'Twas a Dark and Delicious Christmas

by Stacey Espino

  He paused for a second outside my door.

  “I’m sorry—” I murmured, reaching for my pocket, “—I’ll get the key.”

  “No need,” he grunted, twisting the handle and handing the key to me. Inside, he kicked the door shut and carried me to the couch, pausing as he settled me onto the groaning springs. “Well that was stupid. How are you going to lock the door behind me from over here?”

  “Wait I...” I what? Wanted to say thank you? Sure. Could make it across the floor on my ankle once the heels were off? Of course. Didn’t want to be alone? I sighed. “Please don’t go. I...I know I should have clued in earlier and—”

  Ducking his head and giving a shy smile, Brady laid a finger over my lips. “You’re clued in now, and I don’t care about the rest of it.” He brushed a thick lock of hair from my cheek and tucked it behind my ear. My skin lit up everywhere he touched. His eyes traveled every inch of my face like he wanted to memorize it—like he wouldn’t see it tomorrow, or ever again. “Can I ask for a Christmas gift from you?”

  I stiffened. After what Daniel had said, the request screamed trouble. But Brady had brought me home and hadn’t so much as tried to cop a feel while he carried me. “Ask away, but I can’t promise to deliver.”

  “I wouldn’t expect you to.” He ducked his head again, but it didn’t hide the redness staining his cheeks. “I just wanted to kiss you.”

  A kiss? He was adorable and sweet and, though I’d ignored it, made my heart flutter more than once. I could handle a kiss. “Okay.”

  His blue eyes caught the light and danced when he looked up. It never occurred to me to change my mind, and Brady didn’t give me the chance. When his lips brushed across mine, the tingle I felt every time we touched filled me and set my body on fire, warming me in a way the heater never would.

  He started to pull away, but I didn’t want to let him. If he wanted a kiss, he was going to get one. I grabbed his jacket and lifted my head up to press my lips against his. The sweet and innocent act dropped away and he plundered my mouth. I could still taste the peppermint on his tongue and lips. He tasted of Christmas and happiness.

  I lost myself in his kisses. They chased away the here and now and made me think of better things. Sipping hot cocoa by the fire with my dog. Making snow angels on the driveway before my dad had the chance to shovel. Tearing open presents. Leaving milk and cookies for Santa then trying to stay awake to watch for him.

  I could have kissed Brady all night long.

  But I couldn’t escape the thought that the joy he brought just by kissing would be magnified a thousand times if we went further.

  If I thought for an instant he didn’t want it too, I would have backed off, but his hands kept drifting toward my breasts, then he’d clench them into fists and tuck them behind my back until it happened again.

  Wanting...no...needing more, I unsnaked my arms from around his neck, shoved off his jacket and undid all the buttons on my shirt, letting it fall open. Brady lifted up, bracing himself with his arms on either side of my body as he stared at me.

  “You don’t have to do this, Alana.”

  “I know,” I whispered, suddenly shy under the weight of his gaze. “I think that might be part of why I want to.”

  He hardened against me, and I lifted my hips off the couch, rocking against his erection until he groaned. “Not here then. Not on the couch like it means nothing...and we don’t have room to move.”

  Leaping off the couch, he swept me into his arms once more. The bedroom light flickered when he turned it on, one bulb going, and the other little more than a dim glow. As he laid me across the threadbare comforter, I caught the edge of his shirt in my hands and tugged it up over his head.

  The pale glint of light caught on the muscles of his chest and arms, making them glow golden. My fingers trailed over his abs, drawing a hissing breath from him, until they reached the waistband of his jeans. His hands covered mine, stilling them for a moment. “Are you sure?”

  I looked up, staring deep into his eyes, the pools of blue gone black in the darkness. “Yes. A thousand times...wait, make that ten thousand times, yes.”

  Smile flashing white, he let me undo his pants and free his cock. My fingers wrapped around his thickness, sliding along the sensitive flesh. Up and down the length, I stroked him eagerly, while he leaned forward and caught my mouth with his again. Gently, he pushed me back onto the bed, until I couldn’t reach him anymore. Already I missed the feel of him in my palm, the hard swelling beneath the softness of the skin protecting it.

