The Virgin's Guardian

My eyes swept hungrily over all of her. It was obvious that she’d been asleep and forgotten that she was only wearing an overly large T-shirt that said Santa, Don’t judge me, Bro and knee socks covered in tiny reindeer. She hadn’t gotten any taller than the five foot two she’d been the last time I saw her. But, her curves had filled out and my hands suddenly ached to be filled with them, causing me to tighten my grip on the ropes of my bag. She was so fucking gorgeous.

“Hello, Holly Berry,” I greeted softly. I reached out and gently closed her mouth with a finger under her chin.

“How—but—what are you—l can’t believe—” she stuttered. A smile stretched across my face at how damn cute she was.

“I’m here to deliver your Christmas presents,” I drawled with a wink. “Just think of me as your own personal Santa Claus.”

She still stood there, unmoving and staring at me. I laughed. “I’m not a spectre, baby. I’m real. Are you going to let me in?” Her head bobbed, and she stepped back to hold the door open for me to pass through.

Spying the half eaten plate of cookies on the mantle and the empty glass of milk, I laughed again. Holly had told me stories about that tradition, it was one I intended for us to continue with our children.

I hadn’t laughed or felt that happy in a long time, and I was practically vibrating with energy. The front door clicked shut and I turned towards it. Holly watched me, a slightly sheepish look crossing her face when she glanced at the plate. “You’re never too old to put out cookies for Santa,” I smirked. She laughed and shrugged.

Looking at her, so beautiful and bright, I was filled with renewed determination. Holly was mine, I wasn’t going to budge on that fact, but I was hoping she would choose us on her own. I held out my hand and waited.

After only a moment’s hesitation, she laid her warm palm on mine and my fingers immediately closed around her hand. Holding it firmly, I led her to the couch and sat before taking ahold of her luscious hips and guiding her down to sit on my lap.

“How are you here?” she breathed, finally speaking a full sentence. “I feel like you aren’t real—I wished for you and…” she trailed off, and her cheeks dusted with pink.

I pointed at myself with my thumb. “Santa, remember?”

She giggled and batted at my hand playfully. “Seriously, Jacob.”

“You don’t believe me?” I asked with mock offense.

“I don’t,” she sniffed haughtily.

“What evidence do you need besides your senses?”

She frowned prettily. “I don’t know.”

“Why do you doubt your senses?”

“Because little things affect them. You invade my dreams at the simplest sight or smell. So, tell me, how do I know I’m not dreaming?” She blushed even harder, and I could tell she had a solution in mind but was too shy to say it.

If her dreams had been anything like mine, I would bet I was thinking of the same thing and it made me hard as a fucking rock. It was impossible to hide from her, given her lack of clothing and the fact that she was sitting on my lap. Her blush turned to a full flush and she squirmed, her eyes becoming impossibly dark as they filled with desire. I groaned and let my head fall back on the couch, then took deep breaths to try and regain some control. Later. We would most definitely be getting to that later. Patience, Jacob.

Lifting my head back up, I stilled her with my hands on her hips. “Let’s just go with it for now, but I promise to prove it to you soon.”

She cocked her head to the side and studied me curiously, then shrugged. “Okay.” She started to move off of my lap and I tightened my grip, my fingers digging into her flesh.

“I like you right where you are, Holly Berry,” I growled. She raised an eyebrow but didn’t continue her attempts to move. I kissed the tip of her nose, wishing it was her mouth. I knew if my lips were on hers I wouldn’t be able to stop.

I’d dropped the bag on the ground at my feet and leaned around Holly to fetch it and put it next to us. Pulling out the first brightly wrapped package, I placed it in front of her. I was a little nervous about this gift. It truly bared me to her and made me vulnerable.

Holly’s eyes twinkled as she tore at the ribbon and wrapping paper. Underneath was a brown, leather-bound journal.

“A journal?” she asked, giving me an odd look.

“Look inside,” I encouraged. She untied the twine that held it closed, opened it and gasped.

The inscription on the first page said:

Memories of Holly Lane ____________

In my heart, always.

---Jacob Marley

“I don’t understand,” she admitted quietly.

Rubbing slow circles over her back, I explained, “Over the years, anytime something made me think of you, or I found myself wanting to tell you something, I wrote it down. It started with this journal. The chocolate-brown leather reminded me so much of your eyes. I bought it and wrote down that thought on the first page.”

