The Probability of Mistletoe
Page 5
“Keith.”
“Yeah?”
“Shut up.”
Parker framed Keith’s face, hooked his fingers behind Keith’s ears, and drew his head down until their lips were almost touching and Parker’s breath was warm on Keith’s skin. Somehow Keith needed to remember to breathe, but this was Parker, and he’d been waiting for this moment for literally years, and—
“So are you going to kiss me or not?” The tremor in Parker’s voice—was it trepidation or buried laughter?
Keith didn’t care—he’d take either one and run with it. “We’re standing under the mistletoe, so I’d say the probability is one hundred percent.”
He threaded his fingers through Parker’s hair and finally—finally—their lips met. Soft. So soft. Parker’s mouth was as lush as Keith had imagined, igniting sparks behind Keith’s closed eyelids. A tiny flick of Parker’s tongue against Keith’s lower lip promised so much more when they weren’t standing in a room filled with literally all of Parker’s family. So Keith drew back reluctantly.
“Yes.”
Keith blinked at Parker’s murmur, attempting to bring the room into focus with his lips still tingling. “Yes what?”
“Yes, I’ll be your partner. But I’m not waiting ten more years for another kiss. That’s nonnegotiable. We’re writing it into the articles of incorporation.”
Laughter caught Keith by surprise, triggered by Parker’s words and his fierce expression. “What kiss frequency do you think is reasonable?”
Parker’s lips, still pink from their kiss, curved in a sly smile. “I don’t think we can verify that without extensive testing and sentiment analysis.”
“Lucky for us, then, that we’ve got every excuse to generate vast quantities of statistics right here, hanging from every square inch of your ceiling.”
Parker mock-scowled. “It’s not that bad.” He glanced overhead. “Well, okay. Maybe it is, but I was making a point.”
“And that point is?”
He laced his fingers behind Keith’s neck. “Mistletoe is awesome.” He drew Keith down for another kiss, this one a little wickeder around the edges, their mouths parting with matching moans as Keith tightened his hands on Parker’s hips. They were both breathing hard when they drew back.
“You think?” Keith whispered, resting his forehead against Parker’s.
“Mmm-hmmm.” Parker cuddled closer to the delighted hoots of the crowd. “Without it, we might never have admitted that we’re in love.”
E.J. RUSSELL—certified geek, mother of three, recovering actor—spends her days wrangling data and her evenings and weekends wrestling words. Her daily commute consists of walking from one side of her office to the other, from left-brain day job to right-brain writer’s cave, where she’s learned to type with a dog attached to her hip and a cat draped across her wrists.
E.J. is married to Curmudgeonly Husband, a man who cares even less about sports than she does. Luckily, C.H. loves to cook, or all three of their children (Lovely Daughter and Darling Sons A and B) would have survived on nothing but Cheerios, beef jerky, and satsuma mandarins (the extent of E.J.’s culinary skill set).
E.J. lives in rural Oregon, enjoys visits from her wonderful adult children, and indulges in good books, red wine, and the occasional hyperbole.
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By E.J. Russell
The Probability of Mistletoe
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The Probability of Mistletoe
© 2017 E.J. Russell.
Cover Art
© 2017 Paul Richmond.
http://www.paulrichmondstudio.com
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
Digital ISBN: 978-1-64080-298-8
Published December 2017
v. 1.0
Printed in the United States of America