by Tara Wyatt
He paid their bill and led her back to his truck, their hands twined together. The hospital was less than a mile up the road, and even though he knew he had to take her to work, he didn’t want their impromptu date to end. “What’s your schedule like tomorrow?”
She sighed. “I’m covering the ER all day, but I should be done around seven or eight. I’ll probably be exhausted, so I might not be very good company, but if you want to come over, I’d like that.”
He kissed her temple and opened the passenger’s side door for her. “Sweetheart, you’re always good company.”
She climbed up into the cab of his truck and turned to face him, cupping his cheeks. “Back atcha.” She kissed him, soft and slow, and it didn’t matter that they were in the middle of the parking lot. He kissed her back with everything he had, wishing like hell they could both ditch work and go get lost in each other.
Sometimes being a responsible adult was no fun.
* * *
December 12
Christie slumped back against her couch, her feet up on the coffee table in front of her. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been this tired. Every part of her body was exhausted. Her feet ached, her legs were Jell-O, her hands hurt, and her eyelids were heavy. A bone-deep weariness weighed her down, and she yawned. She’d barely had the energy to shower and pull on a pair of yoga pants and a sweatshirt when she’d gotten home.
A knock sounded from her front door, and she smiled. “It’s open,” she called, not wanting to get up to answer it.
The door swung open and Luke stepped inside carrying a pizza box with a six pack of beer balanced on top. He kicked the door closed behind him and hefted the box, smiling. “Hey, beautiful. Thought you could use some comfort food after your long day.”
She smiled and pushed up off the couch, suddenly feeling much less weary. Just the sight of him energized her. She kissed him briefly on the lips, and hot, electrical pulses snapped through her, waking her up even more. “This is really thoughtful.” She took a deep breath and moaned. “Oh God, that pizza smells good. I’ll grab some plates, and we can put a movie on in the living room.”
As she collected plates and napkins, it struck her that she was in sweats, with wet hair and no makeup, and she didn’t feel embarrassed or self-conscious at all. Normally, at this early stage of the relationship, she would’ve been loath to let her boyfriend see her like this. But everything was different with Luke. She didn’t feel the need to twist herself inside out trying to impress him, and it felt good. Really good. She was able to be herself with him, and it felt right.
If only she could work up the courage to open up about her past.
She sank down onto the couch beside him, and with Home Alone playing in the background, they ate in companionable silence. Two slices and a beer later, she moved the food into the kitchen and then settled back down on the couch beside him, curling into his strong, solid warmth. Nuzzling her face into his neck, she inhaled, pulling his scent into her. Her stomach swirled invitingly, and she kissed the spot just below his ear. “You smell good,” she said, and he stroked a hand over her still-damp hair.
“So do you.” He slipped a hand under her chin and tilted her face up to meet his gaze. “If you’re too tired, I understand,” he said, and kissed her softly on the lips, “but I want you so much right now. God.”
At his words, her thighs clenched and her entire body buzzed with awareness. She climbed into his lap, straddling him. She smiled and shook her head. “Not too tired.”
He made a low, approving rumble, tangling his fingers in her hair as he brought her mouth to his. Between heated kisses, he worked her sweatshirt over her head, and then her yoga pants down over her hips, somehow managing to get rid of his own clothes in the process. She was too busy basking in how damn good his mouth felt—on her lips, on her neck, on her shoulders and breasts—to pay attention to anything else. Within minutes, they were both naked, and she was once again straddling him on the couch.
She rocked against him, slicking his cock through her wet folds, and his hips jerked up. They both moaned at the same time, and she did it again, rubbing her clit against the plump head of his cock.
His hands shook slightly as he reached for the condom he’d pulled from his wallet and rolled it on. She lifted her hips and sank down onto him, slowly, savoring every inch of his body inside hers. His hands cradled her back and their eyes met as she sank all the way down. For a moment, neither of them spoke or moved. She hardly dared to breathe.
