Hot for Santa

by Fox,Cathryn

  She dropped a kiss onto her father’s cheek, gave Murphy a scratch on the head, and took a seat beside her mother at the table. Margaret handed her a bowl and Rachel grabbed for the box of cereal. “Did you have a nice time at dinner last night?” Rachel asked, looking for a distraction.

  Her father’s brown eyes lit with laughter, and he shook his head from side to side. “We sure did. And afterward, we stopped in to visit with the Denbys. That Travis is one heck of a funny guy. I sure miss seeing him and Tori hanging out together. He told me the funniest story—”

  As her father continued with his litany on why Travis was the funniest guy he knew, Rachel was only half listening, because when she tucked her feet beneath her, she couldn’t help but notice the intense way Nick was staring at them—like he had some sort of freaky foot fetish.

  Wait a minute!

  Last night, hadn’t he been touching her feet before he went all carnal on her? So it appeared that any and all feet turned him on, male or female.

  After her father finished his story, Rachel scarfed down her cereal and prepared to excuse herself, but Margaret put her hand over Rachel’s to stop her. Her mother’s blue eyes were soft and a little sad. All thoughts of Nick and his weird foot fetish vanished when an abnormal quiet fell over the room.

  “What?” Rachel asked.

  “It’s about Grandma Reddy’s special ruby. We need to fill Mason in on what’s happening.”

  Rachel took a moment to think about the story behind Grandma’s prized possession. On Christmas day, many years ago, before Grandpa first headed off to war, he’d given Grandma the stone as a promise ruby as opposed to a promise ring assuring her he’d return home safely. And he always had, time and time again. In Grandma’s heart and mind, it was a magical stone and naturally love stemmed from it. After the war, during those few times they were apart, she knew if she kept it close and wished upon it, they would be reunited. Even on his deathbed she held the ruby tight, knowing he’d always be with her in spirit until they were reunited again in heaven.

  Her mother turned toward Mason. “She left me a note before she passed away and wants me to announce the fate of her stone on Christmas morning.”

  “Do you mean one of us will inherit it?” he asked.

  Rachel shot Mason a glance and thought about how each child would love to have that ruby—for their own special reasons. But who would be the lucky recipient?

  As the middle girl Rachel always felt a little lost in the shuffle. Holly was the oldest and most responsible. Tori, the youngest, was the most fun-loving and family-focused, and then there was Mason, the youngest and only boy. Even though Grandma always made every one of them feel treasured, Rachel felt Grandma had a special place in her heart for Mason, partly because he was the only boy, and partly because he looked so much like Grandpa Reddy. At times she heard her call him “Grandma’s special grandson.” Rachel paused to consider that a moment longer. She’d originally assumed the stone would go to Holly, the golden child, but after thinking things through she now had a sneaking suspicion the stone would actually go to Mason. After all, there was no denying that Mason always got whatever he wanted. And now he’s got the man Rachel wants, too!

  Margaret squeezed Rachel’s hand and it plucked her from her musings. “We’ll all find out soon enough,” her mother assured them all. “Until then I placed the ruby on the fireplace mantel for us all to enjoy.”

  Needing a reprieve from all the emotions churning inside her, and the sudden burst of animosity she felt toward her brother, she glanced outside. “If you’ll all excuse me, I’m going to hit the cross-country trails.”

  “Oh, sounds like fun,” Mason piped in.

  Nick turned to Mason and gestured toward the door. “Want to go?” Obviously, Nick hadn’t realized Mason was mocking her.

  Mason pulled a face. “I just don’t have a taste for skiing. I think I’ll have a nap instead, since I didn’t get to sleep until the wee hours of the morning.” Just then Nick stifled a yawn, like he’d barely gotten a wink himself.

  Rachel shivered, not wanting to think about what had kept the pair up all hours of the night.

  Mason arched a brow. “So, what do you say Rachel? Can Nick tag along with you?”

  Tag along? Hell no! The last thing she wanted was for Nick to accompany her on her cross-country excursion. In fact, she just wished he’d make his way back to New York. She bounded out of her chair. “No,” she bit out, not bothering to mask her strong opposition. God, she just knew if she spent any more time with him, it’d be harder and harder to keep her hands to herself and her emotions in check.

