Rock This Christmas

by Mia Madison

  The old carousel is lovely but mobbed. Hallie waits patiently between us. When she slips her free hand into mine again, I look above her head at Noel who smiles gratitude toward me.

  “I don’t think I can swing this old leg of mine over that horse,” he tells Hallie.

  “That’s okay,” she says. “Lana and I will be fine so long as you stay close and watch us.”

  “There’s nothing in the world I’d rather be doing,” he says with a grin in my direction.

  Hallie and I ride the carousel three times and then we go for hot chocolate with double marshmallow on top. Screw the diet.

  It seems so natural to be with Noel and his daughter, I keep forgetting that we aren’t the happy family everyone seems to think we are and I have to go back to my crowded shared apartment at the end of this.

  When we emerge from the cafe onto Fifth Avenue, it’s started snowing again. A man in a Santa Claus outfit emerges from the subway station to Hallie’s delight. She seems fine so I have to wonder how much of what Noel said about her not communicating was true.

  “I suppose I’d better be going,” I say.

  “Oh can’t you come home and have dinner with us,” Hallie begs. “Please can she, daddy?”

  “Of course she can, so long as she understands my skills in the kitchen are limited,” he says.

  He throws me a look over top of the little girl skipping along between us that sends heat to all the places it shouldn’t. I know I shouldn’t be falling under this guy’s spell. That it’s just the whole Christmas vibe with sparkles and happy families everywhere. But I can’t seem to stop myself.

  10

  Lana

  We walk back down Fifth Avenue, hitting the crowds of shoppers as soon as the Park ends at Fifty-Ninth. There are no empty taxis to be found.

  Noel lifts Halliday up onto his shoulders again.

  “Can you imagine being at her level being bashed around by shopping bags and knees?” he says.

  I’m warmed by how thoughtful he can be at putting himself in another person’s shoes.

  “No and I can only imagine how hard this is to navigate through the crowds with a broken leg,” I say.

  He shrugs it off and even smiles graciously every time someone knocks into him. I’m amazed at how strong he is.

  Halliday squeals when we reach the tree at Rockefeller Plaza.

  “Look Lana,” she says.

  “Isn’t it pretty?”

  “Can we go skating?” she pleads, then remembers, “Silly me, daddy can’t skate now. He’d fall down and break the other leg.”

  “I can’t skate at all,” I admit. “Not much ice in N’Awlins.”

  “I’ll teach you,” Noel says.

  I look up at him about to say I won’t be around by the time his leg heals for that, but his eyes catch mine and hold them like a baseball in a mitt. Don’t break this moment he seems to be saying.

  So I don’t.

  Halliday is enchanting and her father seems so grateful that she’s come out of her cave. It’s lovely to have this time with a real family and not feel so alone. I want it to be like this always too but I know, we both know, it’s just a Christmas fantasy. Come New Year we’ll both be back to the reality of a grayer life.

  We three are packed tight together by a surge in the crowd as tourists push forward to snap selfies with the tallest Christmas Tree in the world. When a mass movement jostles us and I’m pressed momentarily into his chest, Noel wraps a protective arm around me. He holds me close and I don’t resist. It’s so good to settle against the strength of him. I can only imagine how powerful he must be when he isn’t injured.

  The crowd squeezes a little tighter and my left breast crushes into his chest. A spark like lightning jaggers through my body, landing right between my thighs. His torso is so solid I surreptitiously press into him a little more before I realize what I’m up to. Noel looks down and his eyes are twinkling like the lights on the tree.

  Oh god, what’s happening?

  Everything seems to stop around us. The lights surrounding me blur into bubbles of color as I fall into his gaze. His arm squeezes a little tighter around me so I arch my back and tilt my head higher. His mouth is mere inches from mine and his eyes both ask and insist. He wants another kiss.

  I want his mouth claiming mine as well. This time I need his tongue pushing into me, exploring me, feeding me his emotion. I’m completely thrown by the rage of desire in my core, the heat pouring through my pores. The hunger rampaging through my body is unbearable. I want to bury my entire face into his skin and inhale his woodsy masculinity.

