Alan chuckled. “And what does that mean?”
“Not safe for family,” Jeremy replied.
“Thanks, kid,” Emily said. “Knew I could count on you to know that one.” She aimed a nod at Alan. “He’s kinda technologically challenged. Probably should’ve gotten him a tablet of some kind.”
“No need,” Alan said. “I’d never use it. I’ll get a lot more use out of what you already gave me.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure,” Jeremy said. “Those things are easy to get hooked on.”
Alan burst out laughing. “I’m already hooked on your aunt. Don’t need to get hooked on anything else.”
Emily leaned over to give Alan a hug and a kiss. “You’re such a sweetie. How have I ever lived without you?”
She wasn’t kidding about that. Right now, she couldn’t imagine life without him. Alan might’ve been addicted to her. She doubted she could even breathe without him.
Scary thought.
But on the other hand, it was an absolutely fabulous feeling. She only wished everyone had someone they loved as much. She smiled to herself as she realized that at least part her Christmas wish had come true. The painter had found love—and a job. How were the others spending their Christmas? Had Stephen found someone? Did Mitch like the cologne she’d given him? Was Peter home with his family instead of guarding the building?
She’d have to wait until Monday to find out, and even then, she probably wouldn’t see Mitch. She’d never seen Mitch…
As the evening wound down, Emily reflected that she hadn’t felt as comfortable with her family in a very long time. There was a lot to be said for a peaceful gathering—even if it hadn’t started off that way.
Todd was the first to leave, giving Emily and her parents their cue to start thinking about going home. For once, Emily wasn’t anxious to get on the road, even knowing there was more to look forward to at her house. She was content to simply sit next to Alan and enjoy her family. Then it occurred to her that he hadn’t had sex since that morning.
Wow. That has to be a record.
Her first thought was that she’d finally cured him.
Maybe that was a good thing. She wasn’t sure she could keep up the pace forever—although she was certainly willing to try. She gave him a nudge. “You ready to head home?”
“Whenever you are, babe.”
Yet another difference between Alan and all the other men she’d tried to love. Always anxious. Never relaxed. Seldom as easy to be around as he was. “Let’s go, then. I feel like I could curl up with you and sleep for a week.”
Alan chuckled. “Must be the eggnog.”
“Yeah. I’ll probably be sorry in the morning, but that stuff was damn good.”
“Good thing you had a designated driver this year.”
“I’ll be the driver next year. We can alternate.”
“Unless we have Christmas at your house.”
“That’s a thought. If you’re going to fix dinner, maybe we should.” She smiled. “I’d like that. We could take turns hosting the party. Take some of the worry off Mom.” She nodded toward her sister, who was dozing in her recliner. “Not sure Janice could do it again next year anyway. This one knocked the stuffing out of her.”
“I think she’s pretending to be tired so we’ll go home.”
“You might be right. She and Ned have some catching up to do.”
Alan stood up and held out his hand. “So do we.”
Ned brought their coats and Emily watched Alan hug her mother without feeling a trace of jealousy or a single pang of regret.
“I’m so happy for both of you,” she said. “You have no idea how much.”
“We might,” Alan said.
Nodding, she smiled up at him, not bothering to wipe away her tears.
Emily hugged her mother with a little more force than usual. “Thanks, Mom. He’s the best Christmas present ever.”
Despite the forecast to the contrary, it was snowing. Puffy clouds scudded across the sky sending flurries drifting through the crisp night air.
Carrying a bit less than they’d brought in, they headed out to the car. “The tofu salad is all gone. Just like you said it would be.”
“Not gone—but almost. Your mother kept the leftovers.”
“That’s not too surprising.” Emily yawned, the frosty air filling her lungs. “Glad you’re driving and not me.” Looping an arm around his waist, she rested her head against his side as Alan dropped an arm around her shoulders. “Did you have a good time?”
“Yeah. It improved as the evening went on.”
“No kidding.”
