Holiday Heat Wave
A Playing Dirty Christmas Novella
By Mickey Miller
Copyright 2016 by Mickey Miller
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations and incidents are products of the authors imagination. Amy resemblance to actual person, things, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Holiday Heat Wave
Cover designer: Sylvia Frost Cover Designs
Dear Reader,
Welcome to my Christmas novella, Holiday Heat Wave. My debut novel Playing Dirty was sexy, deep, and—most readers said—very realistic.
This, on the other hand, is an over the top Christmas novella that I wanted to have a lot of fun with. I’m a fan of surreal romance and I thought this mini-sequel would be a cool way to bring back Jake, Andrea—and let’s not forget Tate—for a fun follow-up story.
I hope you have as much fun reading this light, silly holiday story as I did writing it!
Lots of Love,
Mickey Miller
Prologue - Jake
I hid most of my body behind a tree while I scanned the area for my enemy. In my right hand I clutched my weapon, holding it close but not so tight that it would burst. The battle was on, and damned if I was going to lose my first snowball fight to a kid.
I turned my head only to see Tate, snowpants and little hat on, wielding his own perfectly rounded snowball like I’d taught him.
“Wait, you don’t want to do that.”
“I don’t?” the eight-year old said, arm cocked and ready to unload at me at point blank range. “Why?”
“Because the snow monster is right behind you, I swear, and if you throw it at me he’s going to get us both. We’ve got to team up, you and me. What do you say we form an alliance?”
“There’s not a snow monster behind me,” Tate fired back, dubious.
“Oh my god there he is!” I yelled, pointing up at a tree branch above Tate. The boy finally looked, and I took the opportunity to chuck my snowball up at the branches above him, causing a load of snow to collapse onto Tate, whose mouth was agape staring at the snow above.
“Oh my God!” Tate yelled as a flurry began to fall. I ran to him and swooped him up, shielding him from the snow. He giggled wildly as I picked him up and carried him off.
When we had safely cleared the snow monster, I set him down. I glanced at the stair steps, and saw Andrea sitting on them, intently watching us. Being from Tennessee, she wasn’t as used to snow as I was.
“Thanks for saving me from the monster, Coach.” Tate spoke with an enthusiastic smile. We’d officially adopted him a couple of months, ago, and he still hadn’t fully adjusted to Andrea and I as parental figures, which we were both fine with.
“You got it, big guy,” I said, putting my mitten out. “Mitten pound.”
He smiled and pumped my fist with his. “You ready to head inside? Mo—Miss Andrea made us some hot chicken soup and biscuits.”
“Biscuits!” Tate yelled, his eyes lighting up. He ran toward the stairs where Andrea was sitting on the steps and stopped short of bowling her over to give her a hug. She hadn’t been feeling well the last couple of days, so she wasn’t taking part in the snow fun.
“Is somebody hungry?” she asked, smiling softly.
“I’m starving!” Tate agreed enthusiastically before running inside.
Andrea stood up to follow Tate inside.
“Hey.” I grabbed her torso before she could fully spin. “Where are you goin?”
“Inside to make sure the big guy takes his boots off.”
“Not before this you’re not.”
I pulled her into me in her down winter coat and pressed my lips to hers. Both of ours were cold, but in seconds, pressed together, we warmed.
She smiled and put her hand on my chest. “I don’t want to get you sick.”
“You won’t. My immune system is awesome.”
“That’s what you keep saying.”
“Maybe I’ll psychically inject some non-sick white bloodcells into you.”
She rolled her eyes. “Keep thinking that.” Her expression changed back to a smile. “On second thought. I do want some more of those.”
She planted her lips back on me. I stuck my tongue in her mouth, since I had sworn that was the key to her getting better.
Andrea pulled her head and cocked it at me. “You know what, I actually do feel better.”
“I told you so.”
She got on her tippy toes and moved her face close to my ear. “I told you that tongue of yours has super powers.”
I opened my mouth to say something else snappy, but nothing came out. “I don’t know what to say. I’m tongue tied.”
*** ***
After dinner we put Tate down for the night and moved into our bedroom. Since Andrea moved in, we had been screwing like, well, the almost-newlyweds we were. I say almost because of the special Christmas presents I had planned to give her tomorrow.
Our romance had been fast and furious, given that we had only been dating for six or seven months. In that time, we had grown closer together than some couples ever get. She was more of a mother to Tate then the boy had ever experienced in his life. Andrea and I were already close, but raising Tate together was helping to strengthen our bond even further.
Now that it was late evening on Christmas Eve, Andrea and I lay in our room in bed on top of the covers, just chatting. Well, more than chatting. We were in the middle of yet another important couples debate.
“Andrea, I really think your boobs have grown in the last couple of months. You don’t think so? Really.”
Without baseball to keep me distracted, in the winter I kept close tabs on other things. Like Andrea’s boobs. And dammit, they had grown. I was sure of it. No one kept closer watch on her body then me.
