An orgasm so fierce and so forceful barreled through her and she unfurled, skyrocketing her into space.
“Oh, God, yes,” he breathed against her stomach, his fingers slowed as her flesh convulsed around them.
She was still floating, unable to completely come down to Earth, when he scooped up her trembling body and laid her on the sofa.
He stepped out of his pants and boxer briefs, then retrieved a condom from his wallet.
“You’re a beautiful man, you know that?” Her voice was sing-song.
“We’re just getting started, babe.” He had himself covered in seconds.
She opened for him as he settled between her legs. When his thick, hard shaft pulsed at her entrance, she closed her eyes.
“Look at me,” he said, his voice gruff with need.
Her eyes flew open.
“I want to really see you when I make love to you for the first time.” He circled his hips just enough to tease her. “I don’t just want to see your bared body tonight. I want to see your bared soul.”
That’s what she was afraid of.
She drew her bottom lip between her teeth, but kept her eyes hooked into his. Without a word—because hells bells, she really couldn’t speak—she gave her head the tiniest of nods.
With one swift thrust, he buried himself inside of her to the hilt.
She cried out.
He hissed in a sharp breath.
But they never broke eye contact.
He reached up and braced a hand against the arm of the sofa, then he started to ride her. Slow and gentle at first, but then faster. Harder, his pace quickening to match the building storm that reflected in his eyes.
A hurricane was swirling and building inside of her, too, and she lifted her hips to match his thrusts.
The muscle in his jaw tightened when she reached down and grabbed his ass, pulling him deeper. He hooked an arm under the back of her knee and lifted her leg to spread her wider.
“Yes,” she gasped. “Harder.” Another gasp. “Faster.”
His eyes dilated, and his strokes went deeper as he rode her hard and fast. His chest brushed her breasts each time he sank into her, the friction creating an exquisite sensation.
He shifted his hips in the opposite direction, hitting just the right spot that drove her home.
She shattered into a million tiny pieces as another orgasm overtook her, pulling him into oblivion with her.
He finally let his eyes close as he pulsed inside of her. He collapsed, letting his chest press fully against hers, and the warmth of his body cocooned her.
It took a long time for their breathing to slow and their hearts to stop thundering. They laid still, soaking in the feel of skin against skin and the raw emotion that thickened the air around them. Ross turned his face into her hair and gently brushed his nose back and forth against her ear. She caressed up and down his spine with her fingertips.
It was the first time in her life she hadn’t felt alone. She should be happy. Thrilled, even. Instead, she was terrified.
“Hey, big guy.” She stroked his hair. The gentle cadence of his breaths told her he was content. She didn’t want to ruin the moment, but she wanted him to know how sweet he’d been in the park to little Noelle, and how sorry she was that she’d run off thinking about herself instead of the pain he must’ve been feeling. “Know what?”
“You’re perfect?” His tone was so content that she didn’t want to ruin the moment by moving.
She stilled. No, no, she wasn’t perfect. Not even close.
“Not what I was going to say.” Her fingers moved against his hair again in soft, smooth strokes. “Guess again.”
“You’re not a real blonde?” He chuckled against her cheek. “I figured that out the second you dropped your panties.” He nipped at her jaw.
She pinched his side.
“Ouch.” He flinched.
“I was going to say something really nice, but not now.” She pinched him one more time just for the hell of it. “For your information, I am a blonde. Just not a platinum blonde. More of a dirty blonde.”
“Oh.” His voice went sultry with a hint of tease. “I like the dirty part.”
“You’re awful.” She swatted his shoulder.
“Okay, it’s my turn to ask a question.” He lifted onto his elbows and smoothed both thumbs across her cheeks. “Tell me something.”
She kept tracing his spine with her fingers.
“The little girl in the park got me to thinking…” He let a small breath slip out as he studied her. “How does a young girl survive the foster system, make it through college and law school, and become a kick ass attorney who dedicates her life to helping other people instead of thinking of herself?”
That wasn’t at all what she’d been expecting him to ask, and she had to think on it for a minute.
Finally, she drew in a deep breath. “I guess foster kids develop pretty good survival instincts at a young age. There’s plenty of opportunities to hone those skills. You either sink or swim, and I decided to swim. By the time I made it through undergrad, I knew I had to help kids just like me, so I went to law school. I think giving back that way came from the same survival instincts. I had to decide to either do good things with my life or bad. A lot of kids who grow up in the system make a different choice. I didn’t want to end up ruining my life like my parents ruined theirs, so I focused on helping others instead of thinking of myself.”
“You’re incredible, you know that?” He brushed her nose with his.
She knew no such thing.
“Ross, surviving consumed me. It used all of the good parts of me.”
“The things you do for kids, the pictures on your walls,” he argued. “Those things say otherwise.”
He didn’t get it, and never would. The reason she did those things was because she had nothing more to offer when it came to real relationships.
He tapped a finger against her head. “I see that brilliant mind of yours working overtime.”
She lifted her head to suckle his neck. “I’m thinking that I’d like a repeat performance. You’re pretty good at this sex thing, you know that?”
