Holiday Hideout

by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  “Thank goodness for that.” She let him take the coin from the package and sheath himself, because she was woefully out of practice and she really didn’t want to waste any time. Not when she wanted to feel him inside her. Not when she wanted Josh to take her all the way to the stars and beyond.

  “I’ve got to warn you, though,” he said. “I don’t think I can play this out much longer.”

  “Thank goodness for that, too,” she said. She was ready. She was desperate. And if he wasn’t inside her soon, she was pretty sure the world might end.

  He straddled her, and with one powerful thrust, entered her. She lifted her hips and met him. She wanted it hard, wanted to be claimed. Wanted it hot and wild and Josh.

  His hips pistoned with hers, and she felt that wonderful climbing tension as her body headed toward heaven, splitting wide and then reforming in a cascade of stars and colors. Soon, soon…

  They said anticipation was part of the pleasure, and they were so right, but at the moment, she just wanted the explosion.

  And then it came—he tightened, arching up, and that was the trigger for her body to lose it. She melted into his arms, a thousand points of light and a tumble of stardust. Pleasure so intense she didn’t have the words. Spectacular seemed so completely inadequate.

  He rolled away and pulled her close. She burrowed up against him as he pressed soft kisses to her ear. “Wow,” he said, and she seconded the thought.

  But it was late, even later in D.C., and she was sated, barely able to keep her eyes open. But as she drifted off, she worried that even though she’d warned him not to think this meant anything, she had to tell him about her real reason for coming. But not now. Now, she’d drift off in Josh’s arms, lost in this sea of pleasure and contentment.

  Everything else could wait until tomorrow.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CLEO WOKE UP IN JOSH’S ARMS, her back against his chest, the heat their bodies were generating more than enough to warm the entire cabin.

  It felt damn good.

  More than that, it felt like old times.

  She closed her eyes and silently cursed herself. She should never have said yes in the bathroom. She should have told him the truth about why she was truly here.

  With regret weighing heavily on her, she slid out of bed, shivering the moment she broke contact with him. But it was for the best. She wanted to be up when he woke. Doing normal stuff. Routine. And then she’d tell him that the nostalgia and the reunion and the wine had messed with her better judgment. She’d tell him they had to talk.

  They’d be adults.

  They could do that.

  Since her bag was still in the car, Cleo grabbed a T-shirt from Josh’s open suitcase and pulled it on. She’d change into her own clothes before he got up…but first she’d deal with her growling stomach. She went into the kitchen, scrounging around in the refrigerator and pantry for food. She wasn’t an amazing cook, but even she could do up a few eggs.

  Josh stumbled into the kitchen before she had a chance to run out to the car…but not before she’d put together a plate of scrambled eggs, a plate of fried eggs and a stack of toast that almost reached the ceiling.

  “Are we expecting the French Foreign Legion?”

  She gave him a rueful smile. “Sorry. Distracted. I wasn’t paying attention. Hungry?”

  His smile was wicked. “For a lot of things, actually. Food, and then…”

  “Right.” She spun away from him, wondering if he could hear the way her pulse was pounding in her chest, kicking herself for not making clothes a priority over food. She opened the refrigerator, stared blankly inside for a moment, and then pulled out orange juice. “OJ?”

  “Sure.”

  When she turned back around with the carafe and a glass, he was eyeing her, concerned.

  She forced a perky smile.

  “Cleo.” His voice was flat with just the hint of a questioning intonation.

  “Hmm?”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing,” she said, then immediately hated herself. At the very least, she owed him honesty. Time to face the music. “Okay, it’s not nothing.”

  He sipped his orange juice. “Do you want to tell me? Or should I guess?”

  She drew in a breath for courage. “I have a confession to make.”

  “I know,” he said.

  She frowned at him. “You know?”

  “Are you feeling guilty about Perry?”

  Her gut twisted. Josh thought Perry was her confession. Only, Perry was so far out of her head and she didn’t feel the slightest bit of remorse about having shoved him away. “No, it’s not that. Perry and I are completely over.”

  “Then what is it?”

  “Josh,” she said. “Last night was great, but—”

  “One step at a time,” 3 he said. “I know.”

  “Josh, I didn’t come here to the cabin with this in mind,” she said, gesturing between the two of them.

  “That’s okay. After five years, I get that you’d be in ‘just friends’ mode. But I’m glad you moved past that.”

  “It wasn’t just friendship,” she said. “I had an ulterior motive.”

  His brows lifted with amusement. “Did you?”

  “The case I mentioned? The one with the Argentine mine? I need to hire a consultant. Someone who knows the mining industry inside and out. I came because I wanted you. Professionally, I mean. Not personally.” She managed a little smile. “And I should have told you that before we—well, before we got into bed.”

  He was still for a moment, and she held her breath. Afraid this was going to be it. That he was going to ask her to leave. And she would have no defense.

  Instead, he simply looked at her. “A consultant? I’d like to do that. But is it a conflict of interest? Can you hire me if we’re together?”

  Together.

  The word gave her a surprising little tingle of pleasure. She savored that thought for a moment. Was that what he truly meant? And if it was, did she want it, too?

