by Paige Tyler
“And this,” Connie said, handing her a beautifully wrapped box, “is for you from all of us.”
Sosie blinked. “Me?”
The dark-haired woman nodded. “I always like to keep an extra gift on hand in case someone brings a guest.”
Sosie gazed down at the package. The gesture was so sweet, it almost brought tears to her eyes. She lifted her head to see everyone regarding her expectantly. “But I didn’t get any of you anything.”
Connie waved her hand. “Having you here is present enough for all of us.” She grinned. “Now, go ahead and open your gift.”
Sosie didn’t need any more encouragement. She tore into the paper, eager to see what Connie had given her, and was thrilled to find out it was a bottle of perfume. She read the name on the box, but didn’t recognize it, of course. Wondering if it smelled like the scent she wore at home, she took it out of the box and sprayed some on, then inhaled deeply. Soft and delicate, the fragrance was more tantalizing than the usual cinnamon and sugar scent she wore.
She gave Connie a smile. “It smells beautiful. Thank you.”
Beside Sosie, Derek leaned in closer. A moment later he lifted his head to grin down at her. “Mmm, that is nice.”
Sosie’s pulse skipped a beat. She’d heard perfume could have a very desirous effect on members of the opposite sex, but hadn’t believed it since she’d never experienced its power herself. Then again, maybe it didn’t work on elf guys. Maybe it only worked on BP men. Right then, she didn’t care. She liked the way Derek was looking at her.
She opened her mouth to thank him only to be interrupted by a child crying. She turned to see tears running down Jimmy’s face as he stared down at the remote-control car in his hands. Figgy, she hoped he hadn’t gotten into trouble for playing too wildly.
His father kneeled down in front of him. “It’s all right, buddy. We’ll take it back to the store tomorrow and get you a new one.”
The boy sniffed. “B-but I want this one.”
The man put his arm around his son. “I know, but this one doesn’t work anymore.”
Sosie chewed on her lower lip. While she hadn’t worked on that particular model of toy, she might be able to fix it if she had the right tools.
Setting the bottle of perfume down on a table, she walked over to kneel down beside Jimmy and his father.
“I have a knack with toys,” she said. “Want me to take a look at your car and see if I can fix it for you?”
Hope filled Jimmy’s tear-filled eyes. “Do you really think you can?”
“All I need are a few common hand tools.”
“I’ve got those,” Ben said, coming over to stand beside her. “What do you need?”
“Some screwdrivers and a small pair of pliers,” she told him. “Oh, and a soldering iron, if you’ve got it.”
“As a matter of fact, I do. I’ll go get them for you.”
Behind Jimmy, his mother frowned in concern. “I don’t know about this. Are you sure you can fix it without breaking it? I don’t want to void the warrantee.”
“She can fix it, Mommy,” Jimmy said confidently. “I know it.”
Sosie gave her a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. It’ll be good as new. I promise.”
The woman still looked unsure, but didn’t say anything. A moment later, Ben came back, tools in hand. Turning the remote-control car over, Sosie unscrewed the cover on the underside and took it off. She immediately saw the problem and was relieved she could indeed fix it. She would have felt awful if she’d had to disappoint Jimmy. But luckily, a few wires had broken loose from the circuit board. She had them soldered back on in no time flat, then tweaked the settings on the main PCU so the car would move faster.
She popped the cover back on, then held it out to Jimmy. “Why don’t you go take it for a spin and see what you think?”
He eagerly obeyed, giggling like crazy as the car spun in a tight circle, then sped across the floor.
“Thank you,” Jimmy’s mother said. “Both for fixing it and for saving me from having to go back to the toy store and stand in that line of people who are going to be returning things tomorrow.”
Sosie blushed. “No problem. I’ve always been very handy with anything electrical.”
“Is that so?” Ben regarded her thoughtfully. “How are you with central air units?”
Her brow furrowed. “Central air units?”
“Yeah. I can never get the AC to work.”
