Winter Wishes

by Vivian Arend, Vivi Andrews

  “Troubles, Kyle?” Jake asked from the card table.

  Kyle glanced down at his uncle on the floor. El had him pinned in place with one hand as he scrambled for air. “Don’t think so. El’s just expressing her opinion about Uncle Roy’s leadership methods. I think he’s getting the point.”

  “You interfered in my career. I thought it was an honest assignment, and true evidence head office felt I was doing a good job.” El shook her head at him in disgust and rose to her feet. “Bastard. I bet the chief was laughing at me behind my back—”

  “No.” Uncle Roy rubbed his throat, his voice raw as he spoke. He coughed lightly and Kyle took pity on him, reaching out a hand to haul him to his feet. “No, your chief knew nothing more than it was vital to keep Kyle under supervision, and he was to put his best agent on it. The fact he gave you the assignment shows how much he appreciates you.”

  El crossed her arms and glared at him. “Really. So even though there’s no trial, I did a smash-up job. And now I get to go back to work and explain to the rest of my precinct that I was actually playing babysitter to another cat simply because his uncle is a bossy asshole. Nice one. That’s going to look real great on my resume.”

  Uncle Roy raised his finger haughtily, only for a second. Then his eyes widened in panic and he tucked in his hand away faster than Kyle ever remembered the man moving. “It will not reflect poorly on you. You did your job, excellently, I might add. Your performance down in the parkade was inspired, and I’ll be sure to tell your chief that when I—”

  She was in his face again, nose to nose. She hissed out the words, the menace clear in spite of the softness of her delivery. “I don’t care if you are the head of the clan. You so much as breathe in my chief’s direction and I’ll make you regret it. This is my life, and I don’t accept people messing with it. You got me?”

  A palatable tension hung in the air. Kyle glanced past the two staring each other down to discover his brothers and aunt watching intently. He had his fingers crossed El wouldn’t do anything really stupid, and that his uncle was embarrassed enough not to add to his previous mistakes. Conn waved in the background and caught Kyle’s eye. His brother jerked his head to the exit door and Kyle nodded. Yeah, maybe the solution was to remove the kindling from the fire.

  “Well, now that that’s all cleared up. El, can I speak to you privately for a minute?” Kyle nabbed her by the hand and dragged her back toward the door. “Thanks for breakfast, Auntie Janet. Jake, Conn, good to see you as always.”

  “I wasn’t finished,” El hissed.

  “Oh, I think you made your point. Come on, you need to let Uncle Roy have a little while to consider the folly of his ways. I bet he’ll be apologizing and groveling in no time.” He pressed a hand on her back to make sure she went out the door. He twisted to speak over his shoulder to his uncle who stood, still rubbing his throat, a very haunted expression on his face. “But I suggest he not try calling for a few days.”

  Uncle Roy straightened and nodded briskly, and that was last Kyle saw as he hustled a reluctant El back to their suite.

  “I don’t know why we left.” El grumbled. “I still have questions, plus we need to tell them the engagement is a fake. We’ll need your aunt’s help to figure out how to announce it’s off without causing too big a scene.” El pressed past him and kicked off her shoes, collapsing onto the couch with a groan. “I am so not looking forward to the whole media circus all over again. Maybe we should wait a little longer, then say we decided we weren’t right for each other or something.”

  Kyle closed the door. How the hell had she gotten three miles ahead of him in her thinking? He sat on the coffee table in front of her. “Slow down, woman. First, can I make a suggestion? Although I truly appreciated the floor show a few minutes ago—please don’t physically attack any clan leaders again, cat or otherwise.”

  “But—”

  “You were totally justified, and I understand completely. Only you were damn lucky he didn’t decide to pull rank on you.” Kyle chuckled evilly. “I’m not sure why, but seeing you get the jump on him like that? Man, you are one dangerous cougar chick. Watching you made me hot.”

  A tiny crack of a smile appeared for the first time since she’d heard she’d been set up. “Go on with your big bad self. Everything makes you hot.”

  Telling remark. Around her, it was certainly true.

