In Case of Emergency

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In Case of Emergency Page 11

by Keira Andrews


  Daniel swallowed over the sudden lump in his throat. Even with the warmth of the fire on his skin, a shiver ran over him. “Do you think this is right? Us?”

  Cole nuzzled his stubbly face against Daniel’s pec. “I think it really could be. I guess we’ll find out.”

  “I guess we will.” He stared up at the distant beams of the cathedral ceiling, grinning. A log sparked, and he glanced at the fireplace. Then he jolted, realizing the stockings were now full. “Wait, you bought stocking stuffers too? I didn’t get you anything!”

  Cole shrugged. “It’s all stuff from around the house. Spoiler alert: I know you were eyeing those Tums.”

  Laughing, Daniel took Cole’s face in his hands and drew him up for a kiss. Or two. Or five. Ten, perhaps. Catching his breath, Daniel murmured, “Next year, I’m going to get you everything you could possibly want for Christmas.”

  Eyes bright, Cole grinned. “Next year, huh?”

  When Daniel thought of his future now, yep—there was Cole. “Definitely.”

  “I’ll drink to that. Hey, the doc said I should be good by now to ‘indulge,’ as she put it. Let me pour eggnog Mom-style while you stoke the fire.” Cole carefully sat and pulled up his pajama bottoms.

  Smiling to himself and gazing up at Yoda every so often, Daniel pulled on his own PJs and hurried out for more logs, which were stacked under a tarp beyond the hot tub on the porch. The flames leapt again by the time Cole joined him with two small glasses full of thick, off-white nog.

  “So, her secret recipe was mixing eggnog with Amaretto. Maybe calling it a ‘recipe’ was a stretch.” He handed over a glass, and they clinked.

  Daniel took a sip. “Mmm. I love it!” Actually, it was cloyingly sweet and he didn’t really like the texture of cream, which was one of the reasons eggnog had never been his favorite.

  Cole’s gaze narrowed. “You’re so full of shit. But thank you for trying it.” He leaned in for a soft kiss.

  “Anything for you,” Daniel told him, and he knew it was true.

  Epilogue

  A year later

  “Cole, you’ve been such a wonderful influence. There’s actual color in this house!” Claudia exclaimed. “A real Christmas tree!” She fingered the fresh pine needles.

  Cole couldn’t resist saying, “There’s debate about whether real or artificial has more environmental impact, but we decided to support a local business instead of buying something plastic shipped from China.”

  “And you can’t beat that smell.” She inhaled deeply. “Your Yoda angel is a hoot.”

  “Thanks. We like it.” The other ornaments were a mix of Star Wars and traditional sparkly balls and snowflakes. The colored lights glowed and silver icicles shimmered. Brightly wrapped gifts spilled out under the tree, too many to be contained.

  “Oh, and I love the purple rug,” Claudia added.

  From the office down the hall, Daniel shouted, “I’ll have you know I bought that rug before I met Cole! Well, before I met him again.”

  Cole laughed. “But I’m responsible for the burgundy tea towels in the kitchen.” He’d moved in with Daniel that summer, and it felt like they’d been together forever. Life was super weird sometimes, but in the best way.

  He asked Claudia, “Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat?”

  “No, no. The dinner on the train was surprisingly good. I’m so glad I splurged on first class.” She winked and ran a hand over her perfectly coiffed brown curls. “I’m worth it.”

  “You definitely are. You look amazing, by the way.”

  She practically glowed. “Thank you, sweetheart. I tell you, I owe it all to Pilates. And Pierre.”

  Claudia’s newish boyfriend had already gone up to bed, but Cole lowered his voice anyway. “He’s very handsome.”

  “Isn’t he?” She beamed. “I think he might be the one.”

  “I hope so.” He really, really did.

  “Are your aunt and uncle settled?”

  “Yeah. It was a long day flying from Winnipeg with the delay connecting through Toronto.” Shrieks of laughter echoed up from the basement, and Cole grinned. “I’m sure the kids will be awake way too late playing video games, but they’re all set with their sleeping bags.”

  Cole hadn’t expected Aunt Judy and Uncle Steve to take him up on his invite to spend the holidays in Ottawa, but it was awesome to have family around. With Daniel’s friend Pam and her girlfriend coming for dinner the next day, they’d have a full house.

  “Christmas Eve is meant for staying up late,” Claudia said. “The little bastards have so much sugar in them they won’t need sleep.”

  Laughing, Cole took his buzzing phone from his pocket and read the screen. “My dad says hi, and merry Christmas.”

  She smiled. “Well, tell Bill the same right back. You know, your father’s a real piece of work, but if I hadn’t made the mistake of marrying him, we wouldn’t have you in our lives.” She took Cole’s chin and kissed his cheek. “I love you. Sleep tight and dream of lots of sugarplums.”

  “You too.”

  Once she was upstairs, Cole flicked off the kitchen light and went to drag Daniel away from his desk. As soon as he walked into the little office, Daniel said, “I know, I know. I’m coming.”

  Not yet, but you will be. Cole stood behind Daniel’s chair, teasing his curls and peeking over his shoulder at the paperwork on the desk. “What can’t wait until the new year? The office closed today at noon, didn’t it?”

  “Uh-huh.” Daniel’s pen scratched over the paper. “I implemented a new staff information form and said they had to be filled out before Christmas. Just living up to my end of the bargain. I’m almost done.”

  “Hey, have you heard if Justin has found a new job yet?”

  Daniel glanced up, trying not to smile. “Not yet. Turns out when you lie about your qualifications and are crappy at your job, it’s hard to find a new position.”

  “Couldn’t have happened to a better asshole.”

