An Unexpected Christmas

by Shannon Richard

  This thing that had happened—that was happening—with Adele was unexpected in every way possible. He didn’t know what it was, but he did know that he was going to appreciate it while it lasted. He’d enjoy whatever time they had together, make every second count.

  It was then that he had the overwhelming desire to make this Christmas one he’d never forget, and more importantly, one she’d never forget either.

  Adele fell asleep first, but he wasn’t that far behind her, his mind already made up on at least one thing that the next day would bring.

  Chapter Eight

  Decking the Halls & FaLaLaLaLots of Sex

  December 23rd

  Jace kept the fire going throughout the night, adding wood to keep them warm. Every single time he pulled away, Adele woke up, immediately missing his arms around her…and also his warmth. The second he’d crawl back in next to her, she burrowed against him again and would fall right back to sleep.

  But there was no falling back to sleep when he woke her up that morning. Soft, clear sunshine was coming through the windows. The storm had finally passed.

  Adele’s thoughts on the weather were short lived though as she realized that what had woken her up was Jace kissing the back of her neck. She’d rolled over at some point, her back to his front, and his very prominent erection now pressing into her bottom.

  She’d barely gotten back to consciousness and that quickening was already starting in her belly, getting more and more intense as he opened his mouth over her skin. To counter, she moved her hips, rubbing against his hard cock and making him groan into her neck.

  “How are you feeling?” His voice was all sexy and rough from sleep.

  She knew what he was asking and it only took her a second to assess things. She was still a little sore from the day before, but a good kind of sore, the kind of sore that made her ache to feel him inside of her again. She turned to look over her shoulder, her eyes meeting his.

  “I’m good, Jace.”

  “Perfect.” He closed the small gap between their mouths, kissing her as his hand moved up her bare thigh. And then he was pushing up the material of her shirt—well, actually, his shirt—before pulling her panties down her legs. His hand found it’s way to the apex of her thighs, fingers moving over her…and then in and out of her. It took almost no time at all for him to get her good and ready for him.

  His mouth left hers as his hands disappeared from her body. He shifted behind her, getting rid of his sweats. Once his legs were free, he settled back into place, and lined his cock up to her entrance.

  It was a slow and delicious slide as he filled her up inch by torturous inch. Her back arched and she gasped at the exquisite sensation of him stretching her tight. When he was fully inside of her, he stilled for a few moments, placing opened mouth kisses on her neck while she adjusted around him. His hand was on her belly, moving up until he could palm her breast. When he rasped his thumb across her nipple, her hips rolled, causing both of them to moan in pleasure as she moved along the length of him.

  “Do that again,” he whispered between kisses as he moved his thumb over her other nipple.

  Adele did do it again, rolling her hips against him as he continued to touch her breasts.

  “Just like that, Del.” He started to move, pulling in and out of her at a slow, sleepy pace.

  Their bodies rocked together languorously…lazily, but a good lazy. No hurry to get to the finish line, just enjoying the journey of getting there. And all the while Jace didn’t stop touching her, moving from her breasts, to her belly, and then between her thighs. He found her clit, rubbing in soft, little circles that drove her out of her ever-loving mind.

  She had absolutely no concept of how long they moved like that before things changed. Their speed picked up, both of them seeking more. His breaths were uneven now, hitting her skin in warm little puffs. Adele put her hand over his, pressing his fingers firmer against her clit.

  Her orgasm crested and she fell over the edge, dragging Jace down with her.

  It took a minute for them to catch their breaths, and then she felt Jace’s smile against her skin as he kissed her shoulder. “Morning.” The satisfaction in that one word was clear.

  If only she could wake up like that every morning.

  If only…

  Post orgasmic glow or not, Adele still needed caffeine to start her morning. Luckily it was a simple solution. All they had to do was move the coffee maker to a plug in the kitchen that was hooked up to the generator. Once that problem was sorted, the next thing to figure out was food.

  Not all that surprisingly, they were both pretty hungry that morning. She’d forgotten how much a night—and morning—like that could take it out of her. But what with the inability to cook, breakfast options were pretty slim.

  So cereal it was. Adele had just lined up all of the boxes on the counter when Jace and Katie walked in the front door.

  She’d told him she would take Katie out, but he’d insisted, saying he wanted to keep her in as few layers as possible. The chill in the air wasn’t too terrible that morning, not after Jace had built the fire up again to a blazing status. So she was just sporting yoga pants, the oversized T-shirt, a flannel bathrobe, and fuzzy slippers. The coffee was also doing an excellent job of keeping her warm.

  “How is it out there?” Adele asked between sips of her hazelnut caffeinated goodness.

  “Storms gone, skies are clear, and the suns out.” He kicked off his boots and pulled the jacket from his arms.

  “How much snow?”

  Jace followed Katie into the kitchen where she made a beeline for her now kibble-filled dog bowl. “Maybe three feet? A little bit more. She wasn’t really having it today though,” he nodded to the dog. “She didn’t venture out from the overhang. I think she was more focused on food than playing.”

  “That sounds about right.”