He laughed and sat up on the edge of the sofa to grab his boxer briefs. “You deserve a real bed, so we’re going to my place for round two.” He stood. “I’ll go find your restroom and clean up.”
She watched him pad to the door, his muscled back and ass making her mouth water again. When he disappeared into the dark hallway, she whispered, “And you deserve a whole woman in your bed.”
Her throat closed.
Kimberly was not intimate relationship material. Not by a long shot.
As soon as Ross figured that out, he’d leave.
And she couldn’t blame him one bit for wanting someone better.
Chapter Eleven
Kimberly spent the next few days decorating the hell out of Red River. The nights at Ross’s working on the wish ornaments that would decorate the tree weren’t bad either.
Grinch sminch.
The glares from the residents who’d been upset with her at the council meeting had subsided as more of the decorating took shape each day.
“It’s a little crooked,” she cupped her gloved hands and called up to one of the firefighters Ross had called on for help.
The extra hands and their fire trucks with ladders and buckets had helped string the lights around the new tree, and hang decorations from every street lamp along Main Street. They were on the last lamp, then she could hurry back to Ross’s shop to keep working on the long list of wishes that had poured into her inbox.
If she stayed up all night…
Okay, Ross was already keeping her up all night.
But if she could manage to resist that hunky body of his … and the things he did with his fingers and tongue … she could stay up all night working on the wishes and they’d be finished.
Once those were complete, voila. They’d be ready to light the new tree over the weekend.
She’d distributed the list of wishes to the donors, with instructions to mail the gifts to Red River by early next week or send her a pick-up address.
Ross had kept up with the carolers and Nativity characters to make sure they’d be ready, too.
Even Chairperson Clydelle had seemed impressed with their progress.
With the lighting ceremony off their overloaded plates, they could focus on getting the kids into Red River for Christmas Eve to unwrap their gifts.
Her heart warmed. Watching so many kids have their Christmas wishes come true was going to be so wonderful.
“Perfect!” Kimberly shouted when the firefighter had the decorations just right. She gave him a thumbs-up. The basket lowered. “Thanks a ton. Tomorrow around lunchtime, so we can hang the wishes on the tree?”
“Sure thing. As long as there’s no fire, I’ll be here.” The firefighter climbed out of the basket.
As she turned to walk back down Main Street toward command central, a.k.a Ross’s shop, light snow started to fall. She pulled her winter hat down over her ears and stuffed her hands in her pockets.
She stopped on the sidewalk and took in the town she’d decorated like a mad woman. Red River was a beautiful town any time of year, but she had to admit, it was so much more cheerful with all the decorations.
She’d put her whole heart into it for Ross, the same way he’d put his faith in her. She’d even been working on a huge surprise for him that she’d unveil during the tree lighting ceremony they’d scheduled.
It was going to be awesome to see the look on his face.
A door opened and out stepped one of the owners of Shear Elegance. “Hi, Kimberly,” Dylan’s fiancé, Hailey Hicks, said as she locked the door.
“Well, hey there.” Kimberly smiled. “I guess I didn’t realize it was getting so late.” She gazed up at the overcast sky, the purple hue of dusk coloring the clouds.
“My evening clients canceled because of the storm rolling in.” She tested the door of her salon to make sure it was locked. “It’s not going to be a big storm, but hey, I’m not complaining. Dylan’s watching our daughter at Joe’s, so I can pick her up and get home early to cook dinner.” Her expression fell with what seemed like guilt. “He usually has to bring dinner home since both of us work and own businesses.”
Kimberly gave her a reassuring smile. “From where I stand, you’re both doing a great job as parents.” At least they were stepping up and trying their hardest.
Kimberly would’ve given the moon for at least one parent who cared enough to make an effort.
Hailey glanced down Main Street and jingled the keys in her hand. “You’ve got this town looking great.”
“How’s the wedding plans coming?” Kimberly couldn’t imagine wasting money on a wedding when the justice of the peace worked just as well, but whatever. It wasn’t her place to step on another gal’s dream.
Hailey nodded. “They’re coming, I guess. Kinda wish we would’ve eloped to Vegas.”
Kimberly laughed.
“Hey.” Hailey’s forehead wrinkled. “You never took me up on the free makeover I offered you several months ago.”
Kimberly hadn’t had a reason to get a makeover. Until now.
She stared at the sidewalk for a second. “Could I take you up on that day after tomorrow? We’re lighting the Wishing Tree that night, and I’d like to look nice.” For a change.
They set a time, and Kimberly strolled along Main Street, crossed over at an intersection, and started whistling … Frosty the Snowman?
Oh jeez. She was becoming a Christmas sap just like Ross.
Guess that’s what great sex and love did to a gal.
She stopped in her tracks. Couldn’t make a sound, as though she’d been chewing dry crackers with no water to wash them down.
A hand went to her throat and she massaged so she could actually swallow.
She loved Ross.
Holy shit, she loved Ross.
Fear lanced through her, and she felt like a scared little girl all over again. She pushed those fears aside, and slowly forced one foot in front of the other until his shop came into view. Darkness hadn’t completely fallen over Red River, but his Christmas lights blinked on, and she couldn’t stop a smile.