  “Whoa, did somebody wake up on the wrong side of the bed or what?” Mason shot back.

  Rachel didn’t like the inquisitive way her mother was staring at her. “What?” she asked, darting her mother a glance, then winced at her temperamental behavior. Rachel prided herself on always being very even-keeled, but the news of her grandmother’s ruby combined with Nick’s surprise visit and Mason’s shocking announcement, had her acting like a deranged smack addict.

  He mother shrugged. “Nothing, dear,” she said, and went to work on making another pot of coffee.

  She glared at Mason and hedged. “I like to go fast. For exercise. Most people can’t keep up.” Okay, she really needed to calm down and stop rambling.

  Mason’s eyes raced over Nick in sheer appreciation. “You don’t think he can keep up?” He tilted his head and asked, “Can you keep up, Nick?”

  Nick sat there exuding confidence. “I can keep up.”

  Bloody hell.

  “But if she really doesn’t want—”

  Thomas cut Nick off. “Of course she wants you to go, Nick. She’d have no reason not to, isn’t that right, Rachel?”

  Rachel turned to her father and balled her hands under the table. “Yeah, that’s right. I have no reason not to,” she said through clenched teeth, and fought not to glance at her mother and study her reactions.

  She took a quick swig of coffee, jumped from the table, and made her way to the porch. “Coming?” She cast her words over her shoulders.

  Twenty minutes later, both she and Nick were speed skiing through the trails with Nick hot on her heels, easily able to keep up, or even fly by her should he desire. His closeness made her more breathless than the exercise.

  In the distance a puff of smoke rose over Grandma’s cottage. Grandma Reddy . . . Oh, how Rachel wished she were here to talk to. She’d know just what to do about this crazy situation, just how to get Rachel through the holidays unscathed. As Grandma filled her thoughts, she hadn’t even realized her strides had slowed.

  Nick moved in beside her. “You okay?” His voice startled her and she faltered. Nick slipped his hand around her waist to steady her. When he packaged her body to his, everything inside her ached for him. God, why did he have to touch her like that? Like he meant it.

  Rachel’s chest rose and fell with her deep intakes of breath. She stepped back, breaking free from the circle of his arms. “Yeah, just thinking about Grandma.”

  Nick, who was not one bit winded, planted his pole beside him and leaned on it. His dark hair fell forward and his blue eyes glistened in the early morning sunlight. “Were you two close?”

  Rachel smiled and shaded her eyes against the glaring white snow. “Very. We spent a lot of time together. Every day after school she’d bake fresh cookies for us kids.” She chuckled and tapped her hips. “Even when some of us didn’t need them.”

  Nick laughed. “She sounds like she was wonderful.”

  Beneath the laughter she heard longing in his voice and it sparked something in her memories, something he’d said to her last night. “Why would you be spending the holidays alone, Nick?”

  He paused for a long moment. “I’m the only Grant left. My parents are gone.”

  She placed her hand on his and watched his throat work when he swallowed. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be.” He gave an easy shrug and glanced heaven
ward. “Believe me, they’re in a better place.”

  Her attention glided over his face, assessing him. “Were you close?”

  His body tensed. “We mixed like oil and water, and the truth is, I did my best to keep my distance.” He cast his gaze downward, veiling his expression, but she didn’t miss the turbulence in his eyes and vulnerability in his voice. Her heart squeezed and she sensed that he was lowering his guard and sharing something very private and extremely personal with her. Emotions swept though her and everything inside her reached out to him, wanting to comfort him, to soothe him, to take him in her arms and make all those old painful memories go away. “It was especially bad around the holidays,” he added, his honesty knocking her off balance. “The fighting, screaming . . .” His voice fell off as a shiver wracked his body.

  She watched the play of emotions across his face, and her heart lodged somewhere in her throat as she processed the information. She’d been so selfish, so busy considering her own wants and desires that she never stopped to consider Nick’s.

