She cleared her throat. Opened her mouth to speak, but couldn’t think of what to say. He was naked under those tights. He’d been naked under his jeans. Talli closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Dean’s scent filled her nose. The familiar smell of wood and soap calmed her nerves. This was Dean. Her best friend. Their friendship spanned a lifetime and she didn’t want to muddy it by adding sex into the equation. Sex and friend never went together in the same sentence, not without complicated and disaster.
With her mind a little clearer Talli was able to stamp out the arousal buzzing in her veins. Not completely out but enough to focus on the most important thing – their friendship meant the world to her and she couldn’t jeopardize it even for what she was one hundred percent certain would be mind-blowing sex. She opened her eyes and avoided looking directly at him. Her control was too thin to risk seeing the heat in his gaze again.
“Okay, put your clothes back on, but wear the hat.” Talli stepped around him, making sure not to brush against him. Hard in the close confines of the storeroom, but she managed. “I’ll wait outside.”
Before he could say a word she’d slipped out the door, closed it behind her, and collided with Santa.
Santa’s big belly bumped hers. “Sorry. You popped up out of nowhere.” Wade’s voice sounded muffled beneath his fake beard.
“No, my fault.” Talli put a hand on the wall to steady herself. “I should have looked before I came charging out.”
“There you are.” Em came rushing over. “Are you ready?”
“Yep. Just a small problem with Dean’s costume, but it’s sorted now,” Talli said.
“Good, good.” Em grabbed Santa’s arm. “Santa, you need to get in place now. I’m bringing the parents in as soon as you’re seated.”
The door behind Talli opened and she could feel the heat radiating off Dean’s body as he stepped up behind her.
“All right, we’re all here now. Let’s get this show on the road.” Em hustled off, tugging Santa with her.
“Is she always this bossy?” Dean asked.
“Yes.” Talli smiled. “It comes with the job. If the kids for one second thought she wasn’t the boss they’d run amuck.”
“I guess, but does she have to do it with a scowl on her face?”
Talli laughed. “No, that’s reserved just for Santa.”
“There’s a story there.”
“Yep, but we don’t have time. C’mon, I’ll show you what I need you to do.” Talli headed over to the video camera.
Dean followed close behind and she couldn’t remember ever being this aware of him. Either she needed to find a boyfriend – and not the battery operated kind – and get laid soon or she’d do something monumentally stupid and jump her best friend. Giving herself a mental shake she got down to work.
“I set it up already. You just have to hit this button here once everyone is seated and stand guard so no one bumps into the tripod.”
“Got it.” His warm breath fanned over the back of her neck.
He stood too close, his heat and scent playing havoc with her nerves. She took a step to the side. “Once the concert is over hit the same button to stop the recording and then flick this lever here to fold the legs in. I’ll dismantle the rest later. Just bring the whole thing up the front because I’ll need your help with the Santa photos and any special requests from the parents once the formal activities are over.”
“I’ve got it, Talli.” Dean laid his hand on her shoulder. “I remember how this works from last time.”
“Oh. Right.” How could she forget this wasn’t the first time she’d roped him into helping her? “Okay. I’ll go grab my cameras and get ready.”
“Relax.” His fingers dug into the tight muscles leading up to her neck. “What’s got you all frazzled? You’ve done this a hundred times and I’ve helped enough to not screw up.”
“I know.” She stepped back, the move breaking Dean’s hold. “It’s that time of year. Silly season.”
He smiled. “That explains the costume.”
“There’s nothing silly about getting into the spirit of things.”
“Not if the costume fits.”
Heat flushed her cheeks. “Sorry about that. I asked for the largest one they had.”
“In the kiddies department maybe.”
She should have checked when she’d pick the costume up, but as usual she’d been in a rush and forgotten all about it until now. The heat in her cheeks headed south when she thought about him wrapped in the skin-tight outfit. “Sorry. I owe you for that.”
“Yeah, you do.”
“I’ll shout you dinner.” She glanced over her shoulder as people started moving into the room.
“It’ll take more than one meal to pay back that debt.”
Talli’s head swung back around to Dean. “What?”
“It’ll cost you more than dinner this time.”
“What? You want me to come clean your house again?”
“No. I’ve got something else in mind.”
“What?”
He nudged her with his hand on her hip. “Better get up front. The show’s about to begin.”
“But–”
“Na-huh, we don’t have time now.” Dean gave her another little push. “Later.”
Talli stared open-mouthed as Dean moved in behind the camera and got ready to work. Damn him. He knew she hated waiting to find out things. Now she’d spend the rest of the day worrying about what he had in mind.
Chapter Three
Dean had never been more grateful for a pair of snug jeans and a long T-shirt. He’d spent the last four hours trying to hide the hard-on he sported from a room full of pre-schoolers and their parents. It was all Talli’s fault. She’d pranced around in those skin-tight green elf pants with her lopsided hat, fake pointy ears and an impish smile all afternoon. He shouldn’t be turned on. If anything, being surrounded by all these people and her ridiculous outfit should have dampened his arousal. The scary part was he thought it might have – which meant he’d reached the point of no return.
Being Tallitha Jarmen’s best friend was no longer enough.
