Decidedly With Mistletoe Read online

  Impatient to feel him against me, I practically ripped the sweater off over my head and tossed it to the side.

  Liam cupped my bra-covered breasts in his hands. My girlie parts did a happy dance.

  He scraped his thumbs against the taut buds. “Love the bra,” he said, referring to my plain old white one that was more about being practical than sexy. “But I think I’d prefer it much better off you.”

  My girls and I thoroughly agreed with him there.

  Liam reached behind me and unhooked the clasps. His fingers slid up my back to my shoulders, leaving a trail of goose bumps in their wake. His fingers then completed their mission, dragging the bra straps down my arms, freeing my breasts once and for all.

  Liam dropped the bra somewhere on the floor and palmed the pale globes. “Christ, I’ve been fantasizing all evening about touching and tasting you.”

  His hands shifted to behind me, one on my neck, the other on the curve of my lower back. He leaned forward, forcing me to bend back like an erotic dancer. My breasts jutted proudly in the air. My core rubbed against his length. The friction of my jeans against my clit had it singing “Joy to the World.”

  I groaned.

  Liam circled the tip of his tongue around one nipple, then sucked it into his mouth while pinching the other one.

  My clit said, That’s nice, but a little action down here would be even better.

  I had to agree with it there.

  As if sensing my internal debate, Liam released my nipple from his mouth and shifted me off his lap. He parked me on the couch and moved the two wineglasses to the side table. He then pushed himself off the couch and relocated the coffee table out of the way.

  “What—you’re redecorating the room now?” I said with a laugh. I recognized the look in his eyes. The look that warned me I was about to become one very happy woman.

  He kneeled in front of me and unzipped my jeans. “Take off your jeans and panties.”

  Still seated, I did as he asked, then enjoyed the view as he removed his own clothes.

  He stood before me, his cock proud and patriotic. I smashed my lips together, suppressing the giggle wanting to break free. Liam had served his country and now he was going to serve me.

  “Put your heels on the couch and open yourself up to me, Ava.”

  A shiver raced through me at the command in his voice. Gloria might have gotten off on Chris being a submissive, but that wasn’t for me. I wanted a partner who was all about the give and take.

  A warm smile grew on his face—causing an equally warm reaction in my lower belly.

  “Now, I want you to touch yourself.”

  I licked my lip, chasing away the sudden dryness. How many times had I masturbated in front of a man? That would be a big fat zero.

  My mouth curled up to one side. “Are you going to touch yourself…or is this a one-woman show?”

  “This is about me getting you off for now. Now touch yourself.” At the hoarse roughness of his tone, wetness rushed to my core. Damn, the man had grown even sexier in the past ten years. Sexier and more demanding.

  Remember, this is only a one-time thing, the bossy voice said. And don’t you dare let your heart get involved.

  That got a Hey, I can hear you, from my heart, which was met by an And your point is?

  Before they could start squabbling like my students, I slipped my fingers between the lips of my sex and slid them around the wet surface.

  That moan? Definitely me. But the groan was one hundred percent Liam.

  Good, wouldn’t want to be the only one being affected here.

  Not that there was any doubt about how turned-on he was from the way his cock grew thicker.

  “That’s not where my eyes are,” he said, amusement in his tone.

  My gaze flicked up to his. “Better?”

  “Much better. Is there a reason why you’ve stopped pleasing yourself?”

  The smirk returned to my face. “You distracted me.”

  He nodded for me to continue. I returned to teasing myself with my fingers, bringing myself closer and closer to the point of no return.

  Liam dropped to his knees and placed his hand on mine, stilling its movement. “Let me see if you’re almost there.” His gaze dropped to my sex. “Hmm. Looks like its time for you to come on my face.”

  Before I had a chance to respond, he was reverently kissing my clit. Then he sucked it into his mouth, and I almost launched into orbit.

  “Like that, do you?” he asked.

  “Very much so.” My voice was no longer my own. It sounded sexier than I’d ever heard it before. Only this man had that effect on me.

  His mouth shifted down, to be replaced by his thumb. It circled my clit once, twice, three times. I writhed around on the couch and groaned.

  “Christ, you’re so beautiful.” He ran his tongue along one lip and down the other.…And all coherent thought vanished.

  My fingers begged to touch him. I slipped them through his hair. God, he had such soft hair. God, he had such a talented tongue. God…I wanted him inside me.

  In every possible way.

  “Liam,” I panted. “I need you…inside me.”

  “In time, sweetheart. I’ve been starved from doing this for a long time, and I have no intention of being deprived again.”

  I heard the words, but given that I was rushing toward the abyss—breaking all speed limits—his words were without meaning.

  And then I fell down, down, down. I couldn’t remember the last time in the past ten years it had felt this way. It hadn’t even been like this while touching myself with the image of Liam in my head.

  Although it had come pretty damn close. A lot closer than when I had imagined someone else in his place. That’s right, not even the image of Chris Hemsworth or Chris Pine or Chris Pratt had the same impact as my memories of Liam.

  It really wasn’t fair.

  I was vaguely away of Liam lowing my heels to the floor.

  “How are you doing there?” he asked.

