Hating Christmas (Holiday Series)

by Carol Rose

  Sighing, she shifted restlessly in the water. She’d kiss him and then work her way down his body….

  “Mind sharing?”

  The husky question jerked her out of her fantasy and Holly found herself looking up at a bare-chested Levi with nothing but a towel slung around his waist. The light from the back window gleamed on his chest, leaving delectable shadows and hollows.

  Holly stared at him a moment, struggling to separate her fantasy from the reality of this moment. She looked away from him then and made herself scoot over in the water. “Sure. It’s a big hot tub.”

  His responding smile sent shivers over her skin. “That’s good. Wouldn’t want you to feel crowded.”

  Levi climbed up the steps and dropped his towel before sinking into the water. In the flash of a moment, the light from the back window revealed bare, naked man. He wasn’t wearing anything under that towel….

  OMG.

  A breath lodged in Holly’s throat and she regarded him across the hot tub. He was a big-time Hollywood agent who wanted to wrest her star away from her…and he didn’t want his father to stay married to her mother any more than she did.

  And damn, she wanted him now. It made no sense.

  “Levi?” She tried to keep the wobble—damn, the excitement—out of her voice.

  “Yes?”

  “Um. You’re not, um,…wearing anything.”

  “No,” he agreed matter-of-factly. “Did you want me to?”

  In an easy moment, he moved from across the tub to hover in the water in front of her. “Is there a problem with my being naked here with you?”

  “I—I don’t really know.” Her mouth was dry and she couldn’t stop the excitement rising in her.

  His voice was soft. “All the way home in the car, I kept thinking about kissing you again, the way you kissed me after the sledding.”

  “You did?” She swallowed, taking another shaky breath.

  “Yes.”

  She felt his hand stroke her submerged arm.

  “Shall I tell you what I imagined?”

  “Uh huh.” It came out as a gasp. He was right there in front of her, naked in the warm, swirling water. She saw the gleam of droplets on his collar bone and wanted to place her mouth there to lick it off

  “I kept thinking of you kissing me in the snow. All while we danced—of you tackling me and pinning me down.” He stared into her eyes as his fingers slid up and down her arm, the strength in them gentle, his skin sliding on hers.

  Looking at him with a sense of inevitability—of wanting this to be inevitable—she shifted on her seat, her body feeling erotic in the water, her nipples beading against her wet swimming suit. Oh, God, she wanted to have sex with her mother’s soon-to-be ex-husband’s son. This was so wrong.

  “I liked you pinning me down.” Levi’s voice was low.

  “Really?” Her body felt heavy in the water, aching for more than the stroke of his hand on her arm.

  “Mmmm. I did.”

  “Oh.”

  “Did you like it, too? Kissing there on the snow?”

  “Yeah.” The word came out breathy. She’d kissed him and wanted to rip his clothes off and ravage him right there.

  “I really, really liked it.” He moved closer, only a foot away from her now. “I imagined you ripping my clothes off and having your way with me.”

  Oh, God. Her laugh was weak. “Right there on the snow? Not worried about shrinkage?”

  “No.” His smile sent a flame down to her core.

  Holly swallowed. “I—I was hoping you’d come down here tonight.”

  There it was out. She wanted him, too. “All the way driving home, I kept imagining….”

  “What?” He shifted even closer to her. “Imagining me touching you here.”

  He brushed his fingers along the top of her chest. “Or here?”

  Moving down, he touched the swell of her breast.

  “Or here?”

  Cupping her breast in his hand, he gently brushed his thumb against the wet material of her bikini top and she felt the sizzle from her nipple to her core.

  “Kiss me,” he invited her in a low growl and Holly moved forward, holding his head as she raised her lips to his. Gently she explored his mouth, his naked body there before her. His mouth was warm and responsive against hers, each kiss deeper, lips and tongues meeting. Their bodies brushed each other, the heated water bubbling around them. Frozen air and steamy water around them.

