Damien ran his hand over her hair. It felt good to be holding her in his arms like this, comforting her. “Remember yesterday I suggested that maybe we could stop along the way and see if a nearby airport had flights to Louisville. Based on the GPS, we’re about ninety miles from Pittsburgh. We’ll have to veer north to get there, but we can call, see if we can get on a flight tonight or tomorrow.”
Easing out of his arms, Kendra nodded. “I think that’s a great idea.”
“All right, we’ll do that,” Damien told her, and squeezed her hand. “Now you hang tight. I want to see if there’s any damage.”
He opened the driver’s-side door and got out. He walked to the front of the car, where he looked to see if there was any damage and just how far into the ditch the vehicle was. The wall of snow had actually helped prevent them from sliding completely into the ditch, which was the good news. But the car was still undeniably stuck.
Damien was unprepared to dig the car out of the mess, but nonetheless he started to kick at the snow that was packed around the tires on the right side of the car. He spent some time kicking it away, but the snow was packed down pretty hard.
A few minutes later, he looked up when he heard the door open. Kendra was climbing out. “Is there anything I can do?” she asked.
“You can go back in the car to stay warm,” Damien told her.
“We’re stuck, Damien. I want to help.”
“You’re not properly dressed to be out in the snow. Those designer boots of yours will get ruined.”
In reply to his comment, Kendra glanced down at her heeled boots, which were now covered with snow. “I’m fine,” she said after a moment. “I want to do my part.”
She was back to being the tough girl, the one who would shun the idea of a man taking care of the hard work.
But one thing was crystal clear to Damien. He wanted to protect her, to be there for her and help take care of her.
“I think we’ll have to call for help,” Damien said after a moment. A tow truck would save them the hours it would take to get out of this mess by hand. “You want to get your phone, maybe look up a towing company?”
Kendra went into the car to do just that, but not more than a minute later, Damien saw a tow truck approaching and waved him down.
To Damien’s huge relief, the driver slowed, then pulled up in front of their car.
* * *
As the tow-truck driver got them out of the snow, Kendra looked up flights online on her phone and found that there was one leaving from Pittsburgh in the morning. She then secured the last two seats on the plane for her and Damien.
They headed north, to Pittsburgh, without any further incident. Then shortly after four o’clock, they were checking into a hotel room.
“Two beds,” Kendra commented as they entered the room. “A fridge, microwave and even a sofa. The clerk wasn’t exaggerating. This room is spacious.”
“Yeah, a great spot to pass the time until tomorrow,” Damien agreed. “And there’s no need to worry about sharing a bed.”
His comment caused Kendra’s stomach to flutter, but she said nothing. Of course it was better that they have separate beds tonight. That would avoid any of the discomfort from the night before.
And yet…
Yet something about being in Damien’s arms after the near accident had felt good. Right. As though she was where she was always meant to be.
He just made you feel safe, Kendra told herself. Don’t get all starry-eyed.
She didn’t want to think about the feelings that were creeping back into her heart, nor the fact that she would once again be sharing a hotel room alone with Damien. So she wandered over to the desk and lifted the room service menu. “I’m famished,” she commented. “I think I want a big, juicy burger.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Damien said, walking over to her. “But what else do they have? I wouldn’t mind a decent, healthy meal.”
He leaned in close to her to peruse the menu as she did. Kendra’s heart picked up speed. This wasn’t natural. Spending this much time alone with your ex. She felt jittery and uneasy.
And—if she were honest—she felt aroused.
“Hmm,” Damien mused. “Actually, the picture of that burger is making my mouth water. Swiss cheese and all those mushrooms. Yeah, I think I’ll go for that. Though what do you think about heading downstairs to the restaurant? Might be nice to sit down at a proper table and enjoy the ambience.”
“If you want to,” Kendra said. “But I’m fine here. We’ve been in the car all day, so I feel icky and I’m starving. I figured that I could shower as room service prepares the meal.”