  “It’s supposed to get into the fifties today. So a few days with that temp, and most of it will be gone.” Stopping next to her, he grabbed the cup of coffee she’d fixed for him. “Thank you.” He placed a quick kiss on her cheek before taking a sip. “Mmmmm.”

  His low, steady hum vibrated through her body, settling between her thighs. Good Lord, he’d just been inside of her not twenty minutes ago and she already wanted him again.

  That sounded about right.

  “So, this is our cereal smorgasbord,” she waved a hand at the boxes like she was Vanna White. “There was an unopened box of Frosted Flakes in the pantry, you brought the ever classic Life, and I am contributing Lucky Charms.”

  Yup. Lucky Charms. She’d gone stress shopping before getting there. She’d had every intention of eating her feelings the whole time she’d been hiding out at the cabin, something that very much wasn’t the case now. Now it was about eating enough to keep up her energy levels.

  “That is quite the selection,” Jace said taking another sip of his coffee. “And as I can’t remember the last time I had Lucky Charms, I’m going to start there, then finish with a bowl of Life.”

  Adele poured the cereal while Jace added the milk, and then they sat down at the bar to eat.

  It was the weirdest thing. There’d been years, and years of sharing meals with Jace. Complicated and intricate dishes like paella, or chicken enchiladas made from scratch, Thanksgiving and Christmas feasts, more barbecues than she could count, brunches and birthdays…and this right here, was her favorite meal.

  Cereal and coffee on a cold December morning without power.

  The knowledge of this fact took her aback more than just a little bit. As she lifted her bowl to drink the Lucky Charms flavored milk, she wasn’t sure how she felt about it. But before she had time to really think about it, the house buzzed back to life with power, lights shining and electronics beeping.

  “Yessssss!” She almost shouted as she set the empty bowl down.

  Jace looked over at her, eyebrows raised. “I’m sorry, were you not entertained enough during the power outage?�
��

  Adele narrowed her eyes at him, a smirk taking over her mouth. “I was plenty entertained. Thank you very much.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m excited about a hot shower.”

  And now Jace was the one smirking. “A hot shower with you. Now that sounds like an excellent idea.”

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were invited.”

  “I’ll make it worth your while.” He waggled his eyebrows at her as he finished his second bowl of cereal.

  Oh, there was no doubt in her mind about that. Steamy air, slick bodies, soapy hands…annnnnnd sold.

  Not for the first time, Adele was beyond thankful that her brother had pulled out all of the stops with building this cabin. There was a tankless water heater, so there would be no waiting for the water to warm up.

  Adele slid off the bar stool, wasting absolutely no time in grabbing Jace’s hand and leading him to the bathroom.

  Jace had every intention in the world of taking it slow and easy with Adele in the shower. He figured they could get all soaped up and then get each other off with their hands. Give her body some time to rest and recoup after the sex they’d already had. What he hadn’t expected was for her to sit on the shower bench in front of him and take his cock into her mouth.

  Everything was an assault to his senses, overwhelming him with pleasure. First the sight of her moving up and down the length of him, the smell of her almond-scented body wash floating in the air around them, the sound of his uneven breaths mixed with her moans, and the feel of her warm, wet mouth sucking him. He’d been able to keep his control in check right up until she started playing with his balls.

  A rush of incoherent nonsense escaped his mouth and he wasn’t sure how he hadn’t blacked out yet. Maybe it was a self-preservation thing. Cracking his head on the tile would’ve been a bit counterproductive for how he wanted to spend his day.

  His fingers were tangled in her hair, his palms cradling her head, and he gently pulled himself free of her mouth.

  The second he was able to regain some semblance of thought, he reached for her arms, pulling her to her feet, and pushing her back against the tiled wall. Covering her mouth with his, he tried to intimate with a kiss just how much he’d enjoyed what she’d been doing, tried to show her how desperate he was for her, tried to convey he’d never get enough of her.

  Moving one of his hands to her head, he wove his fingers in her hair again as he deepened the kiss. Meanwhile, his other hand slid down her body, moving between her thighs so he could slip two fingers inside of her.

  Yup, she was wet everywhere. Hot and slick and needy. Her hips moved, seeking more pressure, seeking more of him. She wasn’t the only one who wanted more either. Fuck, he needed to be inside of her.

  He pulled his hand from her hair at the same time that his fingers moved from between her thighs. “Hold on,” he whispered against her lips as he grabbed both of her thighs and pulled her up.

  Her legs wound around his waist as her hands grasped his shoulders, and then he was lining his cock to her entrance and slowly sliding inside of her. His lips covered hers, their tongues tangling, mouths sucking, teeth biting. Adele writhed against him, hips taking up a frantic rhythm, as her nails dug into his skin. He let her set the pace, let her show him exactly how much she wanted, and he gave it to her.

  Adele’s release was free and wild. She pulled her mouth from his and her cries of pleasure echoed all around them, bouncing off the tile and filling the bathroom. Filling his head. He brought her down from her orgasm with slow, steady thrusts, her body still pulsing. And then he kissed her again as he let himself go over to his own release.

  It was a good couple of moments before he pulled his mouth away and looked at her face. Her skin was slicked with water, hair wet and hanging down around her shoulders, golden brown eyes dazed as she looked at him.