  “S’all good,” was all I was capable of saying. I flashed him a smile—a happy mix of satisfied and dopey.

  He leaned in and gently kissed me. “Glad to hear it.”

  He slipped one arm behind me and the other one under my legs. He hoisted me up, his intense eyes locked on mine, and carried me to the bed.

  He lowered me onto it, and kissed me again, this time more thoroughly. I trailed my hand down his muscled torso, exploring every ridge and valley, until I got to his hard length. I wrapped my fingers around it. It jerked slightly in my grip.

  I caressed the velvet head, spreading the pre-cum. Liam moaned against my mouth and I smiled. Nothing was more powerful than knowing your every move, your every touch affected the man you were with.

  And I didn’t even need a whip or to wear leather to get Liam to that point.

  He lay down next to me and gently cupped my cheek with his hand. “I’m going to make love to you now, Ava. I’m going to take it nice and slow. And then afterward, I’m going to take you fast and hard. Are you okay with that?”

  Naturally, my heart picked up on the “make love to you” part. I reminded it that his pretty words were just semantics. Not that he had to say them to get laid tonight. I was perfectly happy with this being a one-night stand. Come morning, the roads would be clear, and a tow truck would take my car to the nearest garage…and then my vacation at Lake Tahoe would finally commence.

  As would Operation Mistletoe.

  “Okay,” I said with a smile.

  He removed a foil square from his wallet, ripped it open, and rolled the condom onto his length. Then he positioned himself between my legs and slowly entered me—with my body welcoming him home.

  By the time the two of us came—first me, and then him a second later—there wasn’t a part of me that wasn’t rejoicing.

  I collapsed on the bed while he disposed of the condom. He rejoined me under the covers a moment later and pulled me against him.

 
I laid my head on his bare chest, listening to the soothing beat of his heart. Liam’s hand caressed my upper back, and I further relaxed into him.

  I could get used to this.

  Which was a bad thing.

  A very bad thing.

  The sooner I got out of here and was on my way to the resort, the better.…

  6

  LIAM

  AVA BEGAN DRAWING circles on my abs, her head resting on my bare chest. When was the last time a woman did that after she and I had fucked? Never. Not since Ava and I were engaged. It was intimate—not the behavior for one-night stands.

  But shit, it felt good when she did it.

  “How come I never knew that you’re an author?” I asked.

  “I’m assuming that’s because you don’t read children’s books.”

  “You have me there.” I brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. Any excuse to touch her.

  “Were you surprised?”

  “Not really.” She’d once confessed to me that she wanted to be an author one day. “You’ve always been a good storyteller. And I think it’s great that you became both a teacher and an author of children’s books.”

  She laughed, the sound sad and a little off. “As you can imagine, my family didn’t feel the same way.”

  “Even though you’re a New York Times bestselling author?”

  “I’m a New York Times bestselling author of two children’s books. They don’t consider me to be a real author.”

  I frowned. “Why not? The book the kid was reading looked pretty real to me.”

  “But it’s a book for kids. In their minds, that isn’t worthy of being on the New York Times list.”

  “Well, I think it’s pretty awesome.” I kissed the top of her head. “And your family is a bunch of idiots.”

  She laughed again. This time there was nothing off about it. It was full and rich and beautiful. “I’ll agree with you there.”

  “So that’s the real reason you’re not spending Christmas with them in the Bahamas? Because they’re idiots?” I chuckled. “Sounds like a good reason to me.”

  “I wish it was as easy as that.” She moved off me, but remained on her side, looking down at me. “I didn’t want to join them in the Bahamas because I didn’t want to attend my ex-husband’s wedding.”

  Shit. “Is that what you meant by if you joined them in the Bahamas it would go a long way in repairing the damage you caused?”

  She nodded. “You ready for the best part?”

  “Something tells me given what I know about your family, I’ll never be ready. So hold that thought, and I’ll be right back.” I climbed out of bed and retrieved the wine bottle and our glasses. I refilled the glasses, handed Ava’s back to her, and placed the bottle on the bedside table.

  I rejoined her under the covers. “All right. Lay it on me.”

  She took a long sip of her wine. “Chris’s bride is the woman I found him with in our bedroom. Wearing leather and whipping his naked ass while telling him that he’d been a very naughty boy.” She made a face that resembled someone sucking on a sour lemon, then swigged back a healthier dose of wine. “I almost had to bleach my eyes after seeing that.”

  Was I into leather and whips? Definitely not. Nor did I fantasize about women dressing up like school-aged girls.

  And all bets were off if a woman referred to me as her daddy. I had a one-night stand like that once. The moment she asked me to spank her like I was her daddy and she had been a bad girl, I’d been out the apartment door faster than a sniper’s bullet.

  “I’m guessing your family has no idea about that little X-rated scene.”

  She snorted a laugh. “Could you imagine? Although now that I think about it, maybe I should have told them. Then no one would want me to attend the wedding. Imagine the scandal if I happen to let slip during the reception that the only way Chris could get it up was if I whipped his sorry ass.” She sipped some more wine.

  I stared at her for a long moment…digesting what she’d said. “Are you telling me you didn’t have sex the entire time you were married to him?”