  Beneath the water, his hand again rubbed against the top of her suit and Holly reached for the ties to her bikini top, aching for his touch. She burned with wanting, the ache between her thighs echoed by her tight nipples. She broke free of their kiss long enough to jerk lose the bikini top, sending it floating across the water.

  Her breath caught in her throat as his hand moved forward, taking her turgid nipple in his fingers. Cradling her breast in his hand, Levi rolled the nipple, reaching to grasp the other one as his mouth lowered again to hers.

  So wrong, but really, really right. This wasn’t the first time she’d had sex with a guy she hadn’t known all that well—college tended to open a girl to lots of new experiences—but this was the first time she felt herself melting from the inside, craving, needing a man’s touch.

  A moan escaped her as he bent to take her lips again, pulling her close in the water.

  Every nerve seemed to come alive, his lips on hers, his tongue warm and seeking, while his strong fingers toyed with her erect nipple. She braced her hands against his chilly, naked shoulders, loving the feel of him beneath her hands. All muscle and tight skin. She floated off the seat, pulled onto his lap as he shifted in the water, pulling her with him.

  Dimly, she became aware that snow had started falling lightly. Fire and ice. His touch inflaming her even as the sky sent a slow drift of cold down on their heads.

  She touched him all over—the feel of his bicep, the hairy brush of his leg on hers. He felt all hard and wonderful. Smooth in the places he should be smooth, but with rough textures where a man should be textured.

  He now sat on the seat with her on his lap and he just kept kissing her, his hands on her naked breasts. Stroking and squeezing until she felt her breath coming more quickly. Lost in the sensations around her, she came out of her fog long enough to realize he’d pulled lose the tie at one side of her hips. His hand brushed her there, between her legs, cupping her and rubbing until she wanted to scream. With one hand, she reached under the water and wiggled free of her bikini bottom, opening more for his touch. Her body ached for him and, sitting there on his lap, she could feel his erection pressing against her leg.

  She palmed him and heard his swift inhalation as she stroked against the ridge of his erect penis.

  Then in a swift movement, he lifted her in the water, shifting her to the other side of the hot tub, but he came with her, her back arching her naked torso up to the frigid air. He bent to her lifted breasts, cold with snow falling on her as he kissed and suckled her.

  Holly cried out from the pleasure and then became aware of him moving between her legs where she floated on the bubbling water. He pulled her down on his lap and held her upper body just above the water. Her nipples were lifted as her breasts floated there and he bent to the chilly tips, drawing one and then the other into his hot mouth. Beneath the water, Holly felt his one arm, gripping her around her hips to keep her from floating to the bubbling surface.

  She felt his other hand between her legs. Stroking and tugging at her. She cried out in blinding pleasure—once and then twice. Her legs floating above his lap, she felt his erection and wanted him, wanted it deep inside her.

  Pulling herself upright in the water, she sank on to his lap, her hand reaching for him beneath the bubbles. She grasped him and pushed her portal against him.

  Levi straightened from her breast to gasp. “No condom.”

  “I know,” she said, her voice as ragged as his. She thrust down on his penis, a ripple running through her as he push
ed half way inside. “A little. Only a little. Oh, God!”

  “No! Oh, yes!” he push a little further in and then withdrew. “Damn, you’re tight!”

  Her senses singing, she could only stare unseeing, dazed as he suddenly stood in the hot tub and pulled her to her feet as well. “Come on. We’ve got to find a bed or I’m gonna fuck you right.”

  ***

  Moments later, Holly tumbled into her bed, her hair wet on the pillow. Across the room, Levi stripped off his towel, coming to stand next to her with hot, hungry eyes on her naked body.

  “You want to do this?” His voice sounded rough and harsh, as if speaking were difficult.

  “Yes.” She nodded and held up her arms to him.

  “Even with everything between us?”

  She took another quick breath. “Right now, the only thing I want between us is very thin rubber.”

  With a grin, Levi rummaged through the travel case he’d grabbed from his room that appeared to hold his razor. “Good. You don’t know how relieved I am to hear you say that. Thank God, I left these in here.”