  He eased the skirt and fishnets over my bottom and off my legs. The skirt was short enough he could have just left it, but the way he looked at me lying there in nothing but my bra and panties made me feel like I was the only person in the world to him, and my insides contracted, moisture seeping onto my panties once more. But I didn’t want him to stare. I wanted more.

  I twisted my arm behind my back and unhooked my bra in one swift motion, tossing it onto the floor. Brady’s face took on a hungry expression as he lowered himself onto the bed, his fingers tracing circles around my nipples, making them tighten. He brushed a feather-soft kiss against my lips again, then blazed a path with his mouth down my neck and chest.

  When his mouth closed on my nipple, I arched off the bed from the intensity of the tingling rush. My fingers wrapped in his hair, holding him tighter to me, even as he slipped his hand under the edge of my panties and nudged them down. When his fingers found my clit, I cried out, electricity racing through me, and when he pushed them inside, all I could think was my vibrator would never in a million years measure up to this moment.

  I lay there, gasping for breath, barely holding on to my sanity, as he pulled away from my breast and laid kiss after kiss down my abdomen. As my fingers let go of his hair, they clutched at the darkness seeking something to hold on to, to ground me in reality. They found the bedspread just as his tongue found me.

  My world exploded into a thousand sparkling shards, each one painted with the memory of a better time. A time of joy. The largest, however, was saved for the moment Brady kissed me on the couch, our bodies poised so close, but barely touching—soft, gentle, beautiful. Tears leaked from the corners of my eyes even as his tongue and teeth brought me to orgasm.

  He kissed his way up my body again but paused when he looked at my face, and then reached out to wipe away my tears with the pad of his thumb. “What happened? Are you okay? I—”

  I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled myself up to kiss him hard on the mouth, once more tasting his exquisite combination of mint and magic. Nothing had prepared me for Brady, but now that I had him, I wanted all of him. “Please. Please. Fuck me,” I managed between kisses.

  “No,” he said, his voice hard. Pulling away from me, he cupped my chin and forced me to look into his eyes. “I won’t fuck you, Alana.”

  Tears threatened to fall in earnest. Then he slid his fingers into me again and I gasped.

  His lips curled up into the smile I’d come to adore. “But I will make love to you so thoroughly you’ll never forget it.”

  I nodded against the hand holding my chin and he inclined his head to kiss me once more before shifting between my legs. The length of him rested against my thigh and I wriggled beneath him, struggling to get closer. His mouth against my neck, he chuckled, sending a thrill of heat through my body to pool between my legs.

  And then he was there, pushing inside me, stretching me so I felt every inch of him. It was almost more than I could stand, but I wanted it so badly I didn’t care. I lifted my hips, urging him to drive into me.

  That was all it took.

  Brady thrust, sheathing himself fully inside me. I cried out and clutched at his shoulders, my fingernails digging into his muscles. The bombardment of old memories stopped. For now, only the new ones mattered. This moment. This feeling. This man. He thrust into me again and again, each orgasm that rocked my core stronger than the last.

  Then he carried me from
the bed and pressed my back against the wall by the windows, one hand massaging my breast the whole time, leaving me dizzy with sensation. The icy cold from outside seeped into my skin at the same time his heat pulsed inside me, and I wanted to melt. Instead, I wrapped my legs tight around his waist and shoved off from the wall.

  As we fell back onto the mattress, me atop him, my dingy apartment dissolved in a glittering dust of snow. I stared in shock and awe as the room suddenly became a paradise of rich reds and dark wood, surrounded by a blanket of white that stretched forever, glistening in the moonlight. How can this be?

  I gasped as Brady shifted his hips, yanking me from the vision and back to the reality of him under me. Seeing the heat in his eyes, feeling him throbbing inside me, I knew it didn’t matter what surrounded us—everything I needed to make my Christmas merry rested beneath me.

