by Lexi Ostrow
“So why are we able to?”
“We’re smaller, and private. Commercial airlines shut down for safety. Private pilots only have to pull out if it’s really bad and so far it’s just a thick snowfall from last night. Most likely going to stop snowing by the time we reach the chalet.”
She nodded and turned back to looking out the window. “Makes sense.” The airport came into view and she was certainly shocked at how not desolate it was. It looked like a madhouse. Taxis were lined up just outside the international gate and people raced across the walkway. She hated to think that so many of these people might be stuck spending the holiday in the airport.
The car moved effortlessly through the traffic, like water flowing around a rock. Louis was an outstanding driver, and drove through the private gate to the ground entrance for private planes. She saw the small plane come into view and grinned. She loved the lavish private plane and was almost as excited for a chance to be in it again as she was to go to the chalet.
When the car stopped she didn’t wait, just opened the door herself. Nick might like being waited on, but it chaffed her a little bit. She did however, not stop him as he plucked her duffle out of the car or her jacket. She leaned in and grabbed the precious dress herself though.
The cold air stung her nose as she walked to the plane, despite her head being down. The chill was so much stronger here without the tall Denver buildings to block the wind. Her feet raced up the plane’s staircase and she hung the dress up in the coat’s closet before walking back and taking a seat.
Nick came in, covered in tiny flakes of snow and shook his body like a dog. “You know, most people take the coat off and shake it.” She was leaning back, her legs tucked under her and smirking.
He walked back and sat on the bench seat across from her. “Yes but that doesn’t get my shoes or pants.”
She shook her head and sighed. It was going to be a long trip if Nick truly only saw her as his assistant.
Chapter 3
His foot was tapping. He hated people that tapped their foot. It was indecisive, a placeholder for getting up and doing something that you wanted. Which is exactly what he had been doing for the last twenty-eight minutes.
Leena hadn’t turned him away, because he hadn’t even tried. They’d gotten on the plane and she’d verbally spared with him for about eight minutes. He hadn’t even realized he liked the way she snarked at him until now. Usually it was only a comment here or there when he did something stupid. But this Leena, with her hair still somewhat tied back, but not in a bun, was more playful than the glimpses he had seen of her at work all these years. It was the moments and subtle things about her that drew his attention. He’d caught her playing in the snow early on, when he was just a junior account holder. She’d been with him two years, but it was the first time he’d noticed how beautiful she was and when he learned how much she loved snow. But it was watching her lead a meeting for him once that had done him in.
He’d been late and had texted her to do the simple things; hand out packets, discuss the basics of their strategy. She was always by his side so she could quote whatever project they were working on as well as he could. But she’d surprised him and began the full on presentation. Nick had run in, chest heaving for air and had stumbled into the glass conference room wall. No one had flinched because he hadn’t actually hit it, just came close enough to look foolish. When he’d looked up and seen her though she’d been holding the PowerPoint remote in her hand and gesturing. Beautiful, smart and the person he trusted the most in the world, leading a meeting she should never have even been in. He’d fallen for her right then and there, but knew it wasn’t appropriate.
So he’d tried to distract himself and now he was at the fork in the ford. It was time to tell her how he felt or accept they weren’t ever going to make it happen and walk away. Should have been a piece of cake. But when he watched her, her eyes glued to her magazine, all he could think about was rejection. Nick DeMarco didn’t take well to rejection.
“Mr. DeMarco, Miss Kensy, we will be preparing for landing. Can I get you any last minute drinks?”
He turned to the steward and shook his head, Leena was so far gone in whatever gossip rag she was reading she hadn’t heard.
“No we will be fine.”
“All right, Mr. DeMarco. The pilot wishes me to apologize, the flight took longer than normal. The weather conditions began to worsen as we gained altitude. Not enough to delay us but it took some manner of caution.” He smiled at the man and nodded his head.
“Not a problem, Jeff. Not a problem at all.” Jeff walked away and he plucked the magazine from Leena’s hands, to get her attention.
“Hey!” She lunged at him and her hand landed, a little harder than he would have liked, in his lap. Arousal stirred in him and she didn’t have the sense to move her hand because she left it there a moment. Blood rushed to his dick and he bit his lower lip, hoping some tiny amount of pain would stop it because if she didn’t move her hand things were about to get a nice push from his body. “Sorry.”
She jerked her hand back and looked down in her lap. Her cheeks were flushed and he didn’t blame her. He wished they were flushed with desire though. He shifted in his seat and tried to calm his hardening cock. But it was no use. Her hand had been warm and he could still feel the tingle of heat it had left behind. He couldn’t read her at all and it was driving him to madness. She’d left her hand for so long, was she shocked or enjoying what she felt?
“Excuse me.” He managed to squeeze the words out as he stood up and walked to the bathroom. She was bright, she’d know what was about to happen but he couldn’t help himself.
