Not Your Average Vixen: A Christmas Romance

by Krista Sandor

  Epilogue

  Soren

  “I love when you test a new recipe,” he growled, wrapping Bridget’s dark locks around his hand and pulling—hard—as he thrust into her from behind.

  “It’s a lot of trial and error,” she answered with a gasp, welcoming his hard length as he drove into her, watching their bodies rock and writhe in the mirror.

  If someone had told him that whenever the love of his life, Bridget “the eternal vixen” Dasher, had perfected a recipe that she’d instantly want him to rock her world in bed to celebrate her culinary conquest, he’d have declared his adoration the moment he’d met her.

  But some things were worth the wait.

  And that’s where they were. A year after he’d handed her his heart and promised to protect hers, he could not imagine a life without this petite brunette beauty by his side.

  “Soren, don’t stop!” she cried, arching her back as he gripped her hips, taking her hard and fast.

  He could never get enough of his angel-eyed vixen.

  Life had moved fast after he’d put it all on the line and professed his love in front of Dan, Delores, and the entire Abbott clan.

  A little recap:

  Tom and Lori’s wedding went off without a hitch.

  Thanks to the snowcats, Rudolph, Vixen, and Dasher, everyone made it to the Kringle Chapel. Lit by candlelight, Tom and Lori had wed surrounded by the people who loved them the most. Cole had been an incredible ring bearer, and Carly had scattered petals like she was born to be a flower girl.

  They’d celebrated at the mountain house, drinking good wine, eating Bridget’s delicious wedding cake, and dancing the night away to the sweet crooning of Bing Crosby, singing their Christmas favorites.

  It was a night to remember. The first night he didn’t straddle the line between Soren and Scooter, and the first night when he trusted his heart to lead the way. And as he laughed with Bridget by his side, watching Tom smash red velvet cake into Lori’s mouth, he understood the real meaning of family.

  Thanks to the kindness of Lawrence Duncan, a bunch of retired Santas, and the judge, he’d shed the chains that tethered him to his childhood and had risen to become the man he was supposed to be. A man who didn’t focus on the sorrows of the past but set his sights squarely on the possibilities of the future.

  “Do you know how sexy you are?” he asked, catching her eye in the mirror.

  “Show me,” she purred, then bit her bottom lip.

  Holy holly and the ivy! That vixen drove him the best kind of crazy!

  He pulled out and had her on her back in the space of a breath. Covering her body with his, he held her wrists above her head with one hand while positioning himself at her entrance with the other. But before he thrust inside, he kissed a trail down her jawline and inhaled her cinnamon vanilla scent that sent his pulse racing. She hummed her pleasure, a dirty little sound that went straight to his hard length, and it took everything he had to hold himself back. He wanted one moment, this moment, to lose himself in her deep mahogany eyes, and his best friend’s words had never rung truer.

  I wish you could understand what it’s like when you lock eyes with someone, and you know that your life will never be the same.

  When Tom had first dropped this sappy love bullshit on him, he’d balked.

  Now he understood completely. His raven-haired beauty had captured his heart the first time he met her gaze.

  So much had changed this past year. He’d met with all his employees once he’d returned to New York and shared a new vision for the company. A vision where Rudolph Holdings wasn’t a predatory firm that snapped up weak businesses ripe to be pillaged and sold off piece by piece.

  No, his revelation in Kringle, Colorado, had changed him, heart and soul.

  With a resounding nod of approval from Janine, Rudolph Holdings became a consulting firm that provided companies with a plan for improved profits and viability.

  Did it make him the millions it used to?

  Actually, yes.

  Investing in struggling businesses and providing sustainable plans rather than standing by as they failed turned out to be highly lucrative. And it allowed him to go to bed each night knowing that instead of greedily taking, he’d given from the heart.

  Take that, Scrooge!

  And the truth was, he didn’t even have to work if he didn’t want to.

  Why?

  He had a sugar mama!

  His sexy baker was making money hand over fist.

  Bridget had taken over Cupid Bakeries, and with her innovations, she’d brought the mom and pop company into the twenty-first century. She’d also made a few acquisitions over the last year, purchasing struggling bakeries, and then converting them into Cupid Bakeries while simultaneously working with the staff to make them profitable.

  Now, a certain French pâtisserie in Dallas belonged to the Cupid Bakery family.

