I’ll Be Home for Christmas_An Out of Line Novella

by Jen McLaughlin

  I lifted the phone higher as requested, watching her fingers as I jerked off and pretended it was her touching me instead of myself. “I want to taste you, Ginger. So fucking bad.”

  “You are,” she breathed. “Right now…” She closed her eyes for a second. “I can feel you.”

  My cock hardened even more, and my heart sped up because her fingers moved faster, harder, and I was right there with her. Two nights without my girl were two nights too many.

  She cried out, arching her back. As I watched her come, I gritted my teeth as I jerked faster and harder until I joined her in bliss, tilting my head and pumping my hips one last time. Moaning, I dropped back to the mattress, breathing heavily. She did the same.

  “That was fucking hot,” I said, smiling.

  She nodded, closing her eyes. “Yeah, it was.”

  “And needed,” I said gruffly.

  Carrie opened her eyes. “Very.”

  I lifted my head, squinting at the clock. “Shit, it’s eleven?”

  "Yep. Hence why they left to get the pizza instead of delivery." She rolled over onto her stomach, lifting her legs in the air behind her. She looked sexy as hell, all mussed and flushed. "Do you miss me?"

  “More than words can express.”

  She pouted. “Same.”

  "Tomorrow's the last night."

  “It can’t end soon enough,” she said, still pouting. She turned her head, then faced me again with wide eyes. “Crap, they’re back. That was fast.”

  I grinned. “That’s what she said.”

  "Ugh," she said, rolling her eyes—but there was no hiding the grin teasing her beautiful lips, or the sparkle of amusement in those baby blues. "I have to go before they realize what we did."

  “Shit, I’d tell them. Brag about it.”

  She gasped. “No.”

  I laughed. “Fine. But I will.”

  “Don’t you dare!” she gasped again. “I could never look them in the eye again if they knew I booty called you.”

  Women were so weird. “We’re married.”

  “I know.” She pointed at me. “Don’t tell them.”

  “Fine, I won’t tell them.” I grinned. “Now go have fun, I’ll see you soon.”

  She stared at her screen, biting on her lower lip. “You look so hot right now.”

  “Back atcha." My cock came to life again because she was looking at me like she wanted to go for round two. "Love you, Ginger."

  “Love you, too.”

  We clicked off, and I cleaned myself up, washed my hands, then returned to my friend’s downstairs. As I approached, they watched me, and Ben’s eyes widened. “You look like you just got laid.”

  I snorted. “I was in my hotel room alone.”

  “With your wife,” Hernandez pointed out.

  “Did you just Fucktime?” Ben asked incredulously.

  I laughed. “Is that a thing?”

  “Yes, it’s a thing,” Hernandez said, rolling his eyes. “And you totally just did it.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, keeping my word about not telling them what I’d just done since Carrie seemed to care. “I just went to my room to talk to my wife.”

  “Yeah, sure,” Hernandez said.

  “And I’m the pope,” Ben interjected.

  I grinned. “Pleased to meet you.”

  Riley stood. “I’ll be right back.”

  He practically ran off.

  We watched him go, and then all laughed at the same time. As we joked about Riley’s eagerness to get his wife on the phone, my mind was a few hundred miles away in California.

  One more night…

  And I’d be home.

  Seven

  Carrie

  My heels clicked on the marble floor as I passed store after store, not finding what I was looking for in any of them. Although, in all reality, how did one find what they were looking for when they didn't know what they were looking for in the first place? Buying gifts for Finn was hard because he was the type of guy who didn't ask for much. He was happy with a kiss or a hug. He just didn't put much stock in gifts of any sort.

  My phone buzzed, and I pulled it out of my purse. Marie and Noelle were watching the kids so I could shop, so I expected it to be one of them. I was pleasantly proved wrong.

  It was my husband instead. Hey, Ginger.

  Hey, babe. How’s the tree lighting going?

  Boring as hell. We’re at lunch now, then heading back out.

  I grinned and typed back fast. What time does the jet leave tomorrow?

  We didn't take a jet, we flew first class this time.

