Their Merry Little Christmas (Love Square) (6 page)

“That sounds like a perfect plan.” Staring at the ceiling, I feel my eyelids getting heavy as we do our now routine pillow talk.

“I’m taking my parents on a tour of D.C. tomorrow. My dad wants to see the White House all decked for Christmas. This is the first time they’ve ever been here.”

“That will be fun. I have to go into the station tomorrow, but I’ll make sure I’m home for dinner.” I kiss the top of her head and close my eyes.

“I’m going to make pot roast for dinner. I figure I’ll stick it in the crockpot before we leave so that it has time to cook. I know how much you like my pot roast.”

“Hmmm… I do,” I mumble, feeling myself start to fall asleep. I love just about anything Kara makes.

“Goodnight, babe.” Kara scoots up and kisses my cheek. I turn my head and capture her lips with mine for a brief, but thorough, exploration of her mouth.

“Goodnight, Sunshine.” I tuck her into my side and sigh contentedly. It’s moments like these that I cherish the most.

Jacob

Visiting in-laws, or soon to be in-laws in my case, are the biggest cockblock I
’ve witnessed in my nearly thirty-six years of life. Let’s look back at how this last week has gone for me, shall we?

First block
– in the middle of a heated make out session, hoping you can get your girl to go a little further because she’s so into the moment, and her mom knocks on the bedroom door to ask us if we want breakfast.

Second block
– getting arguably the best head of your life and you let out a groan that is beyond your control at the time, causing your girl stop because her dad is a light sleeper and you’re being too loud.

Third block
– your girl just came with your head between her legs, and you’re in the middle of crawling up her body so you can plunge into her wet heat, when her parents choose that exact moment to have a conversation in the hall right outside your door.

All these things add up to the biggest case of blue balls I
’ve ever experienced. I feel so bad for my poor dick that I’m ready to throw him a pity party. He’s sick of my hand abusing him in the shower.

But tonight
… Tonight, I’m putting an end to this. I’m making love to my girl, and I don't care if her parents walk in the room mid-thrust. We are seeing this through start to finish this time.

Okay.
I will concede that maybe that was a little crude, but there is only so much a man can take.

I look around the room and survey my handywork. Candles lit? Check. Television turned on low enough to mute sounds but not be distracting? Check. Handcuffs secured
to the bed? Check. Scarf ready? Check. Painful erection thanks to imagining Kara sprawled out naked on the bed? Check.

The bathroom door opens and steam wafts out around Kara
’s stunningly half naked body. She’s reminiscent of an angel descending from heaven. My eyes rake over her body, starting with the hair that is pulled up in a knot on the top of her head, following down to where her nipples are poking out of her tight, white tank top, then finding her skimpy white, laced underwear, lingering around her long, slender legs and finishing with her pink painted toes. If I wasn’t hard before, I would be now. My girl is quite a fox. And the best part is, she doesn’t even realize it.

“What are you looking at?” Kara asks with a blush covering her cheeks at my scrutiny.

“You are so damn beautiful, Sunshine. You take my breath away.”

I cross the distance between us and wrap her in my arms and carry her to the bed. I lay her down gently and step back to look my fi
ll. Keeping eye contact, I push my sweatpants down my legs and kick them off. Her eyes widen, and her tongue snakes out to wet her lips.
Yeah my girl likes what she sees too.

Next I slowly lower my boxers down my legs. I palm my erection, all the while kee
ping eye contact with Kara.

“Jacob, I don’t know if we should,” she says in reaction to my forward actions. Then lower she says, “My parents are in the next room.”

I kneel on the bed and lean over her to give her a long, deep, wet kiss. Once I know her brain is thoroughly scrambled and thinking about that kiss rather than her parents, I pull her arms up over the pillows and latch the handcuffs around her each of her wrists. I sit back when she starts pulling on the cuffs.

“What the…?” She asks eyeing the metal around her wrists. “This isn’t funny. You need to undo these right now.”