  Images flash across my mind, rendering me even more needy. Of his hands running down the length of my ribcage then back up to grasp my breast and squeeze this yearning until I cry out for more of him. Of Noel over me, his body caging me in. Of his mouth covering mine and exploring the deep recesses. Of his hands pulling my thighs apart giving him access to push inside me.

  They all burn at my skin and are overwhelming enough that my legs feel wobbly. If we weren’t’ compressed into this crowd and his powerful arm wasn’t hooking my weight easily, I’d surely melt down into a puddle on the ground.

  Inch by inch, his face comes closer to mine. His hot breath lands lightly on my lips, perking them up to part and get ready for the pressure of his landing. My eyelashes flutter, flakes of snow are catching on the ends. His arm pulls me a little tighter so now both breasts push into his chest wall. It must be the constriction of his grasp that halts my inhalation. I’m falling.

  “Lana?” a questioning voice blasts into my reverie.

  I startle and look around to see Kaila and Lolo staring at me - at us. Their eyes slide over in unison to Noel and I see them realize it’s him. It’s hard for them to stifle their smirks. What happened to the crowd? It melted away from pushing Noel and I together. We were glued of our own accord with no one hiding us, exposed on the plaza.

  I have to wriggle my way out of Noel’s hold, which he seems reluctant to release.

  “I thought you were going to the chiropractor,” Lolo says, smugly.

  “No, she was going to kiss Daddy,” Halliday pipes up from up on Noel’s shoulders.

  Ohmigod how did we forget she was up there, watching everything? That was so irresponsible.

  “You interr-ucted them,” she says with a serious little frown.

  “Oh we’re sooo sorry,” Kaila says with a snicker. “See you later, Lana.”

  They dash off arm in arm, not even bothering to hide their laughter. The gossip will be around the entire cast and crew before the next show.

  “I should go,” I stutter.

  This is crazy. I’m going to be a laughing stock. Plus there’s a sad little girl to consider.

  “Not yet,” Hallie says. “You have to eat your dinner.”

  She pats my head lightly. She seems so happy to be in a family type unit today I don’t want to take that away from her.

  Noel is still looking at me. He hasn’t shifted his gaze, not even when the two dancers busted in on us. It’s easy for him not to be bothered. He’s not the one that’s going to be teased night and day.

  I can’t think of the way to extricate myself without hurting Halliday and then I don’t have to. Noel throws an arm around my shoulder and, enveloping me tight against the side of his chest, leads us out of the plaza.

  He walks all the way, on one leg, with Halliday on his shoulders and not leaning his weight on me at all. The man is a powerhouse of strength and energy. All the way down Fifth, my pussy clenches and hums with need. Noel’s house is on the same street where he landed at my feet, his house right in front of the same spot.

  I resist the urge to ask what happened that day. Maybe he was grief stricken by his wife’s death enough to jump. I don’t want to open that can of worms for him but I also have to protect myself. I have no idea how to deal with that much depression. Seasonal emotions or not, I feel like I’m falling for this guy and he’s on the rebound or seeking an in
stant replacement. Neither of which is a healthy option.

  We go into the brownstone, up the stairs. The second floor is a huge open plan room with a gorgeous kitchen across the wall at one end and an island in front. Noel heads straight there and opens cupboards to drag out ingredients while Halliday runs to her room to tell her dolls about her day.

  “Thank you,” Noel says as he cuts tomatoes.

  “For what?”

  “She’s a different kid today. She’s hardly said a word since her mother died and today she’s her normal, slightly precocious self.”

  “She’s gorgeous,” I say.

  “I think so too,” Noel agrees, grinning. “You’re gorgeous too in a whole different way.”

  “Noel I…” I start, but he cuts me off.

  “I know this is fast, Lana. And you’re probably still mad at me for running out on you when I got the news that Samantha was dead.”

  Now it’s my turn to ‘interr-uct’.

  “That happened then? That night?”

  Shit this is worse than I thought. He’s a very recent widower.

  “Yeah, I got the call to come collect my daughter, That my ex had been in a car crash with one of her lovers.”

