The Christmas Wedding Swap

by Allyson Charles

  It was a damn fine day.

  Luke turned off the road and bumped down a pitted lane. The parking lot at the end was enclosed in a thatch of pine trees that opened onto a small lake. The sun reflected off the sapphire water in thousands of tiny pinpricks of light.

  Allison tugged off the helmet. With each breath, a balloon of vapor expanded and retracted before her mouth. Luke eased off the bike and gave her a hand. She stood, her legs a bit wobbly and couldn’t stop the grin that plastered her face if she’d wanted to. “Wow.”

  The edges of Luke’s eyes crinkled. He ruffled her hair. “You’re rocking the helmet head.”

  She was in too good a mood to care. “And you look like Rudolph, with your nose so red.” The red nose complemented the bright green eyes, and Luke looked like a Christmas decoration. She decided to keep that tidbit to herself. She stretched. “It’s been ages since I’ve been out this way. I’d forgotten how pretty it is.”

  “Yes, it is.” Luke’s gaze never left her face.

  Tiny feet beat a tap dance on her heart. The air heated between them. Something shifted, and Allison knew they were heading toward a place that was no longer platonic. But was that somewhere she wanted to go?

  Giving herself time, she took out her smartphone and snapped a picture of the lake. She turned and put him in her sights. “Smile,” she said. She looked at her phone, cocking her head. “You look good.” She sighed. “Of course you’d be photogenic, too.”

  Reaching for the hem of her coat, he reeled her into him. He sat on his bike and turned her around to sit on his thigh. “One with the two of us.” He pulled off his gloves, took her phone, and held it out in front of them.

  She started to rise. “I’m not a selfie type of person.”

  His other arm banded around her waist and brought her back down. “I want a photo of this moment.”

  She turned to look up at him, and he snapped a picture. Resigning herself to the photos, helmet hair and all, she joined Luke in smiling at the phone. His lips brushed her cheek just as he took another shot.

  He lowered the phone and shaded the screen with his hand, blocking the glare. He scrolled through the three pictures he’d taken in quick succession. The phone showed her a truth she didn’t know if she was comfortable with. Her eyes were wide in the picture where he’d kissed her cheek, her mouth a surprised O. The second shot showed her leaning back against him, nestled comfortably against his chest, the two of them wearing matching ear-to-ear grins. But it was the first picture he’d taken, of her gazing up at his face, that set her pulse racing.

  Adoration. That was the only word she could think of for her expression. She was looking at Luke like he was the world’s best tiramisu and sexiest pair of leather boots all wrapped into one.

  She prayed he didn’t see it.

  He sent the photos to himself, and handed the phone back to her. “Now I’ll have something good to look at when I go back home. When I’m about to pull my hair out trying to balance the books, I’ll look at you, and remember how great this day was.”

  She wanted to be a happy memory for Luke, a time to look back on and smile.

  Standing, she turned to face him. She nudged her way between his sprawled legs. Seated on the bike, he looked up at her, a question on his face.

  “I’d like to give you a really great day.” She sucked in a deep breath. “Let’s go home, and I promise I’ll make it a day you’ll never forget.”

  She lowered her head and let her mouth hover over Luke’s. His breath chased the chill from her lips. After his last rejection, she was going to make him take that next step. Unless she’d been reading the signs all wrong, she didn’t think he was going to push her away again.

  He pulled her tight, as close as her puffy jacket and his leather coat would allow. Digging his fingers into the base of her skull, he drew her head down and took her mouth. He slid his tongue inside and took his time exploring every inch.

  Heat coiled low in her belly. She clutched at his shoulders and held on. Head spinning, she tangled her tongue with his. Every inch of her skin tingled, and sweat trickled down her back. It was thirty degrees outside, and she was burning up.

  He pulled back, his chest heaving. “I want you so badly, but I need this to be clear.”

  She panted and waited for him to finish.