  Triumphantly, he produced a condom, ripping open the foil packet without delay.

  On the bed, propped on her elbows to watch him, Holly saw him slide the rubber condom over his erection, her chest rising with quick excited movements. He looked beautiful—if you could say that about a guy. In the dim light from the uncurtained window, he was framed, all hard muscle and well-toned shoulders.

  Sheathed, he climbed onto the bed from the foot. Waiting for him, Holly reached up to pull him close.

  “Prepared for battle, ma’am.” Levi said, resisting her beckoning hand.

  “Give over the chatter, Harper.” Holly yanked him down, his chest colliding with hers.

  “Hey, easy now.” He was clearly in a teasing mood now.

  Wiggling beneath the weight of his body, she closed her eyes and gave herself over to the waves of passion rolling through her.

  Levi positioned himself in front of her. Gasping a little, he hesitated, “Sure you don’t want to be on top?”

  “Later,” she said, stroking over his yummy hips and his tight butt. “Much later.”

  He moved forward then and Holly felt the push of him at her apex. “Yessssss,” she breathed out, rising up to meet him. “Oh, yes.”

  Stopping in his thrust, his jaw tight, he swept his hands along her inner thighs. He lifted her knees a little and thrust the rest of the way in. “Beautiful! God!”

  Pushing into her, he bent to take her nipple in his mouth. There was no more chatter then, their bodies moving in rhythm, the push and pull ratcheting the jittery excitement along her nerve endings. Again and again, he pushed into her, his hands on her hips. He rocked against her tightness before pulling out.

  She felt him swell even larger inside her and Holly cried out as the wave came crashing over her, her hands clutching him close. “Harder, Levi. More!”

  * * * * * * * * *

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Levi’s body shuddered in release as he gasped for air, gripping her hips to his. He could feel her spasms fading away as he went flaccid inside her. “Damn.”

  Holly fell back against the other pillow next to him, still panting as she climbed off.

  He stared sightlessly at the ceiling, his hand reaching over to intertwine with hers. He couldn’t even think, much less form a coherent sentence. This was the best sex of his life…again.

  “I don’t wish any bad on Steve,” he said, “but thank God for my dad and your mom going to the hospital with Margery.”

  Beside him, Holly giggled. Giving a big sigh of contentment, she said, “If this agenting thing doesn’t work out for you. I have another job suggestion.”

  He turned his head to look at her. “Thanks. I’ll get a reference from you, if that ever becomes necessary.”

  “I’ll be glad to give it.” She brought his hand to her chest, holding him there against the quick rise and fall of her ribs.

  “Well, now we have a good Christmas memory,” he said with a laugh. Lying next to her, he registered that there wasn’t a tense bone in his body. He hadn’t said anything about his change of heart regarding their parents and it bothered him now, this little deceit with her.

  “Yes, I could actually develop some enjoyment of this season.” Holly brought his hand up briefly to her lips. “If only we didn’t have zero in common, we could do this again.”

  Not wanting to talk about their differences, Levi just responded to the last part of her statement. “Before we could do this again, I’m gonna need a breather. Possibly a shot of B12.”

  Again, she laughed and he rolled over on his side to look at her. “You’re particularly beautiful when you laugh.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “So this is what a girl needs to do to get a compliment out of you?”

  “Yes,” he replied promptly. “And please feel free to try to get compliments whenever you like.”

  She looked up at him, her smile fading. “You know they’re going to be home soon.”

  “I know.” He dropped back on his pillow. Back to disliking one another. Back to her knifing him in the back to get one of his actors to do her documentary.

  Silence ticked through the room, only broken by the sound of flakes tapping at the window.

  “I hope they don’t have any trouble driving in this snow.” Holly looked over at the uncurtained window. “I wouldn’t want them stranded on the road.”

  “They grew up here. My dad knows how to drive on the snow…better than I do.”

  Holly snickered. “I hope so.”

  In response, Levi pulled the pillow from beneath his head and smashed it over her face. Holly squealed and resisted, wrestling against the cushy weapon. He fought her for a moment, struggling to smash the pillow over her head until he pulled it away, dropping it beside the bed with one hand while he lowered his head and thoroughly kissed her.