She laughed and rolled her eyes at me, not buying it. “I don’t think so.” She grabbed at her side. “Ugh, hurts to laugh. Seriously stop it with your ridiculous theories baby. Just for tonight?” The way her voice curled up at the end of her sentence, I knew she must be hurting. Normally, she loved my outlandish theories more than anything.
She sat with her legs criss-crossed on the bed. I rubbed her back. This was the first time I’d seen Andrea get deathly ill. We weren’t sure exactly what was making her feel this way, but for the last twenty-four hours she’d been running a slight fever.
Even sick, Andrea looked sexy as hell. She had on this blue tank top and her brown hair was all ruffled as she lay on her back on the bed. I handed her the digital thermometer and she put it under her tongue.
Sick as she was, I couldn’t help but think of the elaborate night of Christmas Eve fun planned out for us when Tate had fallen asleep. I wanted to give her one Christmas present early—a sexy black lace two piece that I was dying to have her strut around in for me. Even more than the sexy black lingerie, there was a tiny circular surprise in the box that I wanted to give her. But now was not the time for the gift.
Tonight, I was learning something new about love. There is nothing quite like watching the love of your life sick as hell, in physical pain, with nothing you can do about it. It was a powerless feeling, and I didn’t like it. If Andrea wasn’t feeling better in the morning, we would head to the hospital.
I laid on my elbow looking at her. Her face had the blood run out of it, and I wanted nothing more t
han to breath life back into it.
“Ugh. I feel like my head is about to explode,” Andrea murmured. “It’s these Chicago winters. I want to go back to Tennessee.”
“It’s your first Chicago winter, baby. You’ll get used to them after this year. Trust me.”
I took the thermometer out of her mouth.
“Ninety-nine point five. At least it’s going in the right direction. It was over one hundred earlier.”
“Ugh. I hate being sick like this.”
“It’s okay. You’re going to be fine.” I took a lock of her hair in my hand and curled it around my finger.
She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.
“My mind is all over the place with this fever,” she said with a sigh.
“What are you thinking about?”
“I was actually thinking about you and me.” She opened her eyes. “Jake. Do you believe in alternate realities?”
I scrunched my brow and had to smile a little. Andrea was a big Star Wars nerd, and although I wasn’t, I loved hearing her theories just as much as she loved hearing mine. One thing I had learned about her in the last few months was she had a lot of crazy theories. “What do you mean exactly?”
“Like if we met in an alternate reality, do you think we still would have found each other?”
My snide smile disappeared. “Of course.” I replied, firm. “No doubt in my mind. What made you think about that?”
“I’ve been going in and out of dream state during the last day. My dreams have been super weird and colorful.”
I laid down next to her, and scooched under the covers closer to her.
“Read to me,” she cooed. “I like hearing your voice. Read me anything.”
“Anything?”
“Something Christmas-y. Your voice is the best medicine. I don’t know why. The low vibrations comfort me. Well, that and Nyquill,” she said and took a mini shot of the thick purple liquid.
I smiled. Before Andrea, I didn’t know what it meant to truly love another person unconditionally. But then when my life was on the brink of going to shit and the whole world had turned on me, she’d been there for me in a way no one else had. She’d stayed by my side—quite literally—and helped me fight back against the world.
I’d do anything for her. I would love her, protect her, bring her seven ups when she was sick, and yes, read to her if that’s what made her happy.
I grabbed a book on her mantle called Playing Dirty that I knew she liked, dimmed the lights a little, and then climbed under the covers with her. She turned onto her side and rested her arm on my bare chest.
“I love feeling your vibrations when you talk.”
I brushed her hair behind her ear with my hand and whispered in her ear. “Playing Dirty. Chapter One.”
I doubt I was more than a minute into the story before Andrea’s eyes were closed and she was breathing deeply, fast asleep. I paused a moment to admire her peacefulness. Then I kissed her, turned off the lights, and cuddled up next to her.
CHAPTER ONE – Andrea
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was the expansive, cloudless blue sky directly above me. Tall grass was all around me, and my skin felt sweaty. It had to be at least one hundred degrees Fahrenheit.
I blinked for a long second, and my heart raced. Suddenly I was in a state of panic. But when I reopened my eyes the world around me was the same.
I stood up, my heart pounding, and took inventory of the world around me. The sun fell on the grassy, green horizon that seemed to go on in the distance forever. The only sound to be heard was the whishing of the wind against the tall blades of grass as the air howled over the plains.
“Hello?” I shouted, and heard the empty echo of my own voice. I looked down at my body, confused by what I was wearing. I had on a tank top and cargo shorts, like I was ready for a safari.
How long had I been out? And how the hell did I get here?
I heard a bird in the distance and in it’s direction as it flew. It was a huge falcon looking bird with a wingspan that had to be at least five feet long.
Having grown up in a small rural town in Tennessee, I was no stranger to the wilderness. In fact, being with nature always brought a certain sense of calm to my soul. But I couldn’t remember a damn thing about how I’d gotten here, or even what I was doing.