Alan opened the passenger door and helped her into the Jeep, then he tossed the presents in the back seat. He stood there for a long moment while snowflakes swirled around him, lightly dusting his hair. He was wearing that same leather jacket he’d had on the night she met him. “You know what we were saying about being together next Christmas?”
“Sounds great, doesn’t it?”
“I can think of something that would make it even better.”
“Like what?”
“Like if we were married.”
She smiled. “Oh, yeah. That would make it absolutely perfect.”
“So, what do you say, Em? Will you marry me?” He paused, his tongue tracing the edge of his lower lip. “Please?”
Something in the way he said it made her think he didn’t expect her to say yes and was bracing himself for a letdown.
“Do you always ask women to marry you after only knowing them for a few weeks?”
“No,” he replied. “Never done it before.” A tiny grin lifted the corner of his mouth. “But you know how it is. I have to act fast before the woman in question decides she doesn’t like me.”
“If that’s the case, you could wait forever.” Smiling, she touched his cheek with a fingertip. “But I’m so very glad you didn’t.”
He gazed at her with eyes that matched the winter sky. “When your parents walked in this evening, I knew it was over. I thought I was dying, Em—really, truly dying. But I didn’t die. I spoke to your mother and even shook hands with your father. Do you know why I was able to do that?”
She shook her head. “Why?”
“Because you were there beside me. I held onto you and felt strong for the first time in years. I knew what I had to do. I had to tell you the truth before the secrets killed everything.” He raked a hand through his hair, leaving tracks through the snowflakes.
That’s what he’ll look like when his hair turns gray. Someday she would know whether she was right or not. All it took was for her to say yes.
“I love you, Em. I truly do. I knew it from the first moment I saw you. It just took me a while to finally say it.”
“But you did.”
“It was hard, though. Hearing you say it first helped. Even so, I felt like I was taking such a terrible risk. Loving someone makes you so vulnerable—gives that person a powerful weapon to use against you.”
“Travis told me to be careful with you, that you’d been hurt and were sort of fragile. I’ve been careful. And I’ll go on being careful until we’re old and gray. I promise to keep you warm and wash your back. I won’t tie you up and leave you, and I won’t go to the ladies room and never come back. I can’t imagine a better future than being your wife. I think I knew it the moment I heard your voice. I was just too bummed out to realize it until later. I was so lost and empty that night, but suddenly, there you were and you knew exactly what I needed, without even knowing me.”
His eyes twinkled. “Chocolate?”
“No. I needed something much better than that. What I needed was you.” She cupped his cheek in her palm, gazing into that adorable face, doing her best to memorize the way he looked at that moment—the snowflakes drifting past him, the love in his eyes. “And in case you haven’t figured it out yet, the answer is yes.”
Tears filled his eyes as he leaned in and kissed her with enough love and passion to keep Em
ily happy for a very long time.
“Let’s go home then.”
Home. Their home now, not just hers. A place in which to be loved and cherished and never, ever be lonely.
The drive through the falling snow was quiet and peaceful, with scarcely another soul on the road. Emily held Alan’s hand as he drove, happier than she’d ever been in her life. Her contentment was such that it made her want to share it.
“You know, if you’re short of cash, I know what you can pay the painter with.”
He glanced at her with a slightly befuddled expression. “What?”
“Carol’s furniture, and anything else you don’t want. He can live in your apartment—at least until your lease runs out. If Carol moved in with him, they could share the rent and she’d get her furniture back. You could even leave him some of your clothes since he probably doesn’t have very much to wear.”
“Emily,” Alan said with a slight quiver in his voice, “that guy is at least as tall as your father. I’m only five-eight. I don’t think my clothes would help him very much.”
“But you never wear them. Maybe he could trade them in.”
“What about your promise to keep me warm? If you give away all my clothes, I won’t—”
“Oh, you’ll stay plenty warm,” she assured him. “I’ll see to that. I’ll get you some heated socks for your birthday.”