  With my lips curled into a wicked smile, I rested my hands on his chest and rode him, impaling myself on his cock until my vision blurred with pleasure. His hands gripped my waist, urging me faster and faster. Soon, his fingers pressed into my hips hard enough I felt certain I’d have ten small bruises when I woke in the morning. Knowing how close he was pushed me over the edge and one last orgasm ripped through my body.

  Brady lifted me, my clenching muscles squeezing his cock tight, and then slammed me back down on him. Every inch of him stiffened as he finally took his release.

  I collapsed on top of him and rolled to the side. He pulled me close, nuzzling my neck as I twined my fingers in his hair. “Thank you, Alana.”

  It seemed so absurd; I had to fight the urge to laugh. “If anything, thank you. You were amazing.”

  He inhaled deeply, like he wanted to memorize my scent. “Honestly, it’s nice to be able to fulfill one of my holiday wishes for once.”

  “You wished for me?”

  “For a long time now.”

  The words made my stomach flutter. “So, does that mean you might stick around for a while?”

  His lips brushed my collarbone, and I trembled in his embrace. “I can stay until morning, but then I have to get back to work.”

  Now I did laugh. Of course a guy who would think of working with me for a month as a “long time” would assume I was talking about tonight. But for the moment, it was enough. I snuggled against him. “Sounds good to me.”

  Brady wrapped the comforter around both of us, and I fell asleep with my head on his chest thinking how strange it was that my apartment hadn’t felt chilly all night.

  In the morning, he took me again under the spray of the shower, more gently this time. Unhurried for a guy who had to be at the mall in a couple hours. His hands tangled in my hair, pulling my head back to trail kisses down my neck as he held me tight to him and plunged deep. The feel of him inside me made the world vanish again. We lay in a copse of evergreens, making love as snow fell gently around us and melted when it touched our skin. Regardless of the weather, I felt only warmth as he whispered words like love and forever. I never wanted to leave. I could have lived out the rest of my days with him in this perfect world we'd made. Making love to Brady and letting him sweep me into such wondrous places, I could almost forget about the shabby reality of my life. Being with him was magical. He was magical.

  After he’d made me come enough times that all I could do was sag against him, we held each other under the cascading water. “I wish we could do this all day and all night,” I murmured against his chest as water sluiced over my skin.

  He squeezed me tighter than necessary and whispered, “Me too, but it’s Christmas Eve and I have a job to do.”

  I nipped at his chest. “I know. And a good elf never shirks his duties.”

  His fingers combed through my hair. “That’s right. But hey, I’ve got Santa’s ear. Maybe if you decide to believe in something again, my wish isn’t the only one that’ll get to come true this year.”

  Breathing in the clean, minty scent of him, I closed my eyes and wondered which of my wishes got top billing now.

  ****

  When I got to work, the line was backed up to the door of Macy’s.

  Brady had never shown up—called in “sick”.

  I could barely see the kids to lead them up for their pictures through the tears that threatened to fall every minute of my shift. It had all been a lie. He’d only been interested in the sex—just like Daniel, who I couldn’t even stomach looking at. By the time the mall closed, I didn’t bother taking the time to change; I just grabbed my stuff and raced out the door, desperate to be able to cry in private.

  I stopped at the liquor store and blew part of my bonus on a bottle of vodka. Stepping through the door to my apartment didn’t bring any solace though. He’d been there just last night, and I couldn’t chase images of him away. That, coupled with the scent of people cooking Christmas Eve dinner while they laughed and celebrated, pushed me over the edge.

  My parents had called from Florida to wish me a happy holiday and asked why I never phoned them. I tossed my pay-as-you-go cell across the room to keep from wasting minutes, telling them where to shove their Christmas wishes.

  Twisting the cap off the vodka with a jerk, I stared at the light reflecting and dancing in the clear fluid. Needing oblivion more than sobriety, I tipped the bottle up and took a long swallow. I came up sputtering as the cheap booze burned like fire down my throat.

  All it did was remind me of how Brady had kept me warm last night.

