“We have a problem, Red,” he said.
“We do?” she asked. Oh, jeez, what if he thought she’d made a pass at him and he’d decided he wasn’t interested? She was going to be so humiliated.
“Yup.” He pointed up. “Mistletoe.”
Savy glanced up. Sure enough, there it was. She smiled.
“Well, you know what to do,” she teased.
And then he was kissing her. Cupping her face between his two calloused hands, he kissed her softly as if checking to make sure it was okay. Savy liked that about him. He wasn’t grabby. He always treated her as if she was something precious. As if he understood on an elemental level that consent was sexy.
His mouth slid across hers in a sweet invitation. Savy answered with a yes. She dropped the cup in her hand and latched on to him, letting him know she was all in. She let her fingers climb up his powerful arms and shoulders to the nape of his neck, where they dug into his hair. It was just as thick and soft as she remembered. If she were a cat, she was pretty sure she’d purr.
He deepened the kiss and she met him with enthusiasm, rolling up onto her toes to be closer to him. She inhaled the particular scent of cedar and bergamot that was Joaquin and it made her dizzy. She felt the rough burn of late-night whiskers against her chin. She didn’t care. When his mouth left hers to trail across her jaw, she tipped her head to give him better access. She knew she was on shaky ground here but she didn’t seem to have the fortitude to do anything to save herself. In fact, she wasn’t sure that walking away from him was saving herself anymore.
Joaquin kissed her again on the mouth and then he released her. Savy rocked back onto her heels, feeling as if her legs were made of jelly. Had a man ever kissed her legless before? No, she was certain this was new.
He cleared his throat. “I’m thinking I should probably go home now. You’re only supposed to kiss under mistletoe but you tempt me, Red. Oh, how you tempt me.”
“Tempt you in what way?” she asked. The words flew out of her mouth before she had the good sense to stop them. She didn’t mean to flirt with him, but it was as if she couldn’t help it. The man brought out this sexy siren wannabe inside her that she hadn’t known existed before.
Up to now, her dating life had consisted of corporate types from Wall Street and Madison Avenue, who expected her to be as much of a hard-ass as they were, but with Joaquin, she was a softer version of herself. She wasn’t sure what to make of it. She wasn’t sure she liked it. But she did like the way he was looking at her right now, as if she was his everything. She’d never had a man look at her like that before.
Joaquin’s dark eyes met hers in a gaze that was so hot she was surprised sparks didn’t shoot out of her fingertips. Then he said, in a voice that was little more than a growl, “I want you, Red. I want you naked beneath me, skin to skin, while I lick every delicious inch of you. I want to feel your legs wrapped around my waist as I slide into you. And I want to feel your nails dig into my back when you call out my name while you orgasm around me. That’s how you tempt me.”
“Oh . . . wow,” she said. She felt her insides swirl down to one aching spot between her legs. She was about to grab him by the front of his jacket and haul him into the house with her, when he reached around her and opened the door. With a kiss on her head, like she was five, he gently pushed her inside and closed the door. Through the thick frosted glass, he called, “See you tomorrow, Red.”
Savannah wilted against the inside of the door. Damn, he was fine, and she knew if she got involved with him things could get ridiculously messy.
Which was exactly why she opened the door.
Chapter Ten
HE was halfway down the steps. She could have kept the door closed. She could have locked the dead bolt, gone upstairs, put on her comfy jammies, turned on a nonholiday movie, and popped some corn. She did none of those things.
“Joaquin . . . Quino, wait!”
He stopped and turned around. The look on his face mirrored how she felt. A deep hunger smoldered in his dark eyes, reaching for her.
What she said in the next few seconds would change everything between them. Either he would accept her invitation with no strings attached or he’d turn her down, leaving her feeling rejected, which was not her favorite feeling in the world. But the truth was, she was lonely and Quino was the first man who had interested her in forever.
She had lived long enough to know that the only things people usually regretted were the chances they didn’t take. Would she regret not taking a chance on this man in this moment? Yes, she would. Decision made.
“What is it, Red?” he asked. He hadn’t moved from the steps.
Savy swallowed hard and then met his bold stare with one of her own. “I didn’t get a chance to tell you that you tempt me, too.”
He didn’t move a muscle, except for one eyebrow that quirked up higher than the other as he considered her words. He was probably trying to figure out if she was inviting him in or just flirting some more. She felt the need to make her signal clear enough to be seen in a blackout.
“In other words”—she paused to clear her throat and then continued—“I want you in my bed tonight. I want to kiss every inch of your skin and sink my nails into your back when I feel you come inside of me.”
Quino staggered a bit and steadied himself by grabbing the handrail.
“Way to turn the sexy talk around on a guy,” he said. He fanned himself with one hand. “Everything went gray and I’m seeing spots. I’m gonna need a second here.”
She laughed and watched as he shook himself from head to toe, like a dog shaking water off its coat after a swim.
“Are you inviting me in?” he asked. His glance was pure heat with a sliver of hope.
“Yes,” she said.