Nick closed the lavatory door and leaned his back against the wall and exhaled. It didn’t do anything to help. His fingers tugged the zipper down on his jeans and he pulled them down just past his ass. He almost gasped at the sensation that rocked through him as his dick popped out. His hand wrapped around his fully erect shaft and his hips bucked at the contact. It had been almost three weeks since he’d been laid and apparently the smallest touch from Leena was enough to set him off. He locked his eyes onto the image of himself in the mirror holding his erect penis. The sight sent a wave of lust and a drop of precum to the tip of his cock. He liked watching himself and his partners fuck. It was just a touch of the bed play he worried could be too dark for Leena.
He squeezed himself a little bit tighter as he jerked his hand up and down his cock. His left hand massaged his nuts in a circle and he had to bite his lower lip to stifle a grunt. There wasn’t much of a wall between himself and Leena sound wise and having her thinking he was jerking off was different than her seeing him jerk off. His hips bucked into his tight fist as he stroked himself. His cock was already throbbing in his hand and jerking his hips into his tight fist was maddening.
One breath, one stroke. Over and over he worked his hand up his thick member and forced himself to breathe so he wouldn’t cry out in pleasure. His nuts drew up close to his body and his speed increased, the friction increasing and tearing his release from him. His semen sprayed out and he saw the chords in his neck tighten in the mirror. A grunt tore past his lips before he could stop it and his head banged into the wall. But he felt better, a million times better.
He grabbed a flimsy piece of airplane toilet paper and wiped himself off. He sucked in a deep breath and slowly blew it out before tucking himself back into his pants and zipping up. A tremor rocked the plane and he realized they must be descending and hit an air pocket. He opened the door and walked carefully back to his seat. Her eyes were on his the moment he looked up and he swear he was torn between dying of embarrassment and finding himself erect again.
“You ok, boss?” She nodded in the direction of the bathroom and he was grateful he had never been one to blush.
“Yup. Must’ve been something I ate at breakfast.” He did his best not to look at her as he sat back down.
“Oh so not the countless glasses of brandy you probably d
rank to keep yourself awake into the night at work?” She arched a brow and he smirked at her.
“Sometimes I think I’ve kept you around as my assistant for far too long. I think it’s time for a definite position change. Something with a much different benefits package.” He grinned, his mind racing at the idea of her picking up on the innuendo. For a second he thought he saw recognition flash in her eyes, but it was quickly gone.
“Oh no, no talks of firing and unemployment benefits on Christmas Eve. You’re stuck with me till the new year, Nick.”
The plane’s wheels jammed into the ground and they both bounced forward a bit and then bounced rockily down the makeshift runway as they got ready to make a stop. The small airstrip at the resort was not the optimum place to land in perfect weather. He could see the snow falling in big clumps and grabbed hold of the armrest for the bumps that were to come. But it was better than having landed down the mountain and taken a car up.
Leena’s eyes flared playfully at him as soon as the plane was fully stopped. “You know, I would hope you would have warned your real girlfriend better than you just did me.” She turned her chin up and marched past him to put her coat on.
He caught up to her and put his hand in the center of her back and whispered near her ear. “Don’t give me that much credit, Leena.” He felt her stiffen under his hand and smiled. Whatever worries he had were beginning to melt away. It appeared he wasn’t the only one with an office attraction on the plane. Still grinning he stepped past her and out of the plane.
The whir and howl of the wind was so much louder outside than it had been with just the side door open. He flinched as snow flew into his eyes and regretted not putting his jacket on before he got out. The chill bit at his ears and he turned to offer Leena his hand like a good gentleman and she raced past him. Chuckling, he jogged as best as he could in his boots and ankle deep snow.
“Come on, DeMarco!” She was bouncing up and down, blowing heat into her hands that were cupped around her face. “It’s freezing!” He had a feeling if the wind weren’t so loud he would hear her teeth chatter.
The path to the chalet was snowed over and his knees hurt with the effort it took to pull both himself and the bags through the snow. He saw the black bag that she refused to let go of thrown over her shoulder and he couldn’t help but laugh at how protective she was being.
What felt like hours in the snow, but was probably only five minutes, brought them right outside the chalet. His hands were already turning red from the cold and he almost dropped the keys trying to get them from his jean pockets. He opened the door and she raced inside, a trail of snow following behind her.
Leena let out a low whistle and laughed. Her eyes were scanning the entire foyer and great room of the modest five bedroom chalet. “Nick this place is so different, so beautiful.”
He looked around at the decorations. Every wall had garland hanging from it with twinkling lights woven in. Red, white and gold potted poinsettia’s were clustered in groups of three around the rooms. Large crystal ornaments were arranged for show on the tabletops mixed in with glittering pinecones and sprigs of holly. A ten-foot spruce tree sat completely undecorated to the right of the fireplace. Which of course had perfectly separated stockings with his sibling and his names on them. On top of the mantel a menorah sat, honoring his father’s side of the family.
“Mom does go all out doesn’t she?” He couldn’t blame her for being impressed, the place always looked straight out of a Hollywood set. Partially because they had the random photographer drop in.
She turned to him, her eyes wide with awe after pausing for a moment too look at the perfectly set dining table behind partially open doors to their left. He smiled; she was quite cute when she was amazed. “Your mother did all this?”
He belted out a laugh. “Oh God no, she pays someone. It looks this way every year. Think back to the photos.” He watched as she basically pulled up a memory recall system and nodded her head.
