The Perfect Gift: A Bad Boy Christmas Romance

by Mia Ford

  We settled in the big living room to watch some television with our plates and big mugs of tea. I was wearing some yoga pants and a sweatshirt and felt cozy by the fire as I laughed at something that a character said on the movie. This really was a relaxing life and I was lucky to have a successful business in such a gorgeous town. I could end up with a big house like this down the line with a family. I could end up happy and I was only twenty-three. I had a lot of time to build my life and tonight, I was just going to enjoy this environment.

  I went to bed when the movie was over, sleepy from the fire and the TV. My room was on the third floor and spacious with a king-sized bed and a window overlooking the lush, green grass. I had a small attached bathroom that I changed in, pulling on my favorite sleep pants and a worn gray Henley before I walked over to my bed. I had a Kindle that I usually read before going to sleep and I grabbed it before I snuggled against my pile of pillows. It was only ten thirty and I wasn’t sure when Noel was going to come home, but she’d have energy for work no matter what. She always did. Her room was on the second floor so I never heard her come into the house but she was always ready when we left at four to go to work.

  In the morning, she was smiling. “Nate made up for the dinner. We went to see that new comedy with Amy Schumer and it was so funny. He bought me popcorn and Junior mints too.” We were walking to the car and she drove today as I looked at her dreamy face. She was back in her happy place.

  “Good. I’m glad,” I replied as I buckled my seat belt and pulled my hat lower over my hair. It was cold here in September and I flicked the heater up higher as we left the garage. It was so dark out when we left and the air was crisp. I was always happy to get to the cafe to start the coffee and warm up the place since we had so much fun in the morning. The baking got us moving as we drank our caffeine and talked about whatever was going on though most of it revolved around Noel. I didn’t have a lot to say since I didn’t have a life. Today, she told me every detail about her new cowboy and I could tell that she was smitten this morning.

  Noel was fickle with men. She always had been at school and it made my head spin. I was more of a one-man kind of girl and when I started dating Lance, I knew that I didn’t want anybody else. He was my everything for a year, making me think he was perfect for waiting for me when I didn’t want to sleep with him right away. I thought I found my Mr. Right.

  I was so, so wrong.

  We finished the baking and she started loading things into the cart to set up in the display. I walked around and wiped everything down one more time before I turned on all the machines and made the drinks that we’d need for opening. There were always two coffee pots going and we also had a large Decaf pot and a featured flavor every day. Noel made amazing treats and was thinking of bringing someone else in to make breakfast for customers soon along with some more lunch selections. We had enough traffic for it and she was handling the money.

  I walked out into the dining room after turning on all the lights and the radio, letting Mike in with a warm smile. “Hello, there.” I was going to be appreciative of all that I had today and let fate control the future. It worked out for others so I deserved something great too. I walked to the counter and got his usual before handing him his change, shaking my head as he dropped it into the blue tip jar that I set up. “You don’t need to do that every day, Mike.”

  “It will keep you open for me.” He winked as he walked to his table and I reached back to pull my high ponytail tighter on my head. I had all the machines ready for all the coffee drinks that people liked and I looked at the door to see a man coming in, but it was someone that I didn’t recognize. He was older, maybe mid-thirties or forties and handsome as hell. The man looked around the shop with a curious expression before walking up to the counter to let his gaze rest on me. He had cropped, dark hair and light blue eyes that held mine with a power that I’d never experienced before. It was like he was in control and I shivered with the feeling, uncomfortable with it. His voice was smooth as he ordered a black coffee before he looked at the display case with his full lips in the beginning of a smile.

  “What’s the best in there?” He asked me as I went blank. I’d eaten everything in there at one time or another and I couldn’t think of the name of a single one. What was wrong with me?

  “The best? I might be a bit biased but the chocolate walnut muffin rocks my world.” I jumped at the sound of Noel’s voice even though the customer didn’t even spare her a glance before he looked at me.

  “Would you agree?” He asked me as if we were alone and I nodded mutely. It was my favorite, or at least I seemed to remember that in the fog that had taken over my mind. “I’ll take one.” I took the twenty that he handed me and made his change before filling his mug for him. Noel got the muffin on a plate and handed it to him as we watched him drop a five-dollar bill into the tip jar.

  “Are you okay?” Her voice was concerned as she touched my shoulder once we were alone.

  “Yeah, he was just…” I shook my head and looked at her. I watched her glance at the table that he’d taken by the fireplace before looking outside to the overcast skies. Noel was always thinking of a dozen things at once and I smiled weakly, knowing that she kept this business going. I still couldn’t think clearly and felt useless.

  “That is a man that knows what he wants. I’ve never seen him before,” Noel mused before the door chimed and her face broke into a huge smile. “Nate!” A young, strawberry blonde man walked in and she left the counter to greet him as I watched. He was cute enough but young. I thought back to Lance and realized that he was just over a year older than I was when we met, wondering if young just didn’t appeal to me at all. Noel looked happy as she led him to the counter to show him the cafe and introduced us. “This is Nate. Nate, this is Molly. She’s my best friend and partner in crime here.” I shook the offered hand and noted that he had pretty bright blue eyes before she came back to fix him a coffee.

