Careful to keep as quiet as possible, I pulled on his hips, urging him to take me. He locked gazes with me, his breath fast through his parted lips. I reached up and sucked on one and his eyes fluttered closed. As we broke apart, I nodded, squirming my hips under his. I wanted this.
His eyes, dark in my dark room, skimmed over my features as his hand trailed down my body, to my knee. Slightly pulling my leg up and around his hip, he settled himself over me. My heart raced with the anticipation of it. Resting his forehead against mine, he lightly breathed on me for a moment, pressing against me but not moving inside yet. His smell overwhelmed me this close, made me even more ready for him, for us, for this.
His
breath
hot,
but
sweet,
he
let
out
an
erotic
exhale.
“Nothing…compares to this…”
My fingers swept over his cheek. I wondered what he meant, but he closed his eyes and pressed into me and any attempt at speaking failed me. I clutched his shoulder, closing my own eyes as I swallowed repeatedly, anything to stop myself from crying out with the glorious intenseness of it. I heard him biting back his own groan as he dropped his head to my shoulder.
Writhing with restraint, sucking in quick breaths, we began moving together. It was so intense—the weeks of waiting, the moments of tele-phone teasing, the anticipation I’d felt all day—my body hit the wall faster than I’d ever believed possible. I fought against the rising pressure, wanting to feel it with him. He grabbed my cheek, his pace staying slow and steady. Making me look at him as I fought against myself, he shook his head. “Don’t…let go…”
I shook mine and he leaned down to my ear. “Don’t worry about me…let me give this to you…”
He pushed a little harder and I lost whatever hold on my control that I had. The euphoria burst through me and I arched my back, panting as I struggled to control the vocal part of releasing. My body was shaking from the contained explosion and I dug my fingers into Kellan’s 248
shoulder. As my eyes rolled back, I thought I’d never felt anything so perfectly wondrous.
I ran a hand down my face as I drifted back from my high. Watching me intently, still smoothly sliding against my body, Kellan’s face was a picture of love and lust. He seemed spellbound, amazed at watching me experience the satisfaction he’d just given to me. His lips fell to mine, light. I felt like taffy.
“God, Kiera…God…that was…”
He dug in a little deeper and I closed my eyes. Surprisingly, the fire started resurfacing. I found his mouth, wondering if I could still have that moment with him again, but together this time. Our lips containing the soft groans we were making, I encouraged him to move his body at a speed that would satisfy him. He whimpered when he hit the right spot and I moaned softly, needing him even more than before.
His mouth falling open, he started to lower his head. My hand came up to his cheek, making him stare at me. He clenched my hand in his as he closed his eyes. I watched the euphoria start to flood his features. Just as his hips paused, he cringed, almost looking pained. It passed immediately as a soft, but deep noise left his throat. He bit his lip to contain it, but the sound, mixed with the look of pure pleasure on his sculpted face, pushed me over the edge again.
Keeping my eyes open so I could watch every second of his bliss, I felt my own wash over me again. It wasn’t as intense as the first time, more peaceful, more perfect. As his body collapsed against mine, I finally closed my eyes, letting the shared moment of ecstasy sweep me away.
249
14
Chapter
Merry Christmas
I awoke the next morning gloriously achy. As I stretched out my tight muscles, my hip hurt a little bit from sleeping on the hard floor. My arm was mostly numb from partially lying on it. My more womanly parts were also feeling the dull strain, renewed from weeks of being ignored by last night’s powerful reconnection. But none of that truly bothered me, because a warm arm was flopped over my stomach.
I turned my head and snuggled into the warmth of Kellan’s neck, missing the feeling of waking up next to him. His arm tightened around my waist and the words I’d missed even more brushed against my ear.
“Mornin.”
He inhaled deep and stretched out his muscles. I had to imagine that he was every bit as sore as I was, although, his man parts probably weren’t. That was just a side effect for women…it was nice, though. A reminder.
I leaned in to kiss his neck. “Good morning yourself.” Popping my eyes all the way open, I propped myself up onto my elbow. Smiling down at the half-dozing man beside me, I whispered, “Merry Christmas, Kellan.”
He opened his eyes and reached up for my face. “Merry Christmas, Kiera.” His hand threaded through my hair and wrapped around my neck.
As he started pulling me down to his lips, my bedroom door opened. I froze, wide-eyed, suddenly remembering where I was.
“Kiera? Where are you?”
250
Hearing my sister’s soft voice, I peeked my head up. Her luxurious hair was piled into an adorably cute ponytail on the top of her head.
Anna laughed when she saw where I was hiding. Dressed in pink and green camouflaged pajamas, she giggled as she laid down on my squeaky mattress. Propping her face into her hands and clicking her heels together, she looked over the edge of the bed, to our love nest on the floor.
Smiling down at the two of us as I lowered myself back down to Kellan’s arms, she laughed out, “Well, I was going to wish you a Merry Christmas and ask if you wanted to head downstairs with me, but I can clearly see that you’ve already unwrapped your present.” She smiled over at Kellan peering up at her with an amused grin. “Hey, Kellan, glad you finally made it.”
He chuckled, squeezing me tight. “Hey, Anna. Thanks.” Pulling the blankets up Kellan’s chest, hiding his tattoo as well as his marvelous pecs, since Anna was clearly enjoying the visual that she’d walked into this morning, I sighed at my sister. “What time is it?” Anna swung her perfectly emerald eyes to me. “It’s breakfast time…Mom’s making eggs.”
I sat up straight, clutching the sheet to my chest; it fell off Kellan a little in the process. “Breakfast…is Dad up?” Anna clicked her heels together, smiling devilishly. “Yep.” She pointed at Kellan. “And he better get out of here, before Dad realizes he’s not on the couch.”
