Rm W/a Vu (42 page)

“Sweetheart?” Greyston’s voice breaks through to me, and I turn to look at him, my lips slowly twisting up into a smile.

“You’re right,” Mom confesses, pushing her chair away from the table. “We wanted to wait to tell you until you came back from your vacation and we’d had our first ultrasound done, but yes, Dr. Lundstrum confirmed that we’re expecting.” Pausing, she gauges my reaction to hearing this. “Are you…okay?”

Nodding, I hand the wine bottle to Greyston and pull my mom into my arms. “Of course! I mean, I’m still a little shocked, but if you’re happy, then I’m happy.”

Congratulations fill the room as I hug both of my parents. I feel silly thinking that anything was wrong with my mom, and I feel much more relaxed now that I know the truth behind her odd behavior.

We all take our seats around the table and begin dishing up, and Mom leans over and kisses my dad. It’s the first time I’m not even a little repulsed by their PDA. In fact, it’s comforting to see just how in love they are after all these years. It’s something I never really thought about before, but I aspire for it in my own relationship. Almost as though he can read my mind, Greyston’s hand finds mine beneath the table, and he squeezes it lightly, shooting me a brilliant smile when I bring my eyes to his.

After dinner, everyone lends a hand in the clean up, and once the kitchen is clean, they decide to call it a night. Greyston and I walk them to the door, hugging each of them as they prepare to leave.

“You make sure you call me the minute your plane lands,” Mom whispers into my ear as she hugs me tightly.

“Yes, Mom,” I assure her. “Congratulations again, and you take care of yourself, okay?”

“I’ll make sure of it, kiddo,” Dad assures me.

After hugging Mom, I prepare to say goodbye to Gran. She pulls me into her tightest embrace, and I feel a little emotional; saying goodbye to her is always difficult given how close we’ve always been. “Thanks for being so awesome about everything, Gran,” I tell her. “It was so good to see you again.”

Jocelyn and Daniel step forward to say goodnight next, hugging both Greyston and me and wishing us a Merry Christmas and a safe trip to Whistler.

“Thanks again for everything,” I say. “The use of your cabin, the amazing gifts…”

“Of course, dear,” Jocelyn replies. “You two have a good time, and we’ll do dinner when you return.”

“Sounds perfect, Mom,” Greyston tells her.

With everyone gone, Greyston closes and locks the door before turning to me. “So…did you have a good Christmas?”

“The best.” Sighing contentedly, I wrap my arms around his waist and snuggle into his warmth.

He kisses the top of my head, then turns us for the living room. “And your mom…” We reach the couch and he sits, pulling me down onto his lap, waiting for my reaction before he continues.

I smile. “I’m still a little shocked, but she seems happy.”

“Are you?”

I think about his question for a minute before I decide to just be honest. “Yes and no.” Cocking his head, he regards me with curiosity. “No, because she’s forty-four, so I worry that she’s at risk for more complications given her age.” Greyston nods along in understanding. “But, at the same time, they’ve both said that they wanted more kids…it just never happened for them, so I’m excited that they’ve been given the chance.” Slowly, my lips curl up into a smile. “Plus, I get a new baby brother or sister out of this, so that’s pretty cool.”

“Good,” Greyston says. “I’m glad you’re okay with it, because I think they’re pretty excited.”

Then, out of nowhere, the day catches up with me, waves of exhaustion rolling over me and making me yawn. Greyston chuckles into my hair as I cuddle up to his chest. “What do you say we head up to bed? I’m feeling pretty wiped out, too. Plus, we should rest up if we’re going to brave the mall tomorrow.”

Nodding slowly, I push myself up and stand. “Sounds good.”

After changing into my pajamas, Greyston and I crawl into bed, and it isn’t long before we both fall right asleep.

Chapter 27

Greyston and I are sure to be up and at the mall early so we don’t have to fight the crowds. After giving him a quick kiss, we part ways, and I head off to a few different lingerie shops. The only things I’ve ever purchased in them before have been bras and underwear. Up until recently, I’ve never really been interested in this sort of thing—I mean, what was the point if a) the man (Ben) wasn’t going to appreciate it, or b) it was just going to get taken off? But now? Well, now I want to look nice for Greyston. I want to feel sexy and desired. I want to see the look on his face when I come into the room in a tiny, lacy outfit. I want his eyes to go wide and his jaw to drop as I make my way across the room to him… Yes, that is exactly what I want.

I leave Frederick’s of Hollywood $250 poorer, but I don’t think twice about it since I’ve got quite a bit of money saved up anyway due to my kickass rental price. I’ve purchased a couple new bras—sexier ones—and matching panties as well as three pieces of lingerie in varying degrees of naughty.

Naturally, I bought a much more innocent piece, a sheer white negligee, to use the first night—kind of as a way to test the waters—and then I bought another that's a little more risqué, all black lace and short with a matching thong and garter… I even bought some thigh-high stockings and am going to stop for a pair of sleek black heels to go with it; Greyston is sure to lose his mind. Last in my bag of new sex-clothes is a red and black corset that pushes my breasts up and together, making my cleavage look…well, it looks amazing. For someone with such small boobs, I never knew they could look that good. To go with the corset, I bought a sexy pair of lace panties…of course, there’s something more to them than that—or, should I say
less
? In an act of pure impulse, brought on by Bad Juliette on my left shoulder reminding me that trying new things was fun, I forewent the regular lace panties and snatched up a pair of the crotchless kind. Yup, I, Juliette Foster, now own a pair of crotchless panties.