  Ex?

  “Yeah, you can’t imagine I’d have left you and my chance to get to know you more - again,” he grins. “Unless Halliday needed me.”

  “No. Of course.”

  Ex?’

  “Had you been divorced long?”

  “Almost five years,” he says. “We never clicked. I gave it a shot for Halliday’s sake but I guess I wasn’t ready. No child deserves to grow up with hostility and endless fighting. That’s gotta be worse than a separated family.”

  “Definitely,” I say a little too vehemently.

  “You’re divorced?”

  “No, I’ve never been married,” I say, popping a veggie he’s started chopping into my mouth. “I’m the Halliday in my family. My Mom died when I was young.”

  “I’m sorry, Lana.”

  “My dad remarried and there was a lot of fighting anyway.”

  “I’m sorry again. That sounds rough.”

  “My dad died this year so…” That’s it, my lips start stuttering and without my realizing, tears are pouring.

  How he moves so fast I have no clue, but Noel is right here, pulling me into his hold. I go hard against his broad solid chest and nestle down into the safety of the solid wall and his strong arms encircling me.

  I rest there for an age and still don’t want to move. Ever. He lifts my chin up to look at him. Tears are still rolling down my cheeks but I want this more. His mouth crashes down over mine and I fall into the oblivion of desire.

  11

  Noel

  My mouth crashes onto Lana’s soft lips. I plunge my tongue into her, swirling around every corner in a dance with hers. I want to sweep everything off the island countertop and lift her onto it so she’s spread out like a buffet and I can select from every part of her until I’ve tasted them all.

  But I know I have to restrain my intense hunger and the desire to ravage her body. I’m not free to do whatever I want with a woman now. My first responsibility has to be to Halliday, but that doesn’t stop me exploring Lana’s mouth and holding her in my arms, one hand cupping her head to show her how much I want to support her.

  She responds to my kiss with equal hunger, pressing her tits into my chest. I imagine her hard nipples standing up on my buffet, how I’d lick across each one and pinch it between my lips. She must feel the hard bulge of me pressing into her hip, but she doesn’t resist.

  We break apart finally, before our lust overwhelms us. We stand at the counter and haul at the air as we hold gazes in a state of shock at the intensity of one kiss.

  “I wasn’t wrong,” I finally croak out. “I thought maybe the first one was a pain-induced hallucination but it was entirely real. You’re the…”

  “Daddy, I’m so hungry, can I have a snack please,” a small voice emerges from the hallway.

  Lana and I leap away from each other guiltily. Our hands knock together as we both try to get busy with dinner prep.

  “Here, take a carrot stick,” I tell Hallie, lifting her onto a stool at the counter. She wrinkles her nose so adorably I have to laugh.

  “Let me see if there’s anything good to dip that in,” Lana says.

  She always knows just what to say.

  “I’m not that sophisticated with my grocery shopping,” I admit.

  “Well let’s see, there’s yogurt and just a little of this ranch dressing.”

  Lana mixes the two together and presents a little bowl to Hallie who dips cautiously then gorges the whole thing down, including the avocado slices Lana cuts for her.

  “Where did you come from?” I look at her in amazement.

  “She came down from the stars to take care of us,” Hallie says, munching her celery stick which she never eats, until now.

  Lana suddenly looks awkward.

  “I should go,” she says, looking around for something to prove her point.

  “You should stop saying that, Lana,” Hallie tells her, swinging her legs on the high stool.

  Seeing my little girl this happy makes me even more sure about Lana.

  “Yes you really should, Lana,” I add, grinning at her. “You don’t have to be anywhere right?” I add, meaning her shows are done for the day.

  “Don’t you have a daddy?” Hallie asks.

  “Hallie, sweetie…” I say gently.

  “It’s okay. I’m okay now,” Lana interrupts.

  She tosses me a look, letting me know that’s thanks to me. I guess my restraint had benefits tough as it was. Maybe me holding her so tenderly and securely while she cried has relieved her fear of talking about the loss of her dad.