  Her face reddened and she glanced down, suddenly fascinated with the sheet covering her breasts. She fiddled with it, twirling the fabric between her fingers.

  I hooked my finger under her chin and forced her to look at me. “Did he at least try to pleasure you?”

  Her eyes held the answer I was looking for—the one I’d hoped wasn’t the case. “Shit.”

  “It’s not that we didn’t have sex at all. We had sex for the first few months. And then he lost interest in me. I guess I wasn’t sexy or pretty or skinny enough for him.” She drained her glass and held it out to me. “Is there any more?”

  I eyed her for a second, wondering if I should give her more wine. I had every intention of proving to her that she was sexy and gorgeous and perfect. I couldn’t do that if she was intoxicated.

  Agreeing with me, my cock stirred to life under the sheet, eager to prove to her that her ex was nothing more than a brain-dead asshole.

  I removed the glass from her hand and put them both on the bedside table. Then I took her hand, yanked down the sheet, and wrapped her fingers around my hard length. “This is what you do to me, Ava. You’re more than enough for me. You’re more than enough for any man.” Except if any other man went near her, then I’d have to do some severe ass kicking. At least for now. At least until I figured out if a second chance between us was possible. “Don’t let that shithead of an ex-husband let you believe otherwise.” I caressed her cheek. “Promise me.”

  She nodded and gave me a shy smile.

  One minute I was touching her face, the next I was kissing her. Tenderly. Passionately.

  The kisses quickly progressed to something hungrier, something possessive. And before I knew it, I was pounding inside of her again and again and again.

  7

  AVA

  YOU KNOW that moment when you’re positive you are dreaming, but you’re also aware that at any second you’ll be sucked back into your reality?

  I clung to the dream I was still in, refusing to let it go. The dream where Liam’s warm body was wrapped around mine and his hard length was pressed against my butt cheek.

  I was afraid to move and have it all disappear—leaving me in an empty bed with memories dancing in my head of the promise I’d made Zoe. The promise where I was supposed to kiss all the single men under the mistletoe to find my Forever Love.

  My requirements for this mysterious man:

  1. He isn’t commitment phobic. But that’s a given.

  2. Money and power aren’t important to him.

  3. He’s exciting in bed but doesn’t need to be told he’s a naughty boy and spanked in order to get off.

  4. He loves me for who I am.

  Except, how was I supposed to discover if this all applied to my Forever Love simply by kissing him under the mistletoe? I had kissed Liam under the mistletoe when we were engaged, and there was no indication he would one day violate the second requirement.

  Not that it had existed back then.

  The warm body behind me stirred and Liam kissed my shoulder. Yes, I knew it was him. It was my dream. Who else would it be?

  And because this was a dream to make all dreams jealous, I imagined Liam’s hand slipping between my legs.

  His finger ran along the seam to my entrance. My girlie parts let out a happy sigh. “You were dreaming about me, weren’t you?” Dream Liam said. “You’re so fucking wet for me.” His voice was a low growl that made me wetter still.

  He shifted behind me, his cock wide awake. “You feel that? That’s what you do to me, Ava.”

  I pressed back against him and wiggled my ass. He groaned. I smiled, hoping to get in one more round of sex before I woke up.

  I felt the sheet slide off my body. Liam adjusted my top leg, bending my knee. He placed my foot on the bed, opening me up. His magic fingers went back to work, caressing my clit while his teeth nibbled my shoulder.
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  It was only then that I realized none of this was a dream. I really was in bed. With my ex-fiancé.

  “Fuck, I want you so badly,” he said against my shoulder. “But I only had two condoms in my wallet. It’s not like I was expecting to get laid while on a search and rescue mission.”

  “I have a box of them in my suitcase.” Now that I remembered the sex last night was not a dream, there was no way I was missing out on it this morning.

  Even if I was a little sore.

  It was well worth the sacrifice.

  He climbed out of bed and searched through the suitcase. “It isn’t even open.”

  I looked over my shoulder at him. “That’s because I haven’t had sex in a while.” A very, very long while. “I didn’t exactly need them.”

  “But you brought them on this trip?”

  I lowered my leg and rolled onto my back. “I brought them in case I needed them. It’s always good to be prepared.”

  He chuckled. “Well, I for one am happy you live by the Boy Scouts’ motto.”

  I laughed. “That makes two of us.…Now get over here. I need to have some more sex, and then I can go downstairs to see if they’ve plowed the roads yet.” If I was lucky, I’d be able to leave soon and make it to the resort in time for my afternoon ski lesson.

  It didn’t take long before his cock was covered, and he was inside me. It also didn’t take long for me to realize that after being with him this way, I wasn’t interested in screwing anyone at the resort…if the opportunity should arise.

  You know the feeling you get when you crave something, but when you finally get it the real thing fails to meet expectations?

  After last night’s amazing sex with Liam, I had a feeling this would soon be my reality when it came to other men.

  Were Chris and Liam the only two men I’d ever slept with?

  If we were talking about sex, then no. There had been a few guys after Liam called it quits on our relationship. Sex with them was…okay. Nothing great. Nothing that would star in an erotic romance. Just okay.