“What about the tree? Why is it bare?”
“That’s the only thing we do decorate. It’s a tradition. We show up at various points on Christmas Eve Day and focus on drinking eggnog till we pass out on the floor while decorating the tree. There’s no kids in the family yet, much to my mother’s heartbreak, so there’s no need to play Santa.”
She walked over to the large box labeled ornaments next to the tree and opened just one flap. “They’re beautiful.”
“Most are straight from Denmark, home of the first Christmas tree.” He beamed at her, knowing she’d be impressed.
“ Don’t inflate your ego I know your mom is why you know that.”
He laughed and put his arms up in a defensive measure. “How I got my information is irrelevant. Want a tour of all the rooms you’ve never seen during business functions?”
“Hmm are they all as beautifully decorated or are you making a ploy to get your fake girlfriend into your bed?” She pulled away from him as he tried to grab her hand. She was sending so many signals his brain was going to fry if he didn’t get things sorted.
“I guess you’ll have to come along and see.” He gestured for her to walk through to the back portion, where the entertainment room was and a bathroom. The kitchen was to the left of them just before the giant TV, but she’d seen that before.
She paused at the end of the hallway and he walked up next to her. “To the left we have debauchery of all sorts from the kitchen to the theater. To the right, we have bedrooms and bathtubs.”
She laughed and then gasped as she turned her head to look down toward the bedrooms. “Oh.” She looked up but didn’t take a step back and neither did he when he saw what was there. Mistletoe. He hadn’t even remembered it was there.
“You do love all things Christmas don’t you?” He winked at her but didn’t move to lower his head at all. He wasn’t going to push this and look like an ass. Never mind that he could lose her completely if he was reading things wrong.
Indecision passed back and forth across her face for what felt like an eternity before she gave him a small smile and lifted her chin slightly. “I suppose breaking a Christmas tradition would be dangerous.”
That was all the permission he needed. Nick leaned down and slanted his mouth over hers. His lips touched her, barely at first, waiting for permission to continue. When she didn’t pull back he took a step closer, their lips still touching. He wrapped an arm around her waist and tugged her against him. She didn’t resist and he didn’t wait. His mouth pressed firmer against hers, trying to deepen the kiss. Sparks flew through his body at the contact. He’d been thinking about it for so many years that he was almost shocked that it was as nice as he had thought it would be. Passion spiked in his body and he nipped her lower lip. She moaned and pressed her body against his. His body was already heating from the crush of boobs against his chest and the way her hips seemed to fit against his.
His tongue slipped inside her mouth and he wasn’t certain which of them groaned that time. But he felt the vibration of it as her hands wrapped around his neck and she pushed up on her tiptoes, pushing their mouths together more as they explored each other in a first kiss. Part of him was raging to command her, but he kept the beast locked away. He wouldn’t unleash that side of himself on her without talking to her first and right now he sure as shit didn’t want to talk.
He was lost to the desire that was surging through his body, the palpable feeling of it was all around them; he hadn’t been wrong about her feelings for him. Without breaking their kiss he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up into his arms. She laughed softly, but kept kissing him as he navigated back to the couch.
Nick’s mind was reeling with need as he laid Leena onto the couch. Their kiss ended as he placed her down and he felt a punch of lust when he looked down and saw her lips were beginning to swell from his kiss. Her eyes were injected with lust and it only egged him further. He hadn’t intended for this to start this way. But now that they had, it seemed like there was
no way to put out the growing inferno between them except to finish what they just began.
“Leena?” He barely choked the word out, asking permission to kiss her again.
She didn’t respond, instead her hands wrapped in his hair and tugged him down to her. His erection pulsed in his jeans and he rubbed himself against her, cursing the stupid coat. Pulling back he carefully undid all six buttons and pushed it open so that he could get to her properly.
His hands gently ran over her breast, cupping them in the bra as he moved his hips against her and leaned down to capture her lips again. Their breathing was loud and the only thing he could focus on was the way her body was melting into his, how her tongue effortlessly moved with his in a mind blowing kiss. Leena’s hands raked down his back and he felt her wrap them around the bottom of his sweater. He sat up only long enough for her to pull it, rarely unsuccessfully, over his head. They both chuckled and then he started to pull at her shirt when his cell phone rang.
“Son of a bitch.” He slammed his hand into his pants pocket, brushing against Leena’s stomach by accident and she arched into him and gasped. Rational thought left the room and he let the phone ring in his pocket as he ground his hips into her and claimed her mouth.
When the ringing tore through their heaving breathing again, he forced himself to stand up off of Leena’s willing body. It was his personal phone, it was going to keep ringing. He yanked the thing from his pocket and used his other hand to pull up her shirt, exposing her toned stomach; she always joined him on his workouts. He dropped a kiss to her stomach and leaned up to answer his phone.
He growled into the phone without meaning too. “What?”
“Nikolas DeMarco, is that anyway to answer the phone to your mother?” Her voice was shrill and based on Leena’s giggle she had heard it too.
He shrugged his shoulders at Leena and she sighed and sat up on the couch, pulling her shirt back down. But he liked the way her eyes never left his while he talked.