by Jill Sanders
Sighing, he got up from the sofa and opened the door.
Todd Jordan stood on the other side, a bundle of chopped wood in his arms. “Morning.” He smiled. “I was just checking in to see if you needed anything?”
“No,” he said, eager to get back to Alice.
“Good.” Todd nodded. “I’ve brought you guys some more wood.” He motioned to the armload. “I’ll bring the rest up and leave it here.” He motioned to the wood stack that Eric had been getting the wood from.
“Sure,” he said.
“Looks like you two enjoyed a walk on the beach.” Todd motioned towards the wet boots they had left sitting outside.
“Yes.” He smiled.
“Just a tip—you might want to bring the boots inside. We have a few young dogs and they like to chew on boots.” He motioned to his own worn boots. One of them had teeth marks in the top of them.
Eric laughed. “What kind of dogs?” he asked as Todd set the logs down and moved to get the rest.
“A lab mix and a mutt.” He laughed. “No matter what I do, both of them love the taste of feet.”
Eric leaned against the doorjamb. “My folks had a lab mix with the same issue. Apple cider vinegar. Just spray it on your shoes a few times and make sure there are plenty of treats around.”
“I’ve tried that. In the house it works like a charm,” Todd said putting down the next load from the wheelbarrow. “It’s a lot harder to spray on the shoes our customers leave outside. Hence the warning.” He smiled.
“I’ll move them in.” He bent and set the shoes inside, thankful that they appeared unharmed.
“Thanks. The boys sure do love playing in the snow.” He wiped his forehead with a handkerchief. “With our third baby due any day now, I’ve been so busy getting things ready, I’ve neglected training them.” He sighed.
“Wow, three kids?” Eric smiled. “Boys? Girls?”
“One of each so far,” Todd answered proudly.
“What is this one?” he asked.
We’re hoping for a boy, but my sister swears it will be a girl.”
“You don’t know? I thought everyone always found out?”
“Megan likes surprises.” He smiled. “I’ll let you get back inside.” Todd nodded to where Alice was sitting on the sofa, watching them. “Have a good day. Remember, if you want, dinner is up at the main house.”
“Thanks,” Eric said before shutting the door.
“Three kids,” Alice repeated once he sat back down next to her.
“Yeah.” He looked at her sideways. “What’s wrong with three?”
“Oh, nothing.” She smiled. “I was just…”
“What?” he asked when she didn’t finish.
She looked him directly in the eyes and shocked him by saying, “I was just imagining what my children would look like.”
Chapter 9
She held her breath as she waited for him to respond. Here she was, moments away from finally getting what she’d waited her entire life for with him, and she was pouring out the rest of her heart.
What would she do if he laughed at her? She couldn’t imagine being stuck in a small cabin if he turned her away because she had dreams.
“I was thinking the same thing,” he said softly. “Well, I mean, I think that everyone dreams about it at one point or another. Don’t you?”
She nodded as he moved closer to her. “Yes.” It came out as a whisper.
“But I’m not quite ready for kids, yet.” His eyes moved to her lips.
“Me either.” She smiled. “Besides, my father would kill me if I told him I was pregnant.” She’d meant it as a joke but seeing the look on Eric’s face had her mentally kicking herself.
“For a moment, I’d forgotten about your dad,” he said with a slight frown.
She hadn’t meant to bring her family into the mix. “Eric,” she started, but he shook his head.
“No, don’t.” He stood up. “I… have to make a call.”
“To who?” She gasped. “Not my father?” She jumped up from the sofa. “He has nothing—”
“No.” His chuckle stopped her. “Not your father.”
“Who then?” she asked.
“Your mother.”
“Why would you call my mother?” She crossed her arms over her chest.
“Because, I made a promise…” He shook his head. “Just because.”
Her eyes narrowed as she glared at him. “Why?”
He sighed. “Alice, Jane is like my second mom. She had me promise that if there was ever a chance that we…”—he motioned between them—“that I’d…” He pushed his hands through his hair. “Never mind.”
“No.” She drew the word out and waved at him. “Please, go on. I’d like to hear how you promised my mother”—her voice spiked slightly at the word—“that you’d call or… text her if you and I ever hooked up.”
“It’s not…” He shook his head and she could tell he was frustrated. “It’s just… She was going to…”
“What?” she asked, her temper flaring now.
“Play defense and take the heat and try to break it to your dad as gently as possible,” he finished, looking even more frustrated.
“So, my mom… knew?” she asked, unsure.
“Sort of.” He shrugged. “I guess.”
“When?” she asked, feeling the heat of the room cause her face to flush. Or maybe it was the fact that her mother had assumed that one day they would end up like this. Together.
Eric avoided looking at her and she moved closer.
“Eric?”
“Graduation,” he blurted out.
“Yours or mine?” she asked remembering both parties.
“Mine,” he answered quickly.
“My mother knew…” She tried to not let her jaw fall at the thought of her mother guessing so long ago.
Eric just shrugged again and backed another step away from her. She closed the gap instantly.
