All He Wants For Christmas

by Elisabeth Naughton, Alexandra Ivy, Cynthia Eden, Katie Reus, Laura Wright, Skye Jordan

  “Gabriel?” Carol said in absolute seriousness.

  “Yes?”

  “Can you please pass me the potatoes?”

  She grinned, and they all erupted into laughter. Gabriel included. In fact, he might’ve laughed the loudest.

  Jack shook his head. “Kids. They make you crazy and happy and blessed, all at the same time.”

  “In that order, Dad?” Mike asked, stabbing a green bean with his fork.

  Jack grunted. “Maybe you’ll see someday, Gabe.”

  “Dad!” Carol exclaimed, looking from him to her mother.

  The man looked up. “What? What’d I say?”

  “Relax, Carol,” Kay said gently. “Dad’s just offering the young man some advice. He may want children. It’s good information to have.” Kay picked up the blue serving bowl and held it out to Gabriel. “And I’m giving you these potatoes, so you don’t have to witness the fight between these two.”

  “I don’t think I can eat another bite, Mrs. Cardini. But thank you. It was an amazing meal.”

  “It’s Kay, dear,” she told him, her smile warm and genuine. “And Carol’s not very good with invitations, especially with the young men. So let me say that you’re welcome anytime.”

  “Mother,” Carol ground out.

  “I appreciate that, Kay,” Gabriel told her, then gave Carol a wink.

  “How about we switch gears,” Jack suggested, drawing back in his chair with a sigh of contentment. “And grill Mike here on his love life.”

  “Oh yeah!” Carol agreed. “Who’s the unlucky female this time, bro?”

  “There is no love life,” Mike informed them with a frown. “So basically, it’s going about as well as my grades.”

  “Mike’s pre-med,” Carol told Gabriel. “Which is surprising since he faints at the sight of blood.”

  Mike narrowed his eyes at her. “I do not.”

  “Please. On at least two occasions, I caught you before you fell and broke your head.”

  “I was ten, Carol.” He turned to Gabriel. “Bet you’re glad you don’t have a sister right about now.”

  The whole table grew quiet. And poor Mike, who probably knew the least about Gabriel’s past, looked mortified.

  “Oh, shoot. Sorry, man,” he stumbled. “I didn’t mean…”

  “It’s okay,” Gabriel assured him, and them. “Seriously. I actually have two foster siblings. From when we lived here. Will’s a writer in New York and Amy owns a clothing store just outside Las Vegas. We’re pretty close.”

  “Really?”

  He glanced at Carol, who was watching him intently. “Yeah.”

  Her eyes warmed at the thought. “That’s nice.”

  “It is.”

  She shrugged, “Maybe they could come out for Christmas next year.”

  A tightness worked in his chest. Not because he didn’t like the idea, but because he hadn’t thought of it himself. Why hadn’t he thought of it? Was it because Will and Amy refused to talk about the past? About the Diamants? Or was there another reason?

  A hand clamped over his then, pulling him out of his thoughts. He glanced up. Kay Cardini was giving him a soft, caring smile. “We’re so glad you’re here, Gabriel. With us.” After a quick squeeze, she released him. “Now. How about we all go into the living room? Dad has a fire started and we can have dessert in there.”

  “While we watch ‘Elf’?” Mike and Carol called out together.

  Jack laughed and Kay shooed them away. “Fine, fine.”

  “Can I help you with the dishes, Kay?” Gabriel asked.

  The woman laughed. “Oh, honey, you’re too sweet. And any other night, I’d take you up on it. But we leave the dishes for Santa and his reindeer to clean up on Christmas Eve.”

  Brows slamming together, Gabriel looked over at Carol, who nodded and grinned.

  Weird, he thought. So weird and yet, so awesome. It wasn’t what he’d planned for the evening, but he was glad they’d come here first. The Cardinis were pretty much exactly what he’d imagined. Great, caring, loving people. And, fuck him, he was this close to hurting one of their children.

  Before he could fall too deeply down that rabbit hole of self-loathing, Carol slid her arm through his and tugged him toward the living room. “Do you like that movie? ‘Elf’?”

