A smile broke out on Angel’s face.
“Well, what are we waiting for?” she asked, struggling with the door handle and I chuckled at her child-like excitement.
Charlie’s tall, thin frame filled the doorway as we approached the porch. “Merry Christmas,” he bellowed, and Ethel sidled up next to him.
“Can we get you anything to eat?” the plump woman asked as we made our way inside. “I’ve got gingerbread cookies.”
Smiling, I shook my head. “I think Beverly might’ve tried to kill me with her snack cakes.”
Angel snickered. “Honestly, we’re stuffed.”
“How’s your mom?” Charlie asked as he put an arm around his wife.
“She’s great,” I told him honestly. I didn’t know the old man well, but I’d never be able to repay him for the support he gave my mom when she was struggling to get sober.
And now, he was offering us his house at a rent price for way less than what it was worth. I was humbled by his kindness and generosity.
“Well,” Ethel started. “I guess we should let you take a look around. Come find us in the kitchen when you’re done and let us know what you decide.”
Charlie took his wife by the hand and they slowly shuffled away.
Angel wasn’t speechless very often but, as I followed her from room to room, she didn’t say a word.
The first bedroom had light blue walls and even bluer carpet. It was mostly empty except for a few green storage totes that were stacked in the far corner. The second was a little larger than the first with beige wallpaper and hardwood floors. A large bed took up most of the space, but there was enough room for a nightstand and a dresser.
Angel let out a sigh, and I couldn’t tell if it was the happy kind or not.
Next she went into the bathroom, which was newly remodeled. I could imagine her taking baths in the large tub, surrounded by bubbles and candle light. She’d have her feet propped up, nibbling her lip while she read one of those smutty books Beverly always let her borrow.
What would be even better than that? Taking baths with her.
My hands clenched anxiously as I continued to follow an eerily-silent Angel.
Finally, she stopped in front of the fireplace in the living room, which was emitting heat as the burning logs crackled. She stared at it for long seconds and lifted her hands to feel the warmth.
With quiet footsteps, she went over to the large window at the back of the room.
I was about to ask her if she liked it—if she wanted to live here—because, for once, I couldn’t read her expression.
But she spoke first.
“We’ll need to get a swing set for the kids,” she said softly, gazing out at the backyard.
My eyes widened as I looked down at her flat stomach. “Are you…?”
She let out a laugh. “No. But someday,” she sighed wistfully, looking back out the window.
“Do you want to see the kitchen first, or are you in love with it already?” I teased.
“I’m in love,” she replied, and it felt like she wasn’t just talking about the house.
Happiness—that same happiness she gave me every day—came over me because I knew she was picturing the same future I was.
It was an ordinary future filled with simple things. Coffee in the morning. Lazy Sundays. Summertime cookouts. Babies crying and kids laughing.
We’d probably never be rich, but that didn’t matter. As long as we were together I didn’t need anything else.
I stepped up behind Angel, resting my chin on the top of her head. Placing my hands over her stomach, I imagined what it would be like to feel my child growing there.
“I can’t wait to give you a family,” I said quietly into her hair.
She turned a little, her eyes locking with mine. “You already have.”
I placed a gentle kiss on her lips and we went back to looking out at the snow-covered lawn, both of us envisioning our life together.
CHAPTER 5
ANGEL
As soon as Travis put the truck in park, I mauled him. He responded by moaning into my mouth as I attacked his lips. Threading his hands in my hair, he bit down on my lip and I started fumbling with his seatbelt.
“Baby,” he said, laughing. “We should get inside.”
“Uh-huh,” I agreed before I moved my mouth down to his neck. “We should.” Lifting my head, I noted the intensity in Travis’s eyes and his ragged breathing. I went back in for one last kiss, then muttered against his lips, “Meet me in the shower in three minutes.”
I didn’t wait for him to respond before I darted from the truck, but he wasn’t far behind. The key was barely in the door before he pressed himself against me, his hardness nestled against my lower back.
“Fuck, baby. Hurry,” he whispered, his breath tickling my ear.
I giggled. “I am.”
It took a few tries, but I finally got the lock turned.
Stumbling through the door, Travis caught me around the waist and I spun in his arms. He backed me up until my butt hit the card table, and he leaned in for a kiss.
A loud throat-clearing got our attention.
Both of us looked over to see Colton sitting on the couch, smirking and dramatically covering his eyes.
“Get a room,” he said, telling us the same thing he always did when Travis and I got caught in a moment, which happened way too often.
For a second, I wondered how Colton would feel about Travis and me getting our own place. Would he be lonely? Would he resent me for taking away his best friend?
I didn’t have too much time to think about it, though, because Travis picked me up and threw me over his shoulder—something he was in the habit of doing. I liked to act annoyed but, honestly, I loved it.
Someday, forty or fifty years down the road, he probably wouldn’t be able to do it anymore. Not that it would stop him from trying.
As Travis carried me down the hall and into the bathroom, I couldn’t help feeling a little emotional at the thought of us growing old together. We had our whole lives ahead of us.
Our time was just beginning.
But someday—someday—we would be like Charlie and Ethel. Weathered and wrinkled, spending every last day we could loving each other.
Travis set me down and his face immediately turned concerned when he saw the tears in my eyes.
“Baby, what’s wrong?” he asked, cupping my face and slouching so his face was closer to my level.
“I just love you,” I squeaked. “I want us to always love each other this much.”
“We will,” he said with complete certainty. “In fact, I love you more every single day.”
“Really?” I sniffed.
He nodded. “You just wait. Five years from now, you’ll probably be sick of me hanging on you all the time.”