  His eyes lifted to hers and empathy stole over her as she softened like whipped meringue. “I’ve only ever wished for one thing at Christmas, and Mason has made that come true.” His words came out a little raspy and the need in his eyes touched her soul. “You have such a great family, Rachel.”

  Her chest tightened and she felt guilty for snapping at them all earlier. “Yeah, I do.”

  “They’re all so kind and welcoming, letting a stranger into their house for the holidays.”

  “You’re not a stranger, Nick. You’re with Mason so that makes you family, too,” she assured him, and in that instant she vowed to make this an extra-special holiday for him.

  His face softened, and she felt the tension ease from his body. “Thanks, Rachel.” When he squeezed her hand, it created a new closeness between them, a friendship, an inherent trust that affected her heart as much as it affected her libido. His smile came slow. “So, I told you my Christmas wish, now it’s your turn to tell me yours.”

  To find someone loving.

  Someone caring.

  Someone who would put her needs first.

  Someone just like Nick.

  God, if she only had Grandma’s special, magical ruby. She’d hold it close and wish things were different between her and Nick. Heck, what does Mason need with the stone anyway? He already has the perfect man.

  “Well,” he probed. “What is the one thing you want for Christmas? The one thing you’d wish for, or ask Santa for.”

  “I don’t have a Christmas wish.”

  He shot her a dubious glance. “Sure you do, everyone does.”

  “Not me.” Rachel turned her gaze to a spot behind him in time to see a bunny hop across the path. “Look,” she whispered, thankful for the distraction.

  Nick spun around and his eyes widened. He made a clicking sound with his tongue. “Damn, where the hell is my gun when I need it.”

  Her mouth dropped. “Nick!”

  He gave her a teasing grin. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding.” With blue eyes that were alive and adventurous, he looked like an exuberant kid on Christmas morning, and Rachel couldn’t help but share in his excitement. “Come on, let’s follow it,” he whispered.

  They both went to work on removing their skis and slipped off the beaten path. Nick led the way, following the tracks, which gave her a nice view of his magnificent backside. Keeping up a rigorous pace, they weaved in and out of trees, dodging the frost-tipped branches along the way.

  Nick glanced back at her, a playful grin curled up the corners of his mouth. “Need me to slow down?”

  His soft chuckle warmed her insides and she had to admit, she loved this playful side of him. She also had to admit how much she enjoyed being around him.

  Never one to back down, she worked not to sound breathless and shot back, “It’s the Christmas season, Nick. I was being charitable when I was leading.” With that, Nick laughed out loud and she couldn’t help but join in.

  A few minutes later, Nick stopped abruptly and she nearly crashed right into him. He pitched his voice low and gestured with a nod. “Check it out.”

  Rachel looked around him to see the quaint cottage at the edge of the frozen lake. “That’s the Myerses’ old cottage. I think it’s abandoned now.”

  “Want to investigate?”

  “We probably shouldn’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “What if someone is inside?”

  “Are you afraid of getting caught?” When she didn’t answer, he arched a brow and pressed on, “Or perhaps you just don’t have a taste for snooping around?” When she caught his coy grin, and the mischief in his eyes, she suddenly suspected he knew she’d been poking around in his things.

  Heat flared her cheeks as she moved past him. “Try to keep up.” Again Nick laughed out loud and Rachel smiled as pleasure resonated through her.

  Rachel circled the house, and spotted fresh footprints in the snow. She glanced around. There was no vehicle, but she did spot a snowmobile beneath the small carport. Then she remembered Melissa Myers, the family’s only daughter, who was around the same age as Holly. She’d heard she went overseas for work and wondered if she’d come home for the holidays.

  Nick stepped up beside her as she lifted her hand to knock, but a low sexy moan coming from inside the cabin stopped her. She inched forward and peered into the window to see two naked bodies sprawled out on a bearskin rug.

  “Ohmigod,” she whispered.

  “What is it?” Nick shaded the sun from his eyes and peered in. His nostrils flared and his breathing quickened.

  Rachel perused the man and let out a slow breath when she recognized those broad shoulders, that tall muscular build, those piercing hazel eyes and the cast on his leg. Holy hell. It was none other than wild man Jacob Wiley, getting it on with Melissa Myers.

