A Christmas Duet : Two Contemporary Tales of Holiday Romance

by Amy Lamont

  “Guess that’s a yes.”

  I quickly busied myself with taking off my coat and hanging it on the hook in the entry. I grabbed Will’s as he shed it and did the same. I took my time kicking off my shoes and lining them up against the baseboard under the coat hooks.

  No matter how much I wished I could avoid facing Will’s reaction to my tiny digs, there was only so long I could pretend to be occupied with coats, shoes, and bags. So I sucked in a breath, pulled up my big girl panties, and tugged him past the entry.

  My apartment was far from the trendy lofts or luxury high-rises so many people thought of in this part of Brooklyn. Standing in my living room, you could see the entire place in a quick glance. This room was large enough for my small gray couch, the television sitting on a narrow entertainment stand, and a tiny bistro table and two chairs that served as dining room table and desk for me.

  On one side of the room, an open pocket door led to the bedroom. The queen-sized bed took up most of the space with only enough room left over for a single nightstand. The bed was pushed into the corner so one side was up against the wall, leaving just enough room to maneuver from the bed to the bathroom.

  On the other side of the living room, half a wall made up my kitchen. Actually it was a kitchenette. The sink, stovetop, cabinets, and half-sized fridge were all one unit. And one of the ways I’d been able to negotiate the rent to a lower than average price for the neighborhood was I’d agreed to add the kitchenette myself.

  While it might be small, it was mine. My refuge. I’d done my best to make it homey. The walls were painted in pale hues of blue and green. I’d added colorful pillows, throws, and a fabulous area rug.

  But my favorite parts of the place were the walls I’d hand painted. On the wall behind the sofa, I’d painted a garden full of trees and flowers. And in my bedroom, instead of a headboard, I’d painted a doorway open to a lush countryside.

  I worried my bottom lip between my teeth and slowly turned my eyes up to see Will’s reaction. His eyes were fastened on my painted garden, his jaw slack and his lips slightly parted.

  After several long minutes where I resisted the urge to fidget and chew on my thumbnail, he turned to me.

  “Did you paint that?”

  I nodded.

  “It’s incredible. I was already blown away by how beautiful and funny you are, but this…” He shook his head. “This is unreal. You’re so talented.”

  My cheeks heated and pleasure bloomed in my chest at his words. “Thank you.”

  “Why are you bartending instead of doing this for a living?”

  I laughed. “I wish it were that easy. I do make most of my living from my art.” I gestured to my computer set up on the table in the corner. “I do some graphic design and every once in a while I get a commission to paint something like this.” I gestured to the wall behind the couch. “Or the one in my bedroom.”

  I pointed and Will wandered to the open door. He stood transfixed as he took it in.

  Then he turned to me, “Holy shit. That’s incredible. I’ve never seen anything like that.”

  I shrugged and fought down the urge to make a sarcastic comment, my usual response to compliments about my work. While I might be able to blow off anyone else’s words with a casual retort, for some reason Will’s reaction was important to me. It meant a lot to me that he saw value in my art.

  “I can’t believe you aren’t booked solid to paint murals like that.” He tipped his chin toward the bedroom. Then he gave me a speculative look. “I know a lot of people in different industries, Lily. I’d be happy to introduce you to a few of them in the city. You’d have jobs lined up for the next ten years.”

  My heart sped up and anxiety twisted through my stomach. I curled my hands together, holding on tight. I could only imagine the type of people Will came into contact with—celebrities, designers, agents and billionaires, to name a few. I had no doubt if he introduced me to someone, they’d give me a job or two to appease the rock star.

  But what happened when Will lost interest in me? No way would I set up my business based on my connection to him or anyone else. I wanted more than anything to be able to make a living with my art, but being employed at someone else’s whim put me in too precarious a position. I wouldn’t set myself up to lose everything if the guy who liked me right this second decides to drop some nasty words about me in the same ears a few months from now.

