All I Want is You this Christmas Final

by Codi Gary

  “Just wondering how much have you had to drink?”

  “Three lemon drops, if you must know, Officer Nosy. But don’t worry, I’m not driving.”

  “Officer Nosy,” Olive snickered. “I like it.”

  Vance patted his shoulder. “Come on, man. Let’s go where the welcome’s warmer.”

  Anna Beth snorted. “From what I hear, it’s always warm for Jared.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Word around town is that the ladies love you. Maybe I should call you Officer Friendly.”

  Jared shook his head. “Anna Beth…”

  “That’s my name,” she slurred

  Cade tapped her shoulder. “Hey, beautiful, another lemon drop?”

  Anna Beth turned away from Jared, but he saw her run her finger along Cade’s hand. The bartender took her hand and kissed the back of it. Under normal circumstances, Jared liked Cade, but right now, he wanted to slam his nose into the bar counter.

  “Two, please,” she said.

  Cade winked. “Coming right up.”

  When Anna Beth turned back around, her smile slid into a frown. “What’s your problem?”

  “I don’t have one.”

  “Then stop glaring at me. I haven’t done jack to you. I’m just here to have a good time with my bestie.” Anna Beth wrapped an arm around Olive’s shoulders. “Right?”

  “Right!” Olive kissed Anna Beth’s cheek.

  “Hey, Anna Beth, mind if I steal your bestie for a dance,” Vance asked.

  Anna Beth shot him a stern look. “It’s up to her, but if you bring her back to me unhappy, I’m coming for you.”

  “Understood. Olive?”

  Vance held out his hand and Olive took it, but her expression flicked back and forth between Jared and Anna Beth. “You sure you’ll be okay?”

  “Sure, but I can’t guarantee your drink will be here waiting for you. Go, have fun.”

  Jared stared at her until she finally met his gaze. “What?”

  “Nothing. You just look different. Where did you get the dress?”

  “Tammy’s. It’s called a bodycon dress.”

  “It’s nice.” He took a step closer, swallowing nervously. “Anna Beth, can we go somewhere quiet and talk?”

  Cade came back with the two lemon drops. “That’ll be ten for both.”

  Anna Beth turned away from Jared to face Cade, her voice taking on a flirty tone. “Last time, it was fourteen.”

  Cade grinned. “You get a discount for making me smile.”

  Before Anna Beth could pay, Jared held out a twenty. “Keep the change.”

  “Thanks, Jared.” He cocked his head to the side. “See you around, Anna Beth.”

  Anna Beth stood there with two drinks in her hands, looking fit to be tied. “Why’d you do that? I can buy my own drinks. Now he thinks we’re together and we are so not.”

  “I didn’t like the way he was looking at you.”

  “You have no business caring about the way anyone looks at me,” she hissed.

  Jared realized she was tipsier than he’d originally assumed and tried to reason with her. “I know you’re angry at me, but—”

  “If you know I’m angry with you, then why are you here with your chiseled face and hot body, pissing me off more?”

  Before Jared could process that outburst, she downed the first drink, then the other, before pushing past him with a huff. She set the glasses down on a nearby table, startling the couple sitting there. She hit the dance floor and he paused, watching from a distance as she closed her eyes and moved.

  Jared went back to the bar, giving her space. He waved Cade down.

  “What can I get you?”

  “Two whiskeys.”

  “You got it.” Cade grabbed the bottle from the shelf on the wall and set two glasses down on the counter. “Hey, sorry man.”

  “For what?”

  “Stepping on your toes with Anna Beth. I didn’t know you were a thing.”

  “We’re not. We’re just friends. Or I guess enemies, depending on the day.”

  Cade laughed as he passed the two glasses across the counter top to Jared. “I should have made these a double, then. I don’t know how you can be just friends with someone like her.”

  Jared lost his smile. Right now, he couldn’t imagine either.

  He paid Cade for the drinks and searched the crowd for Vance.

  The song ended and he emerged from the dancing bodies and took the glass from Jared. “Thanks, how did you know?”