Still he didn’t move. He licked his lips. It was a ridiculously sexy gesture.
“And if I come in, are we going to . . . ?” He trailed off as if he wasn’t sure how to fill in the blank.
Savy didn’t want to offend his delicate sensibilities, if he had any, so she said, “Fornicate?”
“Yeah, that,” he said. He looked a bit breathless.
She felt her grin spread across her lips. She knew without the aid of a mirror that it was undiluted wickedness and she didn’t try to tone it down one bit.
“Yes,” she said. That was all she got out before he came barreling at her like a bear.
She stepped back into the bookstore but he scooped her up into his arms, kissing her once, before plopping her onto the counter while he turned and locked the door. He leaned back against it with his arms crossed over his chest as if to prevent himself from touching her again. Savy smiled. It was nice to see he felt the same desire that she did. The difference was that she wasn’t going to hold back.
She crooked her finger at him and said, “Come here.”
He pushed off the door and stepped closer. He stopped just in front of her and she spread her legs wide, hooked him around the behind with her feet, and pulled him close so he was flush up against her. Ah, that was better. Then she put her arms around his neck and leaned forward, pressing her mouth against his.
“At the risk of ruining the moment with a bit of introspection,” he said as she trailed kisses along his jaw. “I have to ask why now? You’ve held me at arm’s length all these months. What changed?”
Savy didn’t want to talk. She didn’t want to get into feelings or motivations. They only made things messy and complicated. Still, she sensed her answer was important to him. She wondered if she told him the truth, that she just didn’t want to be alone tonight, if he’d be okay with that. She had no interest in a relationship but she was so tired of being alone. She knew honesty was her only option.
“I just want some company tonight,” she said.
He pulled back and looked at her. “Some company? You could get a goldfish. They’re
not even a huge commitment given their short life span.”
She laughed. “Yes, but a goldfish didn’t take me ice skating for the first time in years. A goldfish didn’t give me back a piece of myself I hadn’t known I’d lost.”
He nodded. He kept running his hands up and down her back as if to reassure himself that she was actually here in his arms. “Well, shoot, if I’d known a spin around the ice rink would convince you to give us a shot, I would have taken you skating months ago.”
“I’m not giving us a shot,” she said. “I’m giving us tonight.”
He stiffened as her meaning became clear. “Ah.”
Savy didn’t want to pressure him but she didn’t want him to have a false expectation of what this was, either. She didn’t say anything but let him process it. His hands continued moving across her back, up and down, until one slid into her hair at the nape of her neck and the other gripped her hip.
“What if you wake up tomorrow and decide one night isn’t enough?” he asked. This time he moved his mouth along her jaw, pausing at the sensitive spot just below her ear.
“Unh,” Savy grunted. He’d asked a question. What was it? She racked her brain. Oh, yeah! “That won’t happen.”
“But what if it does?” he persisted.
“I’ll just have to get over it,” she said.
“Hmm,” he hummed against the skin of her throat, and Savy felt her own vision blur.
With practiced ease, he unfastened her jacket and pushed it aside. Now his hands slid up underneath her sweater and the feel of his calloused fingers against her skin filled Savy with a restless ache. She had to get him to see the rightness of taking tonight.
She pushed his jacket off his shoulders and it dropped to the floor. She dug one hand into the hair at the nape of his neck and lifted his face so she could kiss him full on the mouth. Her kiss was thorough and deep, luring him in and holding him captive.
“What do you think?” she whispered. “Will you stay?”
“If I’m choosing between being with you now or never being with you at all,” he said, “I think my choice is obvious.” He pressed his forehead to hers and in a quiet voice said, “I choose you.”
Then he kissed her and it was everything. He lifted her up in his arms and Savy instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist. He turned and carried her to the stairs. Savy began to protest but he stopped whatever she was about to say by kissing her again. In fact, he kissed her as he strode up both flights of stairs to the third floor. He pressed her up against the wall beside her door and she was impressed to find he wasn’t even breathing heavy. She was not a petite woman.
“Are you sure?” he asked her.
With his body pressed the length of hers there was no other answer for her.
“Yes,” she said.
He released her, letting her slide down his body. To Savy it felt as if he was the match to her fuse. She took his hand in hers and pushed open her door, pulling him in after her. Mercifully, her apartment wasn’t too messy. She’d taken to picking up every evening when she didn’t have anything better to do. How sad was that?
She would have plowed straight through to her bedroom, but he stopped her. He tugged her around so she was facing him. She glanced at his face, which was inscrutable. Oh, no, had he changed his mind? Maybe this was too much for him. Maybe she was too much for him. She braced for him to kiss her head again like he had downstairs and depart.
Instead, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Had he gotten a message? She stood wondering what to do. Was the guy really going to phub her now? She started to get miffed but then music started to play out of his phone. Softly, it filled the silence and she looked at him in confusion.
“If this night is all I get,” he said, “I’m going to do everything I’ve ever thought of doing with you.” He put his phone on the coffee table and pulled her into his arms. “Dance with me.”