  Noel had forgotten all about mystery man but not me. I glanced his way to see him looking steadily at me as I blushed and felt the sweat pooling in my hair. I faked confidence a lot though I was a kind person by nature. I found it hard to be rude unless that person really struck me the wrong way, but I rarely felt sure of myself. This man was nothing but that as he raised the cup to me and I smiled weakly. He took me down a level while he filled me with something that reminded me of the way I felt when I was with Lance.

  No. No. No.

  I couldn’t let myself become vulnerable that way ever again and I forced myself to look away as someone walked through the door. I helped them with a bright smile and too chatty of a voice while Noel took a break with Nate at a table, laughing at something that he said.

  Chapter 3

  Robert

  I watched the girl behind the counter, sipping the strong coffee as I sized her up. She was young, probably more than ten years under me. She was also beautiful and I remembered her lavender name tag that was pinned to the light pink shirt that boasted the name of this place. Mountain Brew. It fit being in this town, one that I was new to as of a week ago. The base needed to add to their staff to tighten things up after a scandal with another major and a female assistant. I was not the kind of man to fuck up at work that way, not after my twenty-year career with the air force. I would not allow those under me to either and I’d been demonstrating my leadership in the week that I’d spent with them. I had the financial means to live off base in a charming home at the edge of town so I could have my peace and finally decided to take my morning off today to wander a bit.

  I found this cafe right away and felt drawn to it somehow. It was a quaint little place and not that crowded, and I couldn’t resist the strong smell of coffee and baked goods once I was inside. Once I saw Molly, I knew that I was drawn to her as much as I was to the cafe that she worked at. She was around five foot six with intoxicating eyes that reminded me of a good whiskey and pale skin. Her dark brown hair was pulled high on her head but I wanted to re
lease it so that her thick waves would tumble over her shoulders. She seemed to be stunned by my presence, unable to speak. That pleased me as my body responded but I also saw the intense fear in her beautiful eyes.

  It was a redhead that answered some of my questions and I only knew that from a quick glance before looking at Molly. I knew that the other girl was the outgoing one and probably more of a candidate for what I wanted, but I couldn’t be bothered. I paid Molly and watched as she turned to fix my coffee, noticing the soft curves of her ass in the black slacks that she was wearing. She wasn’t skinny like so many women and I liked that.

  I dropped something into the tip jar as I took my items and surveyed the room carefully. There was a small table by the fireplace that was bright with a fire and I wandered over to it to take a seat. The warmth felt good after the crisp air outside and I sipped the hot coffee as I looked over the other customers seated around me. This was a mountain town and the faces represented that though I found it comforting in an odd way after being in much more populated places in the past. These people were happy with a small table, their breakfast, and a paper or one of the books that graced the shelves. Life was slow here even though I knew there was always some excitement to be found. I let my eyes drift to Molly again, watching her shake the hand of the young man that the other woman was clearly enamored with.

  I watched as Molly smiled and talked but could tell that I was still affecting her. She glanced my way and her cheeks flushed pink at our eye contact before she looked away to help some new customers.

  I’d slept with women of all ages, all legal. It wasn’t the thrill of their age as much as it was their willingness to please me. I kept that part of my life separate from my job and excelled at both. I also didn’t do long term commitment since I moved a lot and wasn’t craving a family now. My own parents were from the military and I moved all the time, so I didn’t want to do that to my own family. I followed in Dad’s footsteps who followed Granpa and I loved my life. He met my mom when he was new to the Air Force and they married quickly before starting their journey that led to my brother James and me.

  I was never struck so hard by a woman. I enjoyed them and took time to get to know them out of bed, taking them out and showing them a good time. I was a man, not a boy. I could fuck them without all of that but I liked to treat the person that I was with well. I liked building them up and watching them get confidence, depending on where they were in life. I ended things respectfully once I was done, moving on quietly. I’d like to think that they remembered me a few months later fondly as well as with a shudder as they remembered what I did to their bodies.

  I looked back at Molly as she walked back and forth between the counter and some back room. I could smell food over the other scents that lingered in the air and wondered what else they served here. This cafe would be a nice place to catch up on reports or even read some of the books that were piling up around my house. I worked several hours a week and was forced to take today with all the rearranging I’d been doing on base this week.

  A scandal affected so many people in the time that it was happening. This one was with a married major and a young female which was even worse. They were both off base now and considering their next steps in life, but I blamed him more. He took advantage of a woman mentally and physically and while she played a role, she was more vulnerable. I knew this because I’d done the same, just not on the job. I remembered how badly I felt when I realized the damage done to the pretty young women before we parted way and as I glanced at Molly, I realized that she resembled Brittany. Was this why I couldn’t stop staring at her?

