by Mia Madison
“Forever sounds good,” I whispered into her ear, smiling when she nuzzled closer. “Sweet dreams, princess.”
Kayla
The sound of my phone ringing pulled me out of sleep Christmas morning. I rolled over and frowned when I found the bed empty, sitting up and rubbing my eyes to clear my blurry vision.
“Adam?” I mumbled, glancing to the open bathroom door and seeing no sign of life. I reached out for my phone, swiping to answer. “Hello?”
“Merry Christmas!” Marcy’s enthusiastic voice greeted me. “How’s it going up there?”
“You woke me up.”
“What? I’ve been up for two hours, girl.”
“Yeah, well, you’re unwrapping presents with your parents. I’m kind of snowed in up here. Not much Christmas celebration to be had.”
“Just loads of hot sex, am I right? Want to trade?”
“I’ll pass. I’m happy right where I am, thanks.”
“In all seriousness, are things good up there? Both with you two and with the weather.”
“We’re good, the weather is still rough. It hasn’t snowed for a bit, but what’s on the ground doesn’t seem to be going anywhere.”
“I want to say that sucks, but does it really?”
I laughed, shaking my head to myself as I admitted, “No, pretty much the opposite.”
“Oh, snap. It’s going to be a very merry Christmas over at the love shack.”
I knew it was just a joke so I laughed, but deep down, I felt a twinge of panic. It’d only been a few days and I already felt a connection to Adam forming that felt dangerously close to love.
How fast was too fast? Could I count the two years of our professional relationship in there somehow? I had been crazy about the man for a long while now. Was it really so surprising that I’d fall fast when I realized how wonderful he really was?
It wasn’t a surprise to me, but I wasn’t going to risk Marcy thinking I was insane. Not that she was the type to judge.
The open bedroom door made me keep my mouth shut. All my experience with men warned me not to mention my feelings too early. I didn’t want to freak him out.
“Please tell Sheila and Pete ‘Merry Christmas’ for me. I’m sorry I missed them, but I’m glad you didn’t have to spend the holiday alone.”
“So am I. They’re a couple of nerds, but I love them.”
“So do I.”
“Dad’s calling me for breakfast. Call if you need me.”
“Same here. Merry Christmas!”
“Thanks! Bye, girl.”
I ended the call and tossed it to the side, doing a full-body stretch beneath the warm blankets before I had to get up and get dressed.
As I was groaning in pleasure from the looseness of my muscles, the soft patter of footsteps forced me to open my eyes. Adam was standing in the doorway, watching me with a weird expression.
“What’s wrong?”
He shook his head and stalked forward, standing at the foot of the bed and lifting the blankets. I squeaked in surprise when he abruptly darted forward crawling up the bed and forcing my legs apart at the knees.
“What are you—oh, Adam,” I whispered when his lips pressed against my core in a surprisingly chaste kiss.
The soft nuzzling only lasted a moment before he dove in with enthusiasm, licking my pussy with his expert tongue until I came so many times I couldn’t feel my legs.
Breakfast was served in bed that morning.
“Best Christmas ever,” I panted at the ceiling a few hours after dinner. “Seriously, today has been amazing. I might be spoiled.”
Adam smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. He’d been weirdly solemn for most of the day and noticeably quieter during sex. Despite the oddity, it really had been an incredible day.
If only something hadn’t felt so… off.
“My plan is working.”
“What plan?”
“The plan to spoil you and ruin you for other men,” he admitted with a lopsided grin that made him look far younger than he was.
“I think you’ve succeeded.” I stretched, wincing a little at the little aches in my body.
Adam noticed immediately rolling to his side to ask, “Are you all right?”
“Just a little sore. The good kind of sore.”
“The well-fucked kind?”
“Indeed.”
Adam grinned, looking more like himself. I was preparing to scoot close for a post-sex snuggle when he sat up and swung his legs off the mattress.
“Get dressed, princess. I have one last Christmas surprise for you.”
“If it’s hot chocolate, I’ll officially be lost on you. Like, you won’t be able to get rid of me. I’m just warning you.”
Adam laughed and shook his head. “It’s not hot chocolate, but I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll meet you in the living room.”
With that, Adam walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. I shrugged and got dressed, deciding to just pull on one of the many t-shirts he had at the cabin and my recently washed panties.
I didn’t bother with pants or a bra. He’d probably just end up taking everything off regardless.
Not that I was complaining.
While I waited for him on the couch, I folded my legs under me and tried to comb my crazy sex-hair with my fingers. I worked out most of the knots by the time Adam joined me, standing beside the couch in a sweater and jeans.
“Going out?” I joked, gesturing to his outfit.
“No,” he said with a shake of his head. His eyes were guarded, his expression nervous. When I opened my mouth to ask what was wrong, he pulled a blue box from around his back and said, “Merry Christmas, sweetheart.”
I was so shocked by the box that I didn’t even think before reaching out for it. I knew what this color meant and my eyes went wide when I opened the lid to reveal the most stunning necklace I’d ever seen. It was a simple chain, but covered with diamonds all around. It was incredibly similar in style to the tennis bracelet I wore on a regular basis, just with a little more space between the diamonds.
