by Fiona Starr
Naughty Sleigh Ride
A Santa’s Coming Short Story
Fiona Starr
Naughty Sleigh Ride: A Santa’s Coming Short Story
Copyright © 2018 by Fiona Starr
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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Are you ready for some naughty and nice and a little spice?
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Epilogue
About the Author
Also by Fiona Starr
AMELIA
“What’s the point of coming back home for the month if you’re going to be working the whole time?” My bestie’s voice whines through my earbuds. “I miss you!”
I pull open the door and step back to let a customer inside before leaving the coffee shop to catch the gondola to the top of the mountain. “Come on, Jules. I promised my parents I’d help out. And besides, I won’t be working the whole time.”
“Really? And where are you right now, dare I ask?” She’s pouting.
I stop walking and take in my surroundings, a place could describe with my eyes closed. “Standing outside the coffee shop in East Village, if you must know.”
“Uhh-huh. And where exactly are you going?” She has her school teacher voice on as she pretends to be clueless and make me confess. I swear, some people are just built for teaching Kindergarten.
I sigh. She knows exactly how the days go here at my parents’ resort. She’s worked here on and off for years. “Heading to the gondola…” I try to sound like a brat, but I know she’s just playing.
“Oh yes! How could I forget? Gondola to the summit so you can do your rounds at the Alpine Haus and then a quick check at the Upper Lodge and then the gondola down to West Village for a round through those shops and bus back to base so you can do it all again. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.”
“Yup!” I smile at her verbal walk through making it sound like some tedious job. But she knows how much I love it. Ever since I was a little kid, my dream was to work and live here at Blaze Mountain Resort. One more semester and I’m done with my double major in Hospitality and Business Management.
I’m glad to be home, and happy to lend my parents a hand over the holiday break, but my return this time is because my plans have changed. I’ve got my eye on the old Vaughn ranch at the base of the back country peak. I want to turn it into a Bed & Breakfast and build something of my own.
A Christmas gift to myself.
I have told no one about my plans except my mom, and when she called me last month to share that the Vaughns were retiring at the end of the season and moving to Arizona full time, I knew it was time to act. We’re meeting the Vaughns this afternoon.
“You’re still coming tonight, right?” Jules’ voice brings me back.
“Hmm. What?” My mind floats over the mountain, visions of the Vaughn ranch dancing behind my eyes. It will be perfect once I get my hands on it.
“Earth to Amelia… Tonight? Melissa’s place? Hot guys? Hot tub? Everyone’s dying to see you.”
“Oh. Yeah. I’ll meet you there. Eight-ish?” My boots crunch in the snow as I make my way around the corner of the base lodge and step into the sun.
“Yay! Smooches!” She squeals into the phone and then ends the call.
It’s a short walk across the snowfield between the lodge and the gondola, and every inch glistens. From the happy faces on the skiers and snowboarders, to the festive holiday decorations everywhere, to the sound of sleigh bells as the stable guy hitches the team of two Clydesdales to the sleigh for the first tour of the day, everything shines.
Bells clang as the stable guy drops one of the horse's straps in the snow. I look over my shoulder and glimpse dark stubble and a square jaw as he fumbles to pick it up while Buster, the playful stallion my dad added to the stable years ago as a foal, bends down and nudges the guy off his feet. A perfect day in paradise.
I step to the front of the line at the gondola and wave my staff pass at the attendant who ushers me inside the next car for the ride to the summit.
DAMON
I’m harnessing the horses when I look up and see an angel. A snow angel. Her long blond hair wraps around her shoulder in a thick braid that falls over the hood of her ice-blue jacket. She smiles at something as she walks past the barn and the look of peace on her face makes her glow. Black leggings and black fluffy boots hug her petite body and showcase the incredible curve of her…
“Shit.” I bend to pick up Buster’s bell harness and the huge horse leans down and shoves his nose into my shoulder, forcing me to all fours. “All right, settle down you big bully.” I stand and shake the snow out of the harness, making sure the leather that sits against Buster’s coat is clean and dry.
I look up again, trying to catch another glimpse of the girl, but she’s gone. No, wait… She’s up at the gondola, walking to the front of the line. She flashes her yellow “staff” pass and gets in the next car.
Damn. “Don’t even think about it, Damon,” I mutter to myself. “You’re here to work and clear your head, not fill it with girls, least of all coworkers.” I’d been living at school, studying to be a large animal vet when my mom got sick last year. The altitude wasn’t helping, and they’d decided to retire to their place in Arizona full time. They never asked, but I knew they needed help packing and getting things ready. With my brother deployed and my sister about to give birth to her fourth child, I’m the only one in a position to be here. I put school on hold for a semester and moved here to be close to home.
Mr. Blaze didn’t have to hire me; our families have known each other for years and when I explained my reasons, he said that was all he needed to hear. He said he wanted me here. He said he trusted me.