She didn’t know what AC was, either, but she didn’t want to look stupid in front of everyone. Fortunately, Derek came to her rescue.
“Sosie is from way up north, Ben,” he reminded the older man. “I don’t think they have a big call for AC there.”
“Oh, that’s right. I didn’t think about that.” Ben shook his head. “I wish we didn’t need it here because the unit they installed in this building is a piece of crap. It breaks down all the time. Do you think you could take a look at it before you leave?”
“I can try.”
Sosie and Derek stood watching Jimmy playing with his car for a while before he suggested they grab some eggnog.
“That was nice of you to fix Jimmy’s toy,” Derek said as he handed her a plastic cup. “And to offer to help Ben with the air conditioning. I think he gets overwhelmed trying to keep up with everything around here.” His mouth twitched. “I’d help him with it myself, but I probably couldn’t figure out how to get the cover off unless I used a crowbar.”
She laughed. “It’s the least I could do. Everyone’s been so nice to me.”
Most especially Derek. Sosie wished she could think of some way to pay him back for everything he’d done for her.
“You two do realize where you’re standing, don’t you?”
Sosie turned at the sound of Tracee’s voice to find that she and Linda had come over to join them. For some reason, both women were regarding them with amusement. Sosie glanced at Derek and saw he looked as confused by the question as she was.
Tracee gave them an impatient look. “Look up.”
Sosie obeyed and blinked when she saw the sprig of mistletoe hanging from the doorjamb above their heads. Elves might not celebrate Christmas with roast turkey and presents, but they did put up mistletoe, so she knew what standing underneath it meant. Wondering if Derek did, too, she looked up to find him gazing down at her with that same sexy glint he’d had in his eye when he leaned in to smell her perfume before. Her pulse quickened and she wet her lips in anticipation.
But to her dismay, Derek didn’t move to kiss her. Maybe he didn’t know the tradition, after all.
“Well, what are you waiting for?” Tracee said impatiently. “Go ahead and kiss her already.”
He chuckled. “They’re not going to be satisfied unless I kiss you, you know.”
She smiled. “Then I suppose you’d better kiss me.”
Giving her a lopsided grin, Derek bent and lightly touched his lips to hers. The kiss was gentle, his mouth moving tenderly over hers, and she leaned into him, her hands sliding up the front of his shirt. He tasted like spiked eggnog and the pumpkin pie they’d had earlier, and something else she couldn’t put a name to. All she knew was that it was decidedly male and more intoxicating than any alcohol she’d ever had in her life, and she wanted more. Derek must have felt the same because he slid one hand into her long hair and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. She parted her lips, sighing as his tongue swept into her mouth and tangled with hers in a sweet dance that left her knees weak. She’d been kissed by elf guys before, but never like this, and when Derek finally lifted his head, she could only gaze up at him in wonder.
The moment was so magical Sosie completely forgot they were in a room full of people until she heard the sound of excited voices, followed by the scramble of feet. Jerked out of her reverie by the commotion, she reluctantly turned her head to see everyone crowding around the common area’s two small windows and looking at something outside.
“It’s snowing!” Linda
squealed.
Sosie couldn’t help but smile at the excitement in the dark-haired woman’s voice. Snow was so common in the North Pole she’d almost forgotten it wasn’t an everyday occurrence in the rest of the world.
Derek cleared his throat. “I guess we should go take a look, huh?”
She would much rather have spent the rest of the night kissing him under the mistletoe, but since she knew that probably wouldn’t be very appropriate considering they weren’t alone, she nodded instead.
Although she “oohed” and “aahed” along with everyone else at the snow falling outside, Sosie couldn’t think about anything but the kiss she and Derek had shared under the mistletoe. She’d never been kissed so thoroughly or so expertly before. It had been enough to curl her elfin booties. Not to mention leave her wanting more.
Trouble was, she wasn’t sure how to go about letting Derek know she wanted more. Figgy, she wouldn’t even know how to let an elf guy know. Where she came from, it was the guys who made the first move. And the second. She sipped her eggnog, giving Derek covert looks beneath her lashes from across the room as she tried to come up with something. Unfortunately, nothing came to mind.