“My family,” she started as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, “has nothing to do with us. Even though my brother is your best friend, my mother is practically your second mother, and my dad…” She shook her head. “Let’s not think about my dad.”
“Yes,” he agreed quickly. “Let’s not.”
Before he could finish, she had plastered her body against his. “Let’s not think about any of my family members.” She leaned up and touched her lips softly to his. It was amazing that the spark she’d felt the first time jumped through her again.
Then his hands rested on her hips and pulled her closer and the spark turned into a full-blown fire raging through every ounce of her, reaching down deep into her core.
“Eric.” She didn’t recognize her own voice. It was deeper and vibrated from her chest.
“Alice.” He hoisted her up into his arms, and she’d never felt anything like being held by him. “I never thought…” He shook his head as he walked towards the bedrooms. “I’d dreamed.” He kissed her again. “Don’t let this be a dream,” he said as he stepped into his bedroom.
“No.” She smiled. “It’s not.” She reached over and smiled as she pinched his shoulder.
“Okay.” He laughed. “Not a dream.” He set her down slowly on her feet again and held onto her as his mouth covered hers once more.
When she felt her body falling backward, she held onto him as he lowered them both to the bed.
“I’m going to go slow,” he said, his mouth just under her ear. His hot breath caused goosebumps on her skin, and she arched so he could trail his mouth lower.
“Yes,” she sighed and gripped his shoulders. She would have agreed to anything, knowing it was Eric who was running his hands over her, his mouth over her skin.
She felt his fingers nudge her shirt up, exposing the tank top. Before pulling that aside, she thought she heard him curse.
“You’ve got layers too.” She reached for his shirt and, before he could remove hers, he had it over his head and on the floor.
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She watched him as he leaned back and slowly nudged both her shirt and tank over her head.
“Alice.” Her name was just a whisper. “You’re even more beautiful than I imagined.”
She chuckled. “You’ve seen me in a swimsuit before.” She reached for her bra, but he stopped her.
“No, let me. When I’m ready.” He came back down to her, his arms on either side of her body as he hovered over her, kissing her.
She felt her body begin to shake as his free hand roamed up her ribs, over her flat belly, then back up to cup her through her silky bra.
“You make me so…” His mouth left hers and then started trailing kisses down her shoulder and over her bra until he finally settled and sucked her nipple through the silk.
Her fingers went to his thick hair, holding him as he caused her entire body to shake even more.
She could feel herself growing wet. She had never waited this long for anything in her life.
“Eric, I want…” She shook her head. “No, I need…” she corrected herself.
His hand shifted to the clasp of her jeans. When he started to tug, she realized that her yoga pants would have to be taken off as well.
Reaching a hand down, she helped him remove both layers.
“Socks,” she said, eagerly.
“It’s like unwrapping a Christmas present,” he said. He chuckled when her yoga pants got stuck on her thick wool socks.
She smiled and wished that they were someplace tropical and all she was wearing was a string bikini instead.
When she reached for his pants, he pulled away and stood next to the bed. Yanking them off his legs quickly, he stood at the foot of the bed in nothing but boxer briefs, looking sexier than she’d remembered.
Eric and her brother were gym buddies as well. The duo worked out on a regular basis, which meant his thighs were thicker than her waist. She smiled, anxious to feel him next to her again.
“What’s that for?” he asked, remaining where he was.
“You.” She ran her eyes up and down him. “I approve.”
He did the same to her. “I more than approve.” His voice was a little gruff. Then he was beside her on the bed, running a fingertip from her navel to her chin. He touched the dimple next to her mouth. “This happens to be the sexiest thing on you.”
She laughed. “Okay.” She ran a finger down to his hips and the narrow triangle just above his boxers. “I’m particularly fond of this…” She ran a fingertip down the arrow of his hip. He sucked in his breath and closed his eyes. “Right here.”
When she removed her hand, his eyes moved to her erect nipples. “These,” he said softly and, with just his fingertip, touched one of them, causing them to harden even more, “are pretty high up on my list.”
Not waiting, she leaned closer and cupped him. He was hard and larger than she’d experienced before.
“Eric.” She swallowed, meeting his eyes with hers.
“I’m going to go slow.” His smile faltered. “I swear it.”
She nodded as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him down until they were kissing again. He was so smooth. She forgot her fears moments later as he peeled her panties and bra from her heated skin.
When she lay next to him, fully naked, he again ran his eyes over her and touched her gently with just his fingertips before spreading her thighs and running a finger over her lips below. She cried out and felt her body convulsing.
“Yes,” he begged as he slipped a finger into her, causing her to instantly lose the last of her control. “Come for me.”
Nothing on earth would have made her deny him at that moment. Not Eric. She’d waited far too long and had dreamed of this very moment all of her life.
Chapter 10
Eric watched Alice change in front of his eyes. Gone was the young girl that had followed him around, obviously infatuated with him. She was no longer the awkward preteen with legs that were too long and braces. No, what lay before him now, in the afterglow of orgasm, was the woman of his fantasies.
