'Tis the Season for Romance

by Kristen Proby

  “Good for you.”

  “Yeah. It was good for me. I didn’t realize how much I’d missed Montana until I was here about a week, and the leaves had turned and crunched under my feet. That doesn’t happen in Arizona. I missed the change of seasons.”

  “Maybe I shouldn’t have interfered today,” Nick says as he watches me prepare the food. “But you looked uncomfortable, and I didn’t like the looks of him.”

  “It’s fine. I’m not scared of him, but I’m also not eager to chat with him, you know?”

  He laughs and nods his head, and I can’t look away from him.

  “You’re seriously beautiful when you laugh.”

  His face sobers, and he blinks at me.

  “Sorry. So, anyway, now you’re up-to-date. Jeremy Dunnigan is solidly in my past. And now, for the present, I’m going to cook up these amazing pieces of salmon and—”

  Suddenly, Nick turns me to him and lowers his mouth to mine. The kiss starts in a frenzy, but after a few moments of our lips being fused, he lightens his grip and sort of sinks into me. It’s like how they do it in the old movies, where it looks as if the guy might die if he doesn’t kiss the girl.

  I don’t think I’ve ever been kissed like this before.

  Nick’s hands roam from my shoulders up to my face, and with the lightest touch, he frames my jawline and kisses me lightly yet thoroughly.

  When he pulls back, his blue eyes are bright and pinned to mine.

  “That’s the only way I could get you to stop talking.”

  “Well.” I swallow. “I guess it worked. Of course, it can’t happen again.”

  His hands drop from my face down to my hands, and then he lets go and steps back.

  “Why not?”

  “You’re my client.”

  A half-smile tickles his lips.

  “Nina hired you, Jordan. Not me. If I had my way, I’d fire you and keep kissing you.”

  I bite my bottom lip at the thought, and his eyes shoot down to my mouth.

  “You’re not helping things,” he growls.

  “I really need this job,” I say and frown at the asparagus.

  “No one is saying you have to leave it,” he replies. “But if it makes you feel better, I’ll keep my hands to myself.”

  Well, no, that doesn’t make me feel better. Because he’s freaking hot, and that was maybe the best kiss of my entire life.

  “Is that what you want?”

  “I think, for right this minute, I want to cook dinner,” I say slowly and glance up at him. His face has relaxed, and his eyes are warm as they watch me. “Because I’m hungry. Then, we’ll take it from there.”

  “Fair enough.” He turns to walk away but then stops short. He looks back at me. “You’re safe with me, Jordan. I wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize you or your job.”

  “Thanks.” I smile and watch as he walks out of the room.

  What in the hell do I think I’m doing? I take a big sip of my wine and then fan my face. Nick leaves quite the trail of heat when he exits a room.

  Of course, it’s nothing compared to the inferno he ignites when he’s in the room.

  I’ve never thought of having an affair with a patient or client before. Of course, if I worked for the hospital or were under contract, that would be against the rules.

  But I’m not under contract. And like Nick said, I don’t work for him. I work for Nina. And even if I do kiss him once in a while, I’m still capable of doing my job.

  I push the fish and asparagus into the oven and then take a deep breath.

  The truth is, I didn’t want him to stop kissing me. And when he laughed, I thought I might melt into a puddle right on the kitchen floor.

  So, maybe I’ll just see where this goes. Perhaps it’ll go nowhere. Maybe the chemistry won’t be there, and we’ll go back to the way things were.

  And perhaps pigs will fly through the window and do the cha-cha on the dining room table.

  I smirk and finish my wine, then pour another glass.

  Who knew that moving home would prove so interesting?

  Chapter 4

  ~Nick~

  “We turned a member of the press away from the gate yesterday,” Aaron, one of the property’s security men, says. We’re about to wrap up our daily meeting at HQ.

  “Was he paparazzi?” I ask.

  “He said he was from a newspaper in Missoula,” Aaron replies, shaking his head. “But who knows for sure? I sent him on his way, of course.”