“So,” Tracee said, sidling up to Sosie with a mischievous look on her face. “Is Derek a good kisser?”
Sosie felt her face color. “A very good kisser.”
The redhead exchanged looks with Linda, who grinned. “That was absolutely brilliant of you to lure him under the mistletoe. I only wish I’d thought of it. My guess is he won’t be sleeping on the couch tonight, not after a kiss like that.”
Sosie worried her lower lip with her teeth as she considered Linda’s words. “You think so?”
“Only if you give him a not-so-subtle hint,” Tracee said. “Derek is definitely into you, but he’s too much of a gentleman to make a move unless you give him the okay.”
“How do I do that?” Sosie asked.
The other woman grinned. “Wait here. I’ll be right back.”
Confused, Sosie watched as Tracee walked over to the doorway where the mistletoe was hanging. Reaching up, the woman removed it from the hook it was on, then came back over and handed it to Sosie.
She frowned. “What am I supposed to do with this?”
“Put it anywhere you want Derek to kiss you, of course,” Tracee said, giving her a wink.
Sosie blushed as she suddenly imagined all the delicious places she wanted Derek to kiss her. She eyed the mistletoe skeptically. “Are you sure that’ll work?”
Tracee shrugged. “It worked for you before.”
Sosie supposed the redhead was right. Even though she hadn’t purposely lured Derek under the mistletoe as Linda seemed to think, it had gotten him to kiss her. She would have to be more creative. Bold, too. Which was something she’d never been with guys. But she could be if it got Derek into bed with her. Thinking of what his hard, naked body would feel like against hers was enough to make her moan, and she had to bite her lip as one erotic image after another flashed through her head.
By the time the party wound down a few hours later, Sosie was more aroused from her fantasies than she’d ever been in her life. She was an elf in lust and nothing was going stop her from getting Derek into bed with her tonight. She didn’t care how much of a gentleman he was, there was no way he was sleeping on the couch again. In fact, if she had her way, he wasn’t going to be sleeping at all.
After they got back up to his apartment, however, her confidence faltered. But then she thought of the frustrated night she’d have her if she didn’t proposition Derek, and how much she would regret it when she left.
Taking a deep breath, she turned to face him. “I had a great time at the party. It was very nice of you to invite me.”
He grinned. “I’m glad you came. I had a good time, too.”
Sosie nibbled on her lower lip. Okay, it’s now or not at all. Time to be a bold elf. She looked up at him. “You know, I feel awful about putting you out of your bed again. I was thinking maybe you might want to sleep with me tonight.”
He studied her in silence, his dark eyes unreadable. Sosie held her breath as she waited for him to say something. What if Tracee and Linda had been wrong? What if Derek wasn’t as “into her” as they’d thought?
“If I share the bed with you, Sosie,” he said softly, “sleeping is the last thing either of us will be doing.”
She gave him what she hoped was a flirtatious look. “Good. Then the mistletoe won’t go to waste.”
His mouth curved into a grin at the tiny sprig of greenery dangling from her fingers. “Mistletoe, huh?”
“I thought I could put it wherever I want you to kiss me.”
He chuckled. “Honey, you don’t need mistletoe for that. I’ve spent the past two hours fantasizing about kissing every inch of you.”
Her pulse skipped a beat. “You have?”
“Uh-huh.”
Cupping her face in his hand, he bent his head to cover her mouth with his. This time, there was no hesitancy in the kiss. This time, his mouth moved over hers with an urgency that left her breathless, and she had to cling to his shoulders to keep from melting as his tongue plunged into her mouth to take possession of hers. It was as if he couldn’t seem to get enough of her. The desire was mutual. She couldn’t get enough of him, either.
With a groan, Derek swung her up in his arms and strode toward the bedroom. She’d never had a guy do something so romantic before—mainly because she was always taller than the elf guys she’d slept with—but she decided it was very hot.
