So he tossed back the bedding and got out of bed. The one thing he could do was brave the cold himself instead of having her do it. “No, Blue, I’ll get the bottles. I’m the one who stuck them out there. And you’re a freeze baby, while I’m clearly not.”
“A freeze baby?” She stopped with her hand on the doorknob and smiled at him in amusement. “I’ve never heard that expression before.”
“Where the hell have you been hiding?” Christian didn’t bother to put his shirt on, and he was already wearing his boxers. Good enough. Two seconds of cold wasn’t going to kill him. A glance behind the curtain of the window to the parking lot showed it had actually stopped snowing. “Stand back, miss,” he joked in a country drawl. “This is man’s work.”
The eye roll from her was expected, but she did back up and ripped open a pack of peanuts on the table. “I do have one Christmas tradition,” she said unexpectedly.
“Yeah?” He threw open the door and waited for her to elaborate as he grabbed the tequila and the mixer, ignoring the biting wind that cut into his flesh. He couldn’t exactly complain that the cold hurt after pulling the macho act.
“Before the big Christmas party at the nursing home, I go and do the ladies’ hair for free.”
Christian paused, half bent over, touched beyond belief, and forgetting all about the icy chill seeping into his feet. God, he was falling hard for Blue. Crazy, out of control, illogical, wanted to write a goddamn love poem falling for this gorgeous woman.
“I mean, it’s not a big deal, it’s just they like to feel good about themselves when their families show up for the party and I . . . I like to talk to them. They’re very sweet.”
He could almost hear the blush on her and as he stood up, Christian turned slowly with the bottles in his hands. “I think that tradition rocks, Blue.”
She put her hands on her hips and she nodded in conviction. “You know what? It does. It totally does.”
Christian kicked the door closed with his foot. “You rock.”
She took the tequila out of his hands and grinned. “I do, don’t I?”
It was that moment that he lost himself in a haze of tequila, lust, off the chart attraction, and the spirit of Christmas giving.
Plunking the mixer down on the table, Christian grabbed Blue and kissed her, a wild, tongue plunging sweep of domination and desperation, wanting to show her how completely awesome he thought she was and how she rocked all right. She’d rocked his world to the very foundation in one night.
Christian lifted Blue right off her feet, his hands on her ass as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
“Yes,” he managed between kisses, the feel of her body so close to his electrifying. “You definitely rock.”
Chapter Seven
“You’re really strong,” she murmured between kisses. Christian ground her hips against his and breathed in the fresh scent of her skin. “You’re tiny, it’s not hard to hold you. And I’m hopped up on adrenaline. I could probably lift a car right now.” Or have sex again after not much of a break to refuel.
That definitely wasn’t going to be a problem. His erection was knocking on her door already and he turned and sat on the edge of the bed, Blue still in his lap.
They kissed each other with a wild abandon, her nails digging into his back, his fingers tangling in her dark hair. Christian yanked up her T-shirt to her armpits and covered her breast with his mouth, tugging at the taut nipple.
How he was so frantic after they’d already made love, he had no idea, but he was. He was every freaking cliché there ever was about a man in the desert being offered water, and it didn’t make sense. Nothing made sense about the fact that every inch of his body was desperate, compelled, irrational to be against Blue, to possess her, claim her, fill her.
“Get on your knees,” he urged her, skimming his palms down into the waistband of her pajama pants.
“What?” she asked breathlessly, her head lolling back, nipples displayed invitingly in front of him.
“On your knees. Now.” The tone was rougher than he intended but he wasn’t going to wait.
She did, her eyes hooded, lips cherry red and glistening from his kisses.
When he yanked her bottoms down, panties included, she gasped.
A little determination and some hard tugs had them off both ankles and Christian freed his erection from his boxers right before she settled her thighs on either side of his and her warm flesh collided with him.
He was willing to say the hell with foreplay and just slam her down onto him, but Blue took his cock in her hand and slowly stroked it. It was Christian’s turn to gasp, and he dug his fingers into her hips. She moved her lithe touch over him up and down, a feathery tease of a touch, her lips brushing against his neck in a similar barely there contact.
That was only damaging his control, but when she took him and slid him up and down in her wetness, using the tip of his cock to stimulate her clitoris, he was almost destroyed. “Oh, damn,” he said, teeth gritted, grip on her so tight that he could see the whiteness of his fingers. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“You know what I’m doing,” she whispered in his ear, her tongue flickering out to lick his lobe. “I’m getting off with your cock.”
Oh, yeah, he definitely knew that’s what she was doing. Christian tried to breathe, realizing she had turned the tease around on him. This was torture.
“You like that, don’t you?” he asked her, enjoying each slick slide up and down her, almost being allowed access to push into her, then being denied as she pulled him back up again. Definitely torture.
“Uh-huh.” Blue’s breath came in short staccato bursts and she was concentrating intently, her free hand on his shoulder to brace herself.
He realized she was actually going to be able to come and he stared at her in fascination, amazed that she was so gorgeous, so sensual, so in tune with her own body.
“That’s it,” he told her. “Take it, take what you want.”