  I frowned. Why?

  Something about mechanical issues.

  I passed Bath and Body Works, its fragrance practically punching me in the face. Okay, then when does your flight leave?

  11:30. Can’t wait to see you and the kids again.

  Smiling, I paused in front of Victoria’s Secret. Me either.

  It’s freezing here. How’s it there?

  Warm and sunny, like usual. No snow?

  Not a lot. Just enough to have fun in.

  I sat on the bench outside Victoria’s Secret. Even a few stores away from it, I could still smell Bath and Body Works. Maybe I should get some fruity "grown-up" body wash for Susan, and a little body pouf. She'd love that. Good.

  All right. Break’s over. I’ll talk to you soon.

  I sighed. Love you.

  Love you more.

  Lifting my head, I checked out the lingerie in the window. It was black, with lace in all the right places, and sheer fabric everywhere else. I bit my tongue, picturing the look on Finn’s face if he saw me wearing that. He’d pull me in his arms, and kiss me until I couldn’t breathe. Then he’d back me against the wall, pooling the fabric in his hands as he lifted it up my body, inch by inch…yeah, I think I found present number one.

  Heading inside the store, I browsed the risqué collections and ended up leaving with the lingerie from the window and a few pairs of sexy panties. After all, a girl could never have too many panties. Sighing, I held onto my bag and headed for Bath and Body Works, idly glancing at the television in the restaurant on my left. It was talking about a big storm sweeping across the country, and I stiffened when I saw how close to Utah it was.

  Don’t stress, he’ll be home.

  He promised me…and Finn never broke a promise.

  Forcing my mind off the storm I almost passed the perfect gift for him. I stopped in my tracks, backing up a couple of steps to check out the pocket watch in the window. Finn’s father had always carried a pocket watch, and Finn had used it until it died a few years ago. Even now, he carried it with him sometimes for good luck, even though it no longer told time.

  Maybe it was time for a new one.

  Smiling, I headed into the store, feeling lighter than I’d been moments before. I’d found the perfect gift for Finn, and I knew just the way to give it to him.

  As I walked out of the store, watch in tow, I almost ran into someone. I reared back, immediately ready to apologize, but the words died in my throat. “Noelle? What are you doing here?”

  “It occurred to me I needed to do some last-minute shopping, too. So when Cory went down for his nap, I left Marie in charge.” Her gaze fell down to the bag in my hand, and she grinned. “Finn’s going to love whatever’s in that bag, isn’t he?”

  I smiled back. “God, I hope so.”

  “I’m sure he will.” She nodded at her own bag. “I had the same idea.”

  Laughing, I pushed my hair out of my face. “The one in the window suckered me in.”

  “Oh my God, me too.” She pointed. “The black one?”

  My cheeks heated. “Yep.”

  “Guess our guys have similar tastes,” Noelle joked.

  “Or we do.”

  She laughed. “True!”

  We fell into stride together. “Looking for anything else?”

  “Not really. Just kind of window shopping. You?”


  I pointed at Bath and Body Works. “I was thinking of getting Susan some goodies from here. Want to join me?”

  “Sure,” she said, smiling.

  Noelle was a newer addition to our group, as her and Riley had only been married for a year or so, but over the past year I’d learned a lot about her. Her parents had been criminals, so when she hooked up with Riley not knowing he was the son of a politician—one who hoped to one day soon be in the White House—things had looked bleak.

  She and Riley had even split for a while.

  But then they’d come to their senses, and Noelle had been a part of our lives ever since. I was happy about that. Despite not getting much alone time together until this week, we’d clicked immediately, and she had a big heart.

  “Oooh, look at this one,” she said, holding up a cupcake scent. “She’d love this.”

  I took it, nodding. “Perfect.” I sniffed it. “Ooh, it smells good.”

  “Strawberries!” Noelle cried triumphantly, holding it up like she’d found the hidden clue to curing the common cold. “And peony!”

  I cracked up. “You’re way too excited about this.”

