Dr. Vanderhoff closes the books. “Obviously, should you find the statue, our museum would be most interested in purchasing it. Something so rare and remarkable should not be held in private hands.”
Sam stands. “Thank you so much for your time. How much do we owe you?”
“Nothing, if you promise to keep me informed. This type of finding is so rare, I am privileged to be part of it.”
“Deal. You’ll be the first to know.” We shake hands, exchange numbers, then Sam and I get back in the SUV.
Thank God I’ve been to Boston before, because even the GPS is confused. By the time I get to Logan, sweat’s running down my side and I feel like I’ve run a marathon.
Now all we got to do is get to Rome. After the drive, that ought to be a piece of cake.
***
And I’m right. Our flight to Rome is uneventful. While she sleeps, I watch over her and mid-ocean, sit and chat with the air marshal, the only other person awake.
Once we touchdown, she takes over and hails a cab, chatting in Italian. It takes about forty minutes to get from Fiumicino Airport to the small villa in Trastevere. In our room, she connects to the internet, opens an email and hands me her cell phone.
“Uncle Vinny says the drop off isn’t until tomorrow. What do you want to do until then?” She twists a lock of my hair and gazes at my fly.
“Well, sugar, when in Rome…”
“Debauchery and orgies?” She unzips my jeans, lowers everything to my ankles, and kneels to help me off with my boots.
My cock jumps to attention, banging her in the nose as I balance on one foot with my hand on her head.
Wrapping her fingers around my length, she backs up to the bed and sits with me standing between her knees. With her mouth sliding over me, I close my eyes, and savor the sweet agony of pure desire.
Ah, hell. I dig my hands into her hair as her tongue glides up and down and all around. It dips into my tip, around the edge, and down the center vein until I’m shaking with need. “Sugar, slow down.”
She stops, tosses off her shirt, her bra, then rubs her breasts across my enlarged member until her nipples go hard. Leaning forward again, she sucks, and I hiss with my hips tilted forward.
“Mmm.” Her clever hands cup my balls, grip my base, and my brain stops workin’ except to focus on what’s goin’ on down south.
About to cum, I hold back with willpower I didn’t know I had in me.
I pull her hair to get her to stop and with her eyes black with lust, our gazes meet.
“Damn,” Lifting her onto the bed, I throw off her shoes, and drag her pants down her legs.
Her pink cunt glistens with her honey as I lower my mouth, shaking with a yearning that goes far deeper than coupling.
With a finger curled inside her, my tongue goes to work and as she moans and squirms, I hold onto her knees. She bucks, so close to cumming but I wait until she settles down before bringing her higher.
With Sam at the brink of heaven, I pull off my shirt, drag her more fully up the mattress, and put my tip to her opening. Then, I devour her in a kiss while her nails dig into my back and ankles lock behind me. Her liquids tease as I hold off as long as I can, delaying our pleasure.
She’s coiled, primed, and I’m about to spurt my load so I plunge in fully.
“Oh, oh, oh…” She quivers and meets my rhythm.
“Babe.” I thrust, faster and faster.
“Sebast-” Her thigh muscles tighten, her breath hitches, and inside her, I catch the wave of her orgasm.
“Fuuuck!” Groaning, every muscle inside me grows tight and with one final plunge, I lose myself in her.
As my liquids fill her, I choke up. Hell, I can’t explain it, but somehow, I don’t know where she stops and I begin.
I drop onto her chest as our hearts pound to the same beat. For the longest time we just lay there in a kind of fog and come down from this indescribable high, neither able to speak.
When she squirms, I figure I must be pretty heavy so pull out, roll off, and lay on my side. Nose to nose, we stare as she touches my face, my lips, and kisses me.
“Wow.” In a little bit, her eyelids grow heavy and we sleep.
Before I drift off, I repeat the mantra given to me by my head doctor. I am safe, I am home, I am in my lover’s arms. Even if I dream, I will realize it is a dream and wake myself up. It may be all mumbo jumbo, but if it works, I don’t give a shit.