  “Is anything else going on?” I ask.

  “Princess Ellie and Liam arrive this afternoon,” Randall says. “We’ll have a full house again until after the holidays.”

  “Nina’s excited,” Sebastian says with a smile. “And Liam will most likely want to confer with you. Taking the security guard out of the man isn’t an easy task.”

  “I’ve already been in touch with him,” I add. “In fact, he’s coming down to the lake house for pizza and football this evening. Any of you are welcome to join us.”

  The other men nod, and before long, we’re wrapping up the meeting, and it’s time for me to go back to the lake house.

  It’s not that Nina’s old place isn’t nice or comfortable. But it’s not HQ. My quarters in the former guest house on the royal property are in what used to be the master bedroom. It’s large enough to consider it a studio apartment. I prefer to be onsite, to be at the ready if anything should happen.

  And I know that I’ll get back here—hopefully, sooner rather than later. But damn if it doesn’t put me in a shitty mood every time I have to leave and go back to the lake house. Because as sweet and sexy as Jordan is, I should be working.

  I pull into the driveway and walk into the house. My eyebrows climb at the blaring sound of Mariah Carey’s rendition of All I Want for Christmas is You.

  I find Jordan in the living room, singing into the head of a nutcracker as if it’s a microphone.

  Her voice, or what I can hear of it over what’s blasting through the speakers, isn’t great. But she’s confident.

  I lean my good shoulder against the doorjamb and watch with amusement as Jordan begins the choreography part of her show, pointing to the tree she added in the corner. It’s lit with small, white lights, and is about half full of ornaments.

  It appears that today is the day Jordan’s decided to decorate the house.

  She does a quick spin and, with the flick of a wrist, hangs a gold ornament on the tree, then turns and sees me.

  She doesn’t flush. She doesn’t look embarrassed or unsure of herself.

  No, she freaking throws her head back and laughs. It’s the sexiest damn sound I’ve heard in my life.

  She picks up her phone and taps the screen, and the music quiets.

  “Sorry, I didn’t see you come in. What do you think?”

  I stare at the tree, wishing she hadn’t seen me. I would have liked to keep watching the free concert.

  “Why did you put up a tree?”

  “We went over this the other day at the store,” she says and fusses with an ornament already on a branch, moving it to another location. Why? I have no idea. It looked just fine where it was. “It’s December, Nick. Or should I call you Ebenezer?”

  “It’s a waste of time,” I reply. “We’ll be out of here before Christmas, so what’s the point?”

  “You hope you’ll be out of here by Christmas,” she says, but there’s no tension in her voice. “And, in the meantime, it’s the holidays. And I like the holidays, and I have to live here, too.”

  “Suit yourself.”

  “What’s wrong with you?” she demands, her patience seemingly gone as she sets a box of ornaments down. She props her hands on her hips and scowls at me. “You’re always so unhappy. I get it, you’re pissed that you can’t work, but you were injured while doing that job. And it’s not like you’re out on the streets while you heal up. You’re in a gorgeous house, and you have freaking royalty looking out for you. I mean, it’s not ideal, bu
t it doesn’t suck that bad. So, stop sulking. And stop being so damn grumpy all the time.”

  I glare at her, irritated mostly because she’s not wrong.

  I’m being a wanker.

  And she doesn’t deserve it.

  I sigh and push my hand through my hair. I need a bloody haircut.

  “You’re right.” I glance at the tree and admit that it looks nice in the corner where the windows meet. “I’m a moody jerk since this all happened. It’s not your fault.”

  “Apology accepted.” She grins and goes back to the task at hand.

  Just like that, I’m forgiven.

  Who is this woman? She’s unlike anyone I’ve ever met before. I should stay out of her way, but I enjoy being with her.

  And let’s not forget that she’s the sexiest thing on two legs. I can’t say the petite type has ever turned my head before. I usually go for curvier women, but something about Jordan has every nerve ending in my body standing up to take notice.

