A Santini Christmas

by Melissa Schroeder

  He shrugged. “I had enough of family life in DC for awhile.”

  She nodded. If there was one person in the world who knew about how his family worked, it was Tess. Time with the Johnsons was fun, but exhausting—especially when spending time with The General.

  She leaned back and looked at his convertible. The little humming noise she made caused him to itch from the inside out.

  “So, this is the new car?”

  In high school, she’d been one of the few girls who appreciated cars. Of course, her father’s hobby had been rebuilding old cars, and she’d been his constant companion.

  “Come on, I’ll take you for a ride.”

  She didn’t hesitate and jumped right in.

  “Nice to see you pilots still know how to waste money.”

  He sighed as he shifted the car into gear. “You always give me shit about my cars and I know it’s because you secretly envy them.”

  “No. I wouldn’t be able to deal with something so low to the ground. Give me my Silverado any day.”

  “So where were you off to so fast?”

  “Lunch. I thought I’d run over to the exchange and grab a bite to eat. Needed to get out of the hospital for a bit.”

  “Sounds good,” he said.

  “Excuse me, but I don’t think I invited you.”

  He laughed. “Okay, Tess. Can I please come to the exchange with you to partake in lunch?”

  She chuckled and he felt a funny shift in his chest. It had been like that the last few weeks as he’d PCS’d from one base to the other. Any time he talked to Tess on the phone, he’d had odd feelings. He’d written it off as nerves about the new job, but it didn’t explain why his palms were sweating.

  “Okay, since you are new in town and well, I know you can’t get a woman. Plus, I’ll be happy to let you pay.”

  “Did anyone ever tell you, you’re rude?”

  “Yep. But I ignored him. He doesn’t count.”

  “Who called you rude?”

  “Your brother, Jack. He said, ‘You don’t act like a girl. You’re rude.’ Then I told him to suck it.”

  “When was this?” He asked.

  She motioned with her hand. “Take the next right. This was in high school. None of you knew how to handle a girl who didn’t faint at the sight of your pretty faces. Well, Jesse could to a point, but you and Jack couldn’t.”

  He pulled into a parking space and turned the car off. “We became best friends.”

  “Yes, but not before I gave you a bloody nose.”

  “That is another example of being rude.”

  She looked at him, her eyes dancing with humor. “Well, Johnson, don’t ever tell a girl she can’t punch like a guy. There’s a good chance she’ll have to prove you wrong.”

  With that, she slipped out of the car, her laughter filtering back to him. He smiled. Yep, it was good to be stationed there with Tess.

  They were eating lunch when Tess asked, “So, did you find a place to live?”

  He shook his head. She curled her fingers into the palm of her hands to resist brushing back the small lock of hair that fell forward. It was a sure sign he was in need of a haircut.

  “I’ve got a few leads from that realtor you put me in contact with.”

  Then he smiled at her. Even ignoring the way her pulse skipped, she knew what was coming. He’d used that smile on every girl in school when he wanted something—and not just sex. The boy could charm a nun into participating in an armed robbery. She couldn’t handle him in her house. That was too much to ask of her. Plus, she couldn’t afford the amount of food he ate.

  “No.”

  He tilted his head. “Come on, Tessy. You have a three bedroom house.”

  “And you have a pilot’s pay and TLA, Dislocation Allowance and per diem.” Every time someone PCS’d, they were given extra money to help with the move and for a single guy, it was more than enough to pay for things. “I don’t need you in my way.”

  He opened his mouth to say something when Jed Sawyer stopped by the table.

  “Hey, Tess. I didn’t know you were working today.”

  Jed was a nice guy and she had gone out with him several times in the last couple of months. He was infantry and it showed in his build. He was just at six feet tall and Tess was sure he would top the scales at two-thirty—most of it muscle. He had chocolate brown eyes, wavy blond hair and a very talented mouth. Lord, the man could kiss and it had been one of the reasons she’d agreed to another date. In fact, they had a date that night.

  She smiled at him. “Jed. Yeah, I wasn’t supposed to work, but I traded shifts with someone. Her little boy has the stomach flu and her husband’s deployed.”

  He glanced in Bran’s direction then back at her. “Oh, Bran, this is Jed Sawyer. Jed, this is that old friend I told you about, Brandon Johnson.”

  Something close to relief moved over Jed’s face. “Ah, nice to meet you.”

  Bran nodded, but said nothing. Very strange for him, especially since they were going to be in the same battalion.

  Tess noticed Jed was holding a tray filled with food.

  “Why don’t you join us?” she asked.

  Jed shook his head. “I’m eating with Reynolds and Gonzales,” he said, motioning to a table. She turned around, smiled and waved at the guys.

  “Okay.”

  “Still on for six tonight?”

  “Of course.” When he left, Tess turned around to find Bran frowning at her. “What?”

  “I just thought we could do something tonight,” he said, sounding a little put out.

  Oh, and Prince Brandon didn’t like having his plans ruined. “Sorry. I made that date last week, not breaking it.”

  “Oh.”