  He scooted forward to grab her hands. “Hey, I’ve got an idea and I wanted to ask what you think of it. Your job at LAPD—your favorite part is the undercover work, right?”

  She nodded, her head remaining down as she stared as if fascinated by his fingers twining together with hers. He couldn’t stop touching her. “Yeah, going undercover was the easiest way to be able to use my cat side without freaking the other officers.” She sighed. “I’m dreading going back. There’s no need to keep you under wraps anymore, so I should probably call the chief and tell him I’ll return to regular duty early next week.”

  “Or…” Kyle shifted to sit next to her “…you could quit the LAPD and join me instead working for the CSI.” She stilled, completely, and he wondered if he’d read her wrong. He thought she would jump at the opportunity. “You don’t have to. I mean, I still have to double-check with HQ, but they’ve never had an issue before when I’ve brought in help on a part-time basis. This would be a little more formal. Totally up to you.” He wasn’t about to make the same mistake as his uncle and go over her head.

  “You want to work with me?”

  Oh man. “I’d love to work with you.”

  El sprang off the couch and paced to the window. Her back was rigid and he longed to go and rub her shoulders.

  She was right; there was no reason to pretend to be engaged anymore. Heck, there was no reason they couldn’t simply have one last caterwaul together on the back fence, then go their separate ways. Except…waking this morning, wrapped in each other’s arms, had felt so right. He’d gotten very used to having her around, and if he was honest, there was no place he’d like El better than at his side.

  Throughout the past weeks she’d shown herself to be a blast in bed, street smart enough to complement his lifestyle and more than his match overall. The way she made his hormones race was spine tingling. That tickly sensation in his belly—the one that made him want to cradle her tenderly and keep her happy—he’d never experienced that before.

  Maybe the whole falling in love and true mate shit…Maybe it wasn’t just for wolves.

  Kyle stood and approached her slowly. So he’d have to make some lifestyle adjustments to find a way to make this a reality. He was sure he was smart enough, especially if she helped him.

  * * *

  “What do you think?” Kyle’s hands landed on her shoulders and El took a deep breath. His touch was like a drug, making her hot and cold at the same time. But no matter how much she wanted to simply lean back into him, she had to figure a way out of this whole convoluted mess. Did she want to work with him? Oh hell yeah, but not if that meant a strictly working relationship.

  After finally confessing to herself there was nothing she’d like better than for Kyle to slink his massive cougar body into her bed—and her life—full-time, she didn’t want to simply be a work partner. Or just a fuck buddy. No, that wouldn’t be enough anymore. She’d come a long way in embracing her cat, but there was something more to what she felt for him than mere kitty pheromones.

  She turned and hesitantly rested her hands on his hips. “I can’t believe I’m asking this, but do you want me as a business partner, or a partner and something more?

  His dark eyes twinkled, and he raised one hand to cup her chin. His thumb brushed along her jaw line and she fought down the instant desire to purr in response to his touch. There was a hunger in his body, the way he shifted slightly on the balls of his feet as if ready to scoop her up and run.

  She didn’t feel as if he wanted to run away from her, but run away with her. As his smile broke out, that sexy one with the ready t
o fuck now? written all over it, she knew they were going to be okay.

  “Definitely the ‘something more,’ babe. What do you say? Wanna hang out with me, at the docks, in the bars, behind the computer…in my bed? I’ll do my best to make you happy.” He held her chin and brushed his lips over hers lightly, a fleeting touch of his mouth. “I’ll even ride shotgun if you ask.”

  Delight bubbled up. “Holy crap, you’re serious?”

  He laughed out loud. “Serious. And just so you know I’m capable of being a big boy, I’ll even put that guy code into words, ’cause I hear chicks like that.” He slipped his fingers around the back of her neck, cradling her body closer with his other arm. “Eloise Inez Scott, I have this sneaky suspicion I’m falling in love with you.”

  Her heart leapt to her throat, pulsing hard.