I scrambled into action, pushing Kellan out of the blankets. He squirmed and fought me, obviously wanting to stay where he was.
“Kiera, relax.”
Shaking my head, I pushed him harder. “No, Anna’s right, he’s gonna kill you if you’re up here.”
Twisting his lips at me, Kellan raised an eyebrow. “What’s he going to do, really? Ground you?”
251
Shoving his shoulder, I nodded. “Yes, right after he castrates you.” Sighing, Kellan stood up…not bothering to hide himself at all. My sister grinned at his nakedness and I slapped my hand over her eyes. Narrowing mine at Kellan, as I kept Anna from prying away my fingers, I watched him slip his clothes back on. Smirking at me, he muttered,
“Fine, I’ll sneak into the hallway so he’ll think I was in the bathroom.” I shook my head. “No, you should sneak out the window. Make him think you went for a walk or something.”
Zipping up his jeans, Kellan dropped his mouth open. Since he was mostly dressed, I stopped fighting with Anna to keep my hand over her eyes; she scowled when she noticed how covered Kellan was, then smiled at how un covered he still was. Holding his shirt in his hands, he pointed at the window with his thumb. “We’re on the second story, Kiera.”
Wrapping a sheet around me, I shook my head. “Please, he won’t believe that you were just in the bathroom.” I pointed out the window.
“There’s a store about a block from here that should still be open. You could pick up some milk…my mom would love you for that.” He shook his head, his hands on his hips. “My shoes and jacket are downstairs in the living room?”
Anna brightened, popping her head up. “No they aren’t. I put them outside when I woke up.”
I looked over at her, surprised. Anna shrugged as she giggled. “It’s not the first time I’ve had to hide a boy, Kiera.” She winked at me and I shook my head at the adventurous girl.
Kellan groaned, slipping on his shirt. Frowning, he muttered, “Damn it, I haven’t snuck out of a woman’s window since I was fifteen.” I rolled my eyes at him, but Anna giggled. “Kellan, I think you and I seriously need to swap some stories someday.” He looked back at Anna 252
with a crooked grin and she winked at him. I rolled my eyes at the adventurous pair. Standing up, I shoved him towards the window.
He sighed, opening it. Glancing out at the wintery landscape before him, the frozen trellis he’d have to climb down, he looked back at me with a pitiful expression. “You’re an adult, Kiera. He really would probably get over it quicker than you think.”
I bit my lip. I hadn’t told Kellan how hard it had been to get Dad to let him even stay in the same building as me. “He was going to have you sleep in a tent, Kellan…in the backyard.” I raised my eyebrow at him, my expression completely serious.
He started to laugh until he realized that I wasn’t joking. Sighing, he rolled his eyes. “Fine,” he leaned in to kiss my cheek, “but you owe me, big time.”
I giggled as he pinched my butt. Anna giggled too. Saluting us with two fingers above his eyebrow, he ducked out the window. I held my breath as I watched him, hoping he didn’t fall. When he was at the ledge of the roof, I whispered, “Be careful.”
He looked up at me, a puff of air leaving his mouth as he shivered in his long-sleeved t-shirt. Anna came to join me as I stared out the window and Kellan smirked at the two of us. Twisting his lip devilishly, he muttered, “You’re lucky last night was completely worth this…” I flushed and Anna let out a throaty laugh. As Kellan began descend-ing, I quietly said his name. When he looked up at me, light snowflakes falling on his rosy cheeks, I smiled and said, “Pick up some eggnog too.” He closed his eyes and shook his head, continuing his retreat from my bedroom. Laughing at the look on his face, I silently closed the window.
After I quickly shrugged out of my sheet burrito, I threw on some I-just-woke-up pajamas. Anna helped me put all of the covers back onto my bed. We were sitting on the edge of it, laughing over Kellan’s sullen expression, when my door swung open. Smoothing my hair into a pony tail, I smiled as Dad poked his head in.
253
Staring at him warmly, I watched his light brown eyes scour my room for intruders. The thinning hair on his head was streaked with gray, and as I watched him frown at me, at my empty room, and then at my sister, I was pretty sure we were both to blame for the color change.
“Merry Christmas, Dad,” I said brightly, hopping up to give him a hug.
Seeing my room with no trace of a boy in it, he relaxed and hugged me back. “Merry Christmas, sweetheart.” Pulling apart from me, he did his best to contain a smile. “Did that Kellan fellow decide to not stay here then? I see that he’s not downstairs.”
I frowned as best as I could and looked back at Anna sitting on my squeaky mattress. “He’s not? He was there last night when I went to bed?” I looked back at Dad, keeping my voice as even as I could. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the last year had made me a better liar than I’d ever wished to be.
Dad frowned but Anna stood up and joined us at the door. “I ran into him this morning. He said he was going to run to the store and get some milk for Mom, since we’re almost out.” She tilted her head at Dad.
“Wasn’t that nice of him, Daddy?”
Dad twisted his lips, but had no argument against Anna. Shrugging, he mumbled, “Yeah, I guess…”
Smiling at each other, Anna and I shepherded our clueless Dad downstairs. I secretly thanked her when we got to the bottom. In my ear she whispered, “I heard you guys last night…no need to thank me, you needed that.”
I turned beet red as we entered the kitchen.
Mom was there, whisking a bowl of eggs into a yellow, frothy mess that matched the frilly bathrobe she was wearing over her flannel pajamas. Over the smell of greasy, crackling bacon was the undeniable aroma of cinnamon rolls. It made my mouth water. As my mom worked away on the breakfast, I came up beside her and rested my head on her 254