“Christie,” he whispered, flexing his hips up. His eyes were dark and bright, shining with emotion, and her heart set off at a gallop in her chest.
She began rocking her hips in a slow, steady rhythm. His body filled hers, and as she continued to rock her hips, she buried her face in his neck, wanting to feel more of his skin against hers. She ground against him and he gripped her ass firmly, guiding her movements, pushing them both to the brink.
“I want to feel you come, sweetheart.” His voice was low and rough, and she moaned, rocking faster and harder against him, grinding her throbbing clit against the base of his cock. The first wave of her orgasm hit, and everything in her body tightened, clenching around him. Luke threw his head back and groaned, pumping his hips, prolonging the aftershocks of her orgasm. After several more hard, deep thrusts, he came, her name falling from his lips.
* * *
December 13
“Christie, can you please pass the rice?” asked Ethan. A gentle kind of warmth spread over her, because it was the first time he’d called her by her first name, not Dr. Harmon.
“Sure,” she said, and as she handed him the dish, Luke’s eyes caught hers, crinkling slightly as he smiled.
She took a bite of her pork chop, but she found it hard to swallow around the lump in her throat. She didn’t have words for the emotions churning through her, sitting here at Luke’s kitchen table, eating dinner with him and his son. It felt so incredibly natural. So right and good. And yet she couldn’t suppress the tiny fear that it would all be snatched away from her.
She hadn’t told him about the naked pictures, about having to quit her job in Tulsa, about the lawsuit and the scandal yet. She had to, she knew. But every time she worked up the courage, she couldn’t find the right words. And then, when she did find the right words, her courage had long fled.
She studied the Christmas tree by the fireplace in the living room, visible from her seat at the table, staring at it until her eyes went unfocused and the lights and decorations blurred into sharply glowing pricks of light. It wasn’t that she thought Luke would reject her because of what she’d done. He was a good man. But he had his son to think of. His reputation, his business, his place in the community.
Maybe she was blowing it all out of proportion. Maybe she’d let the cruel, unkind words of others sink in too deep. She didn’t know what to think anymore.
“Christie, you should come skating with us. We’re going to Nana and Grandpa’s for dinner on Saturday, and they have an ice rink in their backyard.” Ethan pushed some peas around on his plate as he spoke.
“Oh, I, uh . . .” She bit her lip and looked up at Luke, not sure if he was on board with this invitation. He looked just as surprised as she felt. Apparently, Ethan had caught them both off guard.
Luke’s eyes held hers, and then he glanced between her and his son. She could almost hear him thinking from across the table. She understood that inviting her would likely mean introducing her to his parents, another big step forward in their relationship.
His eyebrows raised slightly, and she knew he was asking her if she wanted to meet the rest of his family or not. Giving her the out if she wasn’t ready.
Was she ready? Was it fair of her to get in deeper with him?
Ethan burped loudly, and Luke’s head swiveled in his direction. “Dude, where are your manners?”
“Excuse me.” He giggled, and Christie couldn’t help but smile. He was so freaking cute, with those blue eyes
and infectious smile, so like his dad’s. She wondered if Luke wanted more kids. It was far too soon in their relationship to have that talk, but the fact that she was even thinking in that direction . . .
She nodded, her mind made up. “You know, I’ve never been skating before, but I’d love to give it a try.”
* * *
December 14
Luke held Christie close, their naked bodies twined together. He trailed his fingers through her hair and then down her back, warm and slightly damp with sweat. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this addicted to a woman, this quickly.
Maybe never, he realized, and something warm and tingly worked its way down his spine. He tightened his arms around Christie. Beautiful, sweet, smart Christie.
She pressed her face into his chest and kissed the skin directly over his heart. He wondered if she could feel how hard it was beating, could feel the pulse of it against her lips. Every time he was with her, his heart seemed to go into overdrive, thumping away at warp speed, and he knew it was because he was falling for her. He’d felt a connection with her from the moment he’d laid eyes on her.
“Can I ask you something?” She glanced up at him, her eyelids heavy.