  “I’ve never heard of it, actually.”

  “Oh, dude,” Mike said, almost appalled as he pointed the remote at the TV, which was mounted on the wall above the fireplace. “It’s the best.”

  “It’s tradition,” Carol added, motioning for Gabriel to sit on the couch beside her. “Kinda like the Santa and reindeer dishes thing.”

  “Okay,” he whispered to her. “But who actually does them—”

  She shook her head. “Shhhh. Mike still believes.”

  Laughing, he dropped down beside her. She gave him a soft smile that made his insides feel strangely calm and hungry at the same time.

  “And now you’re part of the tradition,” Jack announced as he walked over to Gabriel and handed him a cup of coffee. “Tuck in, all of you. Pie’ll be out in a few.”

  As Mike turned on the movie and the previews rolled, Gabriel looked around. Warm fire, tree with presents sprinkled underneath, brother and sister play-arguing, parents in the kitchen serving up dessert, and…peace. Happiness. Joy.

  Something scratched at the back of his throat. Something he hadn’t felt for ten years. An ache… For something he didn’t have. This. This is what it felt like. To have family. A loving family. A caring family. A supportive family.

  Family.

  “You’re going to laugh your ass off, man,” Mike declared, falling into the Lazy Boy.

  “Michael Jacob Cardini!” Kay called from the kitchen. “I heard that.”

  The guy turned and grinned at him. “Sorry, Mom.”

  What would it be like to call someone Mom?

  Just as he thought the question, just as the lump in his throat started to expand, Carol curled up closer to him and Kay Cardini arrived with three delicious slices of pumpkin pie.

  Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.

  –Norman Vincent Peale

  Chapter 6

  So far, it had been the most perfect of Christmas Eves. And, Carol thought as she walked hand in hand with Gabriel down Main Street, maybe the start of something wonderful.

  “I’m sorry if my family was too much,” she said as all around them multi-colored lights twinkled and happy faces wished each other well.

  “They weren’t,” he told her. “I liked them.”

  His words had a slightly sad edge to them, and she wondered if he was thinking about his foster siblings. Missing them. Missing the family he did have. “Well, they really liked you. Anytime you want to come over for Sunday dinner, just let me know. That is…if you’re staying in town.”

  He stared straight ahead. “I’m not sure what my plans are.”

  Carol shivered inside her coat. What was that thread in his voice? Not just sadness, but there was something else… Anger, maybe? But why would he be angry? They’d had a great night. Did she do something? Did he feel like she was pressuring him to see her again? Or go to her parents’ house again? Because that was the last thing she wanted to do.

  As they turned off Main, she decided to change the subject. Lighten the mood. “I can’t believe you haven’t seen ‘Elf’. It’s the best of all the Christmas movies, in my personal opinion.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.”

  She glanced over at him, realization dawning. “You haven’t seen any other Christmas movies, have you?”

  He laughed, but the sound wasn’t a joyful one. “I’m not a big Christmas person. Never have been.”

  She swallowed tightly. “Maybe I can change that.”

  “If anyone could, Carol Cardini…”

  She stopped, made him stop, too. She turned to face him and said in a gentle voice, “What’s wrong? Did I do so
mething?”

  His eyes found hers. The two blue orbs were hot and cold and confused, all at the same time. Her heart kicked inside her chest.

  “Talk to me,” she urged. “I feel like we might have something here, but I need to know what’s going on.”

  He didn’t say anything. Not right away. He looked around, at the sidewalk, and the houses. “Remember this street?” he asked softly as a few flakes started to fall from the night sky.

  Carol turned to her right. She hadn’t realized it. Hadn’t been paying attention. Her heart rolled in her chest. “Evergreen Way,” she said. “I remember it vividly.”

  Gabriel reached out and took her hand. He started walking. And not a calm, relaxed, Christmas Eve sort of walk. But a purposeful gait. Carol knew where he was headed. What she wasn’t sure of was why. A prickly tension moved through her. Gabriel’s sadness tonight, the thread of anger. Was it this? The street? This house? That night ten years ago?

  Oh, God…was this about her? Was he angry at her? For caring? For telling?