“Not a chance,” I told him, shaking my head.
Lowering his face, he ran the tip of his nose down the slope of mine. My fingers went to the button of his jeans while his hands lifted my shirt.
Neither of us said a word as we removed the other’s clothing.
Reaching into the shower, Travis turned on the water then put his attention back on me while we waited for it to get warm.
I let out a surprised gasp as his lips roughly landed on mine and his tongue swept into my mouth. The intensity of his kiss was a sharp contrast to the way he softly brushed his thumbs over my painfully hard nipples.
Moaning, I wrapped my hand around his hard length and stroked my hand up and down. Once. Twice. Three times.
Swiping my thumb over the tip, I spread the pre-cum around the head of his cock and he gasped into my mouth.
Steam started to fill the small room and I pulled him into the hot spray with me, shutting the glass door behind us.
With a swipe o
f his hand, Travis cleared the small built-in shelf on the wall, knocking all the items off. The shampoo bottle clattered to the floor with a thud.
Knowing what was coming next, I wrapped my arms around Travis’s neck while he picked me up by the waist.
After setting my butt on the ledge, he scooped his arms underneath my knees, anchoring me to the wall while spreading my legs wide.
I looked down, watching Travis line himself up with my center, but he didn’t push inside. Instead, he started nudging my opening with his cock, barely pushing in an inch then pulling back.
I felt a gush of wetness between my thighs and I knew it wasn’t just the water. He continued the movements, just slightly rocking his hips. My breathing picked up and I squirmed, wanting to feel him fill me.
He loved doing this. Torturing me. Teasing me.
Using my heels, I tried to pull him toward me but the awkward position was limiting my movement.
I let out a frustrated growl. “Travis.”
He chuckled before biting my lower lip. “Angel. What do you want, Baby?”
“I want you inside me. Now,” I said breathlessly.
“God, I love it when you get all demanding.”
Spreading my legs wider, he gave three hard thrusts before he was buried to the hilt. I whimpered into the skin of his neck, trying not to be too loud as he started rocking into me.
With his arms still hooked under my legs, he wrapped his hand around the front of my hip, bringing his thumb to my clit. He rubbed it in circles, applying just the right pressure.
Travis knew my body so well, knew all the right buttons to push.
I felt the familiar tightening in my core as his cock continued to hit some magical spot deep inside me. When his other hand came up to lightly pinch and pull at my nipple, my mouth fell open.
Gasping for air, my fingers grasped Travis’s shoulders as my walls started to flutter.
He started to pump harder as he chased his own release, trying to see if we could come at the same time.
“Get there, baby,” he rasped. “Fuck, you feel too good…”
“I’m almost there,” I told him with a gasp.
I moaned as I felt his warm cum spill into me. That was all I needed to push me over the edge. My inner muscles clenched and I muffled my sounds into Travis’s shoulder.
We stayed connected, breathing ragged and skin flushed from a combination of the hot water and physical exertion.
Travis gently lifted my chin with his finger, then peeled away the wet hair that was stuck to my face.
He smiled, flashing those dimples. I rubbed the left one with my thumb and he leaned in for a kiss before resting his forehead on mine.
After a minute, he slipped out of my body and set me down.
He picked up the soap and started to wash me, massaging my muscles along the way.
I sighed.
Sometimes these moments were the best—when we didn’t need to talk, when actions spoke louder than words.
*
Satisfied and exhausted, I collapsed onto the bed and Travis turned out the lamp. I felt the bed dip as he climbed under the covers with me. Between the excitement of the day, the overload of food, and the mind-blowing sex, I felt like I couldn’t move an inch.
“Merry Christmas, baby,” he said, planting a kiss on the top of my head.
“Merry Christmas,” I returned happily.
I snuggled closer to Travis and he rolled to his back so I could fling a leg over his middle. Our favorite sleeping position.
As I listened to his heartbeat against my ear, I tried to imagine what might have happened to me if we’d never met. If we hadn’t been in the right place at the right time.
“Travis?”
“Yeah?” He sounded sleepy.
“Thank you for picking me up that day,” I said quietly.
He yawned. “What day?”
“The first day. On the side of the road.”
Pulling his face back from mine, I could almost imagine his tender expression in the darkness.
“Angel, there wasn’t anything that could’ve stopped me.” He gently ran his fingers through my hair. “I had to do it.”
“You saved my life,” I whispered, knowing it was the complete truth.
Travis’s hand stopped moving through my strands and his quiet response was just as honest. “And you changed mine.”
We went back to lying together in silence as we drifted off to sleep.
It really was the best Christmas ever.
The End
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To the readers- Thank you for wanting to read more about Travis and Angel. Buying and reading A Trucker Christmas means you’ve donated to the Bristol Peterson medical fund, and I’m so thankful for your contribution!
To Fancy- Thank you for allowing me to be a part of Bristol’s recovery. I’m so honored.
Brittaney- Thank you for being a super awesome beta reader and for putting up with my constant pestering.
Thank you to my editor Kim, my cover artist Michelle, and my formatter Rebecca. I mean it very literally when I say I couldn’t do this without you!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jamie Schlosser grew up on a farm in Illinois surrounded by cornfields. Although she no longer lives in the country, her dream is to return to rural living someday. As a stay-at-home mom, she spends most of her days running back and forth between her two wonderful kids and her laptop. She loves her family, iced coffee, and happily-ever-afters. You can find out more about Jamie and upcoming books by visiting these links:
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A Trucker Christmas: A Romantic Short Story Page 3