  When he straightened, Holly breathlessly said, “Well, that doesn’t settle anything, but it sure is fun!”

  Shoving the pillow behind his head as he lay back, he said, “Yes, it is.”

  Only the snow ticking at the window glass broke the silence.

  “Levi? How did you ever get into this agent thing?”

  He looked over at her.

  “Really. Serious question.” She lifted on one elbow, looking at him as she waited.

  He shrugged. “You’ll probably won’t have difficulty believing this, but I’m a lawyer.”

  “Lots of different specialties when you’re a lawyer,” she said after a few minutes. “Why this?”

  Scratching his jaw, he took a moment to formulate his answer. “Okay. This has to be a secret between us.”

  Looking at him quizzically, she waited.

  “Okay?”

  Holly held up two fingers. “Scouts honor.”

  Levi grinned and shook his head. “You were never a scout.”

  “Would you prefer a pinkie-swear?” She wiggled her pinkie finger.

  He chuckled. He had to admit to himself that he was getting attached to this documentary maker. He drew in a deep breath and blew it out, saying in a rush. “I-really-wanted-to-be-an-actor. There. I said it.”

  Still propped next to him, Holly laughed. “You didn’t. Really? You wanted to be an actor?”

  She reached over and smoothed the back of her hand over his face. “You’ve got the looks for it. Why didn’t you give it a shot? Instead of going to law school.”

  Feeling silly for having admitted to the inclination, Levi admitted, “I like to eat.”

  Holly lay back down next to him. “Most of us have developed that habit—other than the sad anorexics among us, and this profession seems to breed them. Lots of people make a living acting.”

  “Yes, but not a lot of people make much of a living,” he retorted. This seemed so right, lying here naked with her, just talking. He knew it wasn’t right—given the parent thing and the Mac thing—but he couldn’t help how comfortable he
felt with Holly. She pissed him off and she made him laugh. Damn her.

  “I also like driving nice cars,” he said.

  “Me, too.” Her tone was wistful and dreamy. “I actually like to drive really fast cars.”

  He chuckled. “You? I thought fighting the injustice in the world and sledding were your big pleasures.”

  She ripped the pillow from beneath his head and bopped him.

  “Hey!” He put up his arm to defend himself.

  Lying back on the pillow, she admitted, “Even those who fight injustice can still have a weakness. With the damage fossil fuels have wrecked on our environment, I’m not proud of having a car thing.”

  “You know,” he said after a moment, responding to a sudden impulse to level with her. He didn’t want any dark secrets. “We might have been wrong about your mother and my dad having made a mistake.”

  There. He’d said it.

  Holly raised up on her elbow again and he turned to meet her now-serious gaze.

  Finally, she lie back down next to him. “Yes, that has occurred to me, too.”

  “My dad’s last marriage,” he didn’t know why he felt the need to go into this, “wasn’t good.”

  She turned her head to look at him.

  “Her name was Rebecca.” He hadn’t spoken the woman’s name in years. “My dad married her about two years after my mother left.”

  Turning over to face her, he placed his hand on her flat stomach, his gaze brooding in the air above Holly. “I liked Rebecca at first.”

  “But not after a while?”

  Bringing his gaze to meet her, Levi said, “No. She ripped my dad off. Took him for all she could and broke his heart. I came to hate her.”

  “As much as you loved her after your mom left?” Her eyes and her words held compassion.

  “Yes.” He liked the feel of her smooth skin and he ran his hand over her stomach and up to her ribs. “I loved her at first, I guess. Before I realized who she was.”

  “It’s understandable that you didn’t trust my mom when they married so fast.”

  Still smoothing the area between her breast and her pelvis, he said, “I guess.”

  He’d been a small, hurt kid and Rebecca had seemed like Christmas and his birthday and all the holidays together. She’d been fun and light. She’d laughed and he hadn’t heard his dad laugh since he mother left.