  She was so damn sexy, the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen in his life.

  He pulled out of her as she unwound her legs from around his waist. He slowly lowered her, letting every part of her slid down every part of him. Once her feet were flat on the tiled floor, her hands loosened from their grip on his shoulders before sliding up his neck and to the back of his head. She tugged his mouth down to hers, kissing him long and hard as the hot water rained down around them.

  Showers were never going to be the same after this…but really, nothing was ever going to be the same after Adele.

  After their shower, Jace sat a robed Adele on the bathroom counter, settling himself between her thighs as he continued to kiss her. He only had a towel wrapped around his hips, which meant her hands got full range to move over his naked chest and back.

  Who was she to waste such a perfect opportunity?

  “We should get dressed,” he said against her mouth, his hands sliding under the robe and up her bare thighs.

  “Mmm-hmm,” she hummed. “We should.”

  It was another couple of minutes before he pulled away from her, shaking his head as he took a step back. “You’re dangerous, you know that?”

  “Hey, you started it.”

  “I can’t help it. I kiss you and I forget everything.” He shook his head as his eyes moved over her in that heated way of his. “This time we really do need to get dressed.”

  “Fine.” Adele hopped down from the counter, but as she took a few steps towards Jace he took a few more steps back. “You scared of me now?” Her mouth curved up in a grin.

  “No, I’m not scared of you. I just can’t resist you. I’m leaving now.” He hesitated for just a moment, letting his eyes slowly move over her before he turned around and headed out of the bathroom.

  Adele bit her bottom lip, tilting her head to the side as she watched him walk away. Good Lord. He was the dangerous one.

  Jace had shut the bedroom door behind him when he walked out, probably more for his benefit than hers. If he caught her in her underwear again they’d most likely spend all day in bed.

  Still grinning like a mad woman, Adele sat down on the bed and pulled the towel from her hair. Her smile faltered as she tossed the towel on the bed and reached for her phone on the nightstand. As much as she didn’t want to deal with what was on there, she powered it on anyways. She knew she needed to give her mom a call sooner rather than later.

  While her phone loaded up, Adele found come clean clothes, got dressed, brushed her hair, straightened up, and did pretty much everything else she could do to delay picking up that phone again.

  Her anxiety got worse and worse as she moved around her room, and for good reason. The second she hit the home button, her screen filled with notifications. After she talked to her family when she got to the cabin, she’d turned it off and hadn’t turned it back on. She knew if there was an emergency, they’d just call Jace.

  Jace…it was in that moment, confronted with the outside world she’d so desperately been avoiding, that she realized she hadn’t really thought about Troy or picturegate at all since Jace had kissed her the night before.

  Apparently, he had the power to make her forget, too.

  The thing was, she still hadn’t actually talked to Troy. And apparently her text of No need to explain. We’re over, hadn’t been clear enough for him as there were seven new voicemails and nineteen texts from him. Seeing his name on her screen made her feel unsettled. Not in a way where she felt like she’d done anything wrong being with Jace, or like she’d cheated. Not by any means. It was more like she had unfinished business with Troy, unfinished business that she was now in somewhat of a frame of mind where she could deal with it.

  She needed to be done with him once and for all. Put that chapter behind her and move on to the next. There was only one way to do that. Pulling up his number she hit the call button, the anxiety in her stomach now rising up to her chest.

  Just get this over with.

  Just get this over with.

  Just get this over with.

  “Adele?!” Troy�
��s voice filled her ear and rattled around in her head. She already wanted to hang up the phone. “Finally.”

  The agitation in that one word was clear and it immediately had her hackles rising.

  “Are you actually angry with me?”

  “Yeah, I am. My girlfriend has been back in the States for over seventy-two hours and this is the first I’ve heard from her. I’ve been calling and texting for days, pouring my heart out, and in turn I’ve been entirely ignored.”

  “Well, I wouldn’t know as I haven’t read or listened to anything you’ve said.”

  “How is that any way to get through this?”

  “Get through this?” She repeated slowly, absolutely baffled. “You cheated on me, Troy. There is no getting through this.” Why did she feel like she was suddenly explaining something to a toddler?

  “Come on. We can fix this! We can work on this!” He shouted into the phone.

  Oh, it was because he was having a temper tantrum like a toddler. That was why. “We? You were the one who broke this.”

  “It didn’t mean anything, Adele.”

  “It didn’t mean anything?” She asked incredulously, her voice rising with the anger that had been simmering inside of her. Had he really just said that?

  “No. It didn’t. I just…I missed you and I gave in to a moment of weakness.” His voice had taken on that soft tone that she associated with being wrapped in his arms. “I love you, Adele.”

  It was the first time he’d said those words to her, and all they did was make her feel sad. She knew in that moment that her entire relationship with him had never been what she’d thought. She just hadn’t been able to see it until she was on this side of things…until she was on the other side of a night with Jace.

  She now knew what it was like to be consumed with a passion so intense it was like fire. To be with someone she trusted. After that, everything else was just empty. She didn’t want that and she didn’t want Troy.