Santa' Wayward Elf (8 page)

He eagerly obeyed, giggling like crazy as the car spun in a
tight circle, then sped across the floor.

“Thank you,” Jimmy’s mother said. “Both for fixing it and
for saving me from having to go back to the toy store and stand in that line of
people who are going to be returning things tomorrow.”

Sosie blushed. “No problem. I’ve always been very handy with
anything electrical.”

“Is that so?” Ben regarded her thoughtfully. “How are you
with central air units?”

Her brow furrowed. “Central air units?”

“Yeah. I can never get the AC to work.”

She didn’t know what AC was, either, but she didn’t want to
look stupid in front of everyone. Fortunately, Derek came to her rescue.

“Sosie is from way up north, Ben,” he reminded the older
man. “I don’t think they have a big call for AC there.”

“Oh, that’s right. I didn’t think about that.” Ben shook his
head. “I wish we didn’t need it here because the unit they installed in this
building is a piece of crap. It breaks down all the time. Do you think you
could take a look at it before you leave?”

“I can try.”

Sosie and Derek stood watching Jimmy playing with his car
for a while before he suggested they grab some eggnog.

“That was nice of you to fix Jimmy’s toy,” Derek said as he
handed her a plastic cup. “And to offer to help Ben with the air conditioning.
I think he gets overwhelmed trying to keep up with everything around here.” His
mouth twitched. “I’d help him with it myself, but I probably couldn’t figure
out how to get the cover off unless I used a crowbar.”

She laughed. “It’s the least I could do. Everyone’s been so
nice to me.”

Most especially Derek. Sosie wished she could think of some
way to pay him back for everything he’d done for her.

“You two do realize where you’re standing, don’t you?”

Sosie turned at the sound of Tracee’s voice to find that she
and Linda had come over to join them. For some reason, both women were
regarding them with amusement. Sosie glanced at Derek and saw he looked as
confused by the question as she was.

Tracee gave them an impatient look. “Look up.”

Sosie obeyed and blinked when she saw the sprig of mistletoe
hanging from the doorjamb above their heads. Elves might not celebrate Christmas
with roast turkey and presents, but they did put up mistletoe, so she knew what
standing underneath it meant. Wondering if Derek did, too, she looked up to
find him gazing down at her with that same sexy glint he’d had in his eye when
he leaned in to smell her perfume before. Her pulse quickened and she wet her
lips in anticipation.

But to her dismay, Derek didn’t move to kiss her. Maybe he
didn’t know the tradition, after all.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Tracee said impatiently.
“Go ahead and kiss her already.”

He chuckled. “They’re not going to be satisfied unless I
kiss you, you know.”

She smiled. “Then I suppose you’d better kiss me.”

Giving her a lopsided grin, Derek bent and lightly touched
his lips to hers. The kiss was gentle, his mouth moving tenderly over hers, and
she leaned into him, her hands sliding up the front of his shirt. He tasted
like spiked eggnog and the pumpkin pie they’d had earlier, and something else
she couldn’t put a name to. All she knew was that it was decidedly male and
more intoxicating than any alcohol she’d ever had in her life, and she wanted
more. Derek must have felt the same because he slid one hand into her long hair
and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. She parted her lips, sighing as his
tongue swept into her mouth and tangled with hers in a sweet dance that left
her knees weak. She’d been kissed by elf guys before, but never like this, and
when Derek finally lifted his head, she could only gaze up at him in wonder.

The moment was so magical Sosie completely forgot they were
in a room full of people until she heard the sound of excited voices, followed
by the scramble of feet. Jerked out of her reverie by the commotion, she
reluctantly turned her head to see everyone crowding around the common area’s
two small windows and looking at something outside.

“It’s snowing!” Linda squealed.

Sosie couldn’t help but smile at the excitement in the
dark-haired woman’s voice. Snow was so common in the North Pole she’d almost
forgotten it wasn’t an everyday occurrence in the rest of the world.

Derek cleared his throat. “I guess we should go take a look,
huh?”

She would much rather have spent the rest of the night
kissing him under the mistletoe, but since she knew that probably wouldn’t be
very appropriate considering they weren’t alone, she nodded instead.

