for her.

  He’d made a vow to himself the night of the tree lighting that he would give Brynn the Christmas she deserved. If that included finishing the ridiculous commitment to twelve dates, he’d give her those dates.

  Even if he couldn’t give her more. Even if he refused to admit to himself he wanted more.

  He adjusted the radio to a station playing holiday classics as she got into the truck a few minutes later.

  “All set?” he asked, glancing at her and relieved to see she looked less astonished and more like her normal, controlled self.

  She nodded. “I’m excited for the winter concert.” She looked over her shoulder toward Tyler in the back seat. “You’re going to be the best narrator Starlight has ever seen.”

  Each year, the elementary school children performed skits and songs around the theme of winter and peace on earth. Nick knew Brynn was grateful Tyler seemed happy about his expanded role in the production and that he wasn’t focusing on the fact that his father wasn’t there to see him perform.

  “Remember last year I had to be one of the sheeps,” Tyler answered. “That’s what the little kids have to be, but now I’m a big kid so I get actual lines. Someday Remi will be a sheep.”

  “She’s got a few years before that happens,” Brynn answered with a tight laugh.

  He had a feeling she was thinking about the potential of Francesca returning. He wished he could take the worry from her mind, but even he couldn’t predict the future.

  “Remind me to show you the scar I’ve got on the back of my head,” he said, meeting Tyler’s gaze in the rearview mirror. “When your mom and I were in third grade, we had to do this holiday concert, and it was so hot in the gymnasium that I passed out. Fell right off the bleachers and knocked my head on one corner. I ended up with twelve stitches.”

  “Seriously?” Ty sounded awestruck.

  “Not only did Nick pass out,” Brynn added, “but two other girls in the class followed suit when they saw the blood. It was a gruesome ending to the concert.”

  The boy laughed. “That sounds awesome.”

  “Other than Nick getting hurt,” Brynn said, her tone gently chiding. “It was scary.”

  “I milked the attention for all I could,” Nick told the boy. “Your mom brought over chocolate chip cookies to make me feel better.”

  “She makes the best cookies,” Tyler confirmed, then began to sing along with Bing Crosby as a popular holiday tune filled the cab’s interior.

  Brynn joined her son, and Nick thought about all the times the woman next to him had been a good friend to him. She’d been his biggest cheerleader for sports, tutored him in every core subject and been the one person in his life to make him believe he didn’t come up short in comparison to his brother. In return, he’d alternately taken her for granted and ignored her outright.

  Nick knew he had to stop dwelling on what an idiot he’d been in the past. It would do no good and the best he could hope for was to change going forward.

  He pulled into the parking lot of the popular local restaurant, unsurprised to see that it was already nearly filled.

  “Oh, no.” Brynn sucked in a breath. “It looks like there’s a wait. We might not have time—”

  “I called ahead,” Nick told her with a smile.

  She frowned. “Stan doesn’t take reservations.”

  “Your friendly neighborhood police chief might have helped his son out of a bind a few years back.” Nick winked. “I’ve got connections.”

  “Lucky you,” she murmured, grinning at him.

  Lucky indeed, Nick thought, as they walked toward the entrance. He placed a hand on the small of Brynn’s back as Stan showed them to a table near the front of the restaurant. He couldn’t help his need to claim her, at least temporarily.

  Nick had always thought he was fine on his own, the stereotypical “lone wolf” lawman. He’d figured it was his destiny. But the more time he spent with Brynn, the more he wanted something different. The more he believed he might be able to claim a future he’d never expected.

  “People are staring,” she said under her breath, as she shrugged out of her wool coat.

  “It’s because you look so pretty tonight.” Affection bloomed in his chest as color stained her cheeks.

  “I doubt that.” She pulled a plastic spinning wheel with a suction on the bottom out of the diaper bag and stuck it to the table in front of Remi’s high chair. “The town gossips are going to have a field day seeing us like this.”

  “Like what?” He shrugged. “We’ve been friends most of our lives, and now we have Remi as a connection between us.”

  “For now,” she said.

  He nodded, although he didn’t want to consider the temporary nature of their arrangement. “I’m not worried about what other people think.” He ruffled Tyler’s thick mop of hair. “I’m too busy plotting how I’m going to steal this guy’s fries.”

  “No way,” the boy said, then his eyes went wide as a waitress put down a big plate of the restaurant’s famous french fries in the middle of the table.

  “Stan sent these over for you to enjoy before your food comes.” The waitress was in her midfifties with her hair pulled back into a low ponytail. “Are you ready
to order or do you need a few minutes?”

  “Ready,” Tyler answered and rattled off his order, adding a please at the end, then grinning at his mother.

  Brynn and Nick ordered as well, and Remi smiled at the waitress.

  “Your daughter is adorable,” the woman said to Brynn. “She’s a perfect mix between you and your husband.”

  Nick felt a combination of happiness and unease rush through him. It made sense that a stranger would assume he was the baby’s father. They were out for what looked like a perfectly normal family dinner. But he didn’t want the presumption to add to Brynn’s anxiety.

  He kept his features neutral as he glanced toward Brynn. Her smile looked forced but didn’t waver. “She’s a sweet girl.”

  Remi babbled excitedly as if to verify that assessment.

  “She sure is. I’ll get those orders right in,” the waitress said.

  “Will you pass me the crayons?” Tyler asked, seemingly unaware of the awkward tension that had descended over their group. He gestured to the plastic cup in the center of the table.

  Nick reached for it, his fingers grazing Brynn’s as she did the same. She immediately drew back as if his touch was electric. Nick handed the cup to the boy, who began to complete a word search printed on the paper kids’ menu.

  “It’s crowded for a weeknight,” Brynn said, as she glanced around the restaurant.

  He nodded. “There aren’t a lot of options for casual dinners in Starlight.”

  She blew out a shaky laugh, then visibly relaxed her shoulders. “What the waitress said wasn’t a big deal.”

  Nick couldn’t decide which one of them she was trying to convince.

  “It’s an obvious assumption if you don’t know us.”

  It was his turn to laugh. “I’m not used to someone in town not being able to identify me. I kind of liked it.”

  Her eyes widened a fraction, and he wondered if she thought he was referring to being unrecognized or someone mistaking him for her husband. Honestly, it was a little of both, but he had no intention of admitting that.

  “It’s good to have new people come to town.” She drew one finger around the rim of her water glass. “Josh and I are working on plans for an addition to the mill that would include a sit-down restaurant. I think it would attract more locals as well as out-of-town visitors.”