She did. She moved him into position and let her hips drop so that he filled her in one motion. Christian exhaled sharply, his grip on her waist brutal. It was a tantalizing position, her body resting on his, her breasts teasingly close, her hands on his shoulders, her hair falling in her face as she leaned forward and kissed him.
He knew she couldn’t really get the leverage to set the rhythm like this, so he did, pumping his hips so that he went deep inside her. The way she enclosed him, her slick sweetness stroking at his cock, was insanely good.
Obviously she felt the same way, because he was barely in her and Blue was coming, her lips parted, eyes wide in shocked ecstasy, her orgasm the result of all that teasing she had done with his cock. It had the same reaction on him. Christian gave one last thrust then gave in and exploded with her.
Being there together increased his intensity, both of them shuddering and pulsating together, sexy and intimate and exciting.
They stared at each other, gazes locked, and Christian saw something in Blue’s eyes that he knew was in his, a hope, a surprise, a depth of emotion that was illogical but was there.
He wanted to say something brilliant and poetic that would sweep her off her feet and make her certain that she wanted to be with him.
But he didn’t have those words, didn’t know how to be that guy.
So he just said, “I’m having a Blue Christmas and damn, it’s good.”
She laughed softly. “Don’t start singing.”
He cupped her cheeks with his hands and kissed her slowly, savoring the taste of her. “No singing, I promise.”
Blue gave a satisfied sigh and extracted herself from him, untangling her legs from his and crawling up the bed.
“Where are you going?” Christian couldn’t resist running his hand over her bare ass since it was presented so enticingly in front of him.
“To lay down under the covers. You wore me out.”
He grinned. “You did do a lot of work this time, all that using my—”<
br />
She cut him off with a fake prime expression. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. And if you don’t stop, I’m not going to let you cuddle with me.”
“Oh, cuddling was on the table?” He’d already figured out Blue wasn’t much of a cuddler, so if she was offering, he was going to take it. Hopefully he could convince her to sleep naked too. “Then I’m on it. I’ll shut up.”
He could move fast when he wanted to and he was up next to her, settled under the covers, in a blink. Hauling her onto his chest, he sighed in contentment. “Don’t let me fall asleep.”
“How am I supposed to do that?” she murmured, her own voice lazy and slumberous.
“Talk to me.”
But she didn’t, just gave a yawn, her fingers tracing a pattern over his chest in a soothing manner that had Christian’s eyes drifting closed.
He fell asleep in less than two minutes, comfortable and content with Blue in his arms.
Blue woke up warm and cozy, momentarily disoriented as to why her bed was so comfortable and the bedding so soft on her skin, until she remembered she was in a motel room with Christian. Sometime during the night she had slid off of him, but her leg was still over his and her hand was on his chest. His naked, very hard chest.
The muscles were nice. She was amazed at how nice they really were.
And how nice Christian was.
So nice it scared her. She was waiting for the minute it turned and his asshole nature finally revealed itself. For the moment he proved he was as selfish as the next person.
His hand covered hers and he yawned. “Merry Christmas, Blue.”
Her heart squeezed in a way she both liked and was terrified by. His voice was scratchy and still sleepy.
“Merry Christmas,” she managed, even though she had the sudden urge to bolt out of bed, get dressed, and run as far from him as she possibly could.
This man had the power to hurt her when he finally disappointed her and that was scarier than any snowstorm.
“Mmm,” he said, turning and kissing her forehead. “I would give anything for bacon and eggs and some big old pancakes.”
“Maybe Roy can hook you up.”
“Maybe. But that would mean I have to get up and I’m comfortable just laying here forever.”
She was too, which was precisely what had her unfurling herself from him and throwing back the covers.
“Ahh,” Christian said. “It’s cold out there. Where are you going?”
“The bathroom.” Without looking at him, knowing if she did, she might just embarrass herself and wrap her arms around him, or worse, get weepy, Blue picked up her discarded pajama pants and pulled them on, along with her T-shirt.
A peek out the window showed that it had stopped snowing and it looked like the plow had made at least one pass on the main road, though the parking lot was buried. With any luck, she could get a tow arranged and then . . . do what?
She wasn’t sure. Getting a rental car on Christmas was bound to be dicey, but if Christian could take her to the airport in Lexington, she would have options. Fly south, rent a car, get a hotel. She could do something.
Which would be better than staying here feeling like she might hyperventilate from emotions she didn’t altogether understand.
Rummaging through her suitcase, she found a pair of jeans and the only shirt she’d packed that had sleeves. Along with undergarments and her toiletries bag, she headed for the bathroom to take a shower.
Well aware of Christian’s eyes following her, she didn’t dare look at him.
“Is there a fire?” he asked.
Yes. “What do you mean?” she asked nonchalantly.
“What’s the hurry? I doubt we’re going to able to find a tow truck this morning and the longer we linger, the easier our drive to Lexington will be. Give them time to clear the roads. We don’t even know if the highway has been reopened.”
“Well, we’re not going to know if we stay in bed, are we?”
