Hot for the Holidays (21 Holiday Short Stories): A Collection of Naughty and Nice Holiday Romances

by Anthology

  I chuckled under my breath. "This is my fiancé, Max."

  Kirk sighed dramatically. "The good ones are always taken. Or straight." Shaking his head, he returned to the seats where everyone else had sat back down. Kirk appeared a little flamboyant, but really friendly, and I immediately liked him.

  "Why don’t you guys come have a seat? We’re just shootin’ the shit," Mason said.

  "Don’t mind if we do." Max led the way and I followed behind, situating myself on the seat beside him.

  We sat around for a couple of hours making small talk. Turns out Mason was a hip-hop artist, which was why he’d looked familiar to me. Hip-hop wasn’t really my thing, but his good looks—and if memory served from one his magazine covers, a ripped body covered in tattoos—had been plastered throughout the media.

  Kirk and I chatted a bit on our own, and I came to find out that he was from Colorado originally, had hit it big as a software developer in his twenties, and was able to retire when his software was purchased by one of the large computer companies. Since then, he’d been ‘a citizen of the world,’ as he put it, and mainly travelled around enjoying himself.

  "Look what we got!"

  I turned to see Mason approaching the group with Chris in tow. They each had their arms full of food—bags of chips, sandwiches in Saran Wrap, and a couple of salads in plastic containers.

  "We raided the café," Chris said with a shrug. "Figured it was extenuating circumstances and they’ll understand."

  "I left some bills behind the counter to cover it," Mason added.

  We all gathered around as they handed out their loot to us. I opted for a chicken club, not realizing until I saw the food just how hungry I was.

  We ate in silence for a bit before Calder piped up. "So what’s everyone gonna do about sleeping tonight?"

  Ellie rose from her chair and pushed her face against the glass, cupping her hands on either side of her eyes so that she could see out into the night. "It’s still coming down like crazy out there. The snow is pretty much sideways."

  "Guess we won’t be sleeping on the planes then," Mason said.

  "You’d have to run them all night to keep them warm anyway. We’re better off staying in here," Frankie said.

  Calder swung his arm around the back of Frankie and pulled her in to his side. "You up for roughing it, princess?" He laughed.

  She playfully pushed away from him. "Who are you calling princess? Last I checked, it takes you longer to get ready most mornings than it does me." Frankie reached up and tousled his long, blond hair that hung almost to his shoulders.

  Calder puffed his chest out. "You can’t rush perfection, sweetheart."

  Frankie’s only response was to roll her eyes while the rest of us looked on and laughed.

  "I think there should be some blankets stashed in the first aid room somewhere," Chris said. "Let me go take a look."

  "I’ll come with you," Max said and jogged over to catch up with him.

  I stood from the seat and raised my hands over my head to stretch. I’d had enough of sitting in uncomfortable airport chairs for one day. "I’m going to grab something more comfortable to sleep in out of my luggage. Can you let Max know when he comes back?"

  "Oh, I volunteer to talk to Max." Kirk was waving his hand excitedly over his head.

  I rolled my eyes in jest. "Guess I’ll see you all in the morning."

  "Good night," everyone chimed in, and then I walked to the other end of the empty airport.

  When I reached my luggage, I pulled out a pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt, as well as my toothpaste and toothbrush, and made my way to the women’s restroom.

  I’d just finished brushing my teeth when I heard the bathroom door swing open. I turned, expecting to see either Ellie or Frankie, and was surprised to see Max standing there.

  "What are you doing in here?"

  He let the door close behind him then turned to face it, clicking the lock into place. When he twisted back around, I noticed the familiar glint of lust in his piercing blue eyes. I knew exactly what was on his mind.

  He stalked toward me slowly, never removing his gaze from mine. "I thought I’d come see if my wife-to-be needed any help getting changed." Tingles spread from my stomach out to all my limbs as I anticipated his touch.

  "Is that so?" I said, a little breathless.

  "It is. Now…can I be of service?" When he was only inches away from me, Max took my shoulders and spun me to face the mirror. He stood behind me, his hands still on my shoulders.

