Merry Christmas, My Love

Max stared at her with raised eyebrows.

“All right, if you must know, Tori baked a bunch of them for my baskets.”

He chuckled and took the last bite of his pie.

After the meal, Ellie packed the remains in the basket while he dragged the mattress closer to the fire. “Do you need to go outside?”

Her face turned crimson. “Yes.”

“I didn’t see a privy, but there are some bushes not too far away. You go ahead, I’ll go when you’re back.”

She hastened out, hurrying back in no time. After Max took his turn, he secured the door as best he could and eyed her. “You’ll need to take everything off except your undergarments.”

Slowly, her gaze on the floor, she removed her coat, shirtwaist, and skirt.

He lowered his voice. “The petticoats and corset have to go, too.”

She groaned and slipped them off, covering herself with shaky hands. “I’m freezing.”

Max had removed his pants and shirt and sat on the mattress in just his union suit. “Come here.” He reached out his hand.

Ellie sat alongside him. He slid them both down, pulled her close, and between the two of them, they arranged the two blankets they’d brought and bundled the small one already on the bed into a makeshift pillow. Max reached to the side, and pulled their coats over them also.

“Goodness, I’m warmer already.” Ellie snuggled closer to him, her head on his chest.

This would be a very long night. Having her next to him, now warm and cuddly, wreaked havoc with his blood flow. Her softness and rose water scent assailed his senses, increasing his physical discomfort.

“Is something wrong?” She looked up at him.

“No, why?” his voice sounded low-pitched and gravelly to his ears.

“You seem stiff or something. Am I taking up too much room?”

Unable to speak, he just shook his head, pulled her closer. Bad idea when the distinct feel of her nipples pressed into his side.

After a few minutes, he shifted and looked down at her. “I have to be honest with you. You’re driving me crazy.”

Her eyes grew wide. “Why?”

He ran his hand up and down her arm. “You can’t tell me you don’t feel the attraction between us.”

“I-I don’t know what you mean.” The little catch in her voice raised his temperature another notch. He wanted to introduce her to the pleasures of lovemaking.

“Let me show you.” His fingers circled the edge of her chemise, loosening the pink ribbon just slightly. The pulse at her throat throbbed, a match to the rhythm of his own. Ellie’s soft hazel eyes watched him. She licked her lips. He slid his hand to the back of her neck where silky hair met her soft skin, and loosened the bun. “You have beautiful hair. I have to see it down.”

Max tugged the curls forward, then crushed them in his fingers as his mouth hungrily covered hers. He slanted his head to deepen the kiss, sliding his tongue along her lips until she opened for him. She grasped his forearms and made soft mewing sounds as he explored her mouth. His blood boiled from the taste of her.

Not breaking the kiss, he brought his hands up to her shoulders and slowly slid the chemise down to bare her breasts, past her ribcage, to settle at her waist.

He pulled back and studied the mouth-drying beauty exposed to him, caressing her cheek with his knuckles. “Ellie, you’re so beautiful. Just as I imagined.” Her lips were swollen from his kiss, and the aroused peaks of her perfect breasts begged his attention. Slowly his hands came up and cupped them, his thumbs moving back and forth across the pink tips. Ellie leaned her head back, and her breaths turned to gasps.

Max cuddled her close, kissed her throat, and the sensitive skin behind her ear. “I want you,” he whispered. “If this is something you don’t want, please tell me now. I swear to God, I’ll turn my back and not bother you for the rest of the night. But if we go any further, I’ll have a difficult time letting you go.”

“I’m scared.” Her voice trembled as she raised cold fingers to his face. “I never felt like this before. I don’t know what to do.”

“Ah, sweetheart, I know what to do. But I want to be very sure you understand where this is headed.” When she didn’t protest, he kissed her once more, his hands releasing the string on her drawers. He pushed them down, along with the chemise and blankets. Her skin glowed in the firelight. Raised on one elbow, he leaned above her, his gaze raking over her seductively. She smiled slightly and bit her lip when he ran his hands over her body, then reached for him, pulling their mouths together in an explosion of heat.

His hand glided over her ribcage, down to her belly, and lower to the curls that covered her sex. Ellie stiffened. He pulled his mouth away and circled the soft shell of her ear with his tongue. “Don’t be afraid, I would never hurt you.”