“Anybody out there?!” I shouted again, this time in the direction of the bird.
I heard a rustling in the grass, and my animal instinct kicked in. I was totally alone. How would I fight some wild beast that came after me? And what kind of wild animal lurked in these parts?
I had three options: fight, flight, or hide. Seeing as how I had no idea where I was in the slightest, running would just make me more lost. Fighting didn’t seem like a smart idea either, so I squatted down in an attempt to make myself smaller. The rustling drew nearer. I thought I heard a female voice, but the wind and the vastness of the plains made it difficult to know for sure.
Finally I saw the tall grass moving closer to me. Whatever it was that was after me.
A shiver went down my spine as I felt a tap on my shoulder.
“Found you,” said someone chirpily in a sing song tone. The voice was high and feminine. I jumped to my feet and spun around to face whatever the hell it was.
“Andrea I found you! Thank god! I’ve been looking all over for you. I thought you were gone for good!”
I stared at the petite, brown-eyed woman in front of me, overcome with a great sense of relief, and also disbelief.
“Amy? What the heck? What are you doing here?”
“We were walking together, and then the next second I turned around and you were gone. You dropped your hiking backpack behind you,” she said, holding up a medium sized backup. “Are you okay? You look out of it.”
“I feel out of it,” I responded. “I just woke up from my nap in a cold sweat. Where on earth are we?”
Amy handed me my backpack and shot me a confused look.
“Are you being serious right now? You were the one who dragged me here. Well, not dragged. I’m happy to come with you on the journey to find your father. But this whole trip was your idea. You don’t remember?”
“Did you just say find my father?” I laughed awkwardly, because I could think of no other way to deal with the ludicrousness of this situation. I grabbed my backpack checking to see what was inside. I couldn’t recall leaving for this trip, let alone packing a backpack. Inside I had some extra clothing, a water bottle, an extra pack of clothes, and a Jaguar’s cap. Why was I such a light packer all of the sudden? “Please, Amy, don’t mess with me. I’m already confused enough as it is.”
“I’m not messing with you,” she squinted at me, seriousness in her gaze and her tone. She raised a hand to shield her face from the sun, an orange ball of fire in the west. She started twirling a lock of her brown hair and shrugged. “Honestly, you said you fell in the grass, right? Do you think maybe you hit your head?”
“Maybe I was out longer than I thought.” I did feel a little dizzy. “This is just totally weird. Something feels off.”
Amy stepped up to me and put a hand on my shoulder. “Hey, it’s okay. I know this is an emotional trip for you. But we are going to find your father. We’ve come this far. No way am I going to let you down. We’re close—I think I see the lights of a village in the distance. I’ll bet that’s where your father lives.”
Suddenly, it hit me like a truck, and my mission returned. I was on this journey with Amy to find my father, who I hadn’t seen in years. How had I forgotten? Had I hit my head?
Inside my backpack I found a paper map, which I took out. We were deep in the heart of a secret savannah that almost no one knew about. But the map was easy to figure out, since the only oasis in the area were the trees several hundred feet to the right of us. I used that as a reference.
“According to the map, there is an oasis not one thousand feet from us now,” Amy said. “Once we get the
re, we have enough time to set up our tent. And the light will be perfect to snap a few pictures too, I think, to document the trip. Then we can find the village in the morning. Look, here it is on the map.”
She ran her finger on the unfolded paper map I had taken out of my backpack until it landed on the name of a town. “Jarona? That’s where we’re headed?” I asked.
She squinted at me and shook her head. “Really hope you’re going to be okay after that fall. I bet you don’t even remember why they call it Jarona.”
I shook my head.
“Oh, you’ll find out soon enough,” she quipped. “C’mon, let’s make it to the oasis before nightfall.”
Not too distant on the horizon was a cluster of tall trees. Strange that I had only just now noticed them. Strange but appreciated. I wiped the sweat from my forehead so it wouldn’t drip into my eyes. “Oh. Weird. There it is.”
“I’m glad you got your bearings back. I was getting a little panicked back there when I couldn’t find you. But you’re good now?”
“I feel…strange but I’m fine.” I nodded.
She sighed in relief. “Think there will be any Tarzan like guys at this oasis? I mean, I know we’re here to find your father. But a couple of single girls like us? Could be fun to some wild men we can tame.” She flashed a smile at me. I knew I was single, but for some reason, I had a distant thought in my mind that I was already spoken for. I shook it off, put my things back into my pack, slung it over my shoulder, and followed Amy’s lead.
When we reached the oasis we saw horses, deer, and rabbits, all drinking underneath the same trees at the waterhole.
“Yes! We’re here!” Amy threw her stuff down. I smiled, taking in the pure natural beauty of it all. I took out my camera to snap a few pictures.
“Let me get this straight,” I said, scrunching my face at Amy. “We’re in…the great plains? This looks like Africa maybe. Not that I’ve ever been.”
Amy nodded as she took a drink of water. “Well, there is a lot of flat land here. But it’s also a little mountainous in the distance.”
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