He’d fantasized about dancing with her? Savy thought for one second she might weep. But she took his hand and let him pull her in close while the upbeat number began to play out of his phone. He moved her around the floor in a snappy two-step, guiding her perfectly with his hand on her hip. It took a moment for the words to sink in.
“Kissin’ by the mistletoe.”
She glanced up at him in surprise. Then the singer’s voice registered and she asked, “Aretha?”
“Of course,” he said. He twirled her out and then spun her back into his arms. It was silly and romantic and Savy would have had to be made of stone not to respond to him. She wasn’t stone; more like putty, she thought. Putty in his hands, or at least she wanted to be.
She was aware of everything: the rise and fall of his chest, the warmth of his hand at the small of her back, and the cheek he rested on her hair. Her self-imposed fortress of solitude, the icy barrier she kept between herself and others, began to melt and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Not that she even tried.
The first song rolled into a second, a slower number, and this time the crooner was a man. “Baby, It’s Cold Outside,” sung by Johnny Mercer and Margaret Whiting. Savy grinned at him.
Over the music, she said, “You know, this song is considered really inappropriate these days. The man coercing the woman to stay when she says she needs to go.”
“Fair enough. Let’s flip the script. You be Johnny and I’ll be Margaret,” he said.
“I don’t think that’s any better,” she said.
But since it was her apartment and she wanted him to stay, it did fit. She lowered her voice and started to sing the Johnny Mercer part, and he laughed and then sang in a terrible falsetto with Margaret Whiting. By the time the song finished they were both laughing and any attempt to sing was lost as they struggled to breathe. Savy collapsed onto her couch, dragging him down with her in a tangle of arms and legs.
“Well, hello there,” he said, landing on top of her.
“Hi,” she breathed. When he would have moved off, she looped her arms around his neck and pulled him down. “Stay.”
He reached up with one hand and brushed a hank of hair out of her eyes. His touch was gentle, as if he was trying not to frighten her away. Savy leaned into his hand and kissed his palm. She didn’t scare that easily.
She could tell by the light in his eyes that he understood. He smiled and caught her chin in his hand. His thumb ran over her lower lip, and he seemed fascinated by the softness he found there. Then he lowered his head and kissed her. His mouth fit hers perfectly, two complimentary forces combining in a surge of energy, creating something new and magical between them. Was this what finding a soul mate felt like?
She shook the thought off. She didn’t believe in Christmas, she didn’t believe in soul mates, and she didn’t believe in happily ever afters. She believed in herself and her ability to make things happen, and right now what she wanted to happen was some spectacular sex with Joaquin. She shifted so that he was under her, then she kissed him with every bit of the desire that was coursing through her.
Thankfully, he responded by letting her have her way. She kissed him long and deep and short and sweet and then sat up while straddling him, so that she could toss off the sweater that now felt like it was suffocating her. She had a tank top on under it and he murmured his appreciation for the display of skin. But Savannah wasn’t satisfied on her end and she tugged at his ugly Christmas sweater until it went the way of hers and he was in just a T-shirt.
In a bold maneuver, he sat up and turned so that they were face-to-face and she was pressed up against him in the most intimate sense. That was not what he was after, however, as he lowered his head and let his mouth move over her exposed skin. He began at her collarbone and moved lower. He hooked a finger in her tank top and pulled it down until the swell of her breasts was revealed.
It felt as if he was drawing a line of heat across her skin. A moan sl
ipped out of her mouth and she felt him smile against her. When he snagged one cup of her bra and lowered it so he had full access, Savy thought she might pass out. Had it been that long since she’d been with anyone? She tried to do the mental math but she couldn’t think with his mouth on her, and then his hands cupped her bottom and he rolled to his feet.
Savy grabbed his shoulders and locked her legs around his waist, gasping when she felt the hard length of him against her. Pure undiluted lust shot through her and she met his gaze and said, “Now.”
“I’m right there with you, Red,” he said. Then he slid her up and down along the length of him, and Savy’s head tipped back. She seriously might orgasm right here right now. His chuckle was low and deep as if he could read her that well. The thought would have been alarming if she wasn’t lost in a deep fog of want that was making all brain function short out.
He strode toward her bedroom, which was just off the living room. She wondered how he knew which one was hers but then realized it was the one with the door open and the bed visible. He might have just been homing in on the bed. Fine with her.
He carried her all the way into the room but instead of tossing her onto the bed, he let her slide down the front of him until her feet touched the ground. Then he studied her as if trying to memorize every detail. It was sexy but also too intimate. Savy decided to distract him. She slid her hands beneath his shirt. He was all warm skin and hard muscle. She was fascinated and pushed his shirt out of the way. He helped by hauling it over his head.
One glance and she caught her breath. He was sculpted to perfection and she couldn’t resist running her fingers up his defined abs to his pecs and across his broad shoulders. No wonder he hadn’t been winded while carrying her. The man was ripped. She felt a feminine sigh of appreciation slip out of her and she tried to take it all in so she would remember him during the cold, lonely nights to come.
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