4
"Hi, Adrian," Sam said as soon as he answered his cell phone.
"Hey, sweet, what's wrong? You sound upset."
God, how she loved the sound of his deep, caring voice. It comforted her on a level that defied explanation.
"My brother forgot to pick up my mom's Christmas tree and she's having a hissy fit. I'm over here at the lot and there's no way I can make it back home and get ready in time. Is it okay if we just hook up at the hotel?"
"Sure. Is there anything I can do for you?"
She felt tears well at his offer. This last week had been the best of her life. After they had returned to work, they had kept quiet about their relationship, but it hadn't been easy. More nights than not, she'd left work first, then gone over to his apartment to fix dinner and wait for him.
He'd even given her a key.
"Thanks," she said, "but I've got it. I'll see you at the hotel."
"I'll be waiting for you in the lobby."
Worried, Adrian paced the hotel lobby. The temperature outside was steadily falling, and the news had been calling for a bad snowstorm later that evening. He'd tried to call Sam a dozen times to warn her not to come out this far, but she'd turned her cell phone off.
The door opened.
Adrian looked up and felt his jaw drop as Sam swept in.
She was wearing a Renaissance-style dress with a high waist, long flowing sleeves, and ballerina slippers. Her hair was down around her face and she had a light ribbon braided across the top of her hair with flowers. She looked just like Guinevere.
And he loved it.
No, he corrected himself, he loved her.
Sam paused as she caught sight of Adrian staring at her. He looked gorgeous in his black jeans and sweater. He'd even gone to the trouble of fixing his hair and she knew how much he hated doing that.
Better still, his entire face lit up as his gaze met hers.
"My lady, you are beautiful," he said as she drew near him. He took her hand in his and kissed the back of her knuckles.
The warmth of his hand startled her. He took her coat from her hands and offered her his arm.
Feeling like a heroine in a romance novel, Sam took his arm and allowed him to lead her into the party.
"Wow, Sam," Randir said as he saw them. "You clean up good."
She laughed. "Thanks, I think."
While Adrian went to get her something to drink, she took a seat at the large, round table with the guys from her department.
"Oh, Adrian," Scott teased as soon as he returned. "You're just so thoughtful. Want to go get me a Coke?"
"No," Adrian said as he sat down beside her.
Sam did her best to appear nonchalant and distanced from Adrian, but it wasn't easy when all she wanted to do was lean back into his arms and have him hold her like he did in the early morning hours.
How she loved curling up with him in his favorite recliner, watching TV or listening to music while they fed each other popcorn. Naked.
She'd never been overly comfortable with her body, but Adrian seemed to love it and she loved him for it.
He gave her a meaningful look, then slid his gaze toward the lobby. "I need to go make a call."
Sam waited until he was out of sight before she excused herself to go to the bathroom.
She met Adrian in the lobby where he pulled her into a hidden, dark corner. "Why are we here?" he asked as he pressed her back against the wall.
She trembled at the strength of his chest against her breasts as he cupped her face in his hands and stared down at her with heat in his eyes. "Because it's a free meal?" she asked impishly.
"I'd rather be at home, making love to you."
"Mmm, me, too."
He kissed her then.
"Hey, Adrian!"
They both went tense at hearing Randy's voice.
Adrian stepped out of the corner while Sam pressed herself against the wall, hopefully out of Randy's sight.
"Hi, Randy. How's it going?"
"Great. I meant to tell you that Greg Wilson is going to applaud your team tonight after dinner. We hit the million-dollar mark for the Christmas season this morning. Congratulations. Greg says he's going to double your bonus and give you a raise."
"Thanks."
"So, what are you doing out here?" Randy asked. "C'mon, let's go say hi to Greg. I know he wants to shake your hand."
Sam listened with pride. Greg Wilson was on the pompous side, but he owned one of the largest privately held corporations in the country. For him to want to spend six seconds in your company was a big compliment.