Although she “oohed” and “aahed” along with everyone else at
the snow falling outside, Sosie couldn’t think about anything but the kiss she
and Derek had shared under the mistletoe. She’d never been kissed so thoroughly
or so expertly before. It had been enough to curl her elfin booties. Not to
mention leave her wanting more.

Trouble was, she wasn’t sure how to go about letting Derek
know she wanted more. Figgy, she wouldn’t even know how to let an elf guy know.
Where she came from, it was the guys who made the first move. And the second.
She sipped her eggnog, giving Derek covert looks beneath her lashes from across
the room as she tried to come up with something. Unfortunately, nothing came to
mind.

“So,” Tracee said, sidling up to Sosie with a mischievous
look on her face. “Is Derek a good kisser?”

Sosie felt her face color. “A very good kisser.”

The redhead exchanged looks with Linda, who grinned. “That
was absolutely brilliant of you to lure him under the mistletoe. I only wish
I’d thought of it. My guess is he won’t be sleeping on the couch tonight, not
after a kiss like that.”

Sosie worried her lower lip with her teeth as she considered
Linda’s words. “You think so?”

“Only if you give him a not-so-subtle hint,” Tracee said.
“Derek is definitely into you, but he’s too much of a gentleman to make a move
unless you give him the okay.”

“How do I do that?” Sosie asked.

The other woman grinned. “Wait here. I’ll be right back.”

Confused, Sosie watched as Tracee walked over to the doorway
where the mistletoe was hanging. Reaching up, the woman removed it from the
hook it was on, then came back over and handed it to Sosie.

She frowned. “What am I supposed to do with this?”

“Put it anywhere you want Derek to kiss you, of course,”
Tracee said, giving her a wink.

Sosie blushed as she suddenly imagined all the delicious
places she wanted Derek to kiss her. She eyed the mistletoe skeptically. “Are
you sure that’ll work?”

Tracee shrugged. “It worked for you before.”

Sosie supposed the redhead was right. Even though she hadn’t
purposely lured Derek under the mistletoe as Linda seemed to think, it had
gotten him to kiss her. She would have to be more creative. Bold, too. Which
was something she’d never been with guys. But she could be if it got Derek into
bed with her. Thinking of what his hard, naked body would feel like against
hers was enough to make her moan, and she had to bite her lip as one erotic
image after another flashed through her head.

By the time the party wound down a few hours later, Sosie
was more aroused from her fantasies than she’d ever been in her life. She was
an elf in lust and nothing was going stop her from getting Derek into bed with
her tonight. She didn’t care how much of a gentleman he was, there was no way he
was sleeping on the couch again. In fact, if she had her way, he wasn’t going
to be sleeping at all.

After they got back up to his apartment, however, her
confidence faltered. But then she thought of the frustrated night she’d have
her if she didn’t proposition Derek, and how much she would regret it when she
left.

Taking a deep breath, she turned to face him. “I had a great
time at the party. It was very nice of you to invite me.”

He grinned. “I’m glad you came. I had a good time, too.”

Sosie nibbled on her lower lip. Okay, it’s now or not at
all. Time to be a bold elf. She looked up at him. “You know, I feel awful about
putting you out of your bed again. I was thinking maybe you might want to sleep
with me tonight.”

He studied her in silence, his dark eyes unreadable. Sosie
held her breath as she waited for him to say something. What if Tracee and
Linda had been wrong? What if Derek wasn’t as “into her” as they’d thought?

“If I share the bed with you, Sosie,” he said softly,
“sleeping is the last thing either of us will be doing.”

She gave him what she hoped was a flirtatious look. “Good.
Then the mistletoe won’t go to waste.”

His mouth curved into a grin at the tiny sprig of greenery
dangling from her fingers. “Mistletoe, huh?”

“I thought I could put it wherever I want you to kiss me.”

He chuckled. “Honey, you don’t need mistletoe for that. I’ve
spent the past two hours fantasizing about kissing every inch of you.”

Her pulse skipped a beat. “You have?”

“Uh-huh.”

