The Christmas Tree Guy

by Railyn Stone

  “You know you are thinking the same thing,” Sara winked, taking Charlie’s hand as they walked into the restaurant.

  ###

  “You’re spoiling me, you know that, right?” Sydnee drawled, watching Quinn under hooded eyes massage her perfectly manicured foot and luxuriated in the feel of his hands on her skin. He had made himself comfortable propped up against the sofa. The only thing covering them both was the tree skirt from underneath the Christmas tree. The plush red material rode dangerously low around Quinn’s waistline and draped loosely across her chest. It had already served its purpose for the holidays, and was now a glorified cover for their naked, sweat covered bodies. There was much reward in dating a younger man. A ton of energy and very few inhibitions. And Sydnee could not get enough of the man.

  “That’s the idea. Someone has to do it.” She watched a slow seductive grin splay across his face and she shivered from the thought of what he had just finished doing to her not more than fifteen minutes ago. She thought Matt was a great lover, but she had never experienced a more thorough and attentive lover as Quinn. Every inch of her body still tingled from his touch.

  “Well, I can’t think of anyone better than you.”

  “I aim to please.”

  “Let it be known you have, and are, doing that.” She closed her eyes as he started to push the skirt further up her leg to her thigh. “This is definitely a great way to spend Christmas.” She added, fingering the simple silver chain with the infinity charm he’d given her upon his arrival.

  “Oh, yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever unwrapped a better present under the tree.” Sydnee giggled at Quinn’s reference to the candy apple red lingerie set she had on when he arrived at her house hours ago. She bought the outfit at Sara’s behest, against her better judgment. She was going to have to tell her once again she was right, since it had gone over so well and was now discarded somewhere between the sofa and the remnants of opened gifts near the tree. “Santa was really good to me this year.”

  “I guess you must have been good then, huh?”

  “Pretty good at being bad.” Quinn slowly released her leg and moved to lie beside her, pulling her nude body closer to his. She snuggled into his side with her head below his chin.

  “Hmm, I guess we have both been bad then.” Almond eyes focused in on his beautiful face as she traced circles on his smooth chest. She still couldn’t believe how enraptured she’d become with him. He was pure intoxication.

  “I think so.” He stopped her hand in mid circle and slowly kissed each one of her fingers before burying his head in the crook of her neck. His rapier tongue left sweet searing lashes across her sensitive flesh and she closed her eyes feeling the same slow burn he’d incited in her earlier start to smolder.

  “Quinn?”

  “Hmm?” His deadly lips nibbled on her sensitive flesh and she was desperately close to losing her train of thought as his assault continued.

  “I’ve really been having a great time with you.”

  She suddenly felt his lethal lips leave the nape of her neck and he slowly pulled back searching her eyes for more information, “Why do I feel a ‘but’ coming on?”

  “No, no, it’s not like that. I care about you and we’ve been having such a good time together. It’s just…I wonder where this is heading.”

  “What do you mean, where it’s heading?”

  Sitting up with the skirt pulled to her chest, she looked at him blankly. “I guess I’m just wondering where we go from here. We have been sleeping together, even though we said we would slow things down. But, what are you thinking, or wanting? Is this all we are, or do you see something happening here?”

  “Sydnee, I told you before I wanted to get to know you, and that means everything. I told you I met a wonderful woman I could spend the rest of my life with, and as far as I’m concerned, I’m in it for the long haul.” Tilting her head to the side, she reached over and ran her fingers across his strong jaw, wondering if he really knew what that meant.

  “Are you sure? Let’s really think about this. I’m not just talking about the age thing. Or the race thing. I have baggage. I have trust issues. I have two five-year olds that are all over the place most days. Are you sure?” It was horrible how badly her trust had been shaken in people, but she needed to be sure of what she was getting herself, and possibly her children, into with a new relationship.

  “Yes.”