  And because they had been friends for almost ten years, she gave in. “Okay. You can stay with me; on the condition you mind your own business. Oh, and you have to buy food. I can’t afford to feed you. And, no women. You want sex, you go somewhere else.”

  “Do you think all I do is eat and have sex?”

  She laughed. “Brandon Johnson, I was your best friend in high school. I know that’s all you think about.” She took another sip of her tea. “Oh, and you are in charge of cleaning up your bathroom. I am not going to do it. Men are disgusting.”

  “So, that’s the tour of the place.”

  Bran looked around, thinking he would have been able to tell anyone this was Tess’ house. Mainly because it was in order. She liked everything in its place, and that was something he understood. It wasn’t part of being in the military. It was more about being a military brat.

  Both of them had been born and bred into the military. Government issue. And for a woman, she had very few knick-knacks around the house. Mostly there were pictures of her, her family, along with some with his family.

  “I need to get cleaned up and ready for tonight. I would say make yourself at home, but I know you will without the invitation.”

  He smiled at her. “Sure thing. I guess I can survive.”

  She rolled her eyes and left him to get ready. It was nice to be back with Tess again. They had been thick as thieves through high school and most of their time at Annapolis. It had been difficult to keep in touch these days. He’d been deployed, as she had, and they both had demanding jobs when they were stateside. Now though, it seemed they were going to have time together and that would be fun.

  As he wandered around the living room, his phone rang. Jesse.

  “Hey, bro, checking up on me?”

  Jesse chuckled. “Well, you did say you would call when you got there.”

  He had, then he’d seen Tess and forgotten all about calling his family.

  “I had to secure quarters.”

  There was a beat of silence. “Don’t tell me you’re mooching off Tess.”

  “I am, although she seems too busy to care.” And it still pissed him off. It irritated him more that he didn’t have a right to be angry about the date. He wouldn’t have expected a male
friend to break a date to spend time with him, but for some reason, he felt betrayed that she wouldn’t dump a guy for him. It wasn’t like she was going to marry the guy.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “She has a date tonight she refused to break.”

  Another beat of silence. “You expected her to drop a date because you showed up? Did you give her any advanced notice?”

  “No.”

  And Bran knew he was being an ass about it, but he was kind of disappointed that Tess was busy. They hadn’t spent any time together since…well since they both graduated from Annapolis.

  “I can see where she would have her hands full there.”

  His tone rubbed on a nerve Bran didn’t know he had. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Come on, Bran. There aren’t that many women on base like her, you know that. She’s hot.”

  The nerve was now beyond irritated. “And just when did you see her last?”

  Now that he thought about it, the girl with the huge green eyes had grown into her long legs. Those sharp angles had turned into subtle curves and with her hair somewhat tamed, she sort of…well, any other guy would say she stole his breath away.

  “I was down there…well, about six months ago. I knew she was stationed there so I called her up and we had lunch.”

  Bran pulled the phone away from his ear to look at it, then set it against his ear again.

  “You had a date with Tess?”

  “Good God, no. I can’t because, well, she’s like a little sister.”

  Bran snorted. “A little sister you find hot?”

  “Couldn’t help noticing.”

  “At least she made time for you.”

  “I called her ahead of time because I didn’t presume. I know she’s a single woman on a military base. The fact that she’s sweet and good looking, well that adds to the package.”

  “Sweet?” he asked as he heard a sound behind him. He turned and every drop of moisture in his mouth dried up. Lord. Tess wore a pair of jeans, the type that hugged a woman’s hips, and a t-shirt that just barely touched the waistband. When she moved, he could see her belly button and good God, a belly ring. Her hair was a sexy mess of curls as if she had just gotten out of bed.

  “Bran? Are you there?”

  Bran shook his head trying to get his brain to work again. “Uh, yeah. Just tired from the drive down.”

  “Okay. Well, I’ll tell the old man you’re there and MJ, before she calls again.”

  “She didn’t call me.”

  “She texted you. So you better text her back or the soon-to-be momma to be is going to be upset with you.”

  He nodded and hung up without saying goodbye.

  Tess smiled at him, making his pulse dance. “Let me guess, that was Jesse.”

  She knew his family well. “Yeah. I forgot to call.”

  She shook her head. “You know, I’m amazed they let you fly a Raptor. I would think you might forget where you parked it.”

  He knew she was trying to lighten the mood. That was what he would have done in the situation, but his brain wouldn’t work. In fact, he was feeling a little lightheaded but it might have to do with the lack of sleep. It definitely had nothing to do with that belly ring, or his need to see what other interesting things he could uncover on her body.

  “You’re wearing makeup.” It came out as an accusation, but he couldn’t help it. He wasn’t used to seeing Tess Keller all made up. She wasn’t wearing much, but even as he said it, she slathered on lip-gloss. How did he not notice her lips were so full and sexy before now?

  She smirked at him. “Yes, I do that sometimes. It’s kind of something I do on dates.”

  “You wear makeup.”

  “Uh, yeah among other things.” She rolled her eyes, a sure sign of irritation.

  He frowned and opened his mouth to ask her just what those other things were, but the doorbell rang.

  “There’s Jed.” She walked to him and gave him a pat his cheek. “Don’t wait up.”