  “Oh, look what I found,” she says as she hustles over to a grocery bag sitting in front of the fireplace. She whips out two stockings. “They have our names on them!”

  I blink at the oversized socks. Sure enough, Jordan and Nick are embroidered in red. They’re both red with green at the top. Hers has a reindeer on the front, and mine has a Santa.

  They’re ridiculous.

  And kind of cute.

  “You hate it,” she says. Her expression falls, and she stares down at my stocking. “I think they’ll look so cute on the mantel.”

  “I don’t hate it,” I reply. I don’t want to be a jerk anymore today. If this ridiculous shite makes her happy, then I should let her have it.

  It’s no skin off my nose.

  But if she wants to blare Mariah Carey every day, we’re going to have a conversation.

  “I’ll start dinner after I finish decorating the tree,” she says.

  “Actually, why don’t you take the night off?”

  She glances at me in surprise.

  “At the store the other day, your cousin asked you to have drinks. You should go do that.”

  “I’m working,” Jordan replies.

  “And I’m giving you the night off.”

  She laughs. “You just said yesterday that I work for Nina. Not you. So, you can’t give me the night off.”

  “Take it anyway,” I reply and reach out to brush my finger over a loose curl by her ear. “Liam’s in town, and he’s coming by tonight for pizza and football. You probably don’t want to hang out for that.”

  She wrinkles her nose, and I want to kiss it.

  But I don’t.

  “Yeah, no. That doesn’t sound like fun to me. If you’re sure?”

  “I’m sure.”

  “Well, okay. But if you need anything, I won’t be far. Sid lives in one of the condos less than a mile from here.”

  “I won’t need anything,” I reply. “Have fun.”

  But not too much fun.

  Not that it’s any of my business. I’ve kissed her once. It’s not like I have a claim to her. The fact that the thought of another man putting his hands on her makes me homicidal is purely my problem.

  She grins and reaches for her phone, tapping the screen, then turns back to the tree. “I can’t leave without finishing these ornaments. It would drive me nuts to leave it half done.”

  Her phone lights up, catching her attention.

  “Looks like I’m on with Sidney in a couple of hours. I feel like I’m playing hooky.”

  “You’re not,” I reply. “Have fun.”

  She grins, and it’s a shot to my heart. This woman has cast some kind of spell on me. “Thanks.”

  “I’ll see you later.”

  I walk out of the room before I do something monumentally stupid like strip her bare and take her right there on the living room floor in front of the fireplace.

  She didn’t turn me away yesterday. But she was confused, and I won’t make another move unless she makes it crystal clear that it’s what she wants.

  It’ll be good to have her out of the house for a few hours. It’ll be great to see Liam and unwind.

  “It should have been me,” Liam says before taking a massive bite of his pizza.

  “Pretty sure your wife would be damn pissed if you took a bullet,” I reply.

  Liam was the head of security at the royal Montana estate. Until Ellie came and spent time here early last summer, and the two fell hard and fast for each other. Now, Liam’s a prince, and Randall took over Liam’s old job.

  “It hasn’t been easy,” Liam admits.

  “What hasn’t?”

  “Adjusting. Going from what we do to having other duties. I work closely with law enforcement in London now, and there are jobs I can do, but it’s not quite the same.”

  “Do you regret it?”

  “Not for a second,” he says and snatches up another slice. “Ellie’s the best thing that ever happened to me. I don’t know what I’d do without her. I’d be a miserable pain in the ass, that’s for sure.”

  “Sometimes, you still are.”

  He laughs. “Yeah, well. I don’t regret her. I just miss the job at times. And the way it all went down last month left a bad taste in my mouth.”

  “My shoulder isn’t super happy about it either,” I reply. “But it’s healing, and we’ll be back to normal soon enough.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure you’re perfectly content being here with a babysitter, rather than where you’re supposed to be.”

  “Fuck, no. I want to get back to work. But I can’t change any of it.”