  Gabriel stopped in front of a brand new home with twinkle lights and a wreath on the door. What was this? Where were they? And then her eyes caught on those steps…this was the Diamants’ house, and yet it wasn’t. She stared at it. She knew they’d moved a few weeks after the kids were taken out of the home, but she didn’t know what had happened to it afterward. Frankly, she’d avoided the street altogether if she could.

  When Gabriel didn’t say anything, just continued to stare at the place, she turned to him. “Will you look at me?”

  His gaze dropped to hers. A fight seemed to be going on behind those incredible blue eyes. But one thing was certain. His mood, his anger, whatever it was, was about her and that night. She had to get him to talk to her. She had to get him to understand.

  “I was leaving a babysitting job,” she said. “I’d made some good money because it was Christmas Eve and everything, and I was so excited to get to the store and buy this little model house I’d been wanting.” She chewed her lip for a second. “But then I bumped into you.” Something was rising in her. Not just tension, but emotion as well. “Oh, Gabriel, I’ve thought about that night a million times. Wondered if I’d done the right thing. What if I hadn’t bumped into you at all? If I hadn’t seen…” As he turned away, back to the house, she shook her head. Above them, the snow started to come down for real. Big, fat flakes. “You asked me not to tell anyone, remember?”

  His jaw looked tight enough to crack. “I do.”

  Her heart squeezed at the cold response. “I thought you might hate me for telling. I thought you’d feel like I betrayed you.” He still wasn’t looking at her. She reached up and took his face in her hands, turned him to her. “But if you’d stayed there, here, they could’ve…and not just to you, but to your brother and your sister.” She inhaled sharply. “I wondered if you’d go to a worse place. I was so scared about that. But I couldn’t do nothing.” Why was his gaze so impenetrable? “Gabriel? You know that, right? I couldn’t walk away and pretend you weren’t living with monsters. I couldn’t walk away and let them hurt you again.”

  For several seconds, he didn’t say anything. Then, “It could’ve been a one-time thing. You didn’t know.”

  No, she didn’t. “Was it?”

  He didn’t answer her.

  She gripped him tighter. “I couldn’t walk away, Gabriel. Don’t you get that? A kid seeing another kid hurting? Could you walk away and pretend it hadn’t happened?”

  His eyes filled with anguish.

  “I’m glad I did it,” she whispered. “And look at you. Look what a success you are. What you accomplished. You’re good, happy.” Her throat tightened with tears. “I’m so glad, Gabriel. I’m so thankful you’re okay.” She shrugged. “It was my Christmas wish. That night. It’s all I wanted under the tree.”

  “Dammit, Carol…” he uttered, pained.

  “I just want you to understand,” she said. “To know what’s been in my heart for these past ten years.”

  He leaned in and pressed his nose against hers. “Come home with me,” he whispered.

  Her lips parted on a gasp, and inside her belly, a fire was lit. “It’s Christmas Eve.”

  “Exactly. I need you. Come home with me and stay the night.” He eased back and kissed her. Gently, sweetly. “Wake up in my arms. Be my Christmas wish.”

  * * *

  Gabriel had never had a woman stay the night. It was a rule he lived by. Granted, there were lovers in his past, but it was only a mutual satisfaction situation. Nothing like this.

  He sat at the island in the kitchen, while Carol Cardini made him hot cocoa in her bare feet. His staff were all off, including Anne, and the house was still, except for the faraway sounds of a Christmas CD, and mugs being filled with hot, brown liquid.

  “Cocoa,” she said, turning around and placing a mug before him.

  “Thank you.” I like you in my kitchen.

  “Spiked, of course,” she added with a wink.

  Oh, yeah. Really like you here. Christ, why did she have to be so goddamned adorable? And sexy? And kind? And…caring?

  Mug in hand, she came around to stand beside him. “You ever think about getting a pet?” She took a sip of the cocoa as she leaned against the island. “A dog might be nice. Liven this place up a bit.” She cocked her head. “You know, there’s a shelter not far from Holly…”

  “A pet is a big commitment, Carol,” he said, giving her a pointed look.

  “Very big,” she agreed.

  “And moving from place to place, house to house, wouldn’t be good for it.”