  “That was quick.” She wasn’t sure if she should like the fact he made his decisions so quickly. In a way, it was nice to know he wasn’t wishy-washy, but it was also a little scary to think it may be his youth that would lead him to just jump into things without truly weighing the consequences.

  “I told you. I don’t like playing games. Sydnee, I want to be in your life. I also want the chance to get to know the boys, if that’s okay with you.”

  “Are you serious?” She stared at him.

  “Yes. Why won’t you believe me?”

  “Really? Quinn, for someone to be in my boys’ lives I have to make sure they are in it for the long term. I can’t let people just come in and out of their lives.” Their father already let them down and she didn’t want to give them the impression all men leave. “That’s not what I want.”

  “Who said I’m leaving? I told you I want a relationship. I want you. I want to make this work, but you have got to want it too. What do you want, Syd?” She stared into his steely eyes. The adoration reflected in them overwhelmed her, and she was amazed at how much this man cared for her and her children.

  “I’m not sure. Part of me feels alive and carefree and young when I’m with you, but the other part of me is scared to death. I’m scared to give you my heart. I hate I’m torn like that, but it’s the truth.” She was afraid of the continuous doubts creeping in. What if Mina was right? What if they started a relationship and he wasn’t able to provide a stable environment for her or the kids? What if the outside opposers to their relationship were too much for either of them to handle? How was this relationship going to affect her already strained relationship with her own mother?

  “Syd,” Quinn smiled, taking her hands in his. “It’s okay. I’m just glad you are being completely honest with me. If anything, that’s all I ask you to do, just be honest.”

  “Well, honestly, I don’t know what to do at this point. I’m afraid of you.”

  “You’re afraid of me? You really think I would hurt you?” His smile that always lit up his face, started to fade and she quickly dismissed his thoughts of her thinking ill of him.

  “No. I’m afraid of how reckless I am with you.” There she’d said it. Finally, she had put it out there for him.

  “Reckless?”

  “Quinn, you don’t get it. My life has been one big day planner. Everything has always been planned out. It’s the only way I’ve ever operated.” She could see questions building in his beautiful eyes and she continued on. “Schedules and structure have been my life. If everything is going according to the plan then things are fine.” She thought of the plans for her life. The plans her mother had for her from the dance classes, recitals, piano lessons, certain groups and organizations. Everything was so organized. Neatly wrapped up with a pretty bow. Her mother constantly urged her to do the same with the boys and she had, to an extent. And now, she was starting to get pressure from her mother to put them in some of the same activities. She’d already looked into piano lessons for them.

  “Okay.”

  “Being with you was never part of my plan. This has been wonderful and energizing and so far off from anything I’ve ever done. I’m…well, I’m falling for you.”

  “Wow, is that such a heinous thing?”

  “It’s not. Yet again this is not coming out right. It’s not bad that I’m falling for you, but I’m just scared.” Honestly, she was afraid of the possibilities. “I’m so afraid of letting go and letting someone in again. It’s like giving up control of my life, when I’ve fought so hard to regain and hold on to i
t.”

  “Matt really did a number on you, didn’t he?” Quinn reached over and tucked her hair behind her ear then let his finger trace the outline of her jaw. Just that simple gesture made her heart flitter against the walls of her chest like butterfly wings. What power this man had over her already and he didn’t have a clue what he was doing to her.

  “You have no idea.” She sniffed, knowing tears were soon to follow if she kept talking about the pain her ex had put her through. “Matt threw my life into a tailspin. He was part of the plan and it was all gone in a matter of moments, and I didn’t have a clue what to do.” Matt’s sudden departure had been like losing her cellphone. Every contact, email, calendar entry gone, and having no backup to retrieve the information. She had been lost and it had taken her time to get her life back in order.