  "I think you might be able to help somehow," I said, gazing at our reflection.

  Max brushed my hair away from my neck and leaned in, placing his soft lips on my hot skin, his tongue tasting me briefly.

  My eyes fluttered closed momentarily, and his rich scent enveloped me like a warm, familiar cocoon. I felt safe, and sexy, and loved. It was how Max always made me feel.

  His hands snaked around my waist, moved underneath my shirt and rose to cup my lace-covered breasts. He squeezed, and at the same time pressed his hard cock into me from behind. I groaned, wanting nothing between us.

  "Why don’t we get rid of these pants? They’re in the way for what I had in mind."

  "Oh, and what exactly was that?"

  Max let go of my breasts and began unbuttoning the fitted jeans I wore. He slid my pants down my legs as he responded. "It involves you and me. Mostly naked. And a mirror."

  A small shiver jolted throughout my entire body. I lifted my feet, one after the other, as Max removed my shoes and then my pants. Next to go was my shirt. I watched in the mirror as he gripped the hem and raised it up over my head. I now stood in only my pale pink bra and panty set while Max looked at me in the mirror, rubbing his jaw.

  "You get more exquisite every day, Chlo. I can’t wait until I can call you my wife."

  I smiled, my heart swelling with delight that in a few months this man would be my husband. My husband!

  Max leaned in again and kissed the base of my neck...an act he knew drove me crazy and left me wanting. His large hands roamed my body before finally pulling the lace of my bra down, exposing my tightened peaks to the air.

  He lifted his head and watched in the mirror as both of his hands pinched my nipples, working the stiff tips expertly between his fingers. I sighed and leaned back against his chest, wanting to feel him everywhere.

  "I think we need to work on getting your clothes off," I said.

  "I couldn’t agree with you more," his husky voice whispered in my ear.

  Max pulled away and unbuttoned his shirt while his eyes roamed the length of my body in the mirror. The plaid fabric fluttered to the floor, and I heard the jangle of his belt buckle as he worked the fly on his jeans open.

  He pushed the denim down to his thighs, along with his boxer briefs. Then he pressed forward and rubbed the head of his stiff cock along my exposed ass cheeks. I clenched my thighs together, trying to ease the pulsing need between my legs.

  "This thong looks sexy as fuck on you. I don’t remember it. Is it new?"

  "Mmm-hmm," was all I muttered, unable to form actual words as Max continued to rub his hard length so close to where I wanted him most. So close and yet so far.

  "It’s fitting that I’m about to fuck you in a public bathroom. It reminds me of when we first met." He let out a low chuckle, the sound making me even wetter between my thighs.

  I raised my head up and caught his gaze in the mirror. "Who knew that would end up being a moment to remember?"

  "I’m about to give you something else to remember, babe. Hold on." He gently pushed my shoulders forward so I had no choice but to hold on to either side of the sink.

  Max’s warm hand then reached between my legs and pulled my underwear to the side. "Always so ready for me," he said as he swirled his fingers through my wetness. He groaned and leaned in to lightly bite my shoulder before positioning his cock between my swollen lips and slamming inside of me.

  I let out a small yelp at his rapid inva
sion, but was dying for more. Max merely held still inside me. I bucked against him, anxious for the friction of him moving in and out of me. He was having none of it and shifted his hands to my waist to keep me from moving.

  "I just want to feel you surrounding me for a second. There’s nothing better in the world than the feeling of your tight pussy gripping my cock."

  Max always did have a filthy mouth on him, and his words only increased my impatience. Finally—blessedly—he dragged his length from me and immediately thrust back inside. My pussy clenched as I held on to the counter for dear life while he bucked back and forth at a fever pitch.

  His grunts filled the small room along with my own moans. One of Max’s hands came around to pinch my nipple. Fire shot out in all directions, cascading down my limbs and settling in my belly.

  "Oh, Max," I moaned.

  "Fuck, Chlo. I don’t know how much longer I can hold on." His hand slid down from my breast to find my clit and rubbed it all the right ways, creating a delicious sensation that instantly had every nerve in my body pulsing on the verge of release.