As soon as the coast was clear, she went to the ladies' room.
She had barely closed the door on her stall when she heard Tiffany and a gaggle of her girlfriends sweep into the bathroom.
"Did you see Adrian?" Tiffany said to them.
"Are you kidding?" Barbara Mason said breathlessly. "How could anyone miss such a baby doll?"
"I heard that." Sam didn't recognize that voice.
"Yeah, well," Tiffany said in a loud whisper, "I'm going to nail that boy tonight."
Her friends laughed as Sam saw red. Tiffany better lay off Adrian, if she wanted to keep that perfect nose of hers.
"Right," Barbara said in disbelief.
"I am," Tiffany bragged. "I rented a room upstairs and as soon as I see him, I'm going to get him up there and have my wicked way with him."
They left the bathroom.
Sam clenched her fists. How dare she.
Her eyes narrowed, she left the bathroom and went after Adrian to warn him.
There was no need.
Tiffany had him cornered outside the ballroom. Worse, they were locked in a fiery kiss with Tiffany's hands on his waist and neck.
Sam froze at the sight as pain tore through her.
Her first impulse was to tear them apart and slug Tiffany. And if she wasn't so stunned, she might have actually done it.
But she couldn't move.
Not while her heart was slowly splintering into a million pieces.
And what hurt her most was the fact that Adrian would kiss Tiffany out in front of everyone while he wouldn't even so much as touch her hand when anyone was around.
Her tears swelled, but she blinked them back. She wouldn't give either one of them the satisfaction of seeing just how much damage they had done to her.
God, she was such a stupid fool. How could she have thought Adrian was any different than her own father?
Tiffany pulled away, and handed him a card key. "It's room 316," she said seductively. "I'll see you in twenty minutes."
Sam went numb as even more pain washed over her. How could he?
He's a man! Look at Tiffany.
How on earth could you ever compete with that?
Heartsick and aching, Sam rushed back to her table. She gathered her purse and coat.
"You okay?" Randir asked.
"No," she said, swallowing her tears. "I need to go home. I'll see you guys Monday."
Adrian waited and waited for Sam. Where was she? Had she gone back in when he wasn't looking?
He went to check, and as soon as he saw her coat was missing, a feeling of dread washed over him. "Where's Sam?"
Randir shrugged. "She went home."
"What?"
"She said she didn't feel well."
Adrian pulled his phone out of its cradle and dialed her cell phone.
No answer.
Cursing, he ran after her.
A heavy snowfall had started as he reached his Bronco, got in, and went to find her.
Sam wept the whole way to Spring Hill. She didn't really notice the icy roads until she had to turn onto Nashville Highway to reach her house. Her car started skidding.
Terrified, she held her breath until she landed safely in a ditch.
Her heart pounding, she was glad she hadn't been physically hurt. She picked up her cell phone to call her brothers, then saw the battery was dead.
"Damn it!" she
Angry and hurt, she wiped her eyes, then shoved open her door and started the five-mile walk to her rented house.
Adrian's heart raced as he realized how hazardous the roads were becoming. Sam's little Honda was about as safe in weather like this as his Corvette.
Why had she left? It didn't make any sense to him.
He turned onto Nashville Highway and saw her car in the ditch. Terrified at the sight, Adrian pulled to the side of the road and got out. Running up to her car, he saw it was empty.
She was out walking in 26 degrees?
He shook his head as he remembered her thin shoes and dress. She would freeze to death. Damn her independence. Couldn't she ever let anyone do anything for her?
He ran back to his Bronco. Getting in, he tried to start it.
"No!" he snarled as the starter clicked without firing the engine. He tried again, but still the car refused to start.
Pulling out his cell phone, he called the only other person he knew who lived in Spring Hill.
"Hey, Trey," he said as his friend picked up. "I need a huge favor from you."
Sam was absolutely freezing. Her shoes were soaking wet and she had all but lost the feeling in her feet.