“More socks? Why does everyone always think I need socks?”
Arching a brow, she patted his hand. “I never said you had to put them on your feet.”
“Oh. Right. Gotcha.” Raising her hand to his lips, he kissed it. “You really do love me, don’t you?”
“Oh, yeah. Don’t ever doubt it.”
If she had anything to say about it, he never would.
* * * *
“So, how was Christmas, boss man?” Jason asked as Alan unlocked the store—only three minutes late.
Alan sighed. “The best day of my entire life.”
“Oh, come on. It couldn’t have been that good. I mean, really?”
“Really. I’m in love, I’m engaged, and I’m pissed that I had to come to work today.”
“Honest to God? Me, too! Well, actually, I didn’t only get engaged. I got married.”
“You’re shittin’ me, man.”
“Nope.” Jason held up his hand. “See?”
“See what?”
“What are you, blind? The wedding ring tattooed on my finger.”
Alan studied the skull with crystal-shaped blue eyes that now adorned Jason’s ring finger, complete with a chain-link band done in a kaleidoscope of colors. “It’s…lovely.” Bet that was an interesting ceremony.” Alan frowned. “Wait a minute. Same sex marriages aren’t legal in Indiana, are they?”
“No, which is why my cousin performed the marriage.”
“Let me guess…he’s a tattoo artist.”
“Actually, she’s a tattoo artist. You want her to do your rings?”
“Uh, no. I think we’ll stick with the usual diamonds and gold. Emily and I are going shopping for them tonight.”
Jason snorted in disgust. “Well, if you want to be stuffy and traditional, you go right ahead. But there’s an advantage to having a tattooed ring.”
“Oh, and what’s that?”
“You can’t take it off.” Jason grinned. “Think about it.”
He had a point. “No, I’m pretty sure I can trust her to keep it on.” Alan certainly had no intention of taking his off. Ever.
“Suit yourself. Be a lot more practical, though.”
“And a lot more painful.”
“Yeah, well, you know what they say, ‘Love hurts.’”
“No, it doesn’t,” Alan said. “It feels fabulous.”
* * * *
After a long and wonderful weekend, Emily went into the office on Monday morning anxious to discover the results, if any, of her Christmas Eve wish.
The security guard was first. “Had a great Christmas with my wife and kids,” Peter reported. “We got a temp guy to come in, so I didn’t have to work.” He frowned. “We always do that on Christmas. Didn’t you know that?”
“No, I didn’t. But I’m glad to hear it. Feel sorry for the other guy, though.”
“Yeah, well, rumor has it he’s an atheist, so I don’t think he cared.”
She kept her own happiness a secret. She and Alan had picked out rings, which, unfortunately, had to be resized and wouldn’t be ready for a few days. After that, she figured she’d wait and see who noticed it.
Next came Kathy.
“You’ll never guess what Kenneth got for Christmas! A squirrel-proof bird feeder! Our son Sean gave it to him. Of course, he feels sorry for the squirrels now, so he’s going to start leaving ears of corn out for them—but at least the birds will get fed.”
And then there was Stephen...
Blushing every time Emily caught his eye, she couldn’t help wondering what was going on. Had he figured out that she and Alan were engaged? She didn’t see how he could have, but, whatever it was, it was driving her crazy. Finally, she couldn’t stand it anymore.
“What’s up, Stephen?” she asked him after lunch. “You’ve looked like the cat that got the cream all morning. Get something nice for Christmas?”
Stephen was a fairly reserved fellow, and while he did smile from time to time, he wasn’t exactly prone to levity. However, this time, he responded with the most lip-curling smile Emily had ever seen in her life. “I’ll show it to you later.”
“Oh, come on! You can tell me, can’t you? You should be able to tell me anything. I already know most of your secrets, and the suspense is killing me.”
But he was adamant.