  No way could I explain all that to Will. I did my best to just shrug his offer away. “Thanks. I’ll have to give that some thought.”

  His brow wrinkled and he took a step closer to me. “I mean it. You’re really amazingly talented.”

  I couldn’t fight the broad smile that grew at his words if I wanted to.

  “Thank you,” I said softly and took a step closer to him, placing my hands on his chest. “It means a lot to me that you think so.”

  Jeez. I wanted to take the words back as soon as they left my mouth. What was it about Will Canter that made me blurt stuff like I’d been hit with a truth serum? Part of me wanted to cover with some snark, but a bigger part of me liked the way he was smiling down at me right this moment. And that part of me didn’t want to do anything that would pop our bubble.

  Will stepped a little closer to me, his arms going around my waist, pulling me tight to his body. I shifted my hands from his chest to loop around his neck.

  “I think I made you a promise,” he said.

  I tipped my head to the side. “You did?”

  Dear Lord. Who on earth did that breathless voice belong to?

  Oh, yeah. That would be me. Guess I wouldn’t be getting any trophies for playing things cool tonight.

  Will’s grin widened as if he knew exactly what was going on in my head. At this point, it wouldn’t surprise me a bit. I mean, I was standing in my teeny, tiny apartment above a diner in Brooklyn, being held in the arms of one of the most famous rock stars on the planet. I don’t think I’d be shocked if a unicorn stepped out of the garden I’d painted on my wall and into the center of the living room. That would be pretty much par for the course for tonight.

  “What’s going through that head of yours?” he asked.

  “Aside from the promise I seem to have forgotten?”

  He nodded.

  “Unicorns.”

  He blinked, once and then again. And then he burst out laughing and clutched me in his arms. And before I had a chance to do anything else, Will’s mouth crashed down on mine in a kiss that blew every other kiss I’d received in my entire life right out of the water.

  He captured my mouth with a fierce possession that took my breath away. His lips molded to mine in a way that sent tingles through my body. He used the tip of his tongue to tease my lips apart, and the moment I opened to him, he plunged inside to taste me.

  I moaned into his mouth and tightened my arms around his neck. Not one to sit on the sidelines, I met his tongue with my own, teasing and tasting until I shook with desire for more.

  He wrenched his mouth from mine, and it was all I could do to hold back a whine of protest. His gaze held mine with a warmth that told me the cessation of activities wouldn’t last long.

  “Now you know I make good on my promises,” he said.

  I shook my head, still not remembering his promise, and knowing with the way my wits had scattered to all the corners of the universe after that kiss, there was little chance I’d recall it now.

  “At the party,” he explained. “I promised to kiss you. Soon.”

  “Oh. Yeah. That promise.” I offered him a sultry smile. “I’d definitely say you made good on that. So, so good.”

  He bent his head like he was going to start kissing me again, but a twinge of doubt surged through me. My life had taught me one too many times that anything that seemed too good to be true would inevitably prove itself too good to be true.

  “I…I don’t really get what’s going on here.”

  “Well, I was planning on putting my mouth on yours and k
issing you again. Maybe tasting a few other spots that have been tempting me all night.” He bent and pressed a soft kiss to the top of my shoulder, left mostly bare by the asinine Santa dress.

  My eyes dropped closed. That felt so incredibly good. I turned my head to put my cheek against his and whispered, “I don’t normally dress like this. It’s part of the job tonight. I usually wear jeans and sneakers and grungy T-shirts.”

  He chuckled close to my ear making me shiver. “Me, too.”

  “I didn’t grow up in a place anything like the place we were tonight.”

  “You mean the penthouse?” He snorted. “Not too many people grow up like that. Hell, I grew up in a cookie cutter house in the suburbs. The only way to tell them apart was the paint color.”

  “Did you live there your whole life?”

  “Yeah, my parents retired down south now, but we lived there from the time I was born until the band hit the big time and I could help them buy their retirement home.”

  “That’s nice.” I smiled at him. “You’re nice.”