  “Good point.” He looks up at the screen. We have the game on but muted so we can talk. “Is the job still what you want?”

  “What kind of question is that?”

  “After the injury, and given some of the shit we saw this summer, are you still content?”

  “Yeah, it’s what I want. It’s what I know. And I’m fucking good at my job. Nina’s safest when she’s with me.”

  “There’s no doubt about that,” Liam agrees. “I’m just checking in. It’s not an easy gig. Not everyone is cut out for it.”

  “There’s nothing else I’m cut out for.”

  “Tell me about the girl. I passed her in the driveway. She’s a little thing.”

  “She’s a tiny bulldog,” I mutter. “She may be small, but she doesn’t put up with much, and she’s damn strong.”

  “Have to admire that,” he says. “And she’d have to be strong to put up with you.”

  I smirk. “Yeah, well, she put me in my place today. I’ve been a surly prick, and she told me to pull my head out of my arse”

  “I like her already.” Liam laughs. “Anything else going on there?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Interesting choice of words.”

  “She’s great,” I admit. “And I’m not usually one to mix business with pleasure. But I like her.”

  Liam nods. “I’m glad. It would suck if she grated on your nerves.”

  “Well, she does that, too,” I reply, thinking back to the Mariah Carey concert earlier. “But she’s here for a while. She’s having drinks with her cousin tonight.”

  “Needed a break, did you?”

  “Yeah, actually. Because I like her, and I’m not going to push myself on her.”

  “So, you chose to hang out with me.” He presses his hand to his heart. “Aw. I’m touched.”

  “I’m rethinking that decision.”

  Liam laughs again and tosses his crust back into the pizza box. “You missed me when I was gone.”

  “Maybe. There have been lots of new faces lately. How long are you two staying?”

  “Until after New Year’s. Then, we’ll head back with Sebastian and Nina. And, hopefully, you.”

  “From your mouth to God’s ears, my friend.”

  Chapter 5

  ~Jordan~

  “Extra salt on mine,” I say as Sidney lines the rim of a glass for our margaritas.


  “How do people drink ‘ritas without salt?” she asks as she follows suit with a second glass and then holds them out for me to fill.

  I pour the blended goodness into our glasses, add a straw to each, and then Sidney leads me to her living room. She sits on her couch, and I curl up in a chair across from her, sipping my tart drink.

  “These are seriously delicious.”

  She smiles and dips a chip into the guacamole.

  I frown at the little designer handbag sitting on her coffee table. “What, exactly, do you use that for? It’s not big enough to actually be a purse.”

  “It’s a clutch,” she says around another chip. “A conversation piece. And it’s big enough for a credit card, a bit of cash, and some lipstick.”

  “And a condom,” I add with a sly smile. “Don’t forget that.”

  Sidney giggles and sips her margarita. “It’ll totally hold a condom. Not that I need one lately. Boys are dumb.”

  “Totally dumb.”

  My lips are starting to tingle, and I’m only halfway through my first drink.

  I’m a lightweight.

  “Speaking of idiot boys, tell me about Jeremy.”

  I scowl into my tequila concoction. I was diplomatic when I spoke about my ex-boyfriend to Nick. I don’t have to be quite so nice with Sidney.

  “Well, it turns out, he’s a dick.”

  She smirks. “Honey, Jeremy was always a dick, going all the way back to high school.”

  “But he wasn’t a dick to me,” I reply. “It was a bad couple of years. He got more and more controlling.”

  I tell her about the last big blowup, where he smacked me across the face, sending me into the dining room wall.

  “Motherfucker. I’ll take his balls off the next time I see him,” Sidney says.

  “Anyway, I honestly don’t care about him. I saw him at the gym the other day and felt nothing. I don’t even feel sorry for him. I mean, I don’t wish bad things on him, but I just don’t care.”

  “Why would you? He’s a dick.” She walks into the kitchen and retrieves the pitcher of margaritas and refills our glasses. “Okay, enough about him. He’s ruining this pleasant buzz I have going.”