  “Sydnee, I know this is easier said than done, but you’ve got to let it go. Let Matt go. Let all of the hurt and pain he caused, go. It’s okay to deviate from the plan every once in a while,” he added, acknowledging her explanation of her well-orchestrated life. “Look, I’m not Matt. I’m not here to hurt you, or to do anything to cause you or Charlie and Travis pain. I want to be there for all three of you. Don’t you understand how wonderful you are?”

  At this point, tears were forming in Sydnee’s eyes and she was desperately fighting to keep them from pouring down her face. Here she was sitting next to a man that had more caring and understanding in his little finger than her own ex-husband had in his entire being. How was it, a man who vowed to be there through good and bad, and fathered her children, now couldn’t be bothered with her or the kids, but a man who had no commitments or real ties to her had been there and listened when she needed to vent.

  “You know I wasn’t prepared for it when he left.” Her voice became softer as she glanced at Quinn and the careful consideration in his eyes. “I guess I’m just afraid this won’t be what you expect, and you will leave too.” Quinn watched her silently, letting her talk. “Matt always wanted to travel. That was our plan. We would get married and we would travel the world, just me and him.”

  Nodding his head, Quinn continued to listen. Sydnee lay back, placing her head on one of the pillows they’d pulled from the sofa and stared up at the twinkling lights of the tree. Quinn propped himself up on his elbow as he stroked her bare arm closest to him.

  “He was so mad when I got pregnant.” Her jaw tensed, thinking about the day she told him. She was overjoyed with the prospect of being a mother. Knowing she would have something wonderful that would be a part of her and a part of the man she loved more than life. She knew they hadn’t planned for it, but she had no idea Matt would react the way he did. “He said I planned it and it was my fault. He was determined I had stopped taking my birth control pills so I could get pregnant and ruin his plans.”

  “Wow. That’s kinda harsh.”

  “I didn’t, Quinn.” She paused, turning her head to look at him, her voice cracking, feeling the intensity of the pain all over again. She took a deep breath, feeling the hot tears roll down her face. “I promise you I took those things religiously, but they aren’t foolproof you know.”

  “Some things are meant to be.” Quinn rubbed her arm as she continued with her story.

  “Yes, I choose to believe I’m raising a future president of the United States and the doctor that’s going to cure cancer,” she chuckled, wiping a wayward tear that leaked from her eye and mixed with the hair below her ear.

  “Great possibilities.” Quinn agreed.

  “It was really hard at first. Matt wouldn’t talk to me. He kept blaming me for changing our plans and ruining everything. It wasn’t until later in the pregnancy when I found out we were having twins and they were boys that he started to come around. It started to be like old times again,” Sydnee paused. “It was wonderful for the rest of the pregnancy and when the twins were born it was still great. He and I would take turns getting up with them at night and I thought things were going to be perfect for the rest of our lives.”

  “But…” Quinn invited her to finish.

  “But, I was wrong. Things were good for only a couple of years. The boys started growing and moving from one milestone to the next. They rolled over. They crawled. They learned to talk and walk and the next thing you know, they were three.” She loved thinking about all of the wonderful little things she had experienced raising her sons. Remembering the day they found their toes or realized the fist they made in front of their eyes was their own. It was such a magical and extraordinary time for her. “Then one day things started to change. Matt became distant again and he stopped spending time with me, and it was like our babies were a burden or obligation. And then, just like that, one day we come home from his parent’s house, I get them bathed and down for the night and he tells me he’s leaving and he doesn’t owe me any explanation.”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yes. Here I am, thinking things are great and my husband of ten years turns to me and says his new girlfriend is waiting for him, and he’s leaving. It devastated me.” Just when she didn’t think she had any more tears left, she felt a fresh waterfall tumble down her cheeks and before she could wipe them away, Quinn shifted to wipe her tears with his free hand.

  “I’m so sorry you had to go through all of that.” His genuine compassion made her smile and she held her hand against his face as he leaned into it.

  “It’s not your fault.”

  “I know, but I hate you went through that.” She could see the fire flash in his eyes at the ill feelings he was developing for her ex-husband.