The children and parents had left only minutes ago and the silence that had settled over the room gave him too much time to think. He didn’t want to blow this. Their friendship wasn’t the only thing on the line. Dean wasn’t a fool. Becoming Talli’s lover wouldn’t guarantee him her heart. He saw the losers she dated. Not one of them worthy of her, but more importantly, she kept them at arm’s length. He hoped their years of friendship would make it impossible for her to put him in the same basket.
Dean snatched the hat off his head and welcomed the cool air on his scalp. The stupid elf hat was not only hot, it itched like crazy. Giving his head a good scratch, he dumped the hat in the bag with the rest of his unused costume. A shudder rattled his bones. Talli owed him big for this one. She’d slipped off to get changed, but not before leaving him with instructions on packing up her equipment. Images of Talli stripping out of her elf suit to reveal naked skin filled his mind. He knew she wouldn’t be nude beneath her costume but Dean’s imagination tortured him with the idea anyway.
Talli always kept her equipment well organised and by the time she returned, he’d packed up the remaining cameras and the special light she’d made him hold during the Santa photos. She stood before him in baggy denim shorts and a loose T-shirt; neither showed off an inch of her lush body and yet he was still rocked by a jolt of lust. Her impact on his senses increased with every second that passed. He needed to dial it back a notch or she might work out what he was thinking before he was ready to make a move.
And he would be making one.
Dean stacked the boxes and lifted the pile.
“Ready?” he asked.
“Everything’s packed?”
He nodded. “All set.”
“Okay, let me find Em and tell her we’re heading out.”
“Last I saw her she was in a heated discussion with Sant
a and heading outside.”
“Thanks, give me a minute.” Talli walked over to the sliding doors leading to the outdoor play area and peered out. “I can’t see them anywhere.”
Dean shrugged. “That’s the way they went.”
Talli stepped through the doorway a few feet and turned in a full circle. Dean took the opportunity to study her. She was tall for a woman, her body long and lean, but with all the right curves. Her hair, a deep brown with hints of auburn, fell straight down her back from the red and green ribbon holding the long tail together at the base of her neck. Smooth tan skin disappeared beneath the collar of her T-shirt and Dean wondered if the sleek slope would feel as silky as it looked.
She turned and he quickly averted his gaze. He didn’t want to get busted ogling her. Not yet anyway. An idea began to form. Talli owed him dinner and he had to go via her place to pick up his spare keys, so he’d suggest they order pizza while he helped her put her gear away. He’d have her all to himself in the loft above her studio, the perfect place to put his plan into action. It wasn’t all that well thought out, but then with Talli you always needed to be ready to roll with whatever happened next. The woman had a knack for changing direction mid-stride.
Even after a lifetime of keeping up with Talli, Dean couldn’t ignore the niggle of fear currently tugging at his gut. Should he launch an all-out assault or take it slow, dropping subtle hints here and there until she made a move on him? Then again, Talli didn’t do subtle very well. Dean knew the guy who owned the coffee shop next door to her studio had been hinting about taking her out for months and, to his knowledge, she still hadn’t caught on.
“C’mon. What are you waiting for?”
He turned to find Talli had gathered up the rest of her gear and made it all the way to the door while he’d been contemplating his dilemma. “Sorry. I was thinking about that pepperoni pizza you’re going to order me for dinner.”
“What?”
“You said dinner was your shout,” Dean said.
“But I thought you said that wasn’t enough?” Talli led the way through the outer room.
Dean marveled at the clean space. The toy explosion from earlier was nowhere to be seen. “I said it would cost more than one dinner. Consider pizza a partial payment.”
Talli laughed. “Like a payment plan?”
“Sure, why not? Doesn’t matter what you call it, you still owe me big for today. Pizza can be the down payment.”
Talli was busy juggling bags and trying to unlock the safety gate, so he couldn’t read her expression when she replied, “You better not charge interest.”
“Here, let me get that,” Santa – minus his hat and beard – rushed over.
“Oh, thanks Wade. Have you seen Em?”
“Um…” Wade looked behind him. “She’s finishing up some last minute things. The centre is closed for the holidays after today.”
“I know. Could you let her know I’ll have everything to her the first week she reopens?” Talli asked as she walked through the open gate, Dean right behind her.
“Sure,” Wade answered and closed the gate after them. “Have a good Christmas.”
“You too, and I hope Santa brings you everything on your wish list,” Talli said.
Wade laughed, his fake Santa belly wobbling. “I’m a little old for wish lists – and a little naughty.”
“You’re never too old or too naughty to make a list,” Dean said. “It’s having the wish granted that I seem to have problems with.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Talli asked.
“Well, have a good Christmas anyway. I’ll pass the message on to Emily,” Wade said as he disappeared back into the depths of the daycare.
“You still make a wish list?” Talli asked as they exited the main door.
“Sure. I don’t write them down in a Santa letter like I did as a kid, but I make one every year.”
“Really? You don’t strike me as the fanciful type,” Talli said. “Although now that I think about it, I was the one who told you Santa wasn’t real when we were twelve.”
Dean frowned. “That was the first time you broke my heart.”