“Gotcha,” Damien said. “We can certainly share a meal here. With the fireplace on and a bottle of wine, it’ll be cozier.”
As Damien spoke the words, Kendra realized that by staying in the room for a meal it would be far more intimate than if they went downstairs to the restaurant. The fireplace going, a bottle of wine…
Again, her stomach fluttered.
It wasn’t like they could just eat and go to bed. It was early, and they had hours to pass in this room. And the idea of sharing a meal here with Damien in this room spoke toward doing something intimate.
But hadn’t they done something intimate the night before? Talking about his father’s passing, and her sharing her fears that she would never marry? That kind of emotional sharing was more intimate than sex.
Perhaps that was why they had somehow ended up in each other’s arms during the night—which only stood to prove that on some level they still felt comfortable together. Their bodies were at ease enough to end up spooning while sleeping.
“What do you think?” Damien asked.
“Hmm?” Kendra said, turning to look at him. He was so close. Close enough to kiss her…
“I said I could always head downstairs and get the food while you shower. That way, the room service staff doesn’t show up while you’re indisposed.”
“Oh.” Kendra said. “If that’s no trouble.”
“No trouble at all. Tell me what you want to order, and I’ll go downstairs to get it. You can jump in the shower while I’m gone.”
“Great. Let’s do that.”
Once Damien had her order, Kendra went into the bathroom. She got naked and got into the shower…and again couldn’t help but remember the time she and Damien showered together at that hotel in Georgetown a decade ago.
* * *
When Kendra exited the bathroom, she jumped in surprise. Damien had returned.
“I…uh… You’re back.”
“Just got here,” Damien said, and Kendra noticed that his eyes checked out her attire. She was wearing one of the two robes provided by the hotel. “So, the food is hot.”
“Oh, great.” For a minute, Kendra debated putting on clothes, but her stomach grumbled, as if to emphasize that the first order of business would be to eat. “I…I guess I can eat like this,” she said.
Damien shrugged. “Hey, we’re not downstairs in the restaurant. You can eat naked if you wanted.”
Kendra’s eyes widened, even though she knew Damien hadn’t meant that literally. He was simply saying that in the privacy of this room, it didn’t matter how she was dressed.
“I didn’t intend that the way it came out,” Damien said, picking up on her alarm.
“Of course not,” Kendra said, forcing a grin. Then she secured the tie on her robe before heading over to the table.
Damien began taking the items out of the large bag. “I got the same burgers for both of us,” he explained, “so no need to check the containers. Dig in.”
Kendra opened the container that he’d placed in front of her, and as the aroma of the food hit her full blast, she sighed in delight. “Oh my goodness, this smells amazing.” She picked up a seasoned French fry and stuffed it into her mouth.
“Go ahead,” Damien told her. He was now putting the corkscrew into the bottle of red wine.
“No, I can wait,” she told hi
m. It wouldn’t kill her to wait until he opened the wine. She noticed that he’d also brought up two wineglasses.
“This corkscrew is so flimsy,” Damien said as he worked it. Then, with a yank, the cork popped free.
Kendra applauded. “Perfect. Now let’s eat.”
Damien filled her wineglass first. Once he was done with his, he sat down and then lifted his glass. “A toast,” he began. “To life’s surprises.”
“To life’s surprises,” Kendra echoed. And then she lifted the large burger and took a bite.
And, oh goodness, the first bite tasted like heaven! Kendra wasn’t sure that she’d ever had a better-tasting burger. This was juicy and full of flavor.
“Is it just because I’m hungry—”
“No,” Kendra said to Damien. “This burger is the best.”
They fell into silence as they ate. Kendra’s eyes wandered to the fireplace and the dancing flames. There was no doubt that the ambience in the room was romantic.
At least in here, they were sheltered from the blizzard outside. And it was a little magical, looking out at the snow-covered world while being in a room with a fireplace.