She dared a glance at him and he was sitting up, studying her carefully. “Is something wrong?”
“No, of course not. I just can’t fix the problem and get to Miami if I don’t get out of bed.”
He threw back the covers and revealed his naked body, his penis partially erect in what she hoped was just a sleep erection. She couldn’t handle another round of amazing sex without saying something stupid or needy or vulnerable. She’d already blathered on too much last night, telling him about her family.
“What are you doing?” she asked, fighting the urge to back up. That much muscular man was more than she could resist if he came on to her.
“I’m getting out of bed so we can see what’s going on out there. Fix the problem. Get you out of here.”
He didn’t sound belligerent or upset. He looked calm, like he always did. But there was something in his expression that told her he wasn’t entirely pleased with the situation. Neither was she.
“I figure at least if I miss the cruise I can hang out for a few days in the sunshine, right?” Not that she could afford either a plane ticket to Miami or a hotel, but that’s what a credit card was for. She just couldn’t face driving back to Cincinnati in a rental car and spending the night alone in her empty apartment.
“Or you could spend the night in Lexington with me. Have dinner with my family. Then tomorrow you can go to Miami. You don’t want to spend Christmas at the airport.”
No, she didn’t. But it didn’t matter. Why should Christmas be any different now than it had been her whole life? Part of her wanted to say yes, she’d love to spend the night with Christian and his family, but it would be like playing house. He wasn’t hers and his family was going to think it was weird as hell for her to be there.
And she didn’t think she could sit there in that kind of family togetherness knowing she wasn’t part of it, knowing that she didn’t belong. “I seriously doubt your family wants a total stranger invading their Christmas.”
He scoffed, standing up. “Please. They’re always telling me to bring someone, and there are so many people there, one more will hardly be noticed.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
There was a long pause where he stared at her so intently she wanted to squirm, but she stood her ground, head up.
Then he just said, “Alright.”
Part of her was relieved. Part of her was disappointed. Maybe in some way she had wanted him to try a little harder to coax her. Not that there was anything fair about that. He had offered, it had been a generous offer, and she had refused. Why would he twist her arm?
Because he wanted to be with her, that’s why. That’s what she wanted him to say. But that was a stupid expectation. Christian had a family to go to and he had just met her.
Blue beat a path to the bathroom before she said anything else and before he offered to join her in the shower. Any more intimacy would undo her.
She locked the door and turned on the water. She would shower alone. Be alone.
Just like she was every day.
Chapter Eight
Christian watched Blue across the table in Roy’s kitchen, wondering what was going through her head. She was animated enough with their host, smiling and laughing as he told her stories, but she was not meeting Christian’s eyes, and she seemed nervous.
Maybe not nervous. Remote. She had retreated from him. That was obvious. He didn’t know why.
Or maybe he did. He just didn’t want to acknowledge it.
He was too much of a goofball for Blue. She was a cool chick, into cool guys. He was a toy engineer who got off on family dinners, playing with kids, and singing off-key while doing the sprinkler. Not her style.
How could he expect her to prefer coming to his sister’s house for dinner when she could be on the beach in Florida? He couldn’t.
“So I got out of the navy in ’51 and settled down here and took over this place,” Roy was saying. “Ain’t exactly the Ritz but I did alright. Thought about changing the name
, but it always gave me a chuckle and people around here knew the No Tell.”
“We were so glad to find you and this place last night,” Blue told him, piling egg on her fork. “I don’t what we would have done without you, Roy.”
If Christian wasn’t mistaken, the old guy blushed a little. “Hope it was comfortable enough for you all.”
“Very comfortable,” Christian interjected, willing Blue to look at him and remember what had passed between them.
She did, but her look was definitely one of disapproval. Oh, so now not only was she not coming to dinner with him, she was going to pretend that the night before hadn’t happened? The hell with that.
His goddamn world had been rocked by this woman, and she was going to have to hear about it.
“You can call on my house phone to get your tow, though I don’t know how soon they’re going to be able to dig your car out.” Roy said. “I checked on the Internet and it looks like the highway is reopened so you can get south if you want in your good car. If I were you, I’d just book a tow truck and go on and enjoy your Christmas and worry about getting your car from the garage in a few days.”
“That’s what I was thinking,” Blue said with a nod.
Christian was still stuck on the fact that Roy had checked road conditions online.
“That is, if Christian doesn’t mind me hitching a ride with him to Lexington.”
That was the stupidest thing she’d ever said and he was actually a little bit offended. “Of course not. I’ll take you wherever you want to go.”
His bed would be preferable but if that weren’t an option he would make sure she was safely wherever she wanted to be.
Suddenly feeling gloomy, Christian bit off a piece of his bacon and chewed it hard, watching Roy stare at Blue with no small amount of admiration as she smiled at him. Is that what he looked like? Moony? He felt kind of moony and he wasn’t sure he liked it.
After another twenty minutes of eating and small talk Blue indicated they should be heading out. “If that’s okay with you?” she asked politely.
Unwrapped Bundle with You Don't Know Jack & Bad Boys in Kilts Page 6