  “My dad is also up in the stars,” she tells my daughter with gentle honesty.

  “Are you sad?” Hallie demands, looking at her in wonder, like she’s found a soul mate. I know the feeling. I had it the first time I met Lana too.

  “Yes I’m very sad, but I’m happy also for all the good things he and I did together and all the love he gave me.”

  “I’m happy for that too,” Hallie says. “Thank you Daddy.”

  Holy fuck, I’m going to lose it.

  Lana looks at me and sees that I’m a little choked up. She reaches out to squeeze my hand.

  “And we’re going to go visit Santa Claus and then buy our very own tree to put lights and things on,” Hallie says, getting excited.

  “Let’s take one day at a time sweetie,” I tell her.

  I see a ton of emotions running through Lana, one of which is she’s starting to freak. The last thing I want is to scare her off with too many needs. Instant domesticity was never my thing either.

  “I never had a Christmas tree in my house before,” Hallie tells her and I see Lana’s heart melt again.

  She looks at me with a shy smile and my own heart lifts.

  Together we finish preparing dinner while Hallie sits at the counter chattering like I’ve never heard her before, even before her mother’s passing. The day’s excitement finally hits her and she passes out with her head on the table in the middle of dessert. I carry her to her room and when I come back Lana is standing in the middle of the open plan living room with her coat on. All her scarves wrapping around her neck like a barricade.

  “I really should go,” she whispers. “Have to. Go.” Her voice breaks as she sees me slowly walk towards her, shaking my head ‘no’ adamantly.

  “You have to stop saying that, remember?” I unwind one of the scarves slowly, taking my time and relishing how the speed of her breathing picks up.

  “Noel, we shouldn’t,” she mewls.

  I drop the scarf to the floor and work on the second one as her eyes stretch up to mine and I see the hunger in them.

  I unbutton her cardigan and the shirt underneath. Her bra is a dark purple gauze and the nipple is pushing hard through the transparent
fabric. I roll it between my thumb and forefinger making her gasp for breath, then lean down and bite it lightly but hard enough to make her grab my biceps.

  “Still think we shouldn’t?” I husk, even I can hear the lust in my own voice.

  “Hallie,” she whimpers, her fingers digging into the muscle.

  “Is passed out cold. Plus I put the monitor on. We’ll hear her.”

  “You thought of everything,” she whimpers, her hand reaching down to clasp my hip and then slide around to my aching bulge.

  “You’re all I’ve thought of since the day I fell out of that window behind you. And now that I have you I’m going to lick every inch and fold of your perfect body until you beg me to never stop.”

  “Never,” she murmurs then throws her head back as I pull the clothes off her shoulders along with her bra straps so her tits bounce free.

  “I’d really like to ravish you right now but I don’t want this to be over. This first time of unwrapping my gorgeous gift.”

  “How will we -“

  I guess she’s thinking how a man with a broken leg is going to fuck her but I cover her mouth with mine and slam my tongue inside her, more forcefully than before, my hungry need for her apparent. Her hands cup my jaw to pull me deeper into her. Our tongues entwine and tug closer.

  Then we’re suddenly thrown into a frenzy of desire, clawing at the remainder of clothes, hands everywhere, pinching, squeezing. I’ve never needed a woman this bad. My dick is throbbing hard in my pants. I mound both her tits in my fists and when we pull apart, gasping for air, I lean in to push them up to my tongue. I suck the erect points into my lips until they stretch out further, then I lap across the bulging little tip until Lana trembles.

  Lana’s jeans are easy to tear open and much as I’d love to get on my knees to rip them off her then part her thighs and bury my face between them, this plaster cast is preventing me.

  “Fuck, you taste good,” I tell her. “I’m going to eat every little morsel of you.”

  She’s tearing at my zipper and then she has it loose and my cock leaps free. Her face takes on a soft lust as she looks at my pulsating wood then wraps both hands around it. I let out a groan as she slides up and down the length. My climax is looming hard so I bat her hand away, needing more. I pick her up so she wraps her thighs around my pelvis and her wetness glides across my burning shaft like a balm.