“Anything.” He stroked a hand up and down her back again.
“What happened with your ex-wife? You said that she lives in California now, right?”
He took a deep breath and pressed a kiss to her temple, her skin so soft, so warm, under his lips. “Yeah. Her name’s Angela.”
“Is she still part of Ethan’s life?”
“No, she’s not.” As he told her how everything had gone down with Angela, he played with a lock of her hair, surprised at how easy it was to talk about it all with her. He’d never opened up about this stuff to a woman he was seeing before, but in all the years he’d been divorced, he’d never been as serious about a woman as he was with Christie. She’d spent time with his son, something he was always so careful about. In a couple of days, she’d meet his family. Since Angela, he’d never brought a woman home.
She listened quietly, tracing circles on his chest with her fingertips as he told her everything. The surprise pregnancy, the quick wedding, how’d he’d been so caught in up trying to do what he thought was the right thing that he hadn’t stopped to really question if getting married was the best idea. He told her about the guilt he felt over the collapse of his marriage, how he felt he’d failed Ethan as a father because he’d failed as a husband. All of it. Things he’d never told anyone. Things he’d never allowed himself to say out loud. Truths he’d held deep inside, never sharing them.
He hadn’t realized just how heavy some of those truths were until he shared them with Christie. It felt good to unburden himself, to open up and let someone in. He’d been closed off for so long, so determined to protect himself, to protect Ethan that he hadn’t realized just how high he’d built those walls around himself.
It felt damn good to start knocking them down.
Chapter 9
December 17
The smell of baked ham, wood smoke, pine, and cinnamon filled the house Luke had grown up in as Luke, Christie, and Ethan stepped inside. Voices nearly drowned out Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmastime,” which wafted from the speakers in the invitingly festive living room. The large Christmas tree glowed in the corner, and a fire crackled happily in the fireplace, throwing warm light against the red-and-white plaid wallpaper. Halfway down the wall, it met the white wainscoting Luke had installed for his parents a few years ago.
Matt was bickering with their father about the most recent Colorado Avalanche trade as Matt chopped vegetables, while Ethan excitedly told his Grandpa all about an upcoming class snowshoeing trip to Curt Gowdy State Park at the same time. Somehow their father managed to hold both conversations at once. Probably from the years of practice he’d gotten corralling twin boys who’d had an abundance of energy. Glancing down, he noticed that Christie had a deer-in-the-headlights look, a stiff smile frozen on her face. He slipped his arm around her waist, and she relaxed into him.
Smiling warmly, his mother approached, oven mitts tucked under her arm. “You must be Christie. I’ve heard so much about you, and I’m so happy you were able to come. I’m Ellen, and that’s my husband Mark.” Mark waved without taking his attention off of Ethan’s animated story while waving a “bah, you don’t know what you’re talking about hand” at Matt.
Christie shook her hand, returning the warm smile. “Thank y’all so much for inviting me. It’s very kind of you, and it’s so nice to meet you. You have a lovely home.”
Luke smiled, loving the way her accent became more pronounced when she was nervous. He didn’t miss the approving smile his mom shot him as she waved them to follow her farther into the kitchen. Hot pride clutched at him, and he clenched his jaw against the urge to grab Christie and plant a kiss on her right there, in front of everyone. But she was already nervous enough, and he didn’t want to do anything to make her uncomfortable. His mom turned away to check something on the stove.
“Hey, nice to finally meet you,” said Matt, walking over with his hand extended. “I’m Matt.”
Christie’s eyes widened as she shook his hand. “Luke told me he had a twin, but for some reason I didn’t realize y’all were identical.” She cut her eyes back and forth between Luke and Matt, and they both laughed.
“He might be older, but I’m smarter and stronger,” said Matt.
Luke hit him in the arm. “Easy there.”
Matt laughed again, and Luke felt Christie relax a little bit more. His mom came back over, and while his family was friendly and welcoming, he didn’t want to overwhelm her.
“How long until dinner?” he asked. “Ethan and I are going to take Christie out back for a skate.”