  She nodded. “Probably not.”

  “So…”

  “So…”

  He put his mug down, then reached for hers and set it beside his on the island. “I’d have to have a true home base.”

  Her eyes glowed with heat. “Makes sense.”

  On a growl, his arm stole around her waist and he pulled her directly onto his lap. She made a little sound, then laughed. She smelled like snow, and he’d never wanted to taste anything more. His eyes demanded her attention, and as he brushed a wisp of hair away from her neck, he said, “You’d have to go with me.”

  Lips parted, she uttered, “Where?”

  He tipped his face down. “To pick out the dog, baby.”

  For one second she didn’t react. It was as though her mind had to catch up with her physical needs. But when it did, she smiled, wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his head down for a kiss.

  Oh yeah. He wanted this. Wanted her. Her hot, eager mouth. Shit, he practically dissolved into her, groaning when her fingers threaded into his hair, growling when her tongue lapped at his teeth. Hand to God, he’d never wanted a woman more than he wanted her. Maybe it was madness. Holiday madness. But he was dead serious when he’d asked her to go with him to pick out a dog. What she’d said to him in front of his old house, how she’d looked at him, how she’d forced him to look and listen and acknowledge her—it had changed his molecules just as much as it had changed his mind and heart. He’d never even contemplated her feelings. How a fifteen-year-old girl had witnessed a boy with a serious bruise and no shoes on in the snow, who was clearly angry and scared…

  Her side hadn’t mattered to him. And it should’ve.

  It did now.

  Her fingers dug into his scalp as their kiss grew fever-pitched. Thoughts of tearing at clothes to get to the heat behind were invading Gabriel’s mind. Especially when Carol started pulling at his sweater, and whispering the word, “Off” against his lips. Gathering her into his arms, Gabriel stood. He wanted everything off too. Wanted her on his bed, blond hair fanning her face, legs spread—eyes on him.

  His mouth never leaving hers, he walked out of the kitchen.

  “We better be going to your bedroom,” she uttered breathlessly, tugging at his hair. “I’m about to lose my mind here.”

  He grinned. “Can’t have that. Not yet, anyway.” He burst through his bed
room door, strode across the room and dropped her on the bed. “Not until I have my tongue between your legs.”

  She gasped at his words, then gasped again as he set about stripping her bare. Pants off. Shirt off. Bra, panties…

  Gabriel felt like a raw nerve as he stood up again and began to undress. As she watched him, her eyes dancing to each flash of skin he uncovered, he watched her. He’d never seen anything so beautiful in his life. All that creamy white skin, from her toes to her thighs, to that sweet pussy, glistening in the light of the small Christmas tree he kept on the table near the sitting area. As his zipper went down, he spied her hand trailing up her flat belly. Christ, was she going to touch herself? He’d come right there if she did. He was so goddamned worked up.

  He cast his clothes aside and went to her, the mattress dipping with his weight. His eyes pinned to hers, he ran his hands up her ankles to her calves and then eased her thighs apart.

  She breathed a soft moan, and instead of reaching for her sex, her hands went to her breasts.

  Fuck.

  Was it possible to want to watch her and taste her all at the same time? As pre-come leaked from the tip of his cock, he stared at her. Eyes on him, she squeezed the seductive white flesh, then pinched and twisted her raspberry nipples as she moaned. His mouth watered.

  “You’re making me very hungry, Carol,” he said, his voice a grave warning.

  Through hazy, sexy eyes, she smiled up at him. “Good.” And with that, she canted her hips in invitation.

  Gabriel chuckled softly, then spread her thighs even wider apart. His gaze settled on her sex. She was groomed, but still had a nice, sexy bush. God, he loved it. Dark blond curls drenched in arousal. His nostrils flared as he settled himself between her legs. Dipping his head, he pressed his nose into the folds of her pussy.

  She cried out and twitched.

  “Oh, Christ,” he uttered, holding her still. “The way you smell. It makes my dick cry.” He pressed harder and circled her clit with the tip of his nose.

  Carol groaned. “Oh my God, what is that?”

  “Just me, baby. You want to come?” He licked her. Just one quick swipe.