  “I’m about to be very nice to you, if you let me.” He placed a few butterfly brush kisses along my jawline.

  My mind went to war. One-night stands were not my thing. I’d tried it and found, no matter how I tried to leave my emotions out of it, at the end of things when a guy rolled out of bed and got up, got dressed and went home, I couldn’t help but feel used.

  On the other hand, comparing the feelings I’d experienced with those few guys with what I’d been feeling for Will since the moment I spotted him earlier tonight was like comparing a puddle to a tsunami. Of course, the tsunami would have a lot more power to do damage to me.

  But looking up at Will now, the soft look on his face, the warmth in his eyes, I couldn’t help but want the tsunami to sweep me away.

  I didn’t know my answer for sure until I opened my mouth and the words came out. “I want you to be nice to me,” I whispered. “And I want to return the favor.”

  Chapter 5

  Lily

  Will didn’t have to be told twice. Even faster than he did it earlier, he swept me right off my feet and into his arms. He took the few steps to my bed and deposited me on top of my green floral comforter.

  “I know this is something people usually work up to, but there’s something I have to do,” he said as he stared down at me intently.

  Oh, boy. Was I ready for whatever Will Canter wanted to do to me?

  Every nerve cell in my body, along with some of my more private girly bits, jumped up and answered with a resounding yes.

  “Okay,” was the only word I managed to get out and I could feel my eyes grow wide as soon as it left my mouth.

  Will gave me a wicked grin. Then he abruptly stuck his hands up under my dress. I gasped. Not exactly what I’d been expecting.

  He hooked his fingers over the top of my stockings and made fast work of pulling them down my legs and tossing them aside. “Not that you didn’t look totally hot in these tonight. But I have a feeling fishnet isn’t my t-shirt and jeans girl’s favorite thing.”

  At his words, something inside me softened, melted, eased. Something I didn’t even realize was there before his simple words turned it into a puddle. “They’re definitely not my favorite wardrobe item.”

  He eased his body down beside me on the bed and kissed me—slow and soft and sweet. My eyes drifted closed and my arms crept around his neck.

  He pulled back and his fingers toyed with the strap of my dress. “How about this? Is this a favorite?”

  I shook my head and he slid the strap off my shoulder before he leaned down and kissed the skin he bared. He did the same thing on the other side, leaning across me so I could feel the weight of his body pushing me into the mattress.

  His mouth returned to mine and I relished the feel of him pressing me down, his chest against my breasts, his lips and tongue nipping and licking and tasting me. Nothing I’d done with any other man—not one thing—compared to how it felt to kiss Will Canter. If we didn’t go even one step further, this would still rate as the best sexual experience of my life.

  I moaned into his mouth and he wrapped a hand in my hair, holding my mouth to his. And I knew I definitely didn’t want to stop this at kissing.

  As if he heard my thought, Will moved to frame my face in his hands and pulled his mouth away to stare down at me. He studied me for several moments. “You’re so beautiful.”

  I searched his eyes for any signs he was lying or feeding me a line. But all I saw was warmth and desire. All of that for me.

  I traced a finger along his jaw and over his lips. “You, too.”

  His smile burrowed its way down deep into me. If after all was said and done, he rolled away, got dressed, and left, I’d still hold that smile of his in my heart.

  “This is crazy,” I whispered.

  “As crazy as a shot to the chest or a poleax to the gut,” he whispered back.

  I giggled. “What?”

  He shook his head. “Nothing. Something I thought was a bunch of nonsense until the second I laid eyes on you.”

  He didn’t take time to explain that baffling statement before he leaned in and kissed me again. His hands slid behind my back and found the zipper to my dress. I pushed my chest into his to give his hands room to work, and in seconds he was slipping the zipper down and then the dress followed, sliding down my body and tossed into a pile with my stockings.

  His eyes came to mine, and for the first time in my life, I had an attack of shyness. With my shoes, dress and stockings gone, I laid beneath him wearing nothing but a pair of lacy, black panties. I’d always liked my curves. But Will had spent time with women who way outclassed me—supermodels and actresses and wealthy women who spared no expense in caring for their bodies.