I might be just a barn hand and tour guide, but working with horses is where I belong. It’s hard to find work up here that pays well and working at Blaze includes lodging and discounted food. The last thing I need is to screw it up by dating a co-worker. Even one that appeared like an angel in the snow and made me lose all sense of time and space.
I turn and watch her float away as the gondola lifts off and carries her up the steep incline.
She looks up then, and our eyes meet for a moment before she disappears behind the tips of the trees. Is that a smile?
Bells jangle as I drop the harness into the snow again. I bend to pick it up, dodging Buster’s attempt to knock me over, my thoughts consumed now by this snow angel.
“Shit.”
AMELIA
It’s a quarter after one by the time I finish my rounds in West Village. I’m about to hop on the shuttle bus back to East Lodge when my phone buzzes. It’s a text from Jules.
Where RU? I came to surprise u and ur not here! How dare you!
West Village. U?
Upper Lodge! I thought I’d force you to sit for lunch. Hungry?
Starving! On my way.
She replies with a heart eyes emoji.
I turn around and head back to the gondola to the summit.
I step off the gondola and head for the Upper Lodge, the cabin-like family restaurant on the opposite side of the summit from the Alpine House and its adults-only après-ski bar scene.
I glance at my phone and I’m about to text Jules that I’m almost th
ere when a giant wall of hot brown fur blows by me and knocks me down. I land on my back in a snowdrift, grateful that my hood lands behind me and prevents any snow from getting under my collar.
I lift onto my elbows and watch Buster the Clydesdale trot off into the trees, his hairy feet and tail swishing a cloud of snow behind him. That can’t be good.
A deep voice shouts, “Buster, whoa!” Then a guy appears from around the bend and runs after the horse but stops short when he sees me. “Oh, my god! Shit! Are you hurt? I am so sorr—” He looks at me, then the horse and then at me and then at Buster again. “Wait right there!” He holds up a finger at me and then bolts after Buster.
Did he seriously just tell me to wait in the snow? I can’t help but laugh. I get to my feet and dust off my legs and my coat and realize I’ve dropped my phone.
Buster snorts, and I turn toward the sound. A moment later, the guy emerges from the trees like something out of a movie. He’s wearing a red and black plaid flannel shirt under a rugged tan canvas ranch coat, the cuffs of his jeans are stuffed into heavy, fleece-lined boots.
He reaches into his pocket and pulls something out then cups a hand under Buster’s muzzle, feeding the giant horse a treat. When he turns to pet the horse’s nose, I recognize Stable Guy, the one who dropped the bells this morning. When he sees me on my feet, he hurries back toward me, his eyes full of remorse.
I scan the snow where I’d fallen, searching for my phone.
He ties Buster to a tree and stands next to me. “I—I am so sorry that happened. Are you sure you’re not hurt? I don’t know what’s going on today…”
“I’m fine, really.” I look up at his face, tracing the line of his jaw and the fullness of his lips, taking in his straight nose and those eyes. When our eyes meet, it’s like I lose my hold on language. “I. Dropped. Phone…”
His eyes bore into mine and we stand there for a moment or a week or a year, I can’t say; I lose my hold on time as well.
His brow furrows. “Oh, no.” He gets down on his knees and feels around the snowdrift which is well over three feet deep where the groomed path drops off near the trees.
I join him in the snow, feeling around for my phone, trying to ignore the cold seeping into my legs.
The tiny buzz of my phone’s vibration sounds to our right. We both move toward it, digging our hands into the powdery drift. Our fingers meet under the snow and as he grabs my hand everything in me flashes heat.
DAMON
What the hell is happening to me? It’s bad enough to have lost control of Buster. This whole day has been one fumble after the next. I can’t explain it. Until now it’s been manageable, but now I put someone in danger. I’d just put her in danger. Snow angel. She says she fine, but she’s lost her phone.
I dig in the snow; I have to make things right. A second later she’s digging too, and I realize just how cold it is. I should get her inside and figure out how to pay for her to get a new phone.
The phone buzzes somewhere to our right. I dig in and feel around for it, willing my frozen fingers not to betray me. Then I feel a tiny hand slip next to mine, and our fingers intertwine awkwardly. I clutch her, almost in reflex, intending to pull her from the cold, but as soon as I grab her hand, it’s like the entire world disappears.
We stand on our knees in the snow, facing each other, our hands clutched between us. I can’t move. Can’t look away. It’s like some mystical force is holding us here, making me take note of this magical creature.
Her nose is pink and her lips are blue, and she shivers out a breath. Still, neither of us looks away.
I come to my senses for a second. “My god, you’re freezing. Let’s get inside.”
She nods and lets me pull her to her feet. When I step toward the tree where I tied Buster, she comes with me, her hand on my arm. We walk Buster back to the barn together.