  Yeah. I do.

  She knew that every day away from him would be a day she’d miss him. She’d miss sharing the details of her day, the failures and triumphs.

  So yes, she wanted to be together. At the very least, she wanted to try to make it work.

  But was it a conflict of interest? Not technically, but it could be awkward, of course. If a consulting expert was dating an attorney and then they had a bad breakup, things could get nasty. And Leon wouldn’t approve. He liked things in the law to be clean, with no complicated personal relationships to potentially muck up the work.

  But Josh was the perfect consultant. Was she really willing to toss aside the professional coup of finding the perfect expert for the theoretical possibility that she and Josh could get back together after five years apart? After all, they’d only been reunited for a day. How could she be expected to make a decision about both her life and her career after only a few hours?

  And yet it wasn’t. Because she knew. She and Josh fit. She’d always known it—and, yes, she’d always believed it.

  Considering the romantic restaurant theme Josh had surprised her with upon her arrival, she had to assume that he believed it, too.

  “Cleo?”

  “No,” she said. “It wouldn’t be a good idea. Not an official conflict, of course, but my boss wouldn’t approve.”

  “I see.” But there was a hesitancy in his voice. He understood the problem; he was still waiting to see what side she came down on.

  She looked hard at him. “Can you recommend someone else to consult?”

  He cocked his head. And slowly, very slowly, she saw him smile. “Cleo,” he said. “Are you sure?”

  “If I wasn’t,” she countered as she slid easily into his arms, “then I’d already have my consultant. Look at all the trouble you’re causing me. I came here thinking I was combining work with pleasure, and it turns out I still have to do the work.”

  “I’m terribly sorry.�
� His lips brushed against hers. He didn’t seem sorry at all.

  “That’s okay,” she said, more at home in his arms than she could remember feeling for a long time. “I guess you’ll just have to make it up to me.”

  JOSH HAD NEVER BEEN HAPPIER about anything in his life. She wanted him. But it wasn’t a feeling of relief that came over him. More like realization of a truth long buried. They were right for each other—they always had been. And finally, life could mirror reality. They really could be together.

  He grabbed the hem of the T-shirt she was wearing and yanked it over her head, delighted when he revealed her naked body underneath.

  She practically purred, and he felt himself stiffen with need. “Were we really apart five years?” he whispered.

  “We weren’t ever apart,” she answered. “Not really.”

  The answer almost made him come undone. “Come with me,” he said, taking her hand and leading her back to the bedroom. She fell back, laughing, onto the bed. He’d pulled on boxers, but now he left them in a heap on the floor, consumed only by her, the soft body outlined by the soft bedspread.

  He straddled her, trembling as the steel length of him brushed against the soft flesh of her thighs.

  She exhaled, her body quivering as she spread her legs. His balls tightened, and when he slipped his hand down, touching her, finding her slick and ready, he almost came on the spot.

  He sheathed himself quickly. “Wider,” he said, and when she complied, he held on to her waist and thrust himself into heaven. She arched her back, a breathy moan escaping as her muscles contracted around him, drawing him in, milking him as he moved in a sensual rhythm above her. “Cleo,” he moaned, his body clenching and need building.

  She rose to meet his thrusts, and, as the pressure built and built, he held his breath, fighting release, wanting it to last almost as much as he wanted the explosion.

  He was on the verge when she shifted, pulling free of him. His body protested, but she only smiled that smug grin and urged him to roll over so that she could straddle him.

  His eyes closed, wanting simply to feel, to experience. He knew the moment she came, her muscles tightening around him like a velvet fist, sending him over the edge only seconds behind her.

  He locked his arms around her, pulling her down against him, letting their heartbeats mingle as one as they lay together for an eternity.

  When time started up again, she slid out of the bed and held out her hand. “Shower?”

  He wasn’t about to protest, though they did need to talk. He followed her into the tub, this round doing a much better job of getting clean.

  She kissed him under the spray. “So what do we do now? If neither one of us believes that any time has passed, it’s not like we need to catch up.”

  He smiled in agreement. “No catching up required at all.”

  “So?”

  “We could continue to burn calories in bed—best way I can think of to spend New Year’s Eve until the fireworks—but how about adding a little variety to the mix?”

  “Sex in front of the fire?”

  “Not bad,” he conceded. “But I thought we might take a walk.”

  He watched her face, searching for signs of disappointment. He feared that, despite the words they’d spoken, Cleo only viewed what was going on between them as a purely physical thing. And while he wouldn’t deny the appeal of losing himself inside her, he wanted more than that. He wanted the whole package, and sex was such a small part of who she was and who they could be together.

  But there was no hesitation in her enthusiasm, and they were out of the shower, dry and dressed in under half an hour.

  The snow the night before had been light, and today the sky was clear. Neither of them knew the area around the secluded cabin, so they just took off walking down a path through the forest, watching the snow melt in the trees, trying to catch sight of winter squirrels, listening to the sound of the snow melting and falling from the trees.