Worse, she still had a mile to go to get home. And over and over again, all she could see was Adrian kissing Tiffany.
"Why, Adrian?" she breathed, clutching her coat tighter around her. "Why wasn't I good enough?"
Suddenly, she heard a strange clip-clopping sound coming from behind her.
What on earth?
It sounded vaguely like hooves. Turning around, she saw...
No, it couldn't be.
Sam blinked, not trusting her eyes.
The image only got clearer as the snowfall became heavier.
It was a knight. A knight in black leather.
Frowning, she watched as Adrian rode up to her on the back of a white stallion. Her mouth wide open, she looked at him as he reined to a stop by her side.
"Methinks milady damsel doth be in distress."
She shook her head at his fake medieval English way of speaking. Those deep, dark, chocolate-brown eyes stared at her with a heat that instantly warmed her freezing bones.
"Adrian?" she gasped.
"Sir Adrian," he corrected with a smile. He reached his hand down to her.
Without thinking, she took it and allowed him to pull her up to sit before him on the medieval-style saddle. He wrapped her up in two blankets as he adjusted her in front of him.
"What are you doing here?" she asked in disbelief. "I thought you were with Tiffany." As she said the name, her rage ignited.
"Tiffany?" he asked with a frown. "Why would you..."
She saw the color darken his cheeks.
"Yes," she snarled at him. "I saw you two. And you took her room key."
"Didn't you see me give it back?"
Sam hesitated. "You gave it back?"
"Yes. A few minutes after she left."
"You kept it a few minutes?" she snarled. "You skunk. How could you do - "
He stopped her words with a heated kiss.
"Don't yell at me, Sam," he said as he pulled back. "It wasn't my fault. I was waiting for you when she grabbed me from behind. At first, I thought it was you. Then she swept around me and put a lip-lock on me so fast I didn't know what to do. In case you haven't noticed, women don't usually do things like that to me. She caught me off guard."
"You looked like you were enjoying it to me."
"I was too stunned to move. And when she handed me the key, it took a full minute before it dawned on me what it was."
"A full minute?"
"I know you don't believe me, but if I wanted Tiffany, then why am I out here on a horse, freezing?"
"I don't know. Why are you here on a horse, freezing?"
"Because I love you, and I wanted to come to your rescue."
Sam choked on a sob. "Really?"
He tilted her chin up to look at him. "Don't ever doubt me, Sam. You're the only woman I've ever wanted to take care of."
Coming from him, that meant something.
She smiled as he kicked the horse forward toward the setting sun.
And in that moment, Sam knew she had the best Christmas present ever. She had her knight in shining leather.
Epilogue
Christmas day
Adrian let out a tired sigh as he pulled up to his apartment, just after noon. He'd spent most of the morning at work, alone, doing his best not to call and disturb Sam. She was spending the day with her family, while his had fled. Heather had gone to Daytona, and his mother was on a cruise in Alaska with her latest boyfriend.
But then, there was nothing unusual about that. He hadn't had a family Christmas since he was fifteen.
For the last eleven years, Christmas had meant nothing more than a heated TV dinner eaten in front of bad television shows.
"I hate Christmas," he muttered as he got out of his car, and went to his apartment.
He opened his door. Then, he froze dead in his tracks.
Someone had put a small Christmas tree in his living room and decorated it.
Frowning, Adrian closed the door and took his coat off, then went to the tree where a medieval-looking note card was tied with a ribbon to a branch.
He flipped it open.
Milord, Knight in Shining Armor, methinks thou hast a present in thy chamber.
He smiled at Sam's writing. She must have stopped by while he'd been at work. How he wished she'd called him. He'd love to see her today.
Oh, well, she'd be at work tomorrow.
Holding the card to his heart, he went to see what she'd left for him. He opened the door to his bedroom and went stock-still as his jaw fell open.
Sam was lying on his bed dressed in a teddy that made his mouth water, and she had a bow tied around her neck.