In the morning, it’s raining cats and dogs, so we stay put, and sleep off some of the jet lag.
By late afternoon, we take the tram into the center of Rome. We’ve both been here a few times before, so are happy enough to ignore the crowded attractions and just enjoy a long stroll in the ancient city.
We sit down for snacks and drinks at six, then eat our meal around midnight. Exhausted, we find our way back to our hotel, make love, and sleep.
We wake when the phone rings with a call from the front desk,
“Buongiorno.” I smile at the concierge, pick up my cardboard box, and bring it up into our room.
After cutting open the tape and pulling out the statue, Sam holds it up and sighs. “Damn.”
“What? We got it. We won.” I grin because I’m fully aware of how she thinks.
“But, I don’t know… it seems so… anticlimactic.” Her lower lip turns out and I nibble on it.
“Did you expect a showdown at the OK Corral?”
“No… but… it should’ve been harder.” She stomps her foot. “Uncle Vinny took all the fun out of it.”
I chuckle and kiss away her frustration. “You can’t always have kidnappings and gunfire.”
“Yeah, sure, but still… ”
“Sugar, I can think of all kinds of better things to be doing.”
“We-found-the-statue-sex?”
“That’ll work.”
Chapter Twelve
Sam
I buy a large suitcase and surround the statue in sweatshirts and knits, Christmas gifts for Mia and Rose. To be safe, I wrap the outside of the luggage in green plastic wrap. When asked what I have to declare at customs, I tell them I paid about two hundred euros for the gifts and pay the fees.
After waiting forever in line, we walk our asses to Suds’ car and he drives to his apartment where I anxiously unwrap the Donatello, praying we didn’t damage it.
“Sweetheart, the statue’s been kept in a damp basement for the last fifty years and displayed outside Brooklyn. I’m sure it’ll be fine. After all, it’s supposed to be a damn miracle.”
I cradle the wooden baby in my arms and whisper, “What are we going to do with it now? It’s worth a small fortune. Someone’s bound to try and steal it again.”
Suds puts his arm around me and kisses my ear. “I already called Slate and he hired a Seal on leave needing a few bucks. He’ll watch over it for the holidays. Then, it isn’t our call. We hand it over to the church.”
With the Jesus-caper all wrapped up and ten days to Christmas. I go back to work at the salon in the mornings and spend the afternoons and evenings with Suds. Still I have no idea what, other than my leather jacket, to get him for a present.
On Wednesday, this amazing thought comes to me, I call Jason, then go and see Jenna.
“You think this will work?”
The avatar sits at the conference table and nods. “I believe it will. It has been tested in Germany with much success.”
“And all I need to do is plug in this device, next to the bed?”
“It detects brain waves. If the test subject becomes overly agitated, an alarm will wake you first. It may take a few months of learning to work properly. However, you should both be able to sleep.”
Kissing Jenna on the cheek, I give her a hug. “Thank you so much.”
“Thank you. This could be a whole new line of research for us. Who knows where it will lead.”
“Probably to another few million.”
She laughs. “Merry Christmas.”
“You too. A
nd to you as well, Jason.”
“Merry Christmas, Samantha. I will be calling on you shortly to collect our favor.”
Jenna gives me a look and I shrug. “Ask him. He’s your protégé. Gotta run. Thanks again.”
After, I stop by Nonna’s house to pick up Sebastian’s other present. When I see the finished jacket, I kiss her on the cheek. “Cosi bello, Nonna. Grazie mille.”
“Mio bambino.” She kisses me on the top of the head. “You marry this one, si?”
“Si, Si. I will.”
We eat too many Italian cookies and need more so I stop by the bakery where I run into my uncle Vinny who kisses me on both cheeks then frowns.
“The bum didn’t give you a ring?”
“Maybe he’s waiting for Christmas.”
“If not, I got a guy who says he is interested in having dinner with youz.”
“I don’t think-”
He puts a finger up in the air to silence me. “A deal is a deal.”