  He pulled his hand away, but before I could voice my frustration, it came slamming back down to smack my clit. All the pent-up energy exploded and I momentarily lost conscious thought, reducing me to a mass of pleasure. I moaned loudly as my orgasm rocked through my body and my pussy clenched down on Max’s hard dick.

  He roared, and with one last thrust emptied himself, his dick twitching inside of me as we stood there trying to catch our breath. A sheen of sweat coated my skin, and I shivered as the air around us began to cool it.

  "C’mere," Max said lazily, pulling me up, his muscular arms wrapped around me. "I love you so damn much."

  "I love you, too," I said, still panting a bit.

  Max stared at me in the mirror for a beat, opening and closing his mouth several times before he seemed to come to some sort of conclusion. Then he blurted out, "Let’s get married."

  I laughed. "We are getting married."

  "I mean, here. Tomorrow. On New Year’s Eve."

  "Are you crazy?" I tried to spin to face him, but he held me tight.

  "Only crazy for you." He kissed my shoulder. "I don’t want to wait any longer, Chloe. When the clock strikes twelve, I want to start the year knowing I’m married to my best friend and lover."

  "What about the wedding we’re already planning for the spring? All the money we’ve spent in deposits, my wedding dress, the cake…"

  "We can still do all that. This right here, this one would be for us." He gave me a squeeze. "It’s not about all that other shit and impressing a bunch of my parents’ friends. It’s about what really matters—the connection between the two of us."

  My heart, which I didn’t think could hold any more love for him than it already did, filled with joy and affection for the man in the mirror. "Let’s do it."

  The beaming smile that spread across Max’s face was enough to stifle the small part of me that wondered if this was just a tired and bored Max talking. We’d been stuck in the airport all day, and by the looks of things, we had another day like that ahead of us.

  "I have a question…who’s going to marry us?" We’d already gotten our marriage license, but it wasn’t like there was a pastor or anything hanging around the airport.

  "Not a problem. I remember the event coordinator mentioning something about anyone being able to marry you in Colorado."

  It sounded vaguely familiar to me, but it may have been when we were doing the food testing, and truthfully, I’d been a little distracted by all the delicious meals sitting on the table in front of me that day.

  "All right then." I smiled.

  "Are you sure you won’t regret it? I don’t want you to do it just because I suggested it." Concern was evident in his baby blues.

  "Max, I would never regret marrying you—no matter where, when, or how it happened. You are the love of my life. It doesn’t get any better than that."

  He spun me and brought his lips to mine in a slow, sensual kiss. When I pulled away, I asked, "Will we tell anyone?"

  He shook his head. "I think it’s best if we don’t. My parents would be hurt, as would your sister. We’re not doing it to exclude them, but this is about us. I like the fact that only you and I will know."

  "I agree. It’ll be our little secret. Forever." I gave him a chaste kiss.

  Max graced me with one of his classic smiles that released a swarm of butterflies in my abdomen. "It’s settled then. In roughly twenty-four hours, you will be Mrs. Max Richfield."

  A thrill ran through me and I wondered how on earth I was going to sleep tonight, knowing that tomorrow was my wedding day.

  Chapter Four

  Max

  I’m getting married today. Halle-fucking-lujah.

  I barely slept at all last night, but it had less to do with the hard floor I lay on than the fact that Chloe, was finally, officially going to be mine. Since the day I put that ring on her finger, I’d been anticipating the moment we said ‘I do.’ At midnight tonight, we’d be starting our lives together.

  Everyone in my life had insisted upon a pre-nup, but I’d staunchly refused. My girl and I were solid, and we knew better than most that shit could—and did—frequently happen. Could she divorce me at some point and take my money? Sure. But I didn’t give a damn. If Chloe ever left me, I’d be a shell of a man and have nothing to live for anyway. If she took half my fortune, so be it—it wasn’t as if I couldn’t live handsomely with what would be left.