She glanced back at Damien, noted just how incredibly sexy he was. His strong hands and arms, those wide shoulders. He flicked his tongue out to lick up some mustard from his bottom lip, and Kendra felt a jolt. Something about that simple motion made her think about him licking her.
She quickly jerked her gaze away, hoping that the spell she was under would be broken.
But her heart was beating rapidly, and she undoubtedly felt aroused.
“What are you thinking about?” Damien suddenly asked her.
Did he know? Could he see it on her face?
Whether or not her emotions were obvious, Kendra did the only thing she could do. She lied. “Just thinking about getting home to see my family. How great this anniversary celebration will be. My aunt and uncle eloped and always promised to have a huge celebration when they hit thirty years.”
“Right,” Damien said.
But Kendra could tell that he didn’t believe her.
Chapter 8
This time, when Damien exited the bathroom wearing a towel, Kendra wasn’t shocked. She didn’t quickly spin around like a child who had never seen a man without clothes on. Instead, she regarded Damien, taking in his sexy form for a long moment, allowing herself to do that without guilt.
And when her gaze met his eyes, she felt a zap of heat. He was staring at her, and there was no way she could deny that she’d just been checking him out.
“Are you going to—put on— Get dressed?” she stammered.
“You want me to get dressed?” came Damien’s reply.
Her mouth fell open. She wanted to say, “Yes, you need to get dressed.” Yet, she couldn’t. She knew that the words would be too obvious of a lie.
So she said nothing.
Damien took a step toward where she was standing by the window. A slow, deliberate step. Kendra swallowed but said nothing. Nor did she move.
Perhaps Damien had been waiting for her reaction—either negative or positive—before he continued toward her. And clearly, whatever he saw in her eyes had told him that it would be okay to take another step toward her.
“You got dressed as if you’re heading into the office,” Damien pointed out. “Is that how you plan to go to bed?”
Kendra instantly felt stupid. Had he picked up on the fact that she had put on her pants and blouse because she was afraid of giving him the message that she wanted him?
“Or did you want to give me a challenge?” Damien went on.
Kendra’s lips parted, but as Damien advanced, she was unable to speak or even breathe. All she could do was watch him. There was something unspoken now, the desire brimming in both of their eyes. She could see in his eyes exactly what she was feeling in her own body.
And as he took the last step toward her, Kendra moved toward him. And then he drew her into his arms and planted his mouth on hers. They came together in a fury of passion, their lips hungrily seeking out each other’s.
Damien was wet, and Kendra was in an expensive silk blouse, but she didn’t care. She hadn’t felt his body like this in oh so long, and it felt good.
He groaned as he kissed her, then framed her face with both of his hands. Kendra put her palms on his strong chest and squeezed the muscles there, savoring the feel of him. Years ago he’d had a nice body, but now he had an incredible one.
She felt his growing desire for her—hard and massive. When he pressed his erection against her, she moaned into his mouth.
Damien’s hands went into her hair, tugging slightly to urge her head backward. And then his mouth went to her jawline, where he delicately nibbled on her skin. His lips went lower, to her neck, and the brush of his full lips against her skin drove her wild. He kissed softly, flicked his tongue over her skin, and then did that nibbling thing with his teeth again, driving her wild.
Her need for him was fierce. It was as though this one kiss had suddenly opened up the floodgates. She smoothed her hands down his slick chest, over his washboard abs, to his towel. She let her fingers rest along the edge of the towel, the only barrier preventing her from seeing his entire magnificent body.
“If you want it…” Damien kissed the area above the top button on her blouse. “Take it.”
It was all the encouragement Kendra needed. She pulled out the towel where he had tied it, and it fell away.
Damien emitted a groan. Kendra, too, made a sound ripe with lust.