I think about the cost of rent which I can’t afford and nod. “Okay. But only one more and I mean it.”
“Excellent. He’ll pick you up between Christmas and New Year’s. Make sure the bum isn’t anywhere around.”
“Suds is not a bum.”
He shrugs. “We shall see. By the way? Don’t post nothing on that website of yours about finding the statue.”
“Why not?” My mouth drops open. “I need the publicity to launch our new business.”
“Let’s just say, something dropped off a truck and I found it. I offered this something in place of the statue and a trade took place. Capisci? That’s not the kind of thing you’d want made known.”
“So what am I supposed to say?”
“You say dis. The statue was found on the rectory doorstep with an apology. Some kids took it, they’re very sorry, badda bing, badda boom. Nice chattin’ wid youz. See you Christmas Eve. Make sure to bring the bum.”
Much later, sitting with Father O’Connell and the Bishop of the New York, we tell the real story and give them Dr. Vanderhoff’s card.
“The curator said the museum would provide a replica. No one would have to know.” Sipping on tea, I pause to bite the head off a gingerbread man.
The Bishop glances at my decapitated cookie and nods. “We could keep this parish going for a long time with all that money.”
Father O’Connell paces and wrings his hands. “But it won’t weep. The miracle is what brings the whole of Brooklyn to St. Thomas’ for Christmas mass.”
“I guess, this year, you’ll need one hell of a sermon, John.” The bishop stands and slaps our priest on the back. “Besides, with the sale, you’ll need less.”
With everything all wrapped up, no pun intended, Christmas eve arrives.
Chapter Thirteen
Suds
Hoping she won’t be disappointed, I finger the fuzzy box as she dresses for Christmas Eve with her family. Sure, Vinny’s expecting a ring on her finger but damn, a man only has so much cash and I had to choose. What if I fucked up?
When she comes out, I get down on one knee and hand her my present. “Samantha, we haven’t known each other for very long but darlin’, I can’t imagine my life without you.”
Her eyes tear as she fingers the small case. “I thought we agreed, no ring.”
“Open it, sugar.” I hold my breath while she pulls out the USB drive.
Raising her brows, she plugs her gift into her computer, and reviews the file labeled, readme first.
The image appears on her screen and I point out the window on the second floor. “That, my love, is the new office of Suds and Sam.”
“Holy shit.” She squeals, jumps up and down, and into my arms.
“Hold on. There’s more.” I scroll down and open up the legal documents, my license to practice in New York, and Grayson’s Franchise agreement.
She reads through it all, beaming, her mascara running down her cheeks. “You did all this? For me? You must’ve been working on it for months.”
“Ever since you first told me you wanted to be a detective.” I wipe away her happy tears feelin’ pretty good about my choice.
“I thought you thought I was nuts.” Her lips meet mine and I kiss her like I’ve wanted to for hours.
“I did, at first, but the more you talked, the more sense it made. I want to settle down with you, make babies, and be home for dinner. My bodyguard days are numbered. I spoke with Slate and I’ll still have to take some jobs until we start making money.”
She hones in on the one document I’m most proud of. “A franchise? Of Grayson Securities? Wow. Oh my Go… ssimer. How fucking awesome is that? Wait. I want to give you your gifts, too.”
She runs into the bedroom and returns with two packages and places them in my hands, one small and one large.
“Which should I open first?”
“Big things come in small packages…”
“Not where I come from.” I glance down at my interested cock and she giggles.
“Stop. My Go… spel. You got a filthy mind.”
“And you love it.”
“I do, but later.” She places the small present on the couch and holds forth the larger which I carefully unwrap on the coffee table because it looks so nice, I hate to ruin it.
“Hurry up.” She tears into it, paper flying everywhere.
Slowly, I separate the cardboard, move aside the tissue paper and caress the soft black leather, better than anything I’ve ever owned.
“Put it on.” Smiling wide, she helps me into the garment, tailored perfectly to my dimensions, including extra room for a holster.
