“Scoot over.” He flipped around and slid underneath the covers with her. Leaning against the headboard, he pulled her back and wrapped his arms around her. Lisa slid down to lay her head on his chest, listening to the steady, reliable beat of his heart.
“As long as we take turns with the victories, you’ll get better at losing.”
She laughed softly. The light mat of blond hair on his chest tickled her palm before she followed the trail back down below the sheet. “If I lost earlier, then you can win every time.”
A low groan of pleasure vibrated beneath her ear. “Imagine if we worked together.”
She pressed her lips against his warm skin. Alternately tasting, nibbling, then soothing with the tip of her tongue, she worked her way down past his defined abs. One hand laced fingers with his; the other assisted him in the removal of his boxer briefs.
Turnabout was fair play and it was his turn to be at her mercy. He brushed her hair to the side to watch. She lifted her head to meet his heavy lidded gaze. “Are you suggesting we share the victories?”
Her lips grazed his hot, velvet skin, but she never broke eye contact.
“God, yes.”
“It’s worth considering. But first I’m going to make up for out-toasting you at the wedding.”
****
Lisa watched the dawn streak across the clear winter sky, all alone in her parents’ kitchen. Exhaustion burned her eyes. Somewhere in the silent night, while Derek rested soundly beside her, talons of fear had jabbed in and ripped deep. Sleep refused to offer relief, and she’d snuck out into the night, praying the loud muffler on her car didn’t wake him.
Currently, coffee steamed in the cup she gripped in her hands, but her fingers would not warm. The potent aroma of the unsweetened brew also failed to erase the taste and smell of him from her strong-willed senses.
Her stomach churned and her chest ached. Leaving him hadn’t felt right and yet staying was impossible. He’d seen through all her lies and defenses.
“What the hell happened to you?”
“The Lisa Riley I knew wouldn’t have given up.”
Derek’s voice, infused with disappointment and anger, echoed in her mind. Like he’d said at Mark’s, he knew her better than anyone else. Scarier yet, he knew it all and still wanted to be with her.
But how could she trust his belief in her when she didn’t even believe in herself?
Her coffee grew cold as the past few years played out before her. Twice she got up to leave the kitchen; twice she forced her butt back in the chair.
No more running.
Every time a job didn’t work out, she saw now how she’d blamed someone else instead of taking responsibility for her own path in life. Derek’s observations forced her to face the fact that she’d indulged in some unattractive self-pity and cowardice back in Indianapolis.
And coming back here to Pulaski? God, she whined about the City Hall interview when she hadn’t even tried! That job had a permanence that the assistant coaching job did not offer. When forced to move on from the coaching position, it wouldn’t have been her fault…but if the City Hall job didn’t work out, she had no one to blame but herself.
Happiness hadn’t eluded her—she’d just been too afraid to shoot from the three-point line and fight for the win.
The realization simultaneously shamed her and provided even more of an eye-opening kick in the rear than Derek’s words. Hope blossomed, and she knew without a doubt what she had to do. Lisa pushed up from the table and rushed from the kitchen to take a shower. If she hurried, she might make it to City Hall by the time the corporate offices opened.
A half hour later, her mother gasped in surprise when Lisa almost ran her down in the hall. “Lisa!”
“Sorry, Mom.”
“Wait—” Sue Riley called when she kept going.
“I can’t talk now, Mom. I’ll see you at Mark and Janelle’s later for the New Year’s Eve party.”
The clock ticked louder and louder. She had that last-second shot from the mid-court line to end the game. Or begin her future.
Win or lose, no way in hell she was going down without a fight.
****
Lisa trailed a nervous finger along the square neckline of her sleeveless black dress. She’d searched the great room, kitchen and upstairs balcony of Whispering Pines Lodge for the past hour and still no sign of Derek. But he had to be here. Mark and Janelle planned to announce the final fundraising totals before midnight.
Twice she’d opened her mouth to ask Janelle where her cousin was, only to bite her tongue. He’d be here. She just had to be patient.