I figure in for a penny, in for a pound. I grab the scarf from the night stand and wrap it around her head, covering her mouth with it. I tie it behind her head and run my fingertips over her jaw and down her neck.

Her ensuing words are muffled due to the silky material currently acting as a gag on her. Her eyes widen and fear flashes in her baby blues.

“Shhh… I won’t hurt you. You know that, Sunshine. This is for you. I want you to enjoy what I’m about to do without worrying about being loud or trying to stop it because of your parents. Let me take care of you, sweetheart.” My hands run soothingly over her bare skin in an attempt to take her mind off of being bound by me.

Once I
feel her body relax, I move my mouth lightly over her jaw and down her neck. My mouth and tongue work over her collarbone and down to her cleavage. My fingers drag the material of her tank top slowly up her torso and over her breasts, exposing her to me. I can feel her heart start to beat faster, and her breathing becomes shallow and erratic.

Taking a nipple in my mouth, I start off sucking softly, slowly increasing my pressure. All the while, my hand fondles her other breast. My thumb and forefinger pinch
and roll her nipple. Switching breasts, I continue to torment her. Loving her soft, breathy moans and the way her legs open wider, silently asking me for more.

I take my time, exploring every part of her body that I can get to. The way she writhes under
me, undulating her hips against my erection, has me wanting to speed this up. I am taking a huge chance of being interrupted by going slow, but I feel like it’s necessary. I need to do it this way. It wouldn’t feel right after everything that’s happened to Kara for me to tie her up and treat her roughly. I cherish the fact that she trusts me enough to let me take her freedom and control away. I’d never abuse that trust.

Slipping my fingers in the sides of her panties, I draw them down her leg and toss them
over my shoulder. I nuzzle the soft curls between her legs and inhale the scent of her arousal. My dick throbs wanting to be buried deep inside her. But instead of listening to it, I swipe my tongue through her folds and taste Kara’s sweetness. As my tongue circles her clit, I work first one, then two fingers inside her. Looking up at her face and seeing the rapture she’s caught up in, has me almost coming as I press my cock into the bed, needing the friction to take the edge off my need.

When her muscles s
pasm and her orgasm rolls through her, I gently continue working between her legs, bringing her down. Truth be told, I can’t get enough of the sweet taste. I could spend days between her legs if given the chance.

I move up the bed and settle my weight on K
ara. My hands run gently over her body before setting on either side of her head.

“Kara, I need you so damn bad,” I whisper against her mouth.

When her eyes open at my words, I slowly slide into her and connect our bodies the way our hearts are already connected.

We rock together, enjoying the passion that we share as our bodies seek out the ultimate crescendo. Looking into her eyes, I feel her warmth blanket me, putting me at peace and wrapping me up in a cocoon of her love. This right here is what it
’s all about folks. Being connected to someone. Being part of them – mind, body and soul. It’s hard to describe the utter feeling of rightness when it happens. It just is. And what it is, is perfection.

Only wh
en her climax takes over, does Kara break eye contact. Her head falls back, and her eyes roll into her head. Her back and neck arches, and a low moan is stifled by her gag. Her whole body twitches and convulses with the force of her release. A few moments later, I join her and come deep inside her.

My forehead rests on hers, and I find myself panting, not from exertion but from the overwhelming need to crawl inside her and stay there forever.

Quickly undoing the cuffs and removing the gag, I then wrap Kara up in my arms and knead her arm muscles to get blood flowing back to them. Lying on the bed, our legs are wrapped around each other, and her head rests on my chest.

“I love you,” she whispers and the corners of my mouth tip up into a grin.

“I love you too, Sunshine. Thank you for letting me do that. It’s humbling how much you trust me.”

“I could never not trust you, babe. Always.”

I roll over her, pressing her back into the bed. “Marry me.” The words leave my mouth before I even realize what I’m saying.

“I thought I was,” Kara says with a look of confusion on her face.