  That’s right! His vixen was Gaston Francois’ boss.

  Boom!

  And if that wasn’t enough, she’d also become an internet baking sensation. Once Lori had posted the video of his vixen icing the wedding cake, the fanbase for Cupid Bakery’s new owner and CEO went through the roof.

  And there were even more changes.

  Bridget no longer called Texas home, and he’d said goodbye to New York City. They’d made Boston their base, each opening an office in the area, and called a townhouse near Lori and Tom’s Beacon Hill neighborhood home. He’d kept the NYC office open, with Janine running the show, but his life was here with Bridget and the Abbotts in Massachusetts.

  He didn’t need to compartmentalize anymore. He didn’t have one persona that lived like a spoiled playboy while the other enjoyed the camaraderie of friendship and family. No, he’d integrated Soren and Scooter just as his girlfriend was both Bridget and Birdie.

  “What are you waiting for?” Bridget asked with a tantalizing twist to her lips. Her dark tangle of hair fanned out over the pillow like a halo, framing her face. Sweet Christ! He could stare at her all day. But when his vixen rolled her hips, it was time to get down to business.

  Tightening his grip on her wrists, he held her in place as he slid inside her wet heat and sucked in a tight breath. The sensation never dampened. Their connection never diminished. The magnetic pull between them only strengthened, and he made love to her with a frenzied ferocity. Pistons pumping, he drove in hard, grinding into her sweet bud while setting a pace that had Bridget purring.

  He knew her body and could read all her tells. She was so close, hovering on the edge. Her eyelids fluttered open, and she was there, bucking and meeting him blow for delicious carnal blow. Lost in her eyes, he let go. Their mouths crashed together, swallowing each other’s cries of delirious pleasure as the feverish pace slowed, and their bodies, warm and sated, gasped for breath in the glow of sweet release.

  He let go of her wrists, and she cupped his face in her hands. “Have we depleted Frosty?”

  He chuckled. “Just about.”

  They were back at Kringle Mountain to spend another Christmas together with the Abbotts. They’d decided to make it a tradition. But this year, they welcomed one more along for the festivities when a sharp knock at the door reminded them that they weren’t alone in this house.

  “Hey, Uncle Scooter and Birdie! When can we eat that giant Christmas tree you made with all those balls? I need those balls!”

  Bridget pressed her lips together to stifle a chuckle.

  “Give us a few minutes, Cole. We’re checking the cookbook for another treat Birdie wants to make for you.”

  “More treats! I love Christmas! Oh, and Aunt Lori says she could use your help, Uncle Scooter.”

  “Let everyone know we’ll be right there, buddy,” he called as they listened to Cole skip down the hall toward the main room.

  It was good to be back at Kringle Mountain.

  “Checking the cookbook for another treat? You know I have all my recipes memorized,” Bridget said, eyes twinkli
ng.

  “I had to go with something a bit more PG than we were screwing our brains out.”

  “Good call,” she answered with a giggle. “But we better get out there. It sounds like the Scooter Whisperer is needed.”

  They dressed quickly, and as Bridget twisted her hair into a bun, he covertly slipped a little something into his breast pocket.

  “Ready?” she asked.

  He nodded.

  She was about to find out just how ready he was.

  They entered the main gathering area. The decorated trees twinkled in each corner, the fire roared, and holiday music played in the background as snow swirled, setting the scene for the perfect mountain Christmas when a sharp cry caught their attention.

  “Scooter, can you help? Little Scooter only seems to settle with you,” Lori said, handing over a tiny fussing baby, swaddled in a blanket covered in scooters.

  He rocked the child in his arms and smiled down at Soren “Little Scooter” Abbott.

  The boy stared up at him, and he ran his finger down the baby’s cheek.

  “Who knew you’d be so good with babies. What other Christmas surprises do you have in store for us?” Bridget teased.

  He gazed at the people he loved most in this world. Everyone was here. This was the moment.

  He handed the cooing baby back to Lori, then sank to his knee in front of Bridget, and removed a velvet pouch from his pocket.

  He emptied the contents into his hand and smiled up at the woman who, every day, took his breath away.

  “There’s one more surprise, and we’ll get to see if my Christmas wish comes true.” He held up a sparkling diamond ring. “Bridget Dasher, part angel, part vixen, will you be all mine until death do us part?”