“My bracelet,” I said quietly, looking up into his eyes. “You bought this to match it.”
“Yes.”
“But… my bracelet is a knock-off.”
“The necklace isn’t. I wouldn’t toss it in your purse if it frustrates you.”
“You noticed that?”
I loved my bracelet, but depending on what I was doing, sometimes it agitated me during the work day. I had no qualms about tossing it in my purse until I was getting ready to leave.
“I notice everything about you.”
Such sweet words spoken so sadly. I dragged my gaze away from the diamonds, gazing up at him with a silent question.
That’s when I saw it. Guilt.
For whatever reason, something clicked in my head. I frowned down at the box before looking back up him.
“Wait a second… Where did you get this?”
“Tiffany’s.”
“I know that,” I said with an overdramatic eyeroll. “I mean, did you have someone deliver this? I can’t imagine anyone making a trip in this weather. Unless you…. Oh.”
“I’m sorry, princess.”
“You’re sorry for…” I looked at him blankly, too stunned to form a sentence. The beautiful necklace suddenly felt like a slap in the face. I closed the box, setting it to the side as I said, “You set this up—set me up.”
“Let me explain. I—”
My hand came up to cut him off. “I don’t want to hear it. I… I need to process this. I can’t…”
I can’t believe I thought this was fate.
Mortified, I brushed past him and ran to the bathroom. I closed the door, mentally combing through everything from the phone call when he asked me to come to the cabin all the way up to his guilty expression.
The longer I stayed in the bathroom, the more betrayed I felt. Beyond that, I couldn’t seem to get past how stupid I felt for allowing myself to be p
layed so thoroughly.
Yet I couldn’t help but feel torn. My head said I was an idiot, but my heart argued that not everything was fake. The situation might have been a set-up from the start, but that didn’t necessarily mean that Adam’s intentions were bad.
The only way I’d find out was to talk to him, yet the thought of looking at him filled me with dread. I was tired—too tired to have the conversation—so I plopped myself in the bathtub and covered my body with a towel, drawing my legs up to my chest and rocking myself for comfort.
I must have dozed off at some point. When I woke up, I was nestled beneath the blankets on Adam’s bed.
“What time is it?” I asked blearily, sitting up to look around the room.
Adam was sitting on the floor beside the bedroom door looking haggard. He raised his hand to look at his watch before he roughly said, “Two in the morning.”
Christmas was officially over and I spent the ass-end of mine crying in the bathtub.
Pathetic.
“I truly am sorry, Kayla.”
“You’re sorry for manipulating me,” I said, watching him confirm my words with a reluctant nod. “If you’re apologetic, you understand that what you did is wrong.”
Adam nodded again, carding his fingers through his hair and hanging his head as he whispered, “Yeah, I know.”
“And I know you’re sorry.” I paused, pained by what I knew I had to say. “But right now, I don’t want to speak to you. I’m… I feel so stupid, Adam. I need time to think.”
“I’ll sleep on the couch,” he offered after a long moment of silence. He looked wrecked, but I was grateful he at least respected my wishes. “Please don’t sleep in the bathtub again, sweetheart. It…. Fuck, it really hurt to see you like that because of me.”
He’d seen my tears. He didn’t say it aloud, nor did he need to. The exhausted look on his face and his carefully chosen words were evidence enough.
“I’ll stay on the bed,” I said softly, my heart aching as he pushed himself off the floor and turned to leave. “Wait.”
I sat on my knees and tried to separate the blankets, but he stalked over and gripped my wrists before I could manage to free one for him.
“Don’t. I’ll be fine.”
He lingered there for a moment, gazing down at my wrists as he ran the pads of his thumbs over my pulse points.
“I’ll… see you in the morning,” he finally said, hesitantly releasing my wrists.
The door clicked softly behind him and I stared up at the ceiling, wondering if he lied about not having extra blankets in the cabin but too afraid to go find out.
So pathetic.
Adam
I gave up on trying to sleep when the sun came up. The couch was uncomfortable to begin with, and not having any blankets made it harder to get comfortable. I was warm enough thanks to my sweater, but it wasn’t the same as the warmth I felt when cuddling with Kayla.
There’d been a brief moment where I thought telling her the truth would make it better—would relieve me of the guilt—but the pain in my chest was so much fucking worse.
When I found her curled into a ball in my bathtub with tear tracks on her cheeks, the damage I had done became very clear.
I was certain that she would either realize or allow me to explain that my intentions were pure. However, that didn’t mean the pain I caused her with the manipulation would go away.
There was a chance I couldn’t fix it.
Had I known for sure that she wanted me for as long as I wanted her, I would’ve done things the simple way and asked her on a date or something. Since I wasn’t sure, I arranged this.
And royally fucked things up with the deception.
The night before, she told me she felt stupid.
I only wished she knew how stupid I felt for lying in the first place.
With a groan of pain, I sat up and cracked my neck, rolling my shoulders in a vain attempt to loosen them up. I probably shouldn’t have even bothered trying to sleep. If I had avoided the couch the whole night, at least I wouldn’t be so damn sore.
