by Emma Douglas
He shook his head. “My lake monsters are Nessie-like. Peaceful. Shy. Leaving poor humans alone. Blame the Scotsman in me.” He studied her a moment. Dark hair, pale, pale skin. Big eyes the color of wild seas. His Scots ancestors would have thought her a selkie perhaps. Come on to land to tempt men into the kinds of things they damn well knew better than to do. “You should believe in Nessie too.”
“Oh? Why’s that?”
“You can’t tell me there’s not Irish or Scottish somewhere in your past. Not with that skin.” The words came out a little rougher than he’d intended as a sudden memory of how that pale skin had warmed, turning nearly the same shade of pink as her lips, when she’d kissed him, flashed through his head.
The skin in question suddenly went the exact shade he remembered, and his breath caught. He stepped a little closer.
She didn’t move away. “Why does pale skin have to equal Irish or Scottish? Maybe it’s Scandinavian or Russian or…”
“Not with those eyes. Selkie eyes,” he said. He reached out and ran his thumb along her cheek, forgetting all about slow as though he’d never even heard the word. “Mermaid eyes.”
Mina stared up at him. Then she sighed. “Never any damn mistletoe when you need it,” she said. Then dragged his head down to hers.
It was surprise he felt at first. Shock, maybe. That Mina was kissing him again. But shock gave way to delight and then to hunger. Damn.
He liked her mouth.
He liked all of her. He needed more. His fingers curled into the fabric of her coat and he pulled her closer. The kiss in her studio had been too fast and too out of the blue for him to do much more than stand there and take it, but this time he wanted more. Wanted to know how she felt against him.
Even through the layers of clothes between them, he could feel her curves. Feel where her body said female. She was lean and in good shape, and there were muscles under those curves, firm against his fingers, but there was no mistaking her for anything other than a woman.
His brain roared for more, his cock hardening, need and heat and want coalescing in his brain and body, setting him alight. He moved his mouth harder over hers and her lips opened, the kiss going deeper as he tasted more of her.
Nothing but her and the clutch of her hand at the back of his neck and her body pressed against him and the oh-so-sexy noise she made when he pulled her even closer.
Mina.
Until suddenly she stepped back a little. Just enough to pull her mouth away from his, and it was over.
Damn it. He fought every instinct he had. The ones yelling at him to pull her back into him.
Slow. He was doing this slow. Slow and smart.
Fuck. Never had anything sounded less appealing as he fought to bring his breath back under control. Mina was breathing hard too, eyes greener now as she stared up at him, looking simultaneously startled and satisfied.
“Definitely a mermaid,” he managed to say as the sound of his heart banged in his ears louder than the roar of the sea below them. He tried to think of something other than her. Something boring. Like the rock of the island and the tectonic plates below that had thrown it up out of the ocean. But that only made him think of lava. And heat. And how badly he wanted to kiss her again. Do more than kiss her. Have her naked beneath him with all that pale skin his to explore and delight. His hands were still twined in her coat, gripping the fabric hard so he wouldn’t pick her up and throw her over his shoulder.
“Mermaid?” she said, sounding dazed. That much was good. Dazed, he liked. Though this was hardly the place for her to be dazed. This rocky headland wasn’t exactly full of anywhere that two people could sneak off and … okay, perhaps not so much thinking about that.
“Temptation. That’s what mermaids do.” He closed his eyes a minute. Tried to remember they were standing out in the open. In broad daylight. On Thanksgiving. With her family all expecting them back at some point.
“Isn’t that sirens?”
“Same thing.”
She shook her head. “Pretty sure it’s not. And if you’d ever heard me sing, you’d know I’m not a siren.” She smiled up at him.
“Pretty sure you’re wrong about that.” He took a breath. “So? This kissing thing … is it a one-time deal?”
Her mouth curved. “Given it’s not the first time it’s happened, I don’t think it can be.”
It was an effort to loosen his grip. He didn’t want to let go of her but he didn’t want her to feel like she had to stay there. Not if she was regretting what just happened. “Seems to me like the question then becomes whether it might happen again?”
She looked down.
“Sorry,” he said. “I said I wouldn’t push. I won’t. Tell me it’s just a Christmas miracle and I’ll back off.”
She snorted. “It’s not Christmas yet. So it’s probably a little early for miracles. I think you drank too much of Faith’s champagne.”
He’d only had one glass. It was damn fine champagne but not as heady as the woman sitting across from him had been. He didn’t need booze to feel good anyway. And with Mina Harper running through his veins, that was especially true. But perhaps he was laying it on a little thick. “More like too much of Lou’s turkey. That bird was a miracle even if it isn’t Christmas.”
“Now that I can agree on,” Mina said. Which didn’t answer his question at all. “Her gravy should probably be illegal.”
“Agreed. I was watching Stefan when he tasted it. I thought he was going to keel over from culinary delight. I bet he’s trying to get the recipe out of her as we speak.”
“He’ll be disappointed,” Mina said. “She might deign to teach him how to make pies. She might even give him a cookie recipe or two. Lou shares a lot, but she doesn’t tell anyone how to make her gravy.” She looked back the way they’d come. “Speaking of gravy, we should head back. This mermaid wants some more pie.”