Once Buster is securely in his stall, reality returns. She waits by the barn door, under the large overhead heater. When I walk over to her, she looks away.
“I am really sorry that…” I have no idea what I am supposed to say.
She shakes her head and kicks a toe into the straw on the ground. “Don’t worry about it. I’m okay, really…”
“That giant lug back there is Buster. I should have been more careful. Are you sure you aren’t hurt?”
“I’m fine. The snow was soft. It’s my fault; I wasn’t looking. I’m better now with the heat…” She looks up at the heater and then at me, her green eyes like a light in the barn's dimness. “I’m not hurt, promise.” She offers her hand as if in a truce.
I take her hand to shake it and once again the electricity of her touch wakes up every sleeping part of me. My blood courses through me and cock presses painfully against my jeans. I want her. I need her like my life depends on it. This woman who I don’t even know feels like the answer to everything.
What the hell is happening?
AMELIA
He touches my hand, and it’s like the sun is burning inside me, pulsing through every inch of my body. Heat blooms in my belly and warm wetness swells between my legs. Who is this man and why does he have this power over me?
I don’t believe in love at first sight or anything like that. Hell, I have no time for a man in my life right now. I have things to do, but there is no denying the connection going on here.
I can’t break eye contact with him, and when he looks away for a second fear rears up and I grip his hand even tighter. This is ridiculous. I have to break this spell.
I pull my hand away and inhale deeply, hoping to clear my head. Damn, he smells good.
I look around the barn. Aside from us and the horses, it’s empty. “I should…” I start. Should what? I have no idea what I should do. Jesus, help me.
He clears his throat, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallows. “Yeah. Me too. I…”
I don’t know what comes over me. I have to touch him again. I’m an adult, right? We are both adults. I can do whatever I want. I need no one’s permission, and clearly he’s feeling whatever this is too.
“Thank you for helping me,” I whisper. I get up on my toes and lean in to kiss him on the cheek. He’s taller than I gauge and I lose my footing for a moment and stumble toward him.
He catches me and pulls me close, holding me against him, his blue eyes like the morning sky after a snowstorm. He blinks once, his dark lashes fanning down, blocking the blue. Then he bends and presses his mouth onto mine. I let go. I can’t help myself; I want him to devour me.
DAMON
A moan escapes her as I take her lips in mine. She tastes clean and minty, like winter itself. Our tongues move together and learn each other. I lift her off the ground, scooping her up and cradling her bottom. She wraps her legs around me and I carry her into the empty stall at the end of the row where new hay was stacked this morning.
We don’t speak. There is nothing to say. All that matters in this moment is the two of us and this overwhelming need. I am a slave to it—to her. I have to feel her around me. I have to be inside her. The urgency feels like it’s a matter of life and death.
She unzips her jacket and lets it fall off her shoulders onto the hay bale. The air between us fills with the sweet scent of flowers I can’t name. She grabs me by the back of the neck and pulls me closer, probing my mouth with her tongue. I slip a hand under her shirt, feeling the warmth of her body and the writhing muscles of her back. I wrap my arm around her and hold her closer, my fingers finding the clasp of her bra and releasing it.
She reaches down and pulls off her sweater, the soft fibers crackling with static as she tosses it onto the hay. She lets her bra fall down her arms and I take her breast into my mouth, flicking her nipple with my tongue and making her whimper. I bite down gently and a moan rises from her throat.
Her hips press into me, her tiny frame exploring my hardness with even more urgency as I bend to continue my exploration. She pulls away, shoves my coat back over my shoulders, and goes to work on m
y buttons. She licks my neck and strains to reach my chin as I stand against the hay bales, helping her get me out of my clothes. The last button undone, she tugs my shirt off and helps me peel away my undershirt.
She runs her hands over my chest, then down my abdomen to the buckle of my belt. She looks at me as if waiting for me to protest. I arch an eyebrow at her, making sure she wants this.
She’s practically panting as she nods and pulls at my buckle, opening my pants and freeing me from my denim prison.
AMELIA
Oh, my god, his body is rock hard and his cock is huge. I run my hands over the shaft. The heat of it is unbearably enticing. Damon arches his back and groans. I want to suck him and fuck him all at the same time. I need him inside me. Now. The seriousness with which I feel this pull toward him alarms me, but at the same time it feels like the most right thing that has ever happened on earth. We are like stars colliding, the result of a collision course set eons ago.
He picks up his coat and lays it on the hay next to us and lifts me like I weigh nothing. He lays me down on his coat, the flannel inside is still warm from his body. He kisses me gently on the lips, down my neck, between my breasts. He has his hands at my waist, his fingers inside the waistband of my leggings.
“May I?” He gazes at me under hooded lids, his voice is a husky growl.