  Tears streamed freely down my cheeks. Lips twisting into a scowl, I took another drink. And another. Until even the thought of jingle bells, a Merry Christmas, and Brady faded to nothing.

  ****

  The strains of Winter Wonderland stabbed at my brain like dull knives, digging in painfully, but not killing me like they should. I pressed a hand to my forehead, but the sound didn’t disappear.

  My phone.

  Head protesting the movement, I crawled across the floor to where I’d thrown it the night before. Miraculously, it was still in one piece. I didn’t recognize the number.

  Great. A wrong number wasting my money. If I let it go to voicemail, I’d just have to waste another minute going in to erase the message, so I clicked answer.

  “Hello,” I said, my voice too loud for the pain in my skull.

  “Alana?” Not a wrong number and not my mother’s voice. My silence must have been assent because the woman kept talking. “Thank goodness. I checked your references and I really need you to start tomorrow if at all possible.”

  I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to focus on the nonsensical words. “I’m sorry, what references?”

  “Your friend, Brady, mentioned you didn’t have a car and dropped them off himself. Between the recommendation from Nick Kringle and the way my kids can’t stop talking about you, I just had to snap you up before someone else did.”

  The pieces started falling into place. The triplets. The woman in the Gucci suit. The one Brady had told to hire me as a nanny. I couldn’t be a nanny. Could I?

  And why would he do all that if he planned on ditching me?

  I concentrated on the question I might be able to answer. “What exactly does the job entail?” She proceeded to fill me in. By the time we hung up, I had a new job and a new place to live.

  Brows pulled in tight, I looked around the crappy apartment I’d soon be leaving and spied something on the rickety table near the couch. Forcing myself to my feet, I staggered over, gripping whatever was within reach so the dizziness didn’t make me fall.

  Milk and cookies.

  And a note.

  I collapsed on the couch with the paper in hand.

  Alana,

  Convinced the old man you needed the snacks more than he did. You’ll love the kids, so don’t worry about taking the job away from someone else. You’re perfect for it.

  Be back to see you as soon as I have some time off. You wouldn’t think it from how much everyone loves him, but the big guy is a slave driver. LOL.

  Much love,

&nb
sp; Brady

  He was here. How did he get in? And why didn't he stay? The ache in my heart battled for supremacy with the one in my head.

  Then I read the note again and the things he said about his other job started to click into place. His words echoed in my head: I’ve got Santa’s ear. Maybe if you decide to believe in something again, my wish isn’t the only one that’ll get to come true this year.

  Swallowing hard and choking back a joyful sob, I clutched the note to my chest. Every happy memory of Christmases past paled in comparison to this.

  With a smile on my face, I squeezed my eyes shut and allowed myself to call Brady’s image to mind. “You did it, Mr. Crazy-wonderful Elf. I believe.”

  The End

  Carly's Delights

  Copyright © 2010 Lauren Pilla

  Chapter One

  The alarm clock buzzed, obnoxiously rousing Carly from a lovely afternoon sleep. Time to get up for the night shift. With bills to pay, she was just like any other twenty-eight year old woman—bored with her job and tired of the routine. But that’s where the similarities between her and other women ended.

  Carly was an elf.

  She lived at the North Pole. Not with Santa, although he did live in the next town over. Her community was small, mostly inhabited by other female elves. Like other towns, there was one main corporation where the majority of elves worked. Tittle your Winks was a sex toy shop, very similar to Santa’s toy shop, except the naughty humans were rewarded with whatever sex toy they asked for.

  The elves worked year round making and testing sex toys for all the naughty men and women, their busy little hands inserting vibrating mechanisms into vibrators, and adding extra fuzz to the fuzzy handcuffs. Instead of Santa delivering the toys, Sandy was the bringer of the libidinous gifts.

  Sandy was the boss—the head honcho—creator of Tittle your Winks. Beautiful, slender and always dressed in red, she was also very business savvy. Carly’s job was really like any other job, though. Punch in, make the toys, test the toys, and deliver them. It became very repetitive and spiritless.