Talli snorted. “As if. I’m not sure you even have a heart.”
“You wound me.” If his arms weren’t loaded down with boxes, Dean would have thrown a hand over the heart she thought non-existent. “And to think I call you friend.”
She bumped his arm with hers. “You’re a big boy. You can take it.”
“Wish I could take you,” Dean mumbled under his breath as he let Talli get a few steps ahead of him.
“What?” She glanced back.
“Nothing.” He tried to look innocent, but feared he missed the mark when she narrowed her eyes and glared at him.
Dean stopped next to the back of Talli’s car and waited for her to pop the trunk. She kept giving him sideways glances, but he remained quiet until they’d finished loading all her gear.
“Want me to drive? You must be exhausted.”
Talli laughed and patted his shoulder. “Nice try, but no. I’m fine.”
With a sigh, Dean walked to the passenger door. He didn’t doubt they’d make it to Talli’s in one piece. She may drive like a lunatic, but she’d been right when she pointed out her accident record. None of the three she’d been involved with were her fault. His record wasn’t even as good. Resigned, he climbed into the car and waited for the inevitable roller coaster ride to begin.
Talli couldn’t decide if the quiet ride home was a good or bad sign. Tension hung heavy in the air, the kind that popped and sizzled, and set every nerve ending on red alert. She could only assume it had to do with her new hyper-awareness of Dean. Of course if she stuck to her don’t think, don’t touch rule when it came to Dean the highly sexual energy crackling around them should be ignored. Or at least left alone.
Traffic was heavy but everyone heading home meant Talli wouldn’t have a problem getting a parking spot in front of her studio. She had her private spot at the back of her building, but she never used the back entrance and carting her equipment from there would be a pain, even with Dean’s help. As she approached the driveway for the small parking area that ran the length of the little strip mall, her eyes scanned the available spots for the one closest to her front door. Seeing one directly outside, Talli breathed a sigh of relief. Even though she’d denied it earlier, she was exhausted and wasn’t looking forward to unloading her gear at all.
Talli turned into the driveway as Mr. Lewis, the florist, stepped out of his shop and waved. Giving him a finger-wave while keeping both hands on the steering wheel to appease Dean, she eased along the short section of pavement and pulled into the vacant spot at her door. She’d love nothing more than to head upstairs to her loft and the expensive bathtub she’d had fitted to soak away the day’s grime and fatigue. But her day wasn’t over and there would be no indulging in a scented bath before Dean left anyway.
Resigned to her fate, Talli switched off the engine and opened her door. “I’ll go unlock the studio and prop the door so we can cart everything inside.”
“Pop the trunk and I’ll grab the first load,” Dean said as he climbed out of the car.
She watched him as he maneuvered his long legs from beneath the dashboard. Funny how she’d never taken notice of how squished he was in her car. It was rare for her to drive them anywhere. Dean always insisted on taking his monster four-wheel-drive. Not that she complained; she kind of liked his take-care-of-everything ways.
Dean leaned his head back in the car. “You all right?”
Talli gave herself a mental slap and sucked in a deep breath. The quicker they got this done, the quicker she could get to that bath her body badly needed. “Yeah, just taking a second to run through my mental to-do list.” As excuses went it wasn’t a bad one. It was at least good enough to satisfy him.
“Well hurry up. I’m starving and you owe me pizza.” Dean straightened and shut the door.
“Shit.” How’d she forgotten
they were supposed to have dinner? Maybe she could beg off for another night. Who was she kidding? This was Dean. Once his stomach got involved there was no changing his mind. With a deep sigh, Talli slipped the keys from the ignition as she swung her legs out of the car and stood.
She pressed the fob to unlock the trunk and stepped onto the sidewalk. In three strides she was at her door fitting the key into the metal security gate. The tumblers clicked and whirred as the state-of-the-art door released the four steel rods that held the four-inch-thick outer frame within the re-enforced doorway. It might seem overkill for a small shop in a relatively safe suburb, but Talli had more than fifty thousand dollars worth of equipment inside these four walls. And while she had insurance, it was best to discourage any would-be thieves.
Swinging the big gate inwards, Talli slammed it into the doorstopper specially designed to keep it out of the way during studio hours. Then she went to work on the door that opened to the inner sanctum of her world. It didn’t matter how many times she entered this building, her chest still filled with pride and accomplishment. As the glass door opened, she slipped her hand inside and flicked on the lights.
The reception area was infused with a soft glow, the recessed down lights bathing the furniture and floor in a warm, welcoming sheen. Talli couldn’t stop the smile tugging at her mouth. To see her dream come to life, to touch it with her fingers, to live the reality of years of planning and hard work was, at times, mind-blowingly surreal. She sometimes felt the urge to pinch herself just to be sure she wasn’t dreaming, but most of all she thanked her lucky stars every day for her good fortune.
“Hey, what’s the hold up?” Dean asked behind her.
She turned to find him, arms full, standing in the doorway. “Oops, sorry. You can put those in the back room.”
“Okay.” Talli moved aside to let Dean pass. “You want to order pizza while I get the rest of your gear?”
Christmas Wishes (novella) Page 2