I hesitated by the bedroom door, passing by in favor of making coffee. I’d let Kayla stay in there, asleep, for as long as she wanted. It was the least I could do.
In the meantime, I made coffee and breakfast as usual. I sat at the table alone, flipping through the Cain project file while I waited to see if she’d come out to join me.
After half an hour, my pancakes were cold. I shoveled them down mechanically and dropped the plate in the sink, washing all the dishes except her plate.
By eight o’clock, it was clear that she was either still sleeping or listening to my movements and choosing to avoid me.
I was damn near certain it was the latter.
Her plate remained untouched as I grabbed my winter coat and boots and tugged them on. I went through the back door, making sure to close it loud enough for her to hear in the bedroom.
I took my time carrying a few armfuls of firewood from the shed to the tiny back porch. Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.
When I finally opened the door, her plate wasn’t where I left it. The contents had been eaten, the plate itself washed and sitting in the drying rack next to mine.
I checked the trashcan to see if she scraped her plate. I breathed a sigh of relief when it was free of food, taking solace in the fact that I at least knew she had eaten before retreating back to the bedroom.
Once that was off my mind, I got to work bringing the firewood inside.
I wasn’t so lucky when it came to lunch. I tried going out to the front porch and standing around in the cold for half an hour, but when I returned, her soup was still there.
I reheated it and tried again—this time going to the back porch. I was freezing and bored, angry when I returned inside only to be met with the same result.
“Damn it, Kayla,” I muttered as I put the bowl in the microwave again. I drummed my fingers on the countertop, trying to ignore my irritation.
The microwave dinged and I removed the bowl, placing the spoon in the soup and carrying it carefully to the bedroom door.
I knocked loudly.
“Kayla?”
No response.
I knocked again—harder this time.
“Kayla? If you don’t answer, I’m coming in.”
Nothing.
Any anger I felt was overruled by fear for her safety. I opened the door and stepped inside, frowning when I didn’t see her. The bathroom door was cracked, so I tiptoed over and pushed it open.
Music met my ears at the same time that I felt the steam hit my face. She was facing partially away from the door, but I could see that her eyes were shut.
“Kayla?”
She jolted, her arms crossing over her chest to hide her breasts even though the bubbles in the tub were doing a pretty good job of it already.
A surge of desperation swept through me. God, I wanted to get in that tub.
The glare she shot me made it clear that I wasn’t welcome to join her.
“I brought you lunch,” I said, holding up the soup. “I… I’ve been waiting outside for you to take it. I got worried.”
The harsh expression faded, replaced by something I knew well.
More fucking guilt.
“Don’t do that. Don’t feel bad,” I told her hastily. “I’ll, uh… I’ll leave it on the dresser.”
She didn’t say a word until the door was almost closed, and it was so quiet I almost missed it.
“Thank you, Adam.”
With those three words, hope began to form in my chest and an idea came right on its heels.
“You’re welcome, princess,” I replied, closing the door behind me and leaving her soup on the dresser as promised.
Grinning like a maniac, I rushed into the kitchen and went over every ingredient in the room, cataloguing each item in my mind before rolling up my sleeves and washing my hands in the sink.
The most well-stocked room in the cabin was easily th
e kitchen, which meant I had ample supplies for my plan. I wasn’t banking on it to work, but that wasn’t going to stop me from trying.
The timing was the most important part.
I got everything ready early, choosing a time later in the day to start the actual cooking.
Luckily, Kayla hadn’t left the room. Around eight o’clock, I knew she was probably starting to feel the hunger from a delayed dinner kicking in while she waited for the sound of one of the doors opening and closing.
I made sure the fire was going and turned off the living room light after double-checking that everything was set up the way I wanted it.
It was perfect. Or at least as good as it was going to get with my limited supplies.
I crept to the bedroom door as quietly as I could and tapped on the door. I waited a beat before knocking harder and backing away loudly enough that she could hear.
In the kitchen, I opened the back door and closed it, hiding in the shadows while I watched through the doorway.
Kayla
His timing was perfect. I’d gotten so used to eating dinner at six that my stomach started to howl with hunger by eight o’clock. I was debating whether or not to go out and make something myself when I heard his knock.
I didn’t respond and the silence resulted in another knock. A split second later, his footsteps began to retreat. The sound of the back door slamming shut followed soon after.
I rose from the bed, pulling on my jeans before creeping toward the door. As I lingered by the door, I started to feel guilty yet again.
I knew avoiding him to the extent I’d been doing was ridiculous, but I had no idea how to handle it otherwise. The cabin was tiny and leaving wasn’t an option. My intention was to avoid him, yet I’d been behaving like a frightened animal.
It was childish. With a sigh, I decided to put on my boots and go outside to apologize for my behavior. I honestly had no idea how he wasn’t pissed off about it. I sure would have been.
I opened the door and rushed out, stopping dead as I nearly knocked over a glass sitting on the floor. I bent down and inspected it with a frown, smiling when the scent hit my nose.