Then Damien’s mouth claimed hers again in a hungry kiss that left them both breathless. His hands moved to the top of her blouse, where he began undoing the buttons. Kendra helped him, pulling the blouse out of her pants and quickly undoing the lower buttons of her outfit, one she had worn to the office a few times. It was fine for work, but currently far too restrictive for getting naked as quickly as she wanted to.
Soon her shirt was undone, and then Damien was pushing her bra off and out of the way, his hands covering both of her breasts briefly before he brought his mouth down onto a nipple and suckled it.
“Oh my God,” Kendra exclaimed. The feeling of his wet tongue on her nipple was glorious. She had forgotten just how exquisite this felt.
How exquisite with Damien. Because the men she’d dated since him didn’t come close to measuring up to him.
He fondled one breast while suckling the other, and Kendra’s entire body grew hot. She wanted him. Forget the foreplay. She wanted him inside of her. Now.
Damien continued to kiss her, his lips assaulting her body in the sweetest of ways. Her neck, the area between her breasts, then back up to the underside of her jaw.
“Oh, goodness,” Kendra uttered.
Damien tugged the shirt off of her arms and tossed it to the floor. “Yes,” he rasped. “This is what I wanted—to see you out of the stuffy shirt.”
“You don’t like it?”
“It’s too repressive.”
And then his hands went to her pants, making quick work of loosening the button at her waist. He began to pull at it even before the zipper was undone, fighting with the garment as though it was his enemy.
Kendra giggled as she helped him help her out of the pants. As the material fell and she tried to kick her feet free, Damien pulled her into his arms again and kissed her while pressing his strong body against hers.
And then there was no more talking.
Suddenly, Damien scooped her up. Whirling her around as if she weighed no more than fifty pounds, he took her to the bed. He laid her on the mattress and positioned himself on top of her, keeping his weight off her by easing up on his elbows.
Damien lowered his head to her breasts. And though he had been hungrily kissing her only moments ago, and Kendra expected him to devour her nipple, he placed a gentle kiss on one mound of flesh. It was the kind of kiss that was sweet and hot at the same time and sent tingles of pleasure spreading through her.
He covered
both of her breasts with his palms, then teased her nipples with the pads of his thumb. Kendra moaned as the most delicious sensations spiraled through her. Heat flooded her most feminine spot.
“God, I’ve missed this,” Damien muttered. He tweaked both of her nipples, drawing out his torturous pleasure. And then he lowered his mouth to one breast, where he flicked the tip of his tongue out onto her hardened peak.
It was just one touch of his tongue against her sensitive flesh, but Kendra cried out. Cried out and dug her fingers into his shoulders. That was all the urging Damien needed to draw her nipple into his mouth as far as it would go and suck with fervor. He growled, expressing his pleasure.
Kendra’s body erupted in flames. She held on, held on as he moved his mouth to her other breast and continued his loving assault there.
“That’s it, baby,” Damien said hotly.
He trailed his tongue from her nipple and down her breast. He moved it upward, ending at her ear, where he took her earlobe between his teeth.
Kendra purred.
“That’s right, Kendra,” Damien said hotly into her ear. “I didn’t forget.”
And as his tongue trilled her earlobe, his hands smoothed down her belly. He slipped it beneath her panties. And then he was covering her womanhood with his fingers and taking his teasing of her to an even higher level.
Kendra arched her back. She spread her legs, giving him more access to her as his fingers dipped inside, explored and pleased.
Popping her eyes open, she snaked a hand around Damien’s head and forced his mouth to hers. She kissed him ferociously, a kiss that told him exactly how much she needed him. How much she would go crazy if he didn’t make mad, passionate love to her immediately.
“Make love to me, Damien,” she begged. “Make love to me now.”
Damien quickly removed her panties from her body, and then he lowered himself onto her again, and this time she felt the sweet pressure of his body on hers. His erection pressed against her pelvic area. So close to where she wanted it, but not close enough.
“Now,” she told him as she reached for him, widened her legs and then guided him to where she needed him to be.
Merry Sexy Christmas Page 15