Her gaze scanned the room again. She should’ve gone back to his house. Her attention caught on Eric and Marissa, standing arm in arm near the large fireplace, talking to the Mayor and his wife. After a year of marriage, a new set of twins, and a surprise pregnancy, they still acted like newlyweds.
On the other side of the room, Mark and Janelle threaded past each other in the crowd and managed to sneak a kiss. They were newlyweds.
Lisa sighed with longing.
“Looks like Derek finally made it.”
Her heart lurched as much from the deep voice of Butch Walsh at her elbow as the mention of Derek’s name. She spared the older man and his wife a quick, polite smile before scanning the room for what felt like the hundredth time.
“By the French doors, dear,” Judy said.
There he was. She drew in a shaky breath, unable to even pretend disinterest. Blond hair messy but perfect, he stood tall in a pair of black pants and a charcoal gray sweater. He drained the glass in his hand, the expression on his face identical to the one he’d worn when she out-toasted him at the wedding.
Here goes everything.
She turned to excuse herself to Santa Butch and Judy only to find they’d vanished as suddenly as they’d appeared. Pressing a hand to her stomach to settle the monarch wings, she worked her way across the room. Derek accepted another drink from the bartender and moved off to the side—right under a bough laced with mistletoe.
Lisa smiled at the exact moment his gaze raked the room. The crowd shifted, opening a path between the two of them. Heat flared in his eyes when he first spotted her. Her breath caught at the promising sign.
His lashes swept down with his gaze, taking in her flared knee-length dress, black stockings and two-inch heels chosen specifically to leave him a slight height advantage.
When their eyes met again, her step faltered. Cool indifference sent a chill down her spine. The urge to retreat almost turned her around, especially when the crowd closed in with the release of her breath.
No. She squared her shoulders. No more running. This was part of the fight. Hell, he was The Prize.
“I like your dress, Aunt Lisa.”
She looked down to see Reese’s smile. “Thanks. I like yours, too.” Sudden inspiration struck. “Want to come say hi to Derek with me?”
Reese nodded. “Sure.”
Derek drained his drink a second time and set his empty glass on the tray of a passing waiter by the time Lisa and Reese arrived. Lisa scrambled for something to say, but Reese rescued her with a faster than anticipated reaction.
“Aunt Lisa, look. Mistletoe Rules.”
Derek glanced above his head before meeting Lisa’s gaze. She wet her lips and stepped forward. He took a step back, then spun toward the French doors leading out to the porch.
“Derek—that’s bad luck!” Reese protested.
A blast of cold air hit Lisa seconds after he slammed outside. Lisa looked down at Reese’s confused expression. “Don’t worry sweetheart, he’s mad at me, not you.” Lifting her palm when Janelle stepped forward, Lisa ran her other hand over her niece’s silky curls and then followed Derek outside.
He stood in the corner shadows, hands braced on the railing. The cold and snow assured them privacy on the deserted porch. Lisa stepped up between him and the lodge.
He flinched away when she touched his arm. Her chest t
ightened and tears formed a painful lump in her throat. Still, she managed to keep her voice steady. “I get I’m not your favorite person right now, but don’t take it out on Reese.”
“What the hell did you expect in there?”
Her sigh of regret frosted in the air and dissipated. “I’m sorry. I just needed an ice-breaker—”
He looked over with a dark frown. “And what, I’m supposed to play along with your little Riley family rules?”
“That was the plan.”
“Yeah?” Facing her, he grasped her upper arms and pressed her back against the lodge. She brought her hands up to touch him, but he held her back. “Tell me, Lisa, how do I kiss you like the rivals everyone thinks we are when I know every inch of your body underneath that dress?”
Sensation rippled through her, but he had another question.
“How do I kiss you in front of all of them when I still hear your voice in my head begging me for more?”
Anger roughened his voice, and yet his body shifted to press against hers for a brief moment. She wanted him closer still. His hands slid down her arms in a gentle caress, paused, then gave a brisk warming rub to her chilled flesh.