  “Because I needed one.”

  “Things didn’t go well with Anna Beth.”

  The karaoke DJ called Anna Beth’s name and Olive squealed. Several loud “whoo hoos” echoed through the crowd as she took the mic.

  “You could say that,” Jared grumbled.

  Anna Beth smiled, but when she spoke, her voice trembled. “Thank you. This is really embarrassing, but here goes nothing.”

  The jaunty tune from Santa Baby came out of the speakers and Anna Beth started off hesitantly. As the cheers grew louder, Anna relaxed. She sang along in a husky voice, her hips swaying as she danced, acting out the lyrics with her body while the crowd urged her on. She glided down the steps of the stage, singing about Tiffany’s and the people on the dance floor tightened around her. Anna Beth emerged from the mass of people and Jared watched her run her hand across one man’s chest. Jared’s shoulders stiffened when she twisted her finger around another’s tie, using it to drag him down until their faces were only inches apart.

  Jared downed his second shot, his breath hissing between his teeth. “I’m getting some air.”

  Vance called his name, but he kept going. He stepped into the cold, closing his eyes as tiny snowflakes fell against his skin.

  The door opened behind him and Anna Beth stood in her tight red dress. His living dream and nightmare all wrapped up in one gorgeous package.

  “Didn’t like my song?”

  Jared released a bitter laugh. “Not as much as the rest of the crowd did.”

  Anna Beth shrugged. “Just another item checked off my list.”

  “Good for you.”

  “Hey, you don’t get to be mad at me.” She jabbed a finger into his shoulder. “You practically ghosted me for two days, then send me some stupid gif about brunch.”

  “I’m not doing this with you. Not like this.”

  Jared walked down the sidewalk, but Anna Beth kept up. “Oh, what? You think there’s some big mystery to your behavior? You got scared.”

  He whirled around to face her. “You’re damn right I got scared. You keep telling me you’re only here temporarily. If we get involved and you leave, I’ll still be here getting over you. Again.”

  Anna Beth stared at him, speechless.

  “It’s easier for me to stay away from you than it is to be around you and pretend I don’t want to strip you naked and kiss every inch of your body. Do you understand that? I thought I was over you and then you came back here and it turns out I’m not. And now that I’ve tasted you, I’m going crazy not being with you.”

  Her eyes flashed under the streetlamp. “So what? You decide to bail before you get too attached? Too bad for me, I was already there. Your bailing made me feel ten inches tall. I kept telling myself not to cross that line with you, but you made me feel alive again. It’s thrilling and wonderful and scary, but I let my guard down. I trusted you and you pulled away from me. But somehow, I’m the bad guy responsible for your insecurities? Screw that, and screw you, Jared.”

  Anna Beth stomped back toward the bar but he caught her arm and pressed her back into the side of the building. She put her hands up against his chest when he caged her in with his arms on either side.

  “I’m an idiot,” he said.

  Anna Beth stopped pushing against him and glared up at him. “No shit.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Her chin jutted out belligerently. “For what, specifically?”

  “For running scared. F
or not talking to you. For putting my insecurities on you.”

  After several beats, she whispered, “Keep going.”

  Jared chuckled, leaning his forehead against hers. “A.B., you make me so freaking nuts. You always have.”

  “You were already crazy; I just exacerbate the symptoms.”

  “Fair enough.” He rubbed his nose against hers. “Still mad at me?”

  “Yes.”

  “Anything I can do to make it up to you?”

  “Tell me you like my dress.”

  “I fucking love your dress.”

  Anna Beth chuckled. “Tammy said it would make men go wild.”

  “I like that part less.”

  Anna Beth slid her hands under his coat and around his waist, resting her palms at the small of his back. “You’re jealous.”

  “Somewhat.”

  “You can fix that?”

  “How?”

  “Stop running away from me.”

  Jared cradled her cheeks between his hands. His lips covered hers and his hands slid back, his fingers tangling in her hair. She tasted like lemons and sugar and he never wanted to stop kissing her.

  Suddenly she pushed away from him. “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  Before she could respond, she vomited all over his shoes.