  For the first time in my life, I was anxious about measuring up.

  I needn’t have worried. His gaze traveled from my eyes and slowly down, over my breasts, my belly, my hips and back up again. When his eyes returned to mine, they burned. I knew before he spoke exactly how he felt about my body.

  “You’re gorgeous, sweetheart.” His voice was low and hoarse, exposing his need for me. “Like you were made for me.”

  I lifted up and kissed him at the same time moving my hands to his shirt. I’d like to say I removed his shirt as seamlessly as he removed my dress. But my hands shook and I fumbled with the buttons.

  In the end, though, I got the job done. Pushing his shirt off his shoulders felt like unwrapping the best Christmas present I’d ever been given. And allowing my hands to travel over his hard chest and his rippling abs felt like heaven.

  He groaned as I ran my hands to the waistband of his jeans. “You need to take these off.”

  He caught my bottom lip between his teeth and then kissed me hard and fast before he jumped up to do my bidding. In seconds, he’d stripped out of his shoes, belt and jeans and stood in front of me in only a pair of dark gray boxer briefs.

  Holy mother. His body looked like an artist sculpted it. What I’d imagined was not even close to the reality.

  “Next time you take your clothes off for me, I think you should do it a lot slower,” I said, imagining him teasing me as he revealed each inch of skin and ridge of muscle.

  The moment I said the words I realized what that sounded like. Shit, shit, shit. Was he going to freak out because I made it sound like we’d be doing this more than once?

  But before I had the chance to have a full-blown anxiety attack, Will was on the bed, his body covering mine. “You got it, sweetheart.”

  Guess he wasn’t too worried about my plans for his future striptease.

  His mouth went to my neck, sinking his teeth into the tender spot where my shoulder met my neck. I gasped and arched my head back, giving him better access, as all thoughts fled.

  I moved my hands to his shoulders and reveled in the feel of his warm, smooth skin and hard muscles. He eased his way down until his mouth came to my breast. He didn’t hesitate be
fore he sucked one of my nipples into his hot, wet mouth, and I almost came off the bed at the sensation.

  He gave the small nub his full attention and then did the same to the other one. I slid my hands underneath my breasts and offered them to him, writhing against the sheets as he teased me.

  “I want to taste you, sweetheart.” His words slid through me like a knife through butter.

  “Thought you were doing that already.”

  “Not here.” He nipped the tip of my breast and then slid down the bed until his face was level with my panties. “Here.”

  He nuzzled between my legs and I spread them to give him more room. He pressed a kiss on the gusset, and then hooked his fingers in the elastic.

  “May I?”

  Like he had to ask. I was so wound up at the thought of his mouth on me, all I could do was nod.

  He grinned and slid my panties off my legs. As soon as they cleared my feet, he added them to the pile of clothes on my floor. Then he rested a knee in the bed between my legs and just looked his fill.

  I did my best not to squirm under his gaze. His eyes came to mine and the wicked look he gave me stole my breath. “Such a pretty pussy my girl has.”

  I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth as wetness pooled between my legs. I didn’t know what made me hotter—his intense stare or the way he called me his girl.

  “Will.” I barely recognized my own voice.

  “I’ve got you, baby.” And he was as good as his word. His fingers gripped my ankles, and as he moved up the bed, he pushed my knees up and spread my legs apart.

  I couldn’t keep still. Before he finished lowering his mouth to my center, I arched up off the bed. I couldn’t wait to have his lips, tongue and teeth on me.

  There was no slow building, no gentle tease. Will dipped his tongue as deep inside me as he could go, groaning as he tasted me. After the first stroke of his tongue, he hooked his arms around my thighs, pinning me where he wanted me.

  He trailed the tip of his tongue up until he found the nub nestled in my folds. He gently sucked it into his mouth and without him anchoring me down, I would have come off the bed.