As if realizing his actions, he dropped his arms and stepped back with another frown. “Go back inside and leave me alone—you’re good at that.”
Lisa stood her ground. “I’m not leaving until you hear me out.”
“You’re freezing.”
“So warm me up.”
His gaze narrowed. “I’ve been down that road before. You ran away in the night without a single word. Hell, I’m shocked you’re not halfway back to Indiana already.”
“I was scared.”
“Obviously.”
“I’m not anymore.” It sounded good, but wasn’t completely true. Because even the occasional glimpse of passion in his eyes couldn’t alleviate the fear that he might not forgive her.
Derek crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the railing, settling in for a long winter’s chat. “What’s changed?”
“I have.” She tried to suppress a shiver and failed. His jaw tightened as he glanced toward the door. She moved closer and he stiffened. “Derek, I know I hurt you by leaving the way I did—”
“I’m fine,” he ground out.
“—but after you fell asleep…it was so quiet, and I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t stop thinking, either. About things you’d said, paths I’d chosen—and not chosen. Somehow you believed the old me still existed, but I had no clue where to find her. You challenged and accepted me all at once, and honestly, it scared the heck out of me, so I gave in to the pattern I’d perfected these last few years.”
“Right. So what’s going to keep you here the next time you get scared?” Then he looked annoyed that he’d even asked.
“You are.” It came out breathless and shaky. She stepped up to him and grasped his forearms. “Please understand that I had to make sure the woman you wanted was still around before I could even admit to myself that I’ve fallen in love with you.”
His muscles bunched beneath her fingers.
“But now, I choose to stay.” The freeing power of her words strengthened her voice. “More specifically, I choose you—if you’ll still have me. I love you.”
She hid nothing from his intense, searching gaze. Terrifying as it was to risk everything with those three words, she felt better than she had in years.
The indefinable emotion she’d glimpsed in the depth of his brown eyes last night flickered, then held steady and flourished. It warmed her inside, even though her limbs shook and her teeth chattered.
He pulled his arms free and drew her to his chest, covering much of her bare skin. His forehead rested against hers. “For the record, I don’t care who you found. The woman I want was right here all along.”
“She’s also the new Public Relations Manager for Brown County.”
“I thought you said the interview went really bad?”
She grinned. “I managed to convince them otherwise this morning.”
He hugged her tighter. “That’s my girl.”
When he started to lean in for a kiss, Lisa pulled back slightly. “I just—I need you to know I’m really sorry about this morning. I will never run again. Can you forgive me?”
The tender look in his eyes left her breathless. “Of course I forgive you, I—”
One French door banged open, and Mark stepped out onto the porch. “What the hell’s going on out here?”
Lisa tossed an annoyed glance over her shoulder for the interruption, then did a double take when Eric and her dad filed out to complete a three man posse.
“Oh, come on, you guys—”
Derek’s finger on her lips stalled her words. He tilted his head toward the men in her family. “Not that it’s any of your business yet, but I was just about to tell Lisa that I love her.”
His gaze returned to hers and everything else faded away. Happy tears welled in her eyes. She smiled against his finger, but he wasn’t done talking to the guys. “And if that bothers any of you, well, I for one, would love to see you take the matter up with her.”
Lisa pulled Derek’s hand away from her mouth. Willing to brave the cold for another moment more, she wound her arms around his neck and pressed the full length of her body to his.
“Just remember,” she whispered, “I said it first.”
Epilogue
From across the room with Eric and Mark, Derek watched the woman he loved get ready to announce the fundraising totals with Janelle and Marissa. Lisa had driven him crazy in high school; she drove him crazy now.
He wholeheartedly preferred now.
For the second evening in a row, events had transpired that he never expected. This morning he thought she’d decided she didn’t want to be with him after all. Now he knew she loved him. If he wasn’t careful, his cheeks would cramp from the permanent smile on his face. Mark had already ribbed him about it, but Derek decided he didn’t care.