  Twenty

  The morning light peeked through the windows and rained warmth over Anna Beth’s face, something she would have appreciated if she wasn’t sporting a nasty hangover. She groaned as she rolled over, afraid to open her eyes and putting her back to the obnoxious rays of sunshine. How did she ever think mornings were a good thing?

  Anna Beth heard Christmas music playing downstairs followed by male laughter. She managed to squint one eye open and realized she was in her own bed.

  So, who was the guy downstairs?

  Moving at a snail's pace, Anna Beth climbed out of bed and caught a look at herself in the mirror above her dresser. Her hair stood up everywhere and eye makeup drifted across her cheeks, making her look like a sad clown. She wracked her brain, trying to remember last night's events in some semblance of sequence but things were a jumble.

  Her dry mouth tasted nasty and she decided her first order of business needed to be a long appointment with her toothbrush. Ten minutes later, her head still pounded, but her eyes were clean. She dumped two Tylenol in her hand and tossed them back before dipping her head to drink from the faucet.

  Finally, Anna Beth headed downstairs, wincing at her sore feet. She noticed the heels she’d worn last night kicked off by the front door as she passed. She froze at the entrance of the kitchen. Jared stood in front of her stove, shaking his hips to Run Run Rudolph. Rip sat right next to him, watching his master’s hands intently as Jared flipped a pancake on the griddle.

  “Hi,” Anna Beth said loudly.

  Rip took a few steps in Anna Beth’s direction, but ultimately decided the possibility of food scraps trumped his affection for her.

  Jared, on the other hand, turned the music off and walked over to kiss her cheek. “Hey, A.B. You feeling better?”

  “I have a splitting headache, but something tells me that’s on me and not you. Also, where is Sarah? Does she know Rip is here? And Mittens?” She glanced around the kitchen. “Rip didn’t eat her, did he?”

  “No, he’s been a perfect gentleman when Mittens was brave enough to venture from hiding. Although, she does puff up and spit at him. He slipped a couple of pancakes onto an empty plate and held it out to her. “And your aunt left for the station an hour ago. She said if Rip broke anything, she’d stuff him.”

  “That sounds about right.” She slid the plate onto the counter and leaned against it with one hand. Anna Beth winced at a particularly sharp pain in her temple. “I feel like a train wreck.”

  “You look beautiful to me.”

  “Are you buttering me up? Am I mad at you for something? Because for the life of me, I can’t remember what it might be.”

  “You were pretty irritated with me last night, but we worked it out.”

  “I’m not irritated with you anymore?”

  “I hope not, seeing as I’m making you breakfast.”

  Anna Beth wracked her brain and some hazy memories surfaced. Singing karaoke. Dancing. Following Jared out of the bar. Screaming at him.

  Oh God.

  “Did I really puke on your shoes?”

  He grinned as he poured more batter on the griddle. “Yeah, but it’s okay. I never liked those shoes anyway.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  Jared set his spatula down and took her hands in his. “A.B. we’re fine. Honestly, I had it coming.”

  “You did?”

  “A little bit. You were pretty heated about me running scared the last few days.” He took her hands and slid them up over his shoulders. “I believe there were even a few curse words.”

  “Oh yeah. I remember you apologizing.”

  “I did.”

  “And then kissing me against the wall.”

  Jared brushed her mouth with his. “That too.”

  Tingles scattered across her lips. “Did we decide what all this kissing meant?”

  “Not officially but I meant what I said about it being hard to do casual with you. That said, being with you for a short time is better than never being with you at all.”

  Anna Beth’s hands cupped the back of his head. “Maybe we just take it one day at a time? Just be happy in the moment?”

  “I’ll give it my best.” Jared kissed her forehead briefly before pulling back to flip his well-done pancakes. “Well, shit. Go ahead and eat yours. I’ll save these for Rip.”

  Anna Beth buttered her pancakes and pulled the syrup from the cupboard.

  “I already warmed some up in the microwave,” he said.