By the end of the day, she’d all but forgotten about Stephen’s secret, possibly because Alan had called and said he’d taken off early and would be there waiting when she got home—with bells on. She had an idea he’d be wearing the penis ornament she’d given him, but it still made her anxious to get out of there. She was in such a rush to pack up and go home, she didn’t notice Stephen’s approach until he bent down to whisper in her ear.
“There’s someone here I want you to meet.”
Turning around, Emily was now eye-level with his friend’s name badge.
Mitch.
Tipping her head back as far as it would go, her eyes ran up the front of the tallest, most broad-at-the-shoulder-and-narrow-at-the-hip mountain of a man she’d ever dreamed existed. With a head full of dark, curly hair and a full beard, he might have been a little rough around the edges, but he smelled like—
“You’re wearing the cologne I gave you!”
Immediately enfolding her in a bear hug that lifted her off the floor and nearly cracked her ribs, Mitch put his giant paw on the back of her head and gave her a big kiss on the cheek before setting her back on her feet.
“I’ve been dying to thank you.” His voice matched the rest of him, as deep and rumbling as distant thunder. “I’ve never used that smelly stuff before. I always thought it would seem sort of silly on a big ol’ guy like me—but then I thought, what the hell. You’ll never guess what happened.”
“You found love at long last?”
“You bet I did.” With a smile that lit up the room, he put a possessive arm around Stephen.
Emily’s jaw dropped. “Holy cow.”
Stephen looked like he was about to pop with happiness. “Mitch was helping me get that document out from under the file cabinet, and I told him he smelled nice, and, well…here we are.”
“No shit?” she squealed.
“No shit.”
“So, did you finally get it? The paper you lost, I mean.” She had to assume he’d gotten a little something from Mitch, and if it was as big as the rest of him, she was surprised Stephen was able to sit down.
Stephen frowned, giving Mitch a curious look. “Did we? I don’t remember...”
Mitch gave him a squeeze that was even more ruthless than the one he’d given Emily. “Aw, y
ou’re just saying that to make me feel special. You know we found it.”
Stephen grinned. “You should have been there, Emily. It was awesome. He moved that cabinet—all by himself.”
“Not all by myself, Stevie,” Mitch protested. “You helped me a lot.”
“Stevie?” she echoed with a giggle.
Stephen smiled sheepishly and gave a little shrug. “Yeah. Sweet, isn’t he?”
“I’m sure he is.” Although Emily doubted she would have used that particular description to describe him. Alan was sweet, but Mitch was more like a grizzly bear, which made her wonder how big the penis was on the typical grizzly.
Stephen must have been following her train of thought—as well as her line of sight—because his eyes grew round as he mouthed, “He’s huge.”
Since Mitch was still standing there smiling at her, all she did was nod. She had a feeling that if she and Stephen ever compared notes on their guys, while Mitch might win out in the size department, Alan would have him beat when it came to stamina.
“I’m very happy for you guys. And I have a little news myself. Alan and I are getting married.”
“Wow. That was fast. Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. Speaking of which, I’ve got to get going.” Snatching up her coat and purse, she trotted off as fast as her one-inch heels would carry her.
“Have fun,” Stephen called after her.
“Don’t worry, I will!”
* * * *
The door slammed just as Alan got settled on the bed.
Penis jewelry: check.
Chocolate bars: check.
Bottle of lube: check.
Towels and tissues: check.
Ring: check.
“Where are you?” Emily yelled.
“Where do you think I am?”
“I dunno, but you’d better be naked.”
Alan burst out laughing. “Well…I’m not completely naked, but close.”
He heard her footsteps coming down the hall. She stopped in the doorway. Her hair was ruffled, her cheeks rosy, her coat still on.
“Sweetheart, you are astonishingly overdressed for this occasion.”
She licked her lips. “I don’t need to be naked to suck your dick.”
“Only my fiancée can suck my dick.” He peered at her left hand. “I don’t see a ring.”
Uninhibited (Unlikely Lovers) Page 29