Okay, that was clear enough. Moment over. For now. “I guess swimming around all day burns lots of calories?” he asked, stepping back from her.
“Damn straight,” Mina said. “And all that luring men into temptation is a hell of a workout. Mermaids earn their pie.”
He could think of far more enjoyable ways to burn calories, but he’d save that suggestion for another time. And Lou’s pies were as good as her gravy. If he couldn’t spend any more time kissing Mina today then pie might be a good distraction. “I’m sold,” he said. That earned him a brilliant smile of approval.
“Pie it is,” she said. “And Will?”
“Yes?”
“I don’t think it was just a one-time thing. Or a two-time thing. But I still need time, okay?”
He nodded. “Mermaids get to call the shots.” He wondered whether he should just go jump in the ocean to quench the heat that swept over him as he watched her turn to walk back toward the house and all those inconvenient other people who meant he wouldn’t be kissing her again.
* * *
“So, I’m leaving with Ivy and Matt. We’re hanging out at their house. You’re invited, if you want.”
Will looked around from the TV he’d been mostly ignoring to find Stefan standing beside him. It had been a couple of hours since he and Mina had come back from their walk. There’d been more pie, more conversation, and now there was music in some parts of the house and a movie playing in the background in the den where Will had ended up. Most people seemed to be settling in for the evening, though one or two had left already. And now it seemed, Stefan was going to bail as well.
Should he go? Mina hadn’t sought him out again. She hadn’t avoided him, they’d crossed paths during the course of the evening, but he didn’t think she was going to be inviting him over or anything. Not unless there really was a Christmas miracle. Still, he didn’t want to leave.
“Or stay,” Stefan said. “Up to you.” He tipped his chin toward the door. “Mina’s still here.”
“She kind of lives here.”
“She lives in the lighthouse.”
“You know what I mean, this is her family Thanksgiving.”
“Still, she’s here. Maybe you should stay.”
“Maybe you should quit trying to give me advice about women and go.”
Stefan laughed. “I take it that’s a no to Matt and Ivy’s then?”
“It’s a no. Enjoy yourself.” Running the bar didn’t leave either of them with much time for just hanging out. Stefan deserved a night with friends.
“I will.” Stefan saluted him with the beer he’d been holding and wandered off again, leaving Will alone with the movie he wasn’t watching. The others in the room seemed to find it interesting though. So he should probably leave them to it.
He went back downstairs to join the party. But he couldn’t help keeping part of his attention on Mina as she moved around the room. Or help noticing that she was sending the odd longing glance toward the front door. Did she want to leave? Go home and paint or whatever she did? Was her head okay?
Was she staying because he was? She had invited him after all and he was guessing that anyone raised by Lou Henry had been brought up to look after their guests.
So maybe he should call it a night. Take advantage of the bar being closed and go to bed early for once.
He made his way across the room to Mina. “I’m going to head out. Thank you for a great dinner.”
She looked slightly surprised. “The party will kick on for a while.”
“I know,” he said. “But I don’t get that many nights off. Thought I might take advantage and catch up on some sleep. Isn’t a turkey coma the traditional way to end Thanksgiving?”
“Something like that,” Mina said. “If you’re sure, I’ll walk you out.”
“I’d like that.”
It took another fifteen minutes or so to find his coat and say thank you to Faith and Caleb, but eventually he was alone in the dark with Mina, walking down to where Lulu was parked.
Mina ran a hand along the Mustang’s roof and down to the hood. “This is a very pretty car.”
“Thanks. I like to think so.”
“Dad had a Mustang at one point. But not a convertible.”
“He missed out.”
“Oh, he had lots of convertibles. Just not one of these.”
“He was a car guy, huh?”
“Yeah. Though he kept most of them off-island at the other houses.”
Other houses. How many exactly? It was easy with Mina to forget how different her childhood must have been from his. How different her life was now, even. She didn’t act like it, but she was rich.
“Yet you drive a Jeep. You never wanted a sports car or something?”
“I like sports cars,” she said with a shrug. “But the Jeep makes more sense here on the island. Not like you can go for long drives around here to appreciate an expensive car.”
“Some people leave the island occasionally,” he pointed out. “You can take cars on the ferry and everything.”
“So I’ve heard.” She smiled at him. “Though it’s more fun to rent something different on the other end.” Her hand was still trailing over the hood.
“I’m a one-car-at-a-time kind of guy,” he said. “I like to focus my attention.”
Mina’s hand stilled. “Is that so?”
Her voice had gone low and it made his gut tighten. Made him want to reach for her. He shoved his hands into his coat pockets so he wouldn’t. He’d promised her time. “Yes. Always been that way.”
He took a step closer, despite himself. “You know, I’ve been thinking.”
“Oh?”
“You said this wasn’t a Christmas miracle. But maybe it could be.”
She lifted an eyebrow. But she didn’t move away.
“I mean, I get it. You lost someone. You have no idea what you want. And you don’t approve of what I do for a living. But maybe, just maybe, this time of year you can forget all about that and just go for what makes you happy.”
“And you make me happy?”