  I rolled over to my side to see that Chloe was still sleeping. She looked so peaceful and I hated to wake her, but light was peeking through the dark clouds outside and I wanted to get this day started.

  "Are you watching me sleep again?" Chloe muttered out of one corner of her mouth.

  I leaned in and gave her a kiss. "We’re getting married today." Even I heard the satisfaction in my voice.

  A small smile formed on her lips and she cracked open one eye. "I need caffeine first. Think they have coffee in this place?"

  "I tell you what…I’ll go hunt down your caffeine fix, and you get up and get dressed. I’ll meet you back here and then we can tell everyone the good news. We have to figure out who’s going to be the one to marry us."

  Chloe threw her arm over her eyes and chuckled. "Sounds like a plan."

  "Great." I kissed her again before heading off to see if I could figure out the coffee maker in the café.

  I might have practically skipped across the airport, which probably made me a pussy, but I was so deliriously thrilled with the turn of events that I didn’t give it any thought. I could’ve easily handed over my balls and my man card at that point, but who gave a shit? I was a man in love.

  An hour later, after the caffeine was sufficiently streaming through Chloe’s system and we’d both gotten cleaned up, we walked toward the other end of the airport where everyone else had spent the night.

  "Do you think we can trust them to not say anything?" Chloe asked as we walked hand-in-hand.

  I shrugged. "I think so. Mason and Ellie, and especially Frankie and Calder will all understand the issue with the press, and it’s not like they’re hurting for money. Same with Kirk. Chris seems like a decent guy. I think he’ll keep his mouth shut."

  "I suppose," Chloe said with a crease in between her brows. "I’d hate for your parents or my sister to find out."

  I brought her tiny hand to my lips, grazing her knuckles with my mouth.

  "It’ll be fine."

  She blew out a large breath. "You’re right. Nothing to worry about."

  As we approached, I saw that everyone was already up, and a few people in the group had visited the café and grabbed some food.

  "Morning, everyone," I said.

  "Hey, guys. How’d you sleep?" Calder asked.

  I looked over to Chloe and saw that her cheeks were stained pink; she was probably reliving our bathroom antics from the night before.

  "We slept well, thanks. You guys?"
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  Ellie had her hands above her head in a stretch. "Not the best night’s sleep I’ve ever had, but not the worst either."

  Mason came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You’re lucky there were so many people around, or I wouldn’t have let you sleep at all." He waggled his brows.

  Ellie smacked his hands away. "Mason, my God. Must you?" The rest of us laughed.

  Kirk made his way around the couple and came to stand in front of us. "Look at you two," he said, gesturing from our feet to our heads. "You look like you just walked on set for a photo shoot. You sure you spent the night sleeping on a hard floor like the rest of us?" He cocked a hip and crossed his hands over his chest.

  I chuckled. "Chloe always wakes up looking this good," I said and squeezed her hand.

  "I believe it," Kirk said, shaking his head.

  "Enough, you two," Chloe said with an exasperated tone. "Max and I have an announcement."

  "Oh, this sounds exciting!" Kirk clapped his hands like a little kid might do. "What’s going on?" he whispered.

  "Everything okay?" Chris asked as he approached.

  Frankie finished folding a blanket and placed it on one of the seats, then moved to stand beside Calder.

  "Well…what gives?" Mason asked.

  "I’ve convinced Chloe to marry me." I couldn’t help the way my chest puffed out at my proclamation. I knew what a lucky bastard I was that the incredible woman standing beside me would be mine for the rest of my life.

  "We kinda figured that when you introduced her as your fiancé," Calder said with a smile.

  "What Max means is that we want to be married today. At midnight, actually. We want to start the year off as husband and wife." Chloe grinned up at me like she couldn’t wait, and I was sure my heart grew two sizes.

  Kirk hopped up and down on the spot. "OMG a wedding!"

  Chloe laughed. I got the feeling she was quite fond of the guy.

  "That’s so romantic," Ellie said with her hand over her heart.

  "So romantic," Frankie agreed.

  "Not to throw a wrench into things, but who’s gonna marry you?" Mason asked.