Which, of course, made his cock jump and grow even more painfully hard.
While she lay there on the comforter, breathing hard from the release, he reached into the nightstand, thankful he’d packed a box of condoms for the trip, and slid one on.
When he moved above her, her eyes slid open, a smile of pure satisfaction on her lips as she gripped his hips and spread her legs wide to take him in.
“This means something,” he said, unsure of why he needed to do so.
“Yes,” she said softly and pulled him down until their lips met. When he slid slowly into her, he couldn’t stop a moan of pure joy from vibrating from his chest.
“My god,” he whispered once he was fully embedded into her.
“I need…” She bit her bottom lip and dug her nails into his skin. “Move, I need…”
He chuckled, trying to keep a little control, but then she jerked her hips up closer to him, and he could have sworn his eyes crossed as pure euphoria spread throughout his entire being.
Suddenly, he couldn’t control himself as he moved over her, in her. She surrounded him more than he’d ever imagined. Her arms, her legs, her pussy. Everything she was, held him as if she was made to embrace him.
He lost track of time as sweat rolled down his back as they moved as one. He felt her second release and growled moments later with his own.
He fell breathlessly onto her after his entire body gave out, knowing there was nothing left to give and not caring at all.
“Eric,” she grunted a few minutes later. “You’re heavier than you look.”
He chuckled and rolled until he lay beside her, holding her tightly in his arms.
“Better?” he asked.
“Much.” She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. “This was better than my beach fantasy,” she said out of the blue.
Chuckling again, he glanced down at her. “This beach? With snow and all?”
“No.” She laughed. “Someplace tropical. Warm.” She sighed. “Where I was wearing nothing but a string bikini and you were…”
“You need not go any further.” He stopped her. “I’m in.”
She laughed as he ran his hands over her hips. “The last time I saw you in a bathing suit, Chris about punched me.”
She leaned up until she was looking down at him. “When was that?”
“Last Fourth of July.” He suddenly felt hungry.
“Fourth…” She frowned down at him. “You didn’t make it to that party.”
He remembered too late. “I did.” He cringed. “But after I saw you, and your brother saw me seeing you…” He sighed. “I left.”
“You… left?” She shook her head. “Why?”
He sat up and sat on the edge of the bed, reaching down to pull on his boxers.
“Eric?” she asked, moving over to the side of the bed with him. The fact that she was still completely naked didn’t go unnoticed by him.
He turned and, trying to keep his eyes on her face, said, “Because I knew then that there was no way I would be able to keep my hands off of you that day.”
Not waiting for her to respond, he got off the bed and walked into the next room.
When she joined him, she had pulled on those tight yoga pants and the tank top, sans the bra underneath. Her nipples were still very hard and poked through the light material, causing his eyes to focus only on them.
“Up here, pretty boy,” she purred as she walked towards him. When her fingertips nudged his chin up until their eyes met, he realized he’d been practically drooling. “Did you really leave the beach party because of that?”
He nodded, not trusting his voice. He needed a glass of water to cool off. No, hell, he needed a beer. Already he could feel himself growing harder.
She watched his reaction as she reached down and touched his boxers, rubbing the soft material over his hard-on until he closed his eyes and leaned into her.
“And now?” she asked. He sho
ok his head, not understanding the question.
“Why aren’t your hands on me now?” she asked. He jerked the moment the question was out, taking her in his arms and plastering her against the counter. Her pinned her between him and the microwave as his mouth crushed hers and his hands jerked the yoga pants down her hips.
This time, he wasn’t going to go slow and wait. This time, when he pushed his finger into her heat, she cried out his name and he reveled in the sound of excitement from her lips.
She kicked off the yoga pants and spread her legs wide so he could slide between her thighs. In one quick motion he was inside her while her legs wrapped around his hips and her arms around him.
She cried out his name over and over as he pounded into her blindly. “I can’t…” He shook his head. “I can’t wait.”
“No, don’t. I’m…” She arched and fell at the same time he did.
Eric didn’t like the fact that his legs were made of jelly or that his shorts were around his ankles. But when he realized he’d just come in Alice without a condom, he froze.
“Oh my god,” he said slowly. “I…” He jerked away from her as if he’d been burned.
“What?” Her eyes opened quickly, looking around the room. “What?” she said again when he just stared at her blankly.
“I was in a hurry. I… forgot…” He swallowed.
When she started laughing, he cursed.
“It’s okay,” she said between giggles. “I’ve been on the pill since… well, a long time, and I’m never late taking them.”
He relaxed a little. “I’m clean. I have a yearly…”
“Eric, it’s me.” She jumped from the counter as he pulled up his shorts. “I know you are.” She moved over and kissed him. “I’m the same. My checkup is every birthday month, which was…”
“Two months ago,” he answered for her, causing her to smile.
“Right.” She kissed him. “Now I’m going to make some soup and turkey sandwiches. I’m starving.”
They sat in front of the fire and ate, telling each other what they each liked most about the holidays.