He tilted his head. “I’m not entirely sure. You’re hard to read, Mina Harper. But then again, you’ve kissed me twice now. And I don’t think you’re the type for angry kissing, so I’m leaning toward you at least liking me.”
Her mouth curved up. “Angry kissing? You sound like Faith.”
“Faith talks about angry kissing?” He was confused.
“No, seduction cookies,” she said and then looked kind of horrified. “No, scratch that.”
Oh no. He wasn’t letting that one slide. “Seduction cookies? You mean those cookies you brought me at Salt Devil?”
“Those were thank-you cookies,” she said firmly.
“Then who are you making seduction cookies for?”
“Nobody. Go back to angry kissing.”
“I’m more a fan of I’m-really-hot-for-you-and-I-really-like-you kissing.” Even in the moonlight he could tell she was blushing.
“I think this conversation has wandered off track a little.”
He was trying to remember what he’d been talking about. Kissing. Christmas miracles. Right. Her liking him. Or not. If that blush was anything to go by, he figured he was safe with the premise that she did.
“Right. Back to the Christmas miracle part. What do you say … want to give into the holiday spirit and just have fun?”
“Define ‘fun.’”
“Whatever you want,” he said.
Her head tipped forward, bangs falling so he couldn’t see her expression. Then it lifted again and her eyes looked huge, the moonlight turning them dark and mysterious. “And what happens after Christmas Day? When the time for Christmas miracles is done?”
“Then I guess we see where we are. If you want to walk away then so be it.”
“You think that’s a good idea?”
“You don’t?”
“I think most people don’t actually work like that. That once you throw sex into the mix, things get messy.”
“If you’re doing it right, sure.” He was determined to keep this conversation light hearted. Not to scare her off. That was becoming more difficult because she’d casually tossed the word ‘sex’ into the conversation. Kind of made it hard to focus on anything else.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I know,” he said. He shoved his hands deeper into his pockets, looked up at the sky for a moment. He’d lived here five years and he still loved how bright the stars were over the island. All those thousands of tiny suns burning fiercely, so far away. But he wanted to do a little burning close up. And if that meant he was going to get his heart smashed, well, fuck it. That was a chance he was going to take. Because he wanted Mina more than he wanted safety or sense or sanity. “Like I said, after Christmas, your call. And I promise that I won’t hold it against you if you give me my marching orders.”
“This is a pretty small island.”
He shrugged. “How many times in the last three years had our paths crossed? A handful. I think it’s big enough for both of us.”
“In my experience, it gets a lot smaller when you’re trying to avoid someone,” Mina said.
“Well, we won’t have to avoid each other if it’s a mutual agreement.”
“Do you really believe that?”
He shrugged. “Why not? If it’s a Christmas miracle, we can add in a little no-hard-feelings addendum.”
“I’m really starting to worry about your theory of how Christmas works,” she said.
“Hey, I was a choirboy until I was twelve. I am down with Christmas.”
“You were a choirboy?” One brow arched, clearly disbelieving.
“Why is that so hard to believe?”
“I’m just trying to picture you in one of those robes with the frilly collars.”
“That’s Catholic choirboys,” he said. “We were Episcopalian. No frilly collars.”
“And what happened when you turned twelve?”
“My voice broke. I stopped singing. By the time my voice settled, the other side effects of puberty
meant I’d developed interests other than choir.”
“Will Fraser. Boy soprano. Who’d have thought?”
He batted his eyelashes at her. “I have hidden depths. You should discover some of them.”
“Because of Christmas miracles.”
“Something like that. So, what do you say? Wanna give it a whirl? Or do I have to stand here and sing carols at you until you give in?”
“I’m not sure that carols work as a seduction technique.”
“That’s because you haven’t heard me sing.”
She looked intrigued. “Go on then.”
Right. She’d called his bluff. Not that it was a bluff. Though now he had to think of a carol that was vaguely … sexy. He tried to remember what was on the Christmas playlists that they had for the bar, then launched into “Blue Christmas,” keeping the volume down. Mina he would sing for, but he didn’t need everyone in the Harper house judging his performance. Not when half the people at Faith’s party were involved in the music industry in some capacity.
He was hoping Mina would cut him off, but she let him get all the way through two verses and a chorus before she held up a hand. “All right, you can sing.”
Coming from Grey Harper’s daughter, he’d take that as a compliment. “Just one of my many charms.”
“Along with modesty?”
“Modesty is overrated. Particularly when you’re trying to dazzle a girl.” He took another half step toward her. “Are you feeling dazzled yet?”
“I’m feeling … something,” she said, tilting her head back to look up at him.
“Something good?”
“I think so.”
He couldn’t stop the grin that spread across his face. “Excellent. So is that a yes to Christmas miracles?”
“If I say yes, that doesn’t mean you’re coming home with me tonight.”
“Never thought I would be,” he said. Hoped, maybe, in the stupid foolish part of his heart, but the majority of his brain knew that Mina didn’t need to be rushed. Even if she was only giving him a month or so, he had to let her set the pace.
“Good. But what does happen next if I say yes?”
“Well, there’s this thing called dating. It involves meals and spending time together and doing stuff.”