  As Daniel chuckled and went back to the form, Cole rubbed Daniel’s neck and said, “You’re not supposed to work on our anniversary week.”

  “It’s a whole week now, hmm?”

  “Yep. It’s a new thing.”

  Daniel grinned. “You know what? You’re right—this can wait.” He straightened the papers and left them in a neat pile on the side of the desk. “Let’s go celebrate. Quietly.”

  “And unlike last year, I have full use of both my hands. And I know how to use them.”

  “I am well aware.” Daniel pushed back his chair and stood, kissing Cole soundly and holding him close. “I love you.”

  “Love you too. Maybe next year we can go back to Tremblant. You, me, a hot tub.”

  “It’s a date. We’ll alternate. One Christmas with the fam, one Christmas at our private chalet.” He tugged Cole around the desk and into the hall. “Oh, wait. I need my charging cable. Want to make sure I can take pictures tomorrow morning.”

  “I’ll grab it. Go on up.”

  Cole ducked back into the office, flipping on the light. Behind the desk, he unplugged the cable from the laptop port. Then he glanced at the form Daniel had been filling out.

  A line caught his eye before he went back upstairs, grinning the whole way, his heart full.

  In case of emergency, contact: Cole Smith; domestic partner; 343-555-555

  THE END

  Afterword

  Thank you so much for reading In Case of Emergency, and I hope you enjoyed it. I’d be grateful if you could take a few minutes to leave a review on Amazon, Goodreads, your preferred bookseller, or social media. Just a couple of sentences can really help other readers discover the book. Thank you again. Wishing you happy holidays and many happily ever afters!

  Keira

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  Read more holiday romance from Keira Andrews!

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  Hunter Adams is hopelessly adrift after college. He’s still a virgin, can’t find a real job, and has no clue what to do with his life. In desperation, he returns to his humiliating old job as an elf at the Santa’s Village in his hometown’s dying mall. The Santa on the job is an unexpectedly sexy lumberjack, twice Hunter’s size and age. He makes Hunter feel very naughty—too bad he’s grumpy and intimidating.

  Years after the tragic death of his partner, Nick Spini has his beagle and long, hard days on his Christmas tree farm. That’s plenty. But he can’t refuse a loyal friend’s plea for help and finds himself filling in as Santa at the local mall. Despite Nick’s attempt to stay aloof, the beautiful, anxious young man playing elf brings out his long-dormant daddy instincts.

  When a surprise blizzard traps them alone in Nick’s isolated forest home, their attraction burns even brighter. Will they surrender to the sizzling connection between them and find the release and comfort they crave?

  Santa Daddy is a holiday gay romance from Keira Andrews featuring an age gap, steamy m/m first times, daddy role-playing and light spanking, Christmas romance feels, and of course a happy ending.

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  Read more holiday romance from Keira Andrews!

  To be home for Christmas, they must bridge the distance between them.

  Charlie Yates is desperate. It’s almost Christmas and his flight home from college has been delayed. For days. Charlie promised his little sister Ava he’d be home for her first holiday season since going into remission from leukemia. Now he’s stuck on the opposite coast and someone else grabbed the last rental car. Someone he hasn’t even spoken to in four years. Someone who broke his heart.

  Gavin Bloomberg’s childhood friendship with Charlie ended overnight after a day of stolen kisses. With years of resentment between them, they don’t want to be in the same room together, let alone a car. But for Ava’s sake, Gavin agrees to share the rental and drive across the country together.

  As they face unexpected bumps along the road, can Charlie and Gavin pave the way to a future together?

  This gay holiday romance from Keira Andrews features new adult angst, enemies to lovers, steamy first times, and of course a happy ending.

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  A geek. A virgin. One sexy holiday.

  Orphaned Lucas figures spending the holidays with his obnoxious roommate’s family in New York City is better than staying alone on campus upstate. He ends up sharing a room again, this time with his roommate’s brother, Nate. Geeky photographer Nate isn’t at all what Lucas expects. In fact, he’s incredibly sexy—especially when he invites Lucas into his darkroom…

  They hide their attraction during Hanukkah celebrations, but behind closed doors, Lucas and Nate can’t keep their hands (or mouths) off each other. Nate’s only looking for a bit of holiday fun, and amazing sex with a hot virgin definitely fits the bill. Yet as the candles burn, Nate and Lucas begin to realize eight nights will never be enough.

  This gay holiday romance from Keira Andrews features secret trysts, new adult angst, spinning the dreidel, and of course a happy ending.

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  Also by Keira Andrews

  Gay Amish Romance Series

  A Forbidden Rumspringa

  A Clean Break

  A Way Home

  A Very English Christmas

  Contemporary

  Santa Daddy

  Honeymoon for One

  Valor on the Move

  Test of Valor

  The Winning Edge

  In Case of Emergency

  Eight Nights in December

  Road to the Sun

  The Next Competitor

  Arctic Fire

  Reading the Signs

  Beyond the Sea

  If Only in My Dreams

  Where the Lovelight Gleams

  The Chimera Affair

  Love Match

  Synchronicity

  Historical

  Kidnapped by the Pirate

  The Station

  Semper Fi

  Voyageurs (free read!)

  Paranormal

  Kick at the Darkness

  Fight the Tide

  A Taste of Midnight (free read!)

  Fairy Tales (with Leta Blake)

  Levity

  Rise

  Flight

  About the Author

  After writing for years yet never really finding the right inspiration, Keira discovered her voice in gay romance, which has become a passion. She writes contemporary, historical, paranormal, and fantasy fiction, and—although she loves delicious angst along the way—Keira firmly believes in happy endings. For as Oscar Wilde once said, “The good ended happily, and the bad unhappily. That is what fiction means.”

 

 

 


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