I think of the right thing to say. She’s on a shoestring budget and can’t afford something like this. “Babe. I love it, but-”
”You don’t like it?” Creases form by her eyes as her mouth turns down which I quickly kiss away.
“Damn. It’s perfect but it must’ve cost a small fortune.”
She beams. “You think?”
“I know.”
“Awesome. So, you like it.”
“That’s not the-”
She kisses me on the lips, eyes all alight from the small Christmas tree set up in the corner. “I made it. Well, with some help from my nonna.”
My chest grows tight as I finger the zippers, the fine stitching, and the incredible leather. I’m about to take her to the bedroom to prove it when she hands me the smaller, almost forgotten present.
“This one, I need to explain.”
I pull out a small globe that looks rather sci-fy-ish. “What is it?”
“Jason helped me. You place it by the bed and it reads your brain waves. If you’re in distress, it will signal to me to wake up so I can get clear. You don’t have to handcuff one wrist to the headboard anymore.”
My eyes fucking water as I drop my ass down on the couch. “You did this? For me?”
Holy shit. I pull her into my lap, wondering what I ever did to deserve an angel like her.
My damn throat is so tight, I can’t hardly speak. “Babe. This is positively the best Christmas ever. Do we really need to go out?”
“I suppose they could wait a few more minutes. I’ll call Aunt Marion and tell her we’re running late.”
Christmas Eve
Sam
When it starts to snow, me and Suds decide to walk to Aunt Marion’s. All bundled up, I hold onto his arm and point out amazing Christmas displays as tiny flakes sparkle in the streetlamps. It takes a lot longer than it normally does because every few blocks, we stop and kiss,
“I love you, Sebastian Sutcliffe.”
“Love you, too, sugar.”
“Maybe we should go home before it all goes to hell.” I pause at the doorbell to my Aunt’s home, thinking how my crazy family could ruin the most perfect of days.
“I was a Seal. I got this.” No one answers the ringing so we let ourselves in, pass through the crowded living room, and into the kitchen.
There, everyone starts talking at on
ce, pinching cheeks, and stuffing appetizers into my mouth. I grab Joey’s baby, Kimmy and give her a bottle while my father grills Suds about the stolen statue.
The cop in him refuses to believe the statue was stolen by kids so Suds does the thing he does that got me fired. “Well, y’all got to understand. Boys will be boys. I done some stupid shit like them and probably you did, too. What kid wants to ’fess up. Why, I must’ve stolen a dozen or more things and put ’em back just to see if I could. Now, Sister Mary, the principal? Ain’t she a hoot? She’ll straighten them out. I bet-”
“What about the Interpol thief. Why did you go to Italy? And don’t tell me it was a damn coincidence.” My dad hands my boyfriend a drink while Uncle Vinny looks on, amused.
“Y’all ever been to Rome while in love? Might be the most amazing thing in the world. We walked by the Forum, the Coliseum, and…”
“The thief? DiNapoli?”
“He wasn’t our man.”
“Coincidence?”
“Stop it, Mike. It’s Christmas.” My mom kisses me on both cheeks and does the same to Suds. “It’s good to have you here. Ignore my husband.”
She glares at Dad and at my smirking uncle, who raises his glass as he sidles up to my side.
He turns my ring hand, the one cradling the baby. “No ring, eh?”
“Dinner. Mangia, mangia, sit, sit.” Nonna comes to my rescue and grabs Sebastian’s arm. “You like the jacket-ta, Signore?”
“Si, si, grazie, bellissimo.” Suds kisses her cheeks and my grandmother blushes.
Crisis averted, I help Rose and Mia serve the pasta as the discussion moves from local gossip to a serial killer in Manhattan.
I squeeze Suds’ hand under the table. If I were still with the FBI, I’d no doubt be helping to solve the case. Every once in a while, I wish I was back but then, I wouldn’t have met my amazing boyfriend or started my own business.
While Joey argues with my dad and Suds about football, I clean up the table with the women.
A Suds and Sam Christmas Page 6