  “You are more than someone to pass the time with while I’m in hiding, more than a hookup.” He cupped her cheek. “When I go back to Chicago, I want to stay in touch with you. Maybe even try the long-distance thing.” His smile held a tinge of melancholy. “We both work such long hours, seeing each other every other weekend probably wouldn’t be that much different than a normal relationship. Maybe we can make it work.”

  Allison nodded and ignored the knot in her chest. It was the kind of thing people said when they left, a reassurance about keeping in touch when they both knew it probably wouldn’t happen. It was an easy way out, a way to postpone the painful reality.

  But she’d take it.

  She’d take any part of Luke that she could get, for however long she could.

  “Maybe,” she said, trying to make herself believe in the possibility. “But we can’t try to make something work that hasn’t gotten started.” She swung onto the bike. “Rev your engines, Luke Hamilton. It’s long past time that you took me home.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Luke pulled his bike under the overhang of Allison’s garage and cut the engine. He kicked the stand down and jumped off, pulling Allison with him. His cock had to have a zipper imprint tattooed into the flesh. Between the throttle between his legs and Allison’s adventurous hands on the ride home, he was fully revved and raring to go. At the top of the porch, Allison patted down her pockets, looking for her keys.

  Luke enthusiastically joined in the search. He kept his hands in her pant pockets as she opened the door.

  She took a step toward the living room, but he pulled her back.

  “I still want to try out the pouf.” Reaching one arm up, Allison clasped the back of his neck. She arched her back, and her butt notched against his groin.

  He groaned, and dropped his face to her neck. He slid his hands out of her pockets, dragged her sweatshirt up, and pressed his palm to her stomach. “I’m going to need a hell of a lot more room to work than a pouf.” Room—and time. He would need so much time exploring each and every one of Allison’s curves. He nudged her toward the stairs. “Your room or mine.”

  “I have the bigger bed.” She dug her nails into his scalp, tugged his head down, and traced the edge of his lips with her tongue.

  He went hard as a rock. He was torn between wanting to grind into her heat, and needing to get to her room. The bed won out. “Let’s go.”

  The stairs shook under their pounding boots. He tripped on the second to last step and took Allison down as he fell. “Jesus, are you okay?” He rolled her over and sagged with relief when he saw that she was laughing. Lifting her hands above her head, he pressed them to the floor. “No laughing, sweet cheeks. You can’t laugh at a man just because he’s so impatient to get you in bed his feet don’t work anymore.”

  Stretching up, she nipped at his Adam’s apple. “That’s about the sweetest thing a man’s ever said to me.”

  “That’s just sad.” He drew on her bottom lip and sank into her mouth. “You deserve so much more.” More than him, more than what he was going to be offering for the next couple months. But he wasn’t strong enough to be the better man. There was no way his body was going to let him turn her down a second time. He might not be the one to make her happy forever, but he’d damn sure make her happy for right now.

  She tugged on his coat. “Okay, get off. The bed’s only twenty feet away.”

  “You really like to jump right into things, don’t you?” He shook his head. “Some things shouldn’t be rushed.”

  The corners of h
er eyes crinkled. “And some things shouldn’t be done on the hall floor. My butt’s getting sore.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Well, we can’t have that.” Rolling to his feet, he hauled her up.

  She tugged her hands free and grabbed the lapel of his coat. Dragging him into her room, she didn’t let go until she pushed him back on the mattress. He noticed a queen-sized four-poster bed, a fluffy white comforter, and not much else.

  “Lose the boots and socks. I’ll be right back.” Toeing off her own boots, she sashayed into the adjoining bath.

  Luke sat on the bed and got to work. A cabinet door opened and shut in the bathroom, water ran. He was down to his jeans and a long-sleeved tee when she returned.

  Wearing nothing but her t-shirt.

  Acres of satiny flesh teased him, the creaminess of her skin a sharp contrast to her black tee. A faded AC/DC logo was printed on the front, a lightning bolt shooting right between her breasts. He swallowed, trying to bring moisture back into his mouth.