  Hard enough she gagged for a second. Her air passage clogged as she breathed in the wrong way. She coughed frantically. He released her, rubbing her back. “Shit, that bad? Sorry, didn’t mean to freak you out or—”

  El waved her hands madly as she tried to speak. “No—” cough, “—it’s okay. I think—” cough, cough, “—me too.” She folded in half, hands resting on her knees to clear her lungs. Shit. Her first declaration of love and she was about to choke on her own spit.

  So romantic.

  By the time she could breathe again he’d manhandled her back to the couch and disappeared to get her some water. His hand shook slightly as he passed over the glass, and she looked at him with suspicion.

  He snorted. Then a snicker escaped. By the time the guffaws began, El was able to join in. She cupped his face in her hands and pulled him closer as their mirth poured out.

  “Dammit woman, you’re hard on a guy’s ego.”

  She tugged him down to the couch and crawled on top of him, straddling his legs and grasping his shoulders firmly to look him straight in the eye. “Let’s recap, shall we? I no longer need to keep an official eye on you for police purposes. You have completed part of your latest CSI assignment, and you’re going to check if I can join you in the super secret service. I’m not required to become some kind of society princess and drop a few litters. You will make nice with your family and let me kick your Uncle Roy in the nuts if he ever interferes in our life again.”

  Kyle was the one to choke this time. “I think Jake will be taking over soon, and there are no worries that he’ll interfere with us.” She raised a brow. “But yes, if my uncle gets out of line we’ll both do something nasty to him, like slip cow laxatives in his drinks or something.”

  It was all sounding smooth as peaches and cream, but there was one more thing. She looked down at the ring on her finger. The one he’d put there during the “official” engagement party last night. “Can we just shack up for a while?”

  He smoothed his palms up and down her arms. “I don’t give a damn what we call it, babe. For what it’s worth, since we already had the party we can say we’re engaged and leave it at that. A ring, or a ceremony, or whatever, makes no difference to me. What I’m feeling for you has nothing to do with an official piece of paper and everything to do with who you are.”

  She tugged the ring off and looked at it closely. It sparkled, but she was still too damn scared to put aside all her fears that zombiehood waited one irrevocable step past “I do.” El nodded slowly then took his hand and tucked the ring into it. “Let’s do it this way. No ring. We shack up. Let the media deal with that however they want and we’ll take this as it comes.”

  Kyle caught her fingers in his and kissed them gently. “Okay. Whatever makes you happy. But one more deal. As soon as you’re comfortable, I want to give you something to show you I’m serious about you. Maybe not a ring, but…when we figure it out, we’ll know. Okay?”

  El smiled at him. “I can accept those terms. Last thing. No kittens for a while.”

  Kyle’s eyes widened. “Holy hell, no. I mean, someday, sure, but not yet. Like…down the road when we’re bored of slinking down back alleys and hopping on planes to Venice at a moment’s notice.”

  Interesting. “That’s a common part of the CSI job?”

  “What, the alleys? Or Venice?”

  “Both.”

  He unbuttoned her shirt and she squirmed slightly, other interesting things rising between them as he slid the fabric from her shoulders. “You never know where we’ll need to go. Personally, I’m fond of the trips to France. There’s this great little bistro on the Champs-Élysées that I think you’ll enjoy.”

  She was busy as well, yanking his T-shirt from his pants and wrangling it off his torso. Paris? “What’s their specialty?”

  “Éclairs. With lots and lots of cream.”

  He rolled her under him, magically stripping off her remaining clothing. “I can handle that,” she said, pulling him hard against her. There was far too much to celebrate right now to be worrying about the little details. Then again, maybe the little details had all been taken care of.

  And the cream seemed to have risen to the top.

  About the Author

  Vivian Arend has hiked, biked, skied and paddled her way around most of North America and parts of Europe. Taking the road less traveled has provided plenty of exciting experiences and outstanding panoramic settings for her stories. Paranormal and red-hot contemporaries, usually in small town or rural locations, are her favorite genres to write.

  Vivian lives in Western Canada with her longtime sweetie, two wonderful kids and a dog that looks like a stuffed toy.