  “I used to always want to buy stuff here as a kid, but we never had the money,” she admitted, tucking her hair behind her ear. “It’s still weird, having it. I feel like I take it for granted sometimes, you know?”

  “I do know.” I picked up all three of the scents and headed toward the body poufs. “I mean, I always had money, growing up, but I think it’s too easy to forget how much people struggle sometimes, you know?”

  She nodded. “I do.”

  “Every Christmas I have Susan pick out a family to sponsor from the giving tree at church. I take her out and she shops for them, and I remind her how important it is to give back. It’s something I’ve always taken seriously, since I was old enough to understand just how lucky I was to be born into the family I was.”

  Noelle touched a lotion. “What did you used to do to give back?”

  “Soup kitchens.” I gave her a half smile. “Finn would get so mad at me if I went there alone in college, because it wasn’t in the best section of town, but I refused to stop. I still go once a month to help out. I also volunteer at the abused woman’s shelter, too.”

  Noelle’s eyes widened. “Wow. That’s awesome.”

  “What do you do?”

  She hesitated. “I sponsor a couple of children in Africa. Donate to Red Cross. Pretty much anything I see that catches my eye and my heart. SPCA. All those commercials get me…”

  “Oh my God, me too.”

  “If Riley wasn’t allergic, I would have adopted all the cats by now,” she said, spreading her hands out in a sweeping gesture—and almost knocking over a display.

  I laughed. “All the cats?”

  “Every last one.”

  I picked up a pink pouf. “I want a cat but Finn keeps saying no. I want one of those smooshy faced ones that have no nose.”

  “Persians,” she said.

  “Yep.”

  “They’re adorable. I had one growing up. She would snort when she got excited.”

  I laughed. “That’s the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

  “Right?” She pursed her lips. “I wonder just how allergic Riley is…”

  Shaking my head, I walked up to the register and paid. As we walked out, the weather was on the television again. I stopped in front of it, gesturing at the screen. They were talking about timelines of the storm. The weather men had moved it up from tomorrow night to tomorrow morning, as it had picked up speed. My heart sank, and I stopped dead in my tracks. “Did you see this?”

  “See what?” she asked, frowning.

  “The weather. A bad storm is heading for Utah, and it’s ahead of schedule.” I adjusted the bags in my hands, staring at the screen as people pushed past us, annoyed we were in the way.

  “Crap,” she muttered. “Want to grab a drink so we can listen in before heading back? Cory’s asleep, and Marie was painting Susan’s nails when I left.”

  I hesitated, but then nodded. “Yeah, let’s sit at the bar area and see what we hear.”

  “I’m sure it’s fine,” she said, her tone uncertain.

  We sat down, and the second my butt hit the stool, my phone rang. Noelle’s did, too. We looked at one another, eyes wide.

  “It’s Finn,” I said.

  “Riley,” she returned.

  “Both of them, at the same time.” My heart twisted, and I said, “I have a bad feeling about this.”

  She swallowed hard. “Me too. If we don’t answer, they can’t tell us what we don’t want to hear, right?”

  “Right…”

  We locked eyes, sighed in unison, and swiped our screens. Slowly, I held my phone to my ear. “Hey, babe.”

  “Don’t panic,” he said immediately. “I know you’re probably watching the news, and thinking the worst, but don’t do it. Flights are being cancelled, yes, but ours is good.”

  I closed my eyes. “So you’ll be home for Christmas?”

  “I’ll be home for Christmas, Ginger.”

  Eight

  Finn

  “This is a fucking mess,” I muttered to Hernandez.

  He gritted his teeth as an old man with white hair and a Ralph Lauren polo bumped into him. The man shot Hernandez a dirty look for getting in his way, even though he hadn’t moved in five minutes. Ignoring him, Hernandez said, “You’re telling me.”

  We stood at the airport with our luggage surrounding us. Hordes of people pushed by us, each more annoyed than the one before because flights were being cancelled left and right. People were stranded for the holidays, moods were low, and everyone looked two seconds from punching the person blocking their path to possible freedom.

  I’d never missed the private jet more so than I did now.