  “Don’t you have duty in the morning?”

  She stopped with her hand on the doorknob. “First of all, I’m an adult and a lieutenant in the Navy, so I can decide for myself. But, to ease your mind, I’m off tomorrow.”

  She left him standing there in the middle of the room, mildly frustrated and trying to figure out what the hell just happened.

  It’s all Harmless until someone falls in love.

  Melissa Schroeder’s Harmless series is entering the ninth year of publication. Each year more and more fans become addicted to the books. This year readers found themselves intrigued by two releases that included the first ménage and the very first cowboy. Come to Hawaii and find out why so many readers call themselves Harmless Addicts! Enjoy first chapters from A Little Harmless Fantasy and the first A Little Harmless Military Romance: Infatuation.

  A Little Harmless Fantasy

  What starts out as simple fantasy among friends, becomes an overwhelming need that none of them can deny.

  Maura Dillon has always been someone who lived life on her own terms. From the time she in college she knew she had different needs than most of her friends. But she never thought she would find herself torn between two very sexy men, or that they would want to add her to their relationship.

  Zeke and Rory have known each other for years. Their casual relationship has spanned a decade, but now that they are living together things are on a whole other level. Add in their mutual attraction for Maura and things are just getting out of hand.

  Rory understands their desires and suggests a week in Hawaii. No rules, no limits, no regrets. But as their nights are filled with unimaginable erotic pleasure, there is someone lurking in the shadows. Someone who wants revenge, and will stop at nothing to succeed.

  »WARNING: this book contains the following: Two sexy men who are hot for each other and the heroine, more Hawaiian scenery, a Dom who thinks he can control everything, two lovers who know he can't, and scenes that push even Harmless Addicts over the edge.

  Please enjoy this first chapter excerpt…

  For the fourth time in less than ten minutes, Maura Dillon found her mind wandering. She looked out over the late afternoon Miami traffic and tried to concentrate on her brother’s voice in her ear, and just spaced out. A second later, she realized that her brother had stopped talking.

  “What did you just say?” She asked, leaning back in her desk chair closing her eyes. She felt herself drifting again, as if she were floating in the Pacific, enjoying the warm sun on her skin. She could almost smell the salt of the ocean and feel the breeze shift over her. It did nothing to help the pounding in her head. She felt as if she hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in three weeks. Probably because she hadn’t.

  “You sound distracted,” Conner said.

  Inwardly, she sighed. Her brother could always sniff out her mood, even five thousand miles away. It was one of his most irritating traits—and he had a lot of them.

  “I’m not distracted. I’m just a little tired.”

  There was a beat of silence. With most men, it didn’t mean anything. With Conner, it was a lethal situation. She turned her chair back so she faced her desk waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  “No, this is distracted, not tired. When you’re tired, you’re bitchy.”

  She ignored that comment, mostly because it was true. “I got the preliminary report on that group you want us to work with.”

  “You’re going to ignore my question then?” her brother asked.

  “Yes. When did you get all loving and want to talk feelings?”

  “I didn’t say it was about feelings. You just did. So you are distracted.”

  She was, but how did she tell her brother she was testy because she needed sex. She didn’t. She shared a lot with her brother, much to his irritation, but this, she could not. It was hard enough dealing with the dream team of Zeke O’Brian and Rory McAllister.

  “I’m distracted by this
job. It doesn’t help that I’m now a blonde.” She shoved her hand through her now chin length hair. It had been a whim a few days ago and she had loved it. But, now she wasn’t so sure.

  Another beat of silence. “You only mess with your hair color when you’re depressed.”

  She held the phone out from her ear and looked at it, then put it back. “This is Conner Dillon, right? Or has Jillian been giving you inside information?”

  “Jillian hasn’t and I know you better than you think I do.”

  That was probably true. Conner was devious that way. He seemed like the ultimate Alpha in any group, but one thing that had made him an excellent FBI agent was his observation skills. It was the bane of her existence when she was growing up—especially when he was left to raise her on his own. Nothing like having a criminal profiler watching your every move. Not that her teenage years had been that exciting.

  “How do you know about the hair color thing, then?” she asked.

  Maura recognized the aggravated sigh. She had first heard it when she was fifteen and asked her brother about lubricant. “The first boyfriend breakup you dyed it that disturbing bright red shade.”

  Of course he would bring up her breakup with Tommy Foster—otherwise known as the Scumbag from Boca Raton. “There was nothing disturbing about it.”

  “It glowed in the dark.”

  She remembered the look on Conner’s face when she stepped out of the bathroom and chuckled. “Okay, I will give you that. It was pretty bad.”

  “If you aren’t going to tell me, talk to Jillian when you get over here.”

  “I can talk to Jillian some other time, but there’s nothing to talk about.” Then she realized what he had just said. “Get over there? What are you talking about?”

  “I want you to come over to Hawaii for a week.”

  Stranger and stranger. It was never a good idea to underestimate Conner, especially when he was scheming. And she definitely defined this as scheming. He was devious and most people wouldn’t pick up on it. They would see him as being efficient. She knew better. Conner was born creating plots.