She entered the building, taking off her coat and winter gear as she followed the hallway that emptied into the back area where he worked on cars. And found herself alone.
A voice came from the back corner office. She laid her jacket on a bench and eased in the direction of the office. She peeked around the corner, and Ross was on the phone, sitting at his desk, with his back to the door.
“What the hell, Frank? You promised me those buses. You can’t pull out now.” Ross went quiet, listening with the landline phone to his ear. “Listen.” His voice was angry. “I’ve given my word to the most important person in my life, and I am not going to let her down just because some rich asshat flashed a lot of money under your nose to get you to bus his entire neighborhood to a pro football game. Tell him to find another way to show off how fucking rich he is.”
Kimberly’s chest tightened.
Ross went quiet, listening again. “Watch your mouth, Frank. She’s not just a squeeze. You have no idea what this woman does for other people.” Ross ran his fingers through his hair. “Or how much she means to me. She’s more special than you and me put together, and I don’t want to disappoint her.”
Kimberly blinked. Then blinked again.
The tightness in her chest released, only for butterfly wings to beat against her ribcage.
“Oh yeah? Well, don’t come crying to me the next time your fifteen million-dollar classic Aston Martin needs work, or I swear to God I’ll tear out the engine block and return it to you with nothing under the hood.” He slammed down the phone and raked a hand over his face.
She gave him a few minutes, then she rapped a knuckle against the open door. “Hey, big guy.”
He spun around in his executive’s chair. “Hey, you.” A forced smile turned up his lips, but there was no happiness in his eyes. “How’d it go with the street lamp decorations?”
“It went awesome, thanks to you enlisting the fire department.” She walked to him. “Several firefighters even offered to drive the moving truck when they’re off duty to pick up the donated gifts that aren’t going to be mailed here.”
“Good.” He hooked fingers into her belt loops and pulled her close. “I’m glad to hear they came through, because I work on their cars for free.”
“So, I’m not the only community do-gooder around?” She slid one knee onto the chair, then the other, straddling him.
He smirked. “For all the good it’s doing me. I’ve got bad news.”
She placed a finger to his lips. “Shhhh. I don’t want bad news. My life has mostly been bad news. You can tell me tomorrow. Right now, I just want to focus on good things.” She circled her hips and felt him grow hard against her center.
“And here I thought you showed up to work on more wishes for the tree.” He placed a hand at the back of her head and pulled her mouth within a breath of his.
“I did,” she whispered. “But I also showed up to screw your brains out first.”
A wicked smile curved onto his lips, and that time it did reflect in his eyes. “That sounds so damn sexy that I think I just forgot my fucking name.”
He stood, lifting her with him, and turned to the side. With one arm, he started to swipe at the top of the desk, then he stopped. “Can’t damage these.” He picked up a framed photo of a young tween-age girl wearing a Santa hat and sat it on the filing cabinet next to his desk.
“Noelle?” Kimberly asked. As much time as she’d been spending at his shop, they’d been too busy working on the decorations for her to peruse the photos on his desk.
He nodded.
“She was so cute,” Kimberly whispered, playing with the ends of his hair at the back of his neck.
“My sister was definitely cute.” He gra
bbed another frame, turning it so Kimberly could see the photo. It was a picture of her in his truck the day they’d driven out to the wilderness to search for the first Wishing Tree.
“You had it framed,” she said, a little in awe at how sentimental he was. She’d stopped getting attached to photos or any other personal belongings before she’d reached puberty.
“How could I not? The girl in this photo is hot as sin.” Comet was behind her in the front seat, trying to make out with her cheek and ear. Kimberly’s face was crinkled up in an expression that said ewww, gross.
Kimberly belly laughed. “That dog should be registered as a sex offender. That’s one wicked tongue he’s got on him.”
“I’ve got a pretty wicked tongue, myself. All the better to lick you with, my dear.” Ross’s eyebrows bounced up and down. “Can you wear a red cape with a hood for me one night?”
She cocked her head to one side. “Ah, so the truth comes out about Red River’s most famous mechanic, who seems perfect and above reproach in public. In private, you have a Little Red Riding Hood fantasy.”
His eyes turned smoky. “It’s only my fantasy if you’re in it and you don’t have anything else on besides the cape.” He squinted up at the ceiling thoughtfully. “Unless you can put on red high heels, too. Red stilettos would definitely have a place in my fantasies.”
She swatted his shoulder.
He set her picture with Comet on the filing cabinet along with his sister’s. Then he picked up one last frame.
“I just had your photo and this sketch framed yesterday.” It was the drawing she’d scratched out on paper of Comet the same day he’d taken her photo with the pervy but lovable mutt.
The gesture to frame both was so wonderfully sweet that it turned her insides to mush.
She laid a kiss on him that turned the insides of her eyelids white.
He set the frame with the others. With the back of one forearm, he made a pass across the desk and sent papers, message pads, and pens flying. “We’ll start here.”
They started and finished. Twice.
Then they went to his cabin and worked on glittery snowflake ornaments, which each had a child’s name and their wish written on it in bold red and green marker.
It's In His Christmas Wish (A Red River Valley Novel Book 7) Page 11