  She loves to hear from readers. The best place to come and visit is http://vivianarend.com. You can contact her via the link on her website.

  No Angel

  By Vivi Andrews

  When Sasha’s boyfriend, Jay, is sucked through a fiery vortex to Hell, an angel reveals that Sasha’s been chosen as the Champion of Virtue in the battle for his immortal soul. As a perennial offender on Santa’s naughty list, Sasha can’t believe she’s anyone’s idea of a girl fighting on the side of the angels. But if she doesn’t save Jay, he’ll be stuck in Hell forever!

  Jay—aka Jevroth—isn’t surprised to find himself back in Hell. His visa to visit the mortal plane expired three months ago, but to steal more time with Sasha he’s been ignoring his mother’s demands that he come home to spend time with his new stepfather: Lucifer.

  Sasha has until dawn on the twenty-fifth of December to fight the Legions of Hell and rescue Jay, or be trapped there for eternity herself. But now she must decide if the lying son-of-a-demon is even worth saving…

  Dedication

  For my brother, who always held the other end of the garland as we decked the halls, and my sister, who makes cookie decorating an art form. Thanks for all the holiday memories—and for not spilling the beans about the Santa Claus thing.

  Chapter One

  Cloudy with a Chance of Angels

  On the day Sasha Christian’s boyfriend got sucked into the fiery maw of Hell, she baked cookies.

  This is not to say baking cookies will trigger abduction into the Underworld, but it is important to understand that this was not the sort of day on which one might expect one’s significant other to be kidnapped by demonic forces.

  It was a Tuesday. And Christmas Eve.

  Thirty minutes prior to the abduction, Sasha stood in the ten-items-or-less line at Ralph’s, holding a single bottle of molasses and fighting the temptation to count the items in the basket of the woman in front of her.

  If she counted even eleven items, Sasha didn’t think she’d be able to stop herself from tackling the woman and bludgeoning her with her own canned yams until she retreated in blood-spattered shame to the three-mile-long non-express line. Since this would likely result in Sasha’s ejection from Ralph’s and force her to locate another grocery open at four-twenty on Christmas Eve where she could buy unsulfated molasses to finish her gingerbread cookies, she decided it was best to avert her eyes.

  Instead, Sasha concentrated on the flat-screen above the checkstand
where a twenty-four-hour news channel recapped the holiday frenzy in a highlight reel. Tinsel, holly, rosy-cheeked celebrity faces, blah blah blah.

  She’d already seen the segment twice. Her oh-so-brilliant idea to pop out to the store had turned into a marathon shopping expedition. Just finding a parking space had taken more time than she’d planned for the entire trip.

  Damn holiday crowds.

  Sasha gritted her teeth and reminded herself that she loved the holidays. Jay was the Grinch in their relationship. During the rest of the year she might be the misanthropic one, but at Christmastime she was Tiny Tim, bouncing around God-bless-us-ing everyone…when she wasn’t entertaining violent fantasies about women who got in the ten-items-or-less line with at least eleven items, making her even later than she already was.

  Four-twenty. Jay was due at her place in ten minutes and instead of the Christmas utopia she’d planned as a surprise for her bah-humbug boyfriend, he would find an empty apartment with a bowl of gingerbread goo in the kitchen.

  If the apartment was still there at all. Sasha was reasonably certain she’d left the oven on.

  The fact the news channel hadn’t broken in with a live aerial shot of her apartment building in flames was somewhat comforting. The holiday montage continued with footage of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels from earlier that afternoon.

  A slow, panning shot of the courtyard showed a throng worthy of Times Square on New Year’s Eve, jostling and chorusing a barely identifiable rendition of “Hark the Herald” as they stared skyward. The first angel mass always did draw a crowd.

  Dark clouds—imported from Seattle for the occasion, no doubt—layered the Los Angeles sky above the blocky, geometric cathedral. On cue, as the bells began to peal, a hole opened in the clouds like a camera iris widening. Spears of sunlight streaked down to gild the tan stone of the cathedral, lighting the alabaster cross that thrust out over the plaza, but no one in the crowded courtyard was looking at the building.