A thought enters my brain, and at first I go to dismiss it, but then I think it just might be brilliant. Our families are going to be all together. Why not?

“No. I mean now. Soon. I want you to be my wife. Screw the big, fancy wedding. My family is here. Your parents are here. Let’s get married right after Christmas.” A huge smile takes over my face because the very thought that she will be my wife makes me downright giddy. And I don’t care if that means a hit to my masculinity, because I am, in fact, bursting with giddiness right now.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” I ask, wanting to make sure we are both on the same page.

“Yes. You know how much I hate being the center of attention. I just about ran out on Brad and Sophie’s wedding. The last thing I’d want to do is leave you standing at the altar looking like a chump,” she jokes, and I feign being insulted.

“A chump, huh?” I ask as my fingers dig into her sides. Her body wriggles and she snorts with laughter as I continue to tickle her.

“Okay, okay! I give! You are so not a chump!” She recalls her earlier statement and swats at my arm playfully.

“What am I then? A sex god? Your master? The most kick ass, awesome man you’ve ever laid eyes on?” I could go on and on, but really what’s the point? I know I’m all those things to her already.

“Don’t make me answer that.” When I don’t let her off the hook, she begs. “Please.”

Her bottom lip sticks out in a pout and her eyes blink up at me endearingly. She knows that
little innocent look of hers does me in every time. It’s the best way for her to get whatever she wants out of me.

“Fine… So, we’re doing this? In just a few days, you’ll be Mrs. Jacob Matthews?” I ask, slightly stunned by the fact that this is actually happening, and I didn’t even need to persuade her.

“Mrs. Jacob Matthews,” she echoes with a wistful sigh. “It sounds perfect.”

I kiss the tip of her nose and snuggle into her, like the big mush that she makes me.
“That it does.”

Sam

I walk triumphantly out of Toys ‘R Us, pushing Tessa’s stroller. I got the damn Elmo alright. I might have had to be a little underhanded to do it, but I got it. The bitch deserved it anyhow.

“You stole her Elmo?” Michelle asks in between laughs.

“Well, technically. When the clerk put the dolls on the shelf, the women there descended like vultures. I had to push Tessa towards the side so she didn’t get hurt in the stampede and when I reached for the last one, that witch grabbed it from my hand.” I cradle my cell phone between my chin and shoulder as I situate my packages in the stroller.

“Was it actually in your hands or was it still on the shelf?” Michelle asks with a serious tone to her voice.

“What difference does it make?” I reply, while walking down the strip mall towards the photography studio, where I parked my Tahoe. After I drop off these bags in the car, I need to pick up the last of Aiden’s gifts.

“It makes a big difference actually. If it was off the shelf and fully in your hands, then she stole it from you. But if the box was still resting on the shelf and you both grabbed it at the same time, then it was ‘may the best woman win’ territory.”

“I don’t really know,” I grumble, pissed that if what she says is true, then I probably shouldn’t have chased the woman down and stolen the Elmo out of her cart when she wasn’t looking.

“Oh my God! You are such a bitch! You stole that poor woman’s Christmas present!” Michelle hoots into the phone, knowing full well what my silence says.

“I… I have to call you back…” My voice stutters and trails off as I hang up the phone on Michelle. It immediately starts ringing so I push the button to send her straight to voicemail.

I watch in astonishment as Jacob and a redheaded beauty walk hand-in-hand down the stri
p. His eyes are shining and happy as he tugs on her arm to stop her forward progression. He reaches up and tucks her hair behind her ear, before leaning down and brushing his lips against hers. The woman leans into him, placing her hand on his chest and curling her fingers into the lapel of his jacket.

My steps falter, and tears prick the back of my eyes. My heart begins to break at the sight of the two of them. It
’s not that I want Jacob for myself. I’m happy and in love with Aiden. It’s just a total shock to see him so obscenely happy. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look the way he does now, as I watch him whisper into her ear.

They start walking again, right towards me. But I
’m still stuck in place, grieving over the loss of a love that it turns out, I never really had.