  “You thought of everything.” Anna Beth cut up her pancakes and leaned back against the counter. “Can I ask you something?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Were you jealous last night?”

  Jared arched his brow. “You were mad at me, wearing a flaming red dress and dancing around the bar singing Santa Baby with every guy in there drooling…nah, I wasn’t bothered at all.”

  Anna Beth came up behind him and curled her arms around his waist. “Not even a little bit?”

  “Maybe a very, very small amount.”

  “Hmmmm.” She kissed his back and let him go, taking another bite of her pancakes. “Well, if you keep feeding me like this, I may forgive you anything.”

  “I’ll remember that.” He put the burnt pancakes on another plate and poured more batter onto the griddle. “What do you want to do today?”

  “You don’t have to work tonight?”

  “Nope. I have two more days off.”

  “I was going to bake cookies to donate to the Christmas festival tomorrow.”

  Jared gave her a skeptical look. “Do you know how to bake?”

  “I’ve dabbled.” Anna Beth caught sight of Mittens in the doorway, watching Rip with her tail twitching. His ears perked up when he saw her and his tail thumped against the tile floor. “I don’t think Mittens is enamored of Rip.”

  “She’ll get used to him.” He flipped his pancakes and a few moments later, loaded them onto a plate. “After breakfast, let’s turn the Christmas music back on and get to work on those cookies.”

  “Sounds fun. I also need to watch twenty-three more Christmas movies before the twenty-fifth. Maybe we could watch one between batches.”

  He kissed her mouth, tasting like syrup and butter. She licked her lips.

  “Whatever you want to do,” he said.

  “It’s not all about me, you know. I want to do things you want too.”

  Jared stopped chewing the pancake in his mouth and waggled his brows.

  “Oh my God, you perv. I was talking about activities.”

  “So was I.”

  Anna grabbed one of the burnt pancakes and threw it at him. It hit him square in the face and Ri
p caught it before it hit the floor. Jared slowly gazed into her eyes, grinning.

  “Really? You’re starting a food fight with me?”

  “No, no!” she squealed as she took off running through the house. She barely made it into the living room before he lifted her from behind and dragged her back toward the kitchen. “Don’t do it!”

  “Oh, I’m going to get you so good. Maybe a little syrup on your neck.”

  Anna Beth couldn’t stop giggling as he reached for the tiny pitcher of syrup and she grabbed for his arm. “You’re going to make me all sticky.”

  “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

  She went limp, slipping out of his arms and onto the floor. When he lay down next to her, she gazed up into his eyes, her laughter dying. Her chest rose and fell hard against his.

  “Maybe before we start the cookies, we can get some kissing in?” Jared suggested.

  Anna Beth hugged him to her. “I’d love a few kisses.”

  Jared’s mouth covered hers and her exhaustion and headache melted away as she got lost in the sweet taste of his lips.

  Something shattered next to them and they broke the kiss. Rip stood over Anna Beth’s broken plate, looking so guilty they both burst out laughing.

  “I’ll tell Sarah I broke the plate,” Anna Beth said.

  “A woman who would protect my dog from her aunt’s wrath? Now, that’s hot.”

  “Mmmm, you think I’m hot, huh?”

  “Absolutely. Why don’t we get started on the cookies and then retire to the living room?”

  “Deal.”

  Twenty-One

  Jared sprawled out on the couch with Anna Beth’s back to his front, watching Home Alone and trying not to press his lips to the bare skin of her neck. They’d finished rolling out and cookie cutting the dough an hour ago and spent the down time cuddling as batches baked. They had two cookie sheets left to pop into the oven, which was only big enough for one.

  They’d shared a few chaste kisses, but Anna Beth’s “Officer Friendly” comment from last night floated at the back of his mind. He didn’t want her thinking he only wanted one thing. Yes, making love to Anna Beth would be amazing, but he wanted more with her. He wanted the playful wrestling and baking together. He wanted to take her sledding again and build a snowman, to watch Christmas movies under a blanket while eating popcorn and M&Ms. He wanted to wake up to her drooling on her pillow and listen to her complain about his snoring.