  She crawled onto the foot of the bed, and prowled toward him, tossing a couple of gold foil packets on a pillow. Resting her palm on his thigh, she leaned close. The tips of her breasts brushed against his chest, and he throbbed. Her hand was inches from where it needed to be.

  He ran his hands through her hair, drawing her head down to meet his. Her eyes flared with heat, before slowly drifting closed. He brushed his thumb across her cheekbone. This close, he could see the faint smattering of freckles across the bridge of her nose. The slight crease in the middle of her full bottom lip. Christ, those lips were so pink, so plump, and finally fucking his. He bridged the distance, and sucked that plump bottom lip into his mouth.

  She shuddered in his arms, gave a little breathy moan, and all rational thought fled. Grabbing her ass, he dragged her over his thighs and pulled her pelvis into his. She filled his hands perfectly, her flesh hot even through the thin layer of panties. Those had to go. He rolled, so she sat on the bed with him kneeling before her. Her breath hitched as he dragged the scrap of lace down her legs. He dangled the tiny red panties from his finger, and raised an eyebrow. They were the sexiest pair of underwear he’d ever seen, two tiny strips of lace, a patch of cotton, and not much else. Not what he’d been expecting from a jeans-and-t-shirt woman.

  Bringing them to his nose, he inhaled Allison’s scent, and his nostrils flared, along with a need deep inside his gut. He tossed the panties aside and looked up at her. The afternoon sun streamed through the window and lit up her mass of curls like a halo.

  His heart pounded in his ears. She was an amazing woman—and much too good for him. If he’d met her in Chicago—No. Why waste time thinking of things that hadn’t happened. Not when the here and now was so delicious. The hem of her shirt danced at the top of her thighs, skirting heaven, and every breath she took giving him a tantalizing peek at the shadow between her legs.

  Stroking his fingers up and down her calves, he kissed the top of her thigh, breathing deeply. At that moment, the lawsuit that had driven him out of Chicago seemed like the best thing to ever happen to him.

  He skimmed his hands higher, the skin of her legs as smooth as satin beneath his fingertips.

  She pulled at his shirt. “You, up. This, off.”

  Chuckling, Luke stood. “There you go, jumping the gun again. Woman, I’m going to take my time with you, and you’re going to let me.”

  Allison wiggled her butt on the mattress, a lovely flush darkening her cheeks. “Well, okay. Just, get to it, will you?

  Yanking his shirt off, he gave an exasperated huff. How could a woman turn him on and make him laugh at the same time? Allison had so many layers, and he was finally getting to peel a couple away.

  “Before the night is over, I’m going to know every inch of you. What makes you moan.” He crowded into her against the bed. “What makes you scream.” He looped his fingers at the hem of her shirt and dragged it over her head. Luke tossed the tee to the floor and let his eyes devour her.

  Jesus Christ, she was sexy. Large peach nipples tantalized him, making his mouth water. Reverently, he cupped each breast, reveled in their weight, and circled the peaks with his thumbs.

  Luke was the one who moaned.

  He sucked his bottom lip into his mouth. “So pretty.” The sight of her breasts overflowing from his hands almost made him lose it. He trailed his gaze down to the nip at her waist, the wide flare of her generous hips, to the neatly trimmed thatch of dark blond hair at the vee between her legs. He raised his eyes to her own. “You’re a beautiful woman, Allison.”

  Allison traced the ridge of his collar bone, sparks following her path. “I’m even prettier when I’m lying down.”

  Okay, that was it. She wanted to bypass the foreplay, and he was game. This time. He did have all night with her, after all.

  “Your wish”—he pushed her back, and she bounced on the bed with a gasp—“is my command.”

  She propped herself up on her elbows, and twisted her lips. “That was unnecessary.”

  “I know.” Grinning, he shucked his jeans and underwear and crawled onto the bed over her. Achingly slowly, he lowered until skin covered skin. She shivered, and he felt it everywhere.

  Plush. That word defined everything about Allison, from her body to her full lips to the soft, bouncing curls of her hair. She was like a feather mattress he wanted to sink into and never leave.