His mom glanced at the stove. “Oh, about an hour.”
“Ethan,” called Luke, “Why don’t you take Christie outside and show her the skating rink?”
Ethan scampered up, grabbed Christie’s hand, and began tugging her toward the mudroom.
Luke waited until she was out of earshot before speaking, smiling at his mom and his brother to soften his words. “I know you guys are excited, and I appreciate that, but a little space would be nice, okay? Don’t freak her out.”
His mom squeezed his arm. “We’ll give you as much space as you need. I’m just so glad you’re . . .” She swallowed and blinked, her eyes suddenly bright. “I like seeing you happy.” She took both his hand and Matt’s. “You boys have both been through so much over the years, and all I want is for you to be happy.” She slid her gaze to Matt. “Even if it means moving a thousand miles away. I just want you both to be happy. It’s all any parent wants for their child.”
Luke thought of Ethan, and he knew that was true. As long as Ethan was happy, all was right in the world. He thought of the way Ethan had shrieked with laughter playing with Christie in the snow, and he felt suddenly restless. “We’ll be back in for supper.”
* * *
The homemade ice rink in Luke’s parents’ backyard was surrounded with evergreens, snow dripping from them like frosting. A weak, late-afternoon sun shone down on them, sparkling faintly against the impressively smooth ice.
Christie glanced around apprehensively. “I’m not so sure this is a great idea. I feel like I’m gonna break my ankle.” She looked down at Luke as he laced up an old pair of his mother’s skates for her, the blade clutched between his denim-covered knees.
“Hang on to me. I won’t let you fall.”
“Christie, do you have your skates on yet?” Ethan called from the center of the ice, skating over to them on his black-and-silver hockey skates. Snow sprayed up from the blades as he stopped, his cheeks pink.
“Ready?” Luke smiled at her, his blue eyes crinkling warmly, and it hit her that she was at least halfway in love with him.
Whoa. Holy shit. She was in love with Luke. The thought settled over her, stealing her breath and sending her heart racing. It
didn’t matter if she’d intended to fall or not, because she had, and it was too late to go back. Too late to do anything except keep falling, harder and faster.
She nodded and pulled in a shaky breath, and then Luke hauled her to her wobbly feet. Like a penguin, she waddled toward the ice. He stepped backward onto the ice and held out his hands. A current of nerves shot through her, and she pressed her fingers into his wide palms.
Over Luke’s shoulder, she watched Ethan skate in a circle, a hockey stick clutched in his hands. His blades cut smoothly across the ice as he crossed one foot over the other. He made it look easy.
Well. If an eight-year-old can do it, it can’t be that hard.
Her confidence bolstered by Ethan’s skating ability, she stepped firmly onto the ice. Immediately, the world titled and her stomach sloshed into her throat as her feet slipped out from under her. She braced herself for the impact, but Luke’s arms shot out, gripping her around her waist and saving her from falling on her ass. Slowly, her skates sliding beneath her, he righted her, holding her against him.
“I’m having second thoughts, seeing as I’m so clumsy I could trip over a cordless phone. If I can’t stay upright on solid ground, I’m not sure adding ice to the mix is a good idea.” She shook her head, laughing at herself.
He looked down at her, his gorgeous blue eyes sparkling. “You’ll be okay. Ethan and I will show you what to do.”
As the sun dipped behind the horizon, casting pink and orange beams across the snow and ice, her skating lesson progressed, and after an hour, she was breathless from laughing at Ethan and Luke hamming it up for her benefit. She’d also managed to stay mostly upright, holding tight to Luke’s hand as she slowly gained her balance and confidence with each small stride. Truly, it was more fun watching Luke chase Ethan across the rink, his blades slicing into the ice with long, powerful strokes. She smiled so wide she felt as though her face was going to crack in two as Luke caught Ethan, who squealed with laughter as Luke hoisted him up with ease, holding him upside down over his shoulder until Ethan could barely breathe, he was laughing so hard.