She flipped through to the end and glanced up at me in surprise. “It’s full?”

I nodded. “I thought of you a lot. I have two more completely filled as well.”

Her eyes misted and she looked away, blinking rapidly. With a little sniff, she turned back to me, confusion written on her face.

“If you wanted me so much, why did you stay away?”

Chapter 4

Jacob

Her voice was small as she asked the question and it squeezed my heart painfully.

“There were things we both needed to do, Holly Berry,” I hurried to explain. “And, I think deep down, you know that.” She didn’t confirm or deny it, only gave me a thoughtful expression and gestured for me to continue. “I busted my ass for the last three years and three months, putting everything I had into school and”—I grinned victoriously. This felt so good to say—“I finished my courses a couple of weeks ago. I have to do an internship and won’t officially graduate until the spring, but for the most part, I’m done.”

Holly’s face lit up and she smiled brightly, pulling me into a tight hug. “Holy crap, Jacob! That’s amazing, congratulations! I’m so proud of you!”

“Thanks, baby. I wanted to wait to be with you until I could truly be with you. It was motivation enough to get done as fast as possible.”

She was practically glowing when she let me go and sat straight. Hope was written all over her face when she asked, “What does that mean for us? You do want there to be an us, right?”

I cupped her face in my hands and steeled myself against the onslaught of desire I was about to slam into. Placing a soft kiss on her lips, I held fast to my control, even as my cock swelled so big I was a little worried it would burst. I mentally high-fived myself when I managed to pull back without deepening the kiss. “How about I answer that with your next present?”

“I get more presents?” she asked excitedly. It was unbelievably cute and my heart filled with love for her, warming me all over. Some of the heat may also have been due to the fire raging in my belly.

Fishing out a specific gift, I handed her a small box with a glittery silver bow. She lifted the lid and peered inside before lifting the item out. A glass heart dangled on a string from her fingertips. The words Our First Christmas and the date were etched in the center.

Holly seemed to turn boneless and she melted into me, resting against my chest with a contented sigh. “I love it,” she whispered. My arms closed around her, and I kissed the top of her head.

“I love you,” I answered without thinking.

She stiffened in my embrace, even her chest stopped its rhythmic rise from breathing. Then she exhaled slowly. “You love me?”

“Of course I do, baby,” I murmured. She went boneless again. After a minute of silence, I demanded, “Now, tell me you love me too.”

“What makes you s

o sure—” I pushed her away, just enough that I could cut her words off with my mouth crushing down on hers.

Without breaking the kiss, I took everything from her hands and put it on the table next to us. I put my bag on the ground again, and then deftly maneuvered us so that Holly was trapped below me on the couch.

I wanted her so fucking bad, my cock was pulsing hard, making me a little dizzy. My tongue plunged into her mouth and we tangled together, tasting and teasing. “Fuck,” I groaned when we finally broke apart to breathe. “You feel a million times more amazing than I remember.” One hand slid underneath her shirt, over her ribcage, and up to cup one of her full tits. The other hand went around her to palm an ass cheek. “Soft here,” I murmured, giving both a squeeze. She moaned and writhed restlessly. The fingers on the hand on her breast closed around her peaked nipple and the others slipped into her panties and went straight to her clit. I pinched both and growled, “But not here.”

“Jacob!” Holly cried out, her back arching and her hips bucking. I almost came right then from her reaction and the feel of her center pressing into mine.

My fingers started to circle both buds, staying just far enough away to torture her a little. “So wet. I remember how my fingers used to slide through this pussy. All the while I wondered if you were slick enough to take my cock.”

She whimpered and squirmed, trying to shift so that I would touch her in the right places and give her relief. I tisked and drew bigger circles. “Noooo,” she moaned. “I need you.”

I passed the pads of my fingers over the tips lightly, the sound of her cry causing my dick to start leaking come furiously. “Tell me you love me and I’ll give you what you want, baby.”

“I love you, Jacob.”

I groaned as the words washed over me, my cock no longer able to withstand anything, exploding in my pants. I kissed her deeply as I pressed on her nipple and clit, then pinched them, setting off a small orgasm. It would be enough to give her some relief, but still leave her wanting.