  Finding the pulse in her throat, he sucked at it. He swirled his tongue over the throbbing beat and smiled as the pace kicked up a notch. He scooted back and plumped up a breast. With the flat of his tongue, he licked across her nipple.

  “Oh, God.” She threaded her fingers through his hair.

  He rolled her nipple in his mouth, felt it harden to a stiff peak on his tongue. She tasted of vanilla and soap and lovely woman, and he couldn’t wait to taste her everywhere.

  Allison spread her legs, letting him settle between her thighs. His cock found a home between her lower lips, and the heat rolling off of her nearly scorched him. Rocking her hips, Allison whispered, “Isn’t getting down to business better than fooling around?”

  He groaned. “I give up. Foreplay is for suckers. You win. Now do that again.”

  “What? This?” She rocked her hips. Her desire coated his length, and the silky slide nearly drove Luke out of his mind.

  He pushed up and knelt above her. The fading afternoon light gave her skin a honeyed glow. The heave of her chest contradicted the tease in her voice. She wasn’t as unaffected as she wanted to appear. She was wet and spread before him, a goddamn buffet of sexiness. And he was ready to dive on in.

  Grabbing a gold foil, he rolled the condom down his cock. “Sweet cheeks, for a country girl, you seem to have forgotten an important lesson.” He settled between her thighs.

  “Oh yeah?” She slid her hands down his slick back and gripped his ass. “What’s that?”

  “You never toy with an animal.” He notched the crown of his penis at her entrance. “When the beast comes out, he plays to win.” Warning delivered, he thrust into paradise.

  * * * *

  Allison couldn’t breathe. The moment was overwhelming. She was having sex with Luke. Hot, sweaty, amazing sex.

  She wasn’t ashamed to admit she was a woman who enjoyed taking a man to bed. And she thought she’d been lucky with her choice in past lovers. All solid performances—a girl couldn’t expect more.

  She’d been deluding herself, because nothing in her past could have prepared her for that first slide of Luke into her body.

  He shifted position, sank deeper, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. She dug her nails into his back, desperate to keep a hold on his sweat-slicked skin as he pumped into her. He filled every inch of her channel. Each drag of his length from her body fired all her nerve endings, made her core clutch desperately, begging him to come back. Each drive home was a welc
ome relief as he joined their bodies once more.

  Allison sighed, enjoying the slow build. She looked into Luke’s face. His jaw was set, his eyes narrowed, the picture of determination. She cupped his cheek. He was a beautiful man, even more so now that she knew him. She drew a thumb across the faint lines in his cheeks that Allison knew had been earned through years of laughter. They deepened when he gave her that special smile, the one she never saw him share with anyone else. Arching her neck, she brushed a kiss across the bend in his nose, knowing how much pain it represented.

  Luke fisted his hands in the comforter on either side of her head. She lightly ran her hands up and down his upper arms, traced the bulge of every muscle. His forearms were a patchwork of faint burn scars, the marks of a chef, of determination.

  All the little imperfections that made him perfect, that showed his grit and his heart.

  “Luke…” She didn’t know what to say. How to express everything she was feeling.

  He groaned. “I know, baby. This feels fucking amazing to me, too.”

  A sour taste filled Allison’s mouth. She was falling into the trap, the one women always fell into—of equating sex with love. She didn’t doubt Luke cared for her, but right now he was in it for the orgasm. And she needed to be okay with that.

  It wasn’t difficult to get onboard the O train when Luke glided a hand down her body and found her clit with his thumb. She bucked, drowning in sensation.

  “Easy.” He timed each circle around her nub with the speed of his strokes. His pace was languid, deliberate, and it was driving her mad. “Sex is like cooking. Timing is everything. Don’t try to rush it.”

  Drawing her knees higher up Luke’s sides, Allison shook her head. Why did he have to be a chef? Arrogant, demanding pricks, every one of them. If she had the oxygen, she’d argue, but her breath was clogging in her lungs.