Once beside the bed, Derek set her on the floor, letting her slide slowly and deliciously down his body. Arms still looped around his neck, she pulled him down for another kiss. This time, she was the aggressor, her tongue seeking his and exploring every inch of his tasty mouth.
Derek groaned and ran his hands down her back to firmly cup her ass through the tight jeans she wore. She murmured her appreciation against his mouth as he pulled her more tightly against him. His erection strained against his jeans, pressing into her belly. Mmm. Well, that answered the question as to whether he was well built everywhere. It felt as if he had a huge candy cane hidden in there.
Suddenly impatient to see how well built, Sosie ran her hands down his chest to the bottom of his shirt and urgently pushed it up. Derek must have thought she needed some help because he reached back and pulled it over his head to toss it on the floor.
She’d thought getting a glimpse of him without a shirt last night had been a treat, but seeing all that sculpted muscle up close was even better. Figgy, he was gorgeous.
Eager to find out if he felt as incredible as he looked, she reached out and slowly ran her hands over his smooth chest and down his rock-hard stomach, then back up again. Unable to help herself, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his nipple. It stiffened at her touch and she swirled her tongue around it, drawing the hard peak into her mouth to gently suckle on it before releasing it and doing the same with its counterpart.
Above her, Derek sucked in a breath and thrust a hand into her hair, gently bringing her head up.
“My turn,” he said huskily.
Urging her onto the bed, he found the hem of her T-shirt and lifted it over her head. His gaze lingered on the tops of her breasts as if mesmerized by what he saw and she felt excitement course through her as she reached around to unclasp her red lace-trimmed bra.
Derek gazed down at her, his dark eyes seeming to smolder as they caressed her bare breasts, and Sosie felt her nipples tingle.
“God, you’re beautiful,” he breathed.
Sosie blushed. She’d never had a guy tell her she was beautiful, and the way Derek said it made her feel warm all over. She opened her mouth to thank him, but the words were muffled against his mouth as he bent to kiss her again.
Cupping her breasts in his hands, Derek gently pushed her back onto the bed, then slowly trailed hot kisses along the curve of her jaw and down her neck. The scruff on his face made her skin tingle
and she shivered. Elf guys didn’t often grow facial hair and when they did, it came in all soft and wispy. But as he took one of her nipples in his mouth Sosie forgot all about how rough Derek’s stubble felt. She gasped and arched against him, letting out a moan as he swirled his tongue around the taut bud before taking it in his mouth to suckle on it. She’d always had sensitive nipples, but tonight, they seemed to be even more receptive. As he moved from that nipple to do the same glorious thing to the other one, she decided her reaction had nothing to do with how sensitive she was and everything to do with how good Derek was at touching her.
Flicking his tongue over her nipple one more time, he kissed his way down her belly until he got to the waistband of her jeans. Unbuttoning them, he pulled them off and tossed them over his shoulder to join the rest of the clothes already on the floor. Her tiny, red panties followed, though not as quickly since he seemed to enjoy taking his time slowly wiggling them over her hips. When she was completely naked, he leaned back to gaze down at her.
“I was wrong before when I said you were beautiful,” he rasped. “You’re absolutely perfect.”
Sosie’s breath hitched. Perfect? He thought a too-tall elf who’d spent her whole life not fitting in was perfect? She was speechless.
Not that she would have been able to say anything even if she could have managed to find her voice because Derek kneeled down in front of her and gently spread her legs. Sosie’s heart raced and she bit her lip to stifle a moan. She hadn’t had that many elf guys go down on her and the ones who had done it hadn’t been very good at it. She had a feeling it would be different with Derek.
But rather than bury his face between her thighs like she wanted him to do, Derek leaned forward and slowly kissed his way down her leg. He seemed content to take his time working his way up to her pussy, and she shivered as much from the stubble on his jaw as she did from the anticipation of what his tongue was going to feel like on her clit.