  Our flight wasn’t due out till eleven in the morning, but my father-in-law and Riley’s father decided to show up to the airport the night before because they were hoping to get a different flight out. As of now, they had not succeeded because all the flights were booked up, cancelled, or overbooked. Big shocker there.

  I paced back and forth, holding my third coffee of the night. It was only three in the morning, which meant we had another eight hours of hell to go. “Where’s Riley and Ben?”

  Hernandez tipped his head. “Over there.”

  Riley was passed out with his head on Ben’s shoulder…and Ben was equally passed out with a baseball cap pulled low over his eyes. I grinned and chuckled. “Now, that’s just perfect.”

  “I may have Snapchatted it to them both using the elf filter on them.”

  I laughed even more.

  It was a miracle I could even laugh right now, but if anyone could make it happen, it was Hernandez. He’d known me for longer than anyone else in my life…minus Carrie’s parents.

  They didn’t count, though.

  “We’re getting home, man. One way or another.”

  I rubbed my forehead. “I know, but I just wish we weren’t dealing with this shit in the first place. If we’d just scheduled the flight last night, or taken our jet…”

  “I know.” Hernandez clapped me on the shoulder. “It’ll all work out, though.”

  I dropped my hand. “I can’t miss Christmas with my family. If I have to walk barefoot through the snow—”

  “—both ways, uphill—”

  I flipped him off. “Fuck you. I’ll do it.”

  “I know you will,” he said, laughing. “Because you’d do anything for your family.”

  Nodding, I glanced at my father-in-law, who was making his way toward me. His tie was still perfectly in place with his suit jacket buttoned up. I’d undone mine ages ago, and my jacket had gotten shoved into my carry on. My tenure as a security guard was almost over, and then it was back to reality. Thank God. I didn’t miss this life. Didn’t miss constantly being on guard…

  Although, in all honesty, I was always on guard, anyway.

  It ju
st wasn’t my job anymore.

  I liked the life of a computer programmer. No one shot at me or my wife. No one threatened us. All I did was sit behind a desk for eight hours, hit the gym on my way home, and go back to my family by six p.m. It was the perfect life. Life with Carrie was perfect.

  Jesus, I was fucking ridiculous.

  Pining away for my girl like a teenager.

  I wouldn’t have it any other way, though.

  “Finn?” my father-in-law asked.

  I faced him with a calm expression. It wasn’t his fault we were in this mess, and I wasn’t about to take my frustration out on the man who had been like a father to me ever since mine had died. “Yeah?”

  “Are you okay?” he asked, rubbing his jaw.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  “We’re getting on that plane, one way or another.” He flexed his jaw. “I’m not willing to miss Christmas with them any more than you are.”

  I nodded. “Glad we’re in agreement.”

  The attendant behind the desk picked up the microphone and cleared her throat. “I know a lot of you are here early for Flight 2206 to Long Beach, California, so I’m going to make this announcement here, as well as putting the information up on the board. Your flight is not cancelled, but it is being moved up to seven a.m. We are hoping by doing this, we will get out before the storm hits, and get you to your families. Please stay tuned for any changes in schedule, plans, or flights. Thank you, and have a wonderful flight.”

  Mr. Wallington smiled. “See? God is on our side.”

  “Yeah. Totally,” I said, forcing an optimism to my voice I didn’t feel. “Storm’s supposed to hit at six, though, so I’m not sure that’s going to be early enough.”

  My phone buzzed, and I glanced at it. Carrie’s smiling face flashed on the screen. “That’s Carrie.”

  “Take it,” he said, patting my back. “Tell her we’ll see her soon.”

  I forced a smile. “Will do.”

  Excusing myself with a nod, I headed to a quiet corner of the terminal. When I’d talked to her last night, she’d seemed to be in high spirits still, but I knew my girl. She was probably in full blown panic mode by now. I might be there, too, but I wouldn’t let her see it. The second I lost my shit in front of her would be the second she knew things were in jeopardy, and I wouldn’t worry her like that. Even if I was drowning and about to die, I wouldn’t let her see me panic.