After stopping in a shoe store and grabbing a pair of the highest heels I’ve ever owned, I grab my phone and am about to call Greyston to see if he’s ready to meet for lunch. However, just as I’m about to hit
send
, I stop in my tracks and stare at the storefront sign before me for a minute. Excitement pounds through my veins, and Bad Juliette appears again, telling me to do it because it’ll be so worth it. The more I think about it, the more I realize she’s right, so I gather up my courage and step inside.

If the crotchless panties don’t make Greyston lose his mind, you better fucking believe that this will.

 “You’re going to freeze your ass off,” Greyston warns from his spot on my bed as I step out of my walk-in closet in a white long-sleeved sweater and a skirt. “I know you’ve never seen snow before, but you realize just how far north Canada is, right? Not to mention, we’re going to the mountains.”

I smile sweetly and saunter across my room to where he sits; I am fully aware that a skirt probably isn’t what most sane people would choose to wear, but I have a method to my madness—one that Greyston isn’t quite aware of…yet.

“I’ve got jeans in my carry-on, just in case,” I assure him, pushing my way between his thighs and wrapping my arms around his neck. He welcomes me by placing his hands on my hips, his fingers curling into the denim of my skirt just above the swell of my ass.

Raising his eyes to mine, he smirks. “Just in case?” He laughs, slowly moving his hands down toward my thighs. The second the tips of his fingers touch the flesh of my leg just below my skirt, a shiver runs through me. While the most innocent touch from him always excites me, I’m definitely a bit more sensitive; it’s probably due to the two of us not having sex in two days—not for lack of my wanting to or his trying, I just…didn’t want to spoil my latest surprise before our vacation started.

“God, you smell fantastic,” Greyston groans, hooking his fingers beneath the hem of my skirt and lifting it slowly. He kisses the column of my neck, and I sigh when his thumbs press against my thighs and move in…and up—

I snap out of my lust-induced haze when he grazes my panties, and I place my hands firmly on his shoulders and take a very difficult step away. Naturally, he is undeterred and removes his hands from beneath my skirt, grabbing my hips and pulling me back to him quickly with a low, disapproving growl.

“I wasn’t quite done,” he tells me gruffly, lifting the hem of my shirt and trailing his fingers along the waist of my skirt until he reaches the button. Slowly, he begins to release it, his warm breath wafting over the skin of my stomach and causing goosebumps. He chuckles once and frees the button. “I love watching your body react to my every touch…” he cements his point by flattening his hand over my abdomen and moving it up under my shirt to my right breast “…my every kiss…” my eyes fall closed the moment he presses his lips to my now-exposed hipbone and then licks the skin “…my every breath.” When he blows on the newly-wet surface, a fresh wave of goosebumps flourishes across my skin, and I momentarily forget that a big part of my plan is for
me
to be driving
him
wild with desire. He’s turning the tables on me, and I can’t have that.

Even though I would give anything to let him continue on like this, I open my eyes and look down at him. Grabbing his wrists, I stop him from taking this any further because I want to reveal his big surprise once we’re officially on vacation.

“That’s the second time you’ve stopped me from making love to you, Juliette,” he admonishes playfully, his tone low and dripping with desire. It surprises me when the pulse between my legs intensifies. “You realize we haven’t had sex since Christmas morning in the shower, right?”

“I do.” Smiling, I release one of his wrists and run my fingers through his hair. “But if I let you continue, then we’re going to be late getting to the airport, and you don’t want us to miss our flight, do you?” Even I know he can’t argue with reason.

Smirking, he tugs me toward him again by the open waist of my skirt. “I’ll be quick.”

With a loud laugh, I fall onto his lap, and he begins kissing my neck again—probably because he knows it renders me completely powerless against him. “As romantic as that sounds,” I tell him softly, “I’d really rather wait until our vacation begins.” Pausing, I bite my lip and shrug. “I’ve kind of got this whole thing planned…”

“And I’ll get the surprise you promised me?” he inquires, lifting his head and arching his eyebrow.

“Definitely.”

Appeased for the time being, Greyston lets me get up and finish packing my things. After we double-check our bags to make sure we haven’t forgotten anything, we head out to the town car that’s just arrived. Greyston’s regular driver opens the door for me and takes our bags to the trunk while we climb in. Once our luggage is put away, the driver climbs in and pulls away from the curb.

Knowing that this marks the beginning of our first time away together, my excitement skyrockets. Beside me, Greyston throws an arm over my shoulder and pulls me close, kissing my temple. “I’m looking forward to this vacation with you,” he whispers.

“Me too,” I tell him, relaxing into his embrace. “There’s so much I’m looking forward to.”

Using his other hand, Greyston grabs my legs and swings them over his thighs, turning my body toward his. “Like?”

His fingers trail up and down my outer thigh, making me shiver and lose focus momentarily. “Being alone, for starters,” I quip quietly, nodding my head in the driver’s direction.

Greyston chuckles, leaning us forward a bit to push a button on the roof console. A privacy screen rises from behind the driver’s seat, and I shake my head in mock-disapproval. “What else?” he asks, slipping his hand up under my skirt and palming my ass.