  “How did you know?” she asked, her mahogany eyes sparkling.

  He cocked his head to the side. “Know what?”

  “That this was my Christmas wish, too,” she answered, extending her left hand.

  With their family and friends looking on, he tossed Cole a little wink before sliding the ring on Bridget’s finger. “A Christmas fairy must have told me.”

  Thank you for reading Not Your Average Vixen! Are you ready for more romance? Of course, you are!

  Meet Colorado’s most eligible bachelors—and the women who will bring them to their knees—in Krista Sandor’s 3-book Bergen Brothers Series.

  For updates on author appearances and new releases, tap here.

  Also by Krista Sandor

  Sign up for Krista’s newsletter to get all the up-to-date Krista Sandor Romance news!

  The Kiss Keeper

  A sexy romance set on the coast of Maine

  The Bergen Brothers Series

  A steamy billionaire brothers romantic comedy series

  Book One: Man Fast

  Book Two: Man Feast

  Book Three: Man Find

  Bergen Brothers: The Complete Series+Bonus Short Story

  The Langley Park Series

  A suspenseful, sexy second-chance at love series

  Book One: The Road Home

  Book Two: The Sound of Home

  Book Three: The Beginning of Home

  Book Four: The Measure of Home

  Book Five: The Story of Home

  Own the Eights Series

  A delightfully sexy enemies to lovers series

  Book One: Own the Eights

  Book Two: Own the Eights Gets Married

  Book Three: Own the Eights Maybe Baby

  Learn more at

  www.KristaSandor.com

  The Inside Scoop + Playlist

  Not Your Average Vixen: A Christmas Romance

  Back in 2018, I was asked to write a sexy short bedtime story for a romance site. I had three nights to share my tale, and I happened to get the three nights leading up to Christmas.

  Hello, sexy holiday story!

  Birdie and Scooter came to me immediately. I love silly nicknames and couldn’t wait to put these two together! I can’t even begin to tell you how hard it was to sit on their complete story. I’d spent the better part of 2019 and 2020 finishing the Langley Park Series and writing the Bergen Brothers. Then came the Own the Eights Series and my standalone, The Kiss Keeper. Finally, in July of 2020, it was time to write Birdie and Scooter’s complete story.

  To get into the holiday spirit in the middle of a hot Colorado summer, I asked my newsletter subscribers to send me the titles of their favorite holiday songs, and they delivered! From Bing Crosby to the Mannheim Steamroller, their suggestions got me feeling all the Christmas vibes. This was incredibly helpful because my husband and sons vetoed my request to put up the tree five months early!

  Tap here to check out the playlist on Spotify.

  Tap here to watch the book trailer.

  Acknowledgments

  Not Your Average Vixen: A Christmas Romance

  I don’t know where I’d be without my team of editors, alpha-readers, and proofers. Tera, Marla, and Carrie are my eagle-eyed editing trifecta. This book was a beast coming in at over ninety-thousand words. These characters had a lot to say, and you checked each and every word. You will always have my heartfelt gratitude.

  My cover designer, Marisa-rose Wesley of Cover Me Darling, crafted the perfect cover for Vixen before it was even written, and it became my inspiration. Then Emma Rider put together the book trailer. Thank you both for your creativity and kindness!

  I have to thank the members of my Book Babes reader group and the women on my Advanced Reviewer Team. You guys are always behind me, cheering me on, posting reviews, and lighting up my life every day. I am grateful to know you and call you my friends.

  Thank you to my author besties, Jessa York, Alley Ciz, and SE Rose, for helping me craft the perfect Vixen blurb. You guys are the best. Thank you for always making me laugh and keeping me sane!

  And to you, dear reader, your support makes this all possible! Thank you!

  About the Author

  If there’s one thing USA Today Bestselling Author Krista Sandor knows for sure, it’s that romance saved her.

  After she was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2015, her world turned upside down. During those difficult first days, her dear friend sent her a romance novel. That kind gesture provided the escape she needed and ignited her love of the genre.

  Inspired by the strong heroines and happily ever afters, Krista decided to write her own romance novels.

  Today, she’s an MS warrior and living life to the fullest. When she’s not writing, you can find her running 5Ks with her husband or chasing after her growing boys in Denver, Colorado.

  Never miss a release, contest, or author event. Visit Krista’s website and sign up to receive her exclusive newsletter.