Cupping her face in his hand, he bent his head to cover her
mouth with his. This time, there was no hesitancy in the kiss. This time, his
mouth moved over hers with an urgency that left her breathless, and she had to
cling to his shoulders to keep from melting as his tongue plunged into her
mouth to take possession of hers. It was as if he couldn’t seem to get enough
of her. The desire was mutual. She couldn’t get enough of him, either.

With a groan, Derek swung her up in his arms and strode
toward the bedroom. She’d never had a guy do something so romantic
before—mainly because she was always taller than the elf guys she’d slept
with—but she decided it was very hot.

Once beside the bed, Derek set her on the floor, letting her
slide slowly and deliciously down his body. Arms still looped around his neck,
she pulled him down for another kiss. This time, she was the aggressor, her
tongue seeking his and exploring every inch of his tasty mouth.

Derek groaned and ran his hands down her back to firmly cup
her ass through the tight jeans she wore. She murmured her appreciation against
his mouth as he pulled her more tightly against him. His erection strained
against his jeans, pressing into her belly. Mmm. Well, that answered the
question as to whether he was well built everywhere. It felt as if he had a
huge candy cane hidden in there.

Suddenly impatient to see how well built, Sosie ran her
hands down his chest to the bottom of his shirt and urgently pushed it up.
Derek must have thought she needed some help because he reached back and pulled
it over his head to toss it on the floor.

She’d thought getting a glimpse of him without a shirt last
night had been a treat, but seeing all that sculpted muscle up close was even
better. Figgy, he was gorgeous.

Eager to find out if he felt as incredible as he looked, she
reached out and slowly ran her hands over his smooth chest and down his
rock-hard stomach, then back up again. Unable to help herself, she leaned
forward and pressed her lips to his nipple. It stiffened at her touch and she
swirled her tongue around it, drawing the hard peak into her mouth to gently
suckle on it before releasing it and doing the same with its counterpart.

Above her, Derek sucked in a breath and thrust a hand into
her hair, gently bringing her head up.

“My turn,” he said huskily.

Urging her onto the bed, he found the hem of her T-shirt and
lifted it over her head. His gaze lingered on the tops of her breasts as if
mesmerized by what he saw and she felt excitement course through her as she
reached around to unclasp her red lace-trimmed bra.

Derek gazed down at her, his dark eyes seeming to smolder as
they caressed her bare breasts, and Sosie felt her nipples tingle.

“God, you’re beautiful,” he breathed.

Sosie blushed. She’d never had a guy tell her she was
beautiful, and the way Derek said it made her feel warm all over. She opened
her mouth to thank him, but the words were muffled against his mouth as he bent
to kiss her again.

Cupping her breasts in his hands, Derek gently pushed her
back onto the bed, then slowly trailed hot kisses along the curve of her jaw
and down her neck. The scruff on his face made her skin tingle and she
shivered. Elf guys didn’t often grow facial hair and when they did, it came in
all soft and wispy. But as he took one of her nipples in his mouth Sosie forgot
all about how rough Derek’s stubble felt. She gasped and arched against him,
letting out a moan as he swirled his tongue around the taut bud before taking
it in his mouth to suckle on it. She’d always had sensitive nipples, but
tonight, they seemed to be even more receptive. As he moved from that nipple to
do the same glorious thing to the other one, she decided her reaction had
nothing to do with how sensitive she was and everything to do with how good
Derek was at touching her.

Flicking his tongue over her nipple one more time, he kissed
his way down her belly until he got to the waistband of her jeans. Unbuttoning
them, he pulled them off and tossed them over his shoulder to join the rest of
the clothes already on the floor. Her tiny, red panties followed, though not as
quickly since he seemed to enjoy taking his time slowly wiggling them over her
hips. When she was completely naked, he leaned back to gaze down at her.

“I was wrong before when I said you were beautiful,” he
rasped. “You’re absolutely perfect.”

Sosie’s breath hitched. Perfect? He thought a too-tall elf
who’d spent her whole life not fitting in was perfect? She was speechless.

Not that she would have been able to say anything even if
she could have managed to find her voice because Derek kneeled down in front of
her and gently spread her legs. Sosie’s heart raced and she bit her lip to
stifle a moan. She hadn’t had that many elf guys go down on her and the ones
who had done it hadn’t been very good at it. She had a feeling it would be
different with Derek.