The Christmas Fountain (Wishful 9)

“It seemed appropriately festive for the occasion.”

“You make a really good elf.” Although, with her creamy skin and bright blue eyes, she was a bit more Middle Earth than North Pole. “What’s in the bag?”

“This and that. Fixin’s for hot chocolate. A pie server, since I didn’t know whether you had one. A few other things.”

He led her back to his kitchen, stripping out of his coat and watching as she moved easily around, switching the oven on and pulling more stuff from the bag. A bottle of wine. A corkscrew. A bag of mini marshmallows. Flowers? And were those cloth napkins?

“Is there vanilla ice cream in that magic bag if yours?”

“Well, duh.” She pulled out a pint of Blue Bell and stuck it in the freezer. “Pecan pie without ice cream is just sad. How was your day?”

“Not too bad.”

While he talked, Mary Alice opened his cabinets until she unearthed a tall glass. Fascinated, he watched as she filled it with water and set to snipping flower stems to make an arrangement for his kitchen table. There was something unreasonably sexy about a woman arranging flowers. Or maybe it was just this woman. Those slim-fingered, competent hands were so graceful. She pulled out plates and silverware, quickly and efficiently setting two places, before sliding the casserole in the oven.

She looked…good in his kitchen. He was probably going to some feminist hell for thinking it. But seeing her there, with her Pyrex dish and pie and the other cheery little touches most people would never have even thought of, he realized how much the house he’d lived in for almost a year didn’t feel like a home. Until now. The thought struck him like a fist in the chest.

“I cooked it this morning, so it just has to warm through. I wasn’t sure how hungry you were. I figured we could throw it in the oven on low and maybe get the lights on the tree while it’s warming up.”

Chad barely heard her. She’d walked in with her bag and her casserole and made the place feel inviting in five minutes. He could absolutely imagine coming home to this every night.

Too fast, pal.

But he couldn’t shake the image or the way it stirred him.

“Or, I guess, if you’re hungry already, we could start with dessert first.”

He crossed the space in two strides, knocking the elf hat off as he threaded his hands in her hair and laid his lips over hers. Chad meant to keep the kiss soft and easy, but her instant acquiescence, the way she just melted into him, had him diving deeper. He caged her against the counter and devoured her mouth. Her jolt of surprise had some dim corner of his brain shouting at him to get a leash on this. In just a minute… Then her hands speared into his hair, and she made a needy little whimper that had him going hard. Her mouth opened under his, another potent surrender, and he was lost.

He lifted her onto the counter, stepping between the V of her thighs and dragging her forward, until her center was pressed against the erection his scrubs did nothing to hide. She wrapped her legs around his waist and wriggled closer. Whatever blood had been left in his brain drained south. Yes, God, yes, he wanted her. Warm and willing and his.

His hands skated under her sweater, finding soft, warm skin and lace. Her breasts filled his palms, the nipples pearling under his touch. He traced them, loving the way she arched in a wordless demand for more. He wanted to see, wanted to taste, so he tugged the sweater up. Mary Alice’s hands slid under his scrub top, nails scraping down his back as she tightened her legs to bring them even closer.

Something rolled off the counter and hit the floor with a clatter. The sound had him jolting, snapping him out of the moment and allowing him to find a thread of control. He was on the verge of taking Mary Alice in the middle of his kitchen.

Appalled at his behavior, he removed his hands from her breasts and broke the kiss. “I’m sorry. I—”

Her fingers pressed against his lips. “Unless the next words to fall out of your mouth are ‘I have to stop’ or some variation of ‘I think this is a mistake,’ then you have nothing to apologize for.” She was breathless, her lips swollen from his, and he just wanted to dive right back in.

“I don’t usually have such little control.”

The smile that curved her lips could only be described as feline. “I like it.”

He blinked at her.

“I’m an elementary school teacher, Chad, not a saint.” She leaned up to press a kiss to the underside of his jaw. “So, let me use small words and short sentences that even my students couldn’t misunderstand: I want this. I want you.”

God bless enthusiastic consent. Christmas was apparently coming early this year. “Thank God.” She twined her arms around his neck, pulling him back, but Chad shook his head. “Not here.” She deserved more than a quickie in the kitchen. Boosting her up, he carried her down the hall to his bedroom. He didn’t know what state it was in and didn’t care. He arrowed straight for the bed and followed her down onto it.

“Now, where were we?”

“Now, where were we?”

Mary Alice couldn’t see more than the outline of Chad’s face in the dark, but she could hear the smile in his voice, and even if she hadn’t, there was no doubt he was on board. Thank God. The weight of him pressed her into the mattress and felt glorious.

For one moment, she hesitated. Was this a mistake? Was it too soon? She’d done her best to shut this part of herself off the last few months. Now that he’d opened the door, it was as if every erotic thought and desire she’d repressed was flooding out. She wanted to touch and take and be taken. And she wanted Chad to be the one to do it.

Tipping her face to his, she found his mouth, giving him a little nip. “We are both wearing way too many clothes.”