Reese and Heather emerged from the crowd to stand in front of Eric. Derek noticed Reese cast him a cautious look.
“When is it midnight?” Heather asked.
Eric smiled at his daughters. “Are you two getting tired?”
“No!” they both exclaimed. Reese added, “We’re having fun.”
Derek bent down to address the dark haired little girl who he imagined looked just like Lisa at age seven. “Reese…I apologize for being such a jerk earlier.”
She regarded him with a slight frown and a familiar defiant tilt of her chin. “Are you still mad at Aunt Lisa?”
Mark and Eric chuckled. Derek smiled and shook his head. “No. Definitely not.”
Her small hands fisted on her hips, elbows all akimbo. “Then next time you’ll follow the Mistletoe Rules?”
“Definitely yes.”
Reese nodded, then looked at Eric. “Does that mean he’ll still have bad luck, Dad?”
Derek straightened and cocked an eyebrow at his future brothers-in-law. “Yeah, exactly what are the Riley family rules on that one, guys?”
“I don’t know.” Eric turned to Mark. “I don’t believe I’ve ever refused a kiss under the mistletoe—have you?”
Mark snorted. “Hell no. I’m a hell of a lot smarter than that.”
The two of them shared a laugh at Derek’s expense. Reese frowned at all of them and then turned to her stepsister. “Come on, Heather, we’d better go check with Grandpa R.”
All three men laughed as the girls moved out on their mission. Derek grinned at Eric. “You’d better hide the mistletoe when they’re old enough to bring boys home.”
Eric’s humor sobered real fast. Derek clapped him on the shoulder and threaded through the throng of people in the warm room. He glanced at his watch the moment Janelle called for everyone’s attention. Fifteen minutes until the countdown.
Listening with half an ear, he wondered if he’d be able to locate Lisa’s coat so they could sneak outside again for their New Year�
��s Eve kiss. Or better yet, he’d take her home—
“And that leads us to the final announcement before I let you enjoy what’s left of this year…the grand totals of a friendly competition between a pair of former rivals.”
Derek tuned back in. His gaze sought Lisa’s, but she’d disappeared.
“My dear cousin Derek Walsh came in with a respectable amount of nine thousand, three hundred and forty dollars. Thank you, Derek!”
He smiled, nodding self-consciously with the round of applause.
“However...” Janelle offered him an apologetic smile across the room. “Lisa Riley pretty much buried him with a whopping twenty-five thousand, five hundred dollars, bringing our grand total to over sixty-eight thousand dollars! Let’s hear it for Lisa!”
Wow. Derek’s jaw dropped and his eyes widened. The faint sweet scent of cotton candy teased his senses. He turned to find Lisa behind him, a wide, Cheshire cat grin on her face. “Told you I’d kick your butt.”
“That you did,” he agreed. Lisa’s gaze shifted seconds before an elbow jabbed Derek in the ribs. “Ow—” Derek stared at his grandpa in confusion and rubbed his side. “Geez, Grandpa.”
“Told you this was yer year.”
“She beat me—how do you figure?”
Clear as a church bell on Sunday morning, a memory flashed in Derek’s mind. He and Grandpa sitting on the snowmobiles in the woods after creating Mark and Janelle’s perfect Christmas Eve last year. He’d been feeling sorry for his lonely ol’ self.
“Cheer up, son. There’s always next year.”
Derek’s jaw went slack for the second time in a few minutes. No way. Butch glanced up, then winked at him. “I’ve a feelin’ this next year’s gonna be even better. Happy New Year you two.”
Derek turned back to Lisa as his grandpa sauntered away, whistling a merry tune. Above her head hung a bright green spray of leaves and berries that Derek would swear hadn’t been there a moment ago.
Lisa linked her hands behind Derek’s neck. “What was that about?”
“Ah…” Aligning his body with hers, he positioned her beneath the leaves. “This might sound crazy, but I think my grandpa’s been anticipating this particular mistletoe match-up since last year.”
Mistletoe Match-Up (Romancing Wisconsin #3) Page 9