  Jacob pulled Melissa to her feet, secured her wrists with cuffs and fastened them to a bolt hanging from the ceiling. Once he had her immobilized, he put a bar between her legs, spreading them wide. Melissa’s eyes dimmed with desire as Jacob walked around her, trailing a flogger over her body, stopping every so often to tap her ass with it. Desire thrummed through Rachel’s veins, taking her by surprise.

  Adventurous and uninhibited, Melissa tossed her head from side to side, her pleasure apparent.

  Rachel’s body buzzed to life and she began to quake, aroused beyond anything she’d ever known. There was something undeniably exciting and primal about what she was watching. Her breath grew shallow and she felt a little shaky, a little unstable. Nick must have sensed it. He snaked his arm around her waist and held her back to his chest intimately. Jesus, she couldn’t believe how incredible it felt to be held by him.

  She turned her thoughts back to the sexy show and wondered if this turned Nick on as much as it did her.

  “Holy fuck,” he murmured. The lust in his tone answered her question and pulled her into a cocoon of need and desire.

  Completely engrossed in the action, Rachel aimed a longing glance their way. Her pulse leaped and her body fairly vibrated. As a storm brewed inside her, her words came out breathy. “We should go.” But she was so damned turned on by the activities inside the cabin, she pressed her nose against the window, her actions contradicting her words. It was wrong, she knew, but she couldn’t seem to help herself. She’d never experienced the pleasure of submission before, and by the look on Melissa’s face, there was a lot of pleasure to be had.

  Teetering on the edge of ecstasy, her body began burning from the inside out. She made a low noise in her throat, and she could almost hear the snow sizzling beneath her boots.

  Okay, she needed to get out of there before she turned around, ripped Nick’s clothes from his body, and had her wicked way with him. She summoned all her control and made a move to inch back, but Nick stopped her, caging her between his body and the glass window. He put his mouth close to her ear and spoke in a whisper. “Not yet.” His voice bombarded her bo
dy with rich, evocative sensations and she nearly liquefied under his touch.

  Heat stained Rachel’s cheeks as she watched Jacob lavish his woman with lots of delicious attention. He ran his tongue over her breasts, her cherry red nipples, her flat stomach, and her sopping-wet sex. He thrust a finger inside her and spent a long moment bringing her to the edge. Before he let her tumble over, he brushed the tip of the flogger over her clit, then whacked her ass. Rachel felt her own cheeks sting in response. But God help her, it was a sting from pleasure, not pain.

  She and Nick remained still for a long time, just watching and enjoying. Jacob stood in front of Melissa and positioned his cock at her entrance. As Rachel’s senses exploded and her body hummed in anticipation, Jacob angled his head. His hazel eyes locked on hers as she spied his private activities. When Rachel’s mouth dropped open in surprise, he shot her wolfish grin.

  Startled at getting caught, Rachel pushed backward off the door, knocking both her and Nick to the snow-covered ground. “Oh shit.” She scrambled to her feet. Both giddy and panicked, she held her hand out to Nick. “We need to get out of here.”

  Stifling a laugh, Nick climbed to his feet and they both ducked back into the woods. Once they were under the cover of the trees, Rachel sank to her knees, let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding and plopped against a tree.

  Nick’s blue eyes glistened with mischief and laughter. “Well, that was fun.”

  Oh yeah, it was fun all right. Fun, exhilarating, titillating, and right up there with one of the best times she’d ever had. “That was naughty, Nick. Really naughty.”

  “Yeah, naughty but nice, right?”

  There was nothing she could do to keep the pleasure from her voice. “Do you think he knew we were watching the whole time?”

  “Yeah, he’s obviously an exhibitionist, as well as a guy who likes a little bondage.”

  She spent a moment thinking about the way Nick had pinned her to the bed last night and how exciting she’d found it. Her sex muscles moistened and she rippled in remembrance as she replayed that erotic moment in her head. Heat moved through her blood and warmed her cheeks at the way his big strong hands had restrained her, just like Jacob had immobilized his woman. She gulped air.