  The tryst with Brittany happened quickly when I was new to the air force and we were in bed the night that we met. I took from her that night and every one that followed, dominant and demanding in my lust for her. She wasn’t a virgin physically but damn close and I didn’t realize that I was breaking her down until a month or so in. I didn’t realize that she was traumatized from it even as she was falling for me, not until she was weeping in bed one night.

  It was then that I talked to her about her life, finding out that she’d been in a sexually abusive relationship a year before she met me. She admitted that she liked my dominance in some ways, craving it even but that it was bringing back some pain for her. She told me that she loved me. She’d been crying the entire time and I knew that I’d rushed this. I needed to talk to women more and make sure that they were into what we were doing because some complied for the wrong reasons.

  I respected the fact that Brittany ended things to get herself some help, apologizing to her for the role that I’d played. I knew that I needed some ground rules after that.

  I still allowed myself to imagine Molly on my bed, naked and on her knees. I let my fantasy move forward to see the red marks on her ass from my hands for a moment as my cock stirred in my jeans. I could imagine it without doing it, though seeing her walk back out to the front of the cafe made me want it.

  I stayed for about an hour before I piled my dishes in a bin near the garbage to finish wandering the town. I glanced back to see Molly watching me as the door closed behind me, vowing to come back for her and the place itself. I found some stores that I’d shop at regularly and admired the views frequently. My house was at the edge of a forest and I had so much peace there but this location was breathtaking. I wondered if this might be the lifestyle I’d settle in, enjoying the slow pace. I could work on this base through retirement and settle here since my parents weren’t far at only a few states away.

  That was an interesting thought. I made my way back down the street and stopped in a used book store to get some of the novels that were new to the shop and add them to my collection before walking past the cafe and glancing inside again.

  Molly was helping a small line of people as the redhead moved behind her to fix orders. She was a pretty girl, the redhead. I sensed that she was confident and vibrant with a little sass and smiled at the image of the young man that was with her. She was going to be a handful. Molly looked over to see me through the glass and our gazes locked for a few seconds. I’d be back soon to pursue her, because I needed her deep inside. I craved her.

  I walked back to the house that I was renting and fixed some eggs for breakfast. That muffin was delicious, but I needed food now and I sat at the table and took in the view as I ate. It was lush and green, gorgeous to look at as well as explore. I’d done a small amount of that in my free time here and tossed around the idea of a hike today. I took pride in my body and worked out a lot; running outside or just doing some basics inside. Most women didn’t take me for being forty-two years old and I wondered for a moment how old Molly was. Her face was youthful but her eyes showed experience and I guessed her to be in her twenties, perhaps around twenty-four or so. The redhead was slightly younger with the curiosity of a girl.

  I knew that I didn’t want her, but I did want the dark-haired beauty that was haunting me now as I started out into the forest. I had to take my time with her, not wanting a repeat of Brittany. I needed to keep my cool and do this right since I had a lot of pressure at work to think about as well.

  Chapter 4

  Molly

  Nate picked Noel up from the cafe when we closed, so I took the Jeep and ran to some stores the next town over. I loved Target and would drive any hour to go even if I was tired. I loaded my bags into the passenger seat and headed home, thinking of the man in the cafe. It reminded me of meeting Lance at the party in college. They both had that air of confidence in them However, the man today was gorgeous and I could daydream about him for a little while. His body was muscular while he was a few feet taller than me, and his eyes screamed intensity. I thought back to what Marta had told me about the base and wondered if he was from there with his cropped hair. Besides that, he just conveyed that he led a disciplined life and did things by the book. He looked a little lost walking into the cafe for a moment but once he looked at me, I saw the control setting in. I remembered not being able to speak
as I blushed and shook my head, not wanting anyone to do that to me now. I was older and should be able to act it. I was thankful that Noel got so distracted by Nate’s arrival and forgot all about it.

  I drove through town and turned to get to the house, needing to relax. I parked in the driveway and greeted Marta as I walked through the front door. I was sure that she knew about Noel’s last minute date and that I usually took that time to do whatever I needed with the car. “Hello, Molly. Did you have a good day?”

  “Yes, it was busy! I feel a little tired so I think that I am going to relax for a while.” I smiled as I walked into the kitchen with my bags to see her stirring something on the stove. I loved coming home to dinner like this and just the smile on her face brightened my day.

  “Target, huh?” She asked with a chuckle as I breathed in the scent of her pasta sauce.

  “You know me too well,” I joked with a smile. “That smells so good. Do you need help with anything?”

  “This is easy. The sauce has been simmering all day while I worked and the rest I’ll throw together before Keith comes home. Take a little nap if you’d like.” She smiled at me and I nodded and turned to head up the stairs to put away my purchases. I looked outside as I stretched, smiling at the view as the blue eyes of my mystery man flashed through my mind.

  Changing into some leggings and a t-shirt, I crawled under my covers to sleep for a while just to get through the evening. Working with customers all day drained me to begin with, but people like that man took all my energy with just one look. I needed to recover and I closed my eyes as I turned to my side with a soft sigh. Why couldn’t I just grab onto life the way that Noel did instead of fearing every choice that I made?