  Josh had wanted to talk about their future, to make sure they were on the same page this time. But as she slipped her hand into his, he decided to enjoy just being with her for a little longer. The future could wait. They walked hand in hand, chatting about nothing, snow crunching under their feet. For over half an hour they moved down the secluded lane, twisting through paths cut through the trees, until Josh feared that they should have left a trail of bread crumbs.

  He was about to suggest they turn around and either head back to the cabin or try to find civilization in another direction, when they heard squeals of delight. They hurried a few more yards forward and found themselves at a hill where a group of four kids were plowing down a hill on inner tubes.

  They watched for a few minutes, their noses cold, until Josh finally decided that you only live once and approached the kids. The oldest, acting as spokesman, told Josh that their parents owned another tucked-away cabin, and they came up every Christmas. This hill had become their secret hideaway. So long as Josh and Cleo didn’t blab the location, they were welcome to share the tube.

  Josh and Cleo both performed an elaborate cross-your-heart routine to seal the deal, then they crawled onto the tube and went down together. Not a smart move—they had no control whatsoever and ended up crashing into a massive snowdrift, much to the delight of the kid who’d lent them the tube.

  Josh didn’t care, he and Cleo were laughing too hard themselves. They dug themselves out, dragged the tube up the hill, gave it back to the kid and continued their walk.

  “We’re going to need a hot bath after we get back,” she said. “We’ll be soaked through after this. Not that I care. I haven’t had as much fun as this in ages.”

  “Hot bath, hot cocoa.”

  “Hot sex,” she added. “And, of course, fireworks.” She grinned. “It’s New Year’s Eve, after all.”

  He laughed. “And here I thought you meant a different kind of fireworks. Still, you plan an excellent agenda,” he said. “Are you ready to go back?”

  She shook her head. “No, I’m fine. Unless you are?”

  “I’m enjoying the walk.” He reached out and took her gloved hand in his again, the normalcy of the action making him light-headed.

  “You still haven’t told me about your plans,” she said. “For expansion, I mean. What’s on the agenda for Goodson Mining?”

  “Expansion’s been my top priority,” he admitted. “But it’s not as easy to accomplish as you might think. Not in a family-owned company.”

  Her brow furrowed. “Why on earth not?”

  “Everyone has a say, and everyone’s afraid the company will go under if I’m not there to run it.”

  “Will it?”

  He hesitated. The question was so direct, so completely to the point, that it almost seemed too intense. As if she was breaking some unspoken rule in asking it.

  “Do you have to stay to keep the company stable, Josh?”

  “I did,” he said. “If I’d left five years ago, the company would have collapsed.” He glanced at her face, knowing by her expression that she realized he hadn’t truly answered the question. He drew in a breath and took the plunge, getting to the heart of what she was asking. “Now, of course, there are so many other paths I can take. I’ve been interviewing geologists and lobbyists, hoping to put together a team to work on negotiating the various deals necessary for expansion.”

  “That’s wonderful!”

  He looked sideways at her, wondering if she truly meant that. It had taken him a long time to accept that the only way the board would approve expansion was if he farmed out the real meat of the job to new employees, while he stayed in Nevada.

  It wasn’t what he wanted—he wanted to do the traveling and the negotiating. But the board was fighting him every step of the way. And maybe his mother was right—if he had a family at his side, his business regrets would fade fast. Hell, he couldn’t imagine having any regrets if he was with Cleo, their children playing in the yard, the woman he loved in his arms each night
.

  Thankfully, she was in one of the most portable professions on the planet. All she needed was to be admitted to the Nevada bar, and she could open up shop in Carlin, in Reno, wherever she wanted. And if she was already doing mining work, she could have Goodson Mining as the first of many lucrative clients. He had the connections, after all.

  Within a year, she could be one of the top attorneys in the field. And they would be together.

  He took her hand, squeezing her fingers as his heart swelled with happiness. She was his missing piece. His better half. The yin to his yang.

  She always had been, and she always would be.

  And he was so certain of that fact, that he didn’t notice her silence, or the odd, still way she was looking at him.

  CHAPTER SIX

  “NO! NO! YOUR LEFT FOOT on blue.” Cleo tried to stay still so she wouldn’t fall as Josh shifted slightly to the right and tried to thrust his leg between hers to get to the blue circle on the Twister mat.

  “Well, don’t move. You’re going to—agh!” He grabbed her arm, and they went tumbling, with Cleo ending up on top of Josh, their faces close together, and him smiling a devious little smile.

  “This shouldn’t be that hard with only two people,” she said.

  He pressed a hand over his heart. “Are you suggesting I might be exaggerating the difficulty of these moves? I assure you, it’s not true. I’m just a klutz. Pure and simple.”

  She laughed and scooted off him, sliding back onto the couch. He did the same, and she slipped her feet onto his lap, her toes warm and snuggly in thick wool socks. After their walk, they’d spent the day doing nothing much around the cabin. A little Monopoly, a little Twister. A lot of talking. It was great. Cleo couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so relaxed around a man.

  Actually, that wasn’t true. She could remember exactly—five years ago. And with this very guy.

  She resisted the urge to sigh as she took a sip of the hot cocoa they’d made before playing Twister, now finally cool enough to actually drink. Being with him brought back so many feelings. Good ones. Comfortable ones.