"Where have you been?" she asked with a seductive smile as she closed the book she'd been reading and put it on his nightstand.
Adrian couldn't speak, since his tongue was hanging on the floor.
Her smile widened as she left the bed and moved to stand in front of him. "Carpet got your tongue?" she asked.
He smiled.
Cupping her face in his hands, he stared in awe. "I thought you were going over to your mom's."
"I am for dinner. But I wanted to surprise you."
Adrian pulled her to him and kissed her until he couldn't stand it anymore. He wanted her in a way he had never wanted anything else.
And that flimsy outfit that barely covered her and left nothing to his imagination, was making him way too hard for comfort.
Growling, he pulled his clothes off in record time, then tossed her over his shoulder and deposited her gently on the bed.
Sam laughed.
Adrian ran his hand down the curve of her thigh, amazed at how much he loved her.
Sam kissed Adrian's bare shoulder as he reached into his nightstand for a condom.
He turned to her then, but instead of handing the condom to her as he normally did, he kissed her.
She felt something strange in his mouth.
Pulling back, she frowned as he pulled a ring out from between his teeth and handed it to her.
"I was going to give this to you tomorrow at dinner," he said, looking a bit sheepish. "But since you're here..."
Completely stunned, Sam couldn't breathe as she stared at the ring. It was a one-carat, heart-shaped diamond engagement ring in a medieval-style setting that made her heart pound.
Tears welled in her eyes as she blinked in disbelief. "Are you sure about this?"
He ran his hand down her arm. "You're the only thing in my life I've ever been sure about," he whispered before he took the ring back.
He left the bed and went down on one knee beside it, then took her hand into his.
Tears fell down her cheeks at the sight of Adrian naked on the floor.
; "Samantha Jane Parker, will you marry me?"
She launched herself at him and knocked him flat against the floor. "Of course I will."
He laughed as she straddled his bare stomach.
Adrian placed the ring on her left hand, then he kissed it. "I love you, Sam."
"I love you, Adrian," she whispered, knowing in her heart that she had finally found her one, true knight in shining armor. And she was never, ever going to let him go.
SANTA WEARS SPURS
Prologue
Danger. O'Connell felt it on the back of his neck and deep in his bones as he raced his pinto across the dead winter Texas plains toward a town he'd never known existed.
After all this time, he ought to be used to danger. He had lived his life under its constant stalking shadow, and kept it as his faithful companion. Danger was his ally and his enemy.
It defined everything about him. There had only been one time in his life when he had felt safe. But that was a long time ago.
It was biting cold out, not that he felt it much. His thrumming blood kept him warm as he rode through the night.
"You should have been there, Kid. It was like taking candy from a baby," Pete had laughed. "Hah, now that I think about it, I did take candy from a baby. I just wish I could see their faces when they wake up and find their money gone."
Then as now, O'Connell hadn't found the words amusing. He knew Pete could be as cold-blooded as they came - the bullet wound in his arm was testimony to that. But not even he had thought Pete would steal from an orphanage just two days before Christmas.
The man had no soul.
There was a time when O'Connell had been just the same. When hatred had strangled his heart and left him unable to feel for anyone save himself.
And then he'd met her.
His heart lurched, just as it always did when he thought of her. She had shown him another way, another life, and had changed everything about him in the process. She'd given him hope, a future. A reason to live. And life without her had been nothing more than a bitter hell.
In all honesty, he didn't know how he managed to make it through the endless, miserable days that had turned into years.
Somehow, he just survived. Cold. Empty.
Alone.
God, how he missed her. How he ached for some way to go back and relive just one second of the time he'd shared with her. Just to see her face one more time, feel her breath on his skin.
For a moment, O'Connell let his thoughts drift to the past. And like they always did when he was unguarded, they went to a remembered dream of long dark brown hair and eyes as clear and warm as a summer's day. Of a woman who had told him she loved him without making a single sound.
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