  “I haven’t talked about this in so long. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have put all of this on you.” She removed her hand from his face and wiped away the tears he missed with the back of her hand.

  “Stop apologizing. I told you, I wanted to know everything about you, Syd, and I meant that. Knowing what you have been through helps me understand you better.”

  “Why are you so good to me?” Reaching out, she ran her fingers through his cropped locks, loving the feel of his hair beneath her palm.

  “Because you deserve it. You have no idea, do you?” His eyes lit up as he stared at her and she felt a surge of happiness invade her heart. “Syd, you’re special. You have such a beautiful spirit and I can’t understand why there are not more guys knocking down your door. I’m glad they aren’t, because that leaves me with less competition, but honestly, Matt was crazy to let you go.”

  “Thank you.” She raised herself up to kiss him softly. “You’re amazing. I don’t know why you even want to get yourself into such a mess, but I’m thankful for you.”

  “A mess, nah, its life. But if you are a mess, it’s a beautiful one to be in.” He moved over to kiss her forehead before leaning his against hers to look into her eyes. “You mean a lot to me, Sydnee, and if I have to tell you that every-day for the rest of my life, I promise you I will.”

  “You’re too sweet.” Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pulled him closer as they got lost in one another’s embrace, basking in the warm glow of the glittering lights of the tree.

  ###

  During the next few weeks, Sydnee spent even more time with Quinn. They had lunch together and she enlisted Sara for babysitting duties for a few evenings. She was amazed at how quickly she’d gotten attached to him and she had to keep reminding herself she needed to take it slow and be careful. Each time she told herself that, she found herself even more enamored with him and she anticipated the time they would spend together.

  They mutually decided to slow things down, which was hard because they were highly attracted to one another. They came to the conclusion that they should not sleep together again, at least until they knew each other a little longer. Of course that was easier said than done, and they usually ended up in bed together anyway.

  Spending time with Quinn was like a drug to Sydnee and she just couldn’t get enough. And she had no intentions of rehabbing to kick her addiction. She started working ou
t with him on a regular basis and it was exhilarating to have so much energy. Sara laughed at Sydnee’s giddiness, but she didn’t care. She was in a good place and was starting to truly enjoy her life.

  “Hi, munchkins.” Sydnee smiled, walking in the door to her in-laws as the twins ran to greet her.

  “Mommy!” They yelled, as she kneeled to give them both hugs and kisses.

  “Did you have fun today?” Their outpouring of love was a welcome feeling she would never tire of and she tried to soak up as much of it as she could, knowing as they got older the hugs and kisses would become few and far between.

  “Yes.”

  “Were you good?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m just sure you were.” Sydnee stood to greet Leanne.

  “Oh, they were good. You should have seen them when we picked them up from school. They were so surprised.”

  “Thank you again. It’s unbelievable Sean got sick and Monica had to pick him up from school early and I had a meeting with a client at the same time. I’m just glad you were free today. I can’t thank you enough for helping me out.”

  “Honey, please. I’m happy to do it. I’m just glad you let me help you. Are you hungry? I went ahead and fed them so you wouldn’t have to worry about that once you get home. I know you’re probably tired.”

  “Leanne, you didn’t have to do that. You are a God-send.” Following Leanne through the house, Sydnee removed her coat and scarf and discarded them on the arm of the sofa.

  “Oh it’s okay. Go wash up and have a seat. I’ll fix your plate.”

  “Mommy, Grammie made cupcakes.” Travis ambled beside her towards the kitchen table once she’d washed her hands.

  “Did she? And how many did you have?”

  “I had one and Charlie had one. I had one with white icing and blue sprinkles and he had one that had chocolate icing and yellow sprinkles.”

  “Hmmm, those sound good. I think I see the one I want. The one with the pink icing and orange sprinkles,” she pointed to the other cupcakes sitting on the counter.