When I realize that there is nowhere for me to hide, I begin to panic. I don
’t know if I can handle seeing them together. The very thought of meeting this mystery woman, scares me.

It
’s been at least a year and a half since I saw Jacob last. I sent him away after learning about Aiden and Brooke’s deceit, and the difference is night and day. I wanted him to find a woman who would make him happy, I just didn’t realize that I never actually made him happy. Not even one iota as much as this person does. It’s plain to see.

Jacob is visibly startled when he sees me standing in the middle of the sidewalk, staring. He looks worriedly at the redhead, before walking over to me.

“Hi, Sam. I’d like to introduce you to Kara,” he says, wrapping his arm around Kara’s waist. “Kara, this is Sam.”

Kara gives me a tight lipped smile before extending her arm to shake my hand. I mentally note that she has a nice handshake. I can
’t stand women with limp handshakes.

“She’s gotten big,” Jacob notes, gesturing to Tessa in her stroller.

“She’s almost two years old now. It feels like yesterday that she was placed in my arms for the first time,” I say wistfully.

“Sam, is this your daughter?” Kara asks while giving Tessa a genuine smile.

“It is. Say hi, Tessa.”

“Hi,” Tessa’s little voice squeaks out, and Kara bends her knees and squats in front of the stroller to talk to her.

“How are you?” Jacob’s deep voice shakes my very core. I turn my attention to him, seeing how he is studying me intently.

“I’m really good. How are you?”

He glances at Kara with a soft look and then turns back to me. “I’m really good too.”

“You look happy and settled,” I say softly, trying to keep our conversation as quiet as possible.

He nods his head and gives me a small smile. His green eyes are soft and warm.

God, I
’ve missed him. I wish things had gone differently between us and that we could have been friends.

“So how did you and Kara meet?” I ask when Kara stands back up and steps closer to Jacob’s side.

“She was Brooke’s friend actually.” Jacob clears his throat and looks uncomfortably between the two of us. Hearing her name is like splashing me with cold water and bringing me back to reality. So many things I wish I could change.

How strange it must have been for them since she was Brooke
’s friend. I wonder how that whole thing came about. She doesn’t look like she is as evil as Brooke. One look at Brooke and you would have sworn you were facing Medusa herself and feared that you would turn to stone. But Kara looks like she might have been an angel just sent down from heaven. Complete opposite to Brooke in every way.

“I’m really sorry about your friend,” I offer my condolences to her. Even if I hate Brooke with a passion, Kara obviously would have cared about her.

Kara smiles back, and I’m mesmerized by how beautiful she is. If there was ever a doubt in my mind why Jacob would want to be with her, I wouldn’t have it any longer after seeing her face unguarded.

“Thank you. I know this is awkward for all of us, but you have a beautiful daughter and I’m really glad that I finally got a chance to meet you,” Kara says shyly and links her hand with Jacob’s. It’s clearly a show of support, and my heart squeezes for him. Instead of making this harder on him, she’s trying to make it easier. He found someone to soothe him, and it is obvious that they are meant to be together.

“I’m so happy for the two of you…” My words die off when I notice the sparkler on her left hand. “And it looks like a congratulations is in order.”

Kara looks at her hand and smil
es. “Yes, thank you.”

Jacob and her exchange a small, knowing look, and I feel the tears welling up in my eyes. I need to get out of here before these damn hormones take over, and I make a blubbering mess out of myself. I blink a few times to clear my eyes
.

“I better get going. I have to finish picking some stuff up before Tessa’s nap. It was really good to see you. Both of you,” I finish with a smile of my own.

Jacob lets go of Kara’s hand and reaches out to hug me. At first, I’m taken aback by his show of affection, but I quickly shake it off and hug him back. In the back of my mind, I know it must be hard for Kara to watch us, but this moment is truly about us saying goodbye to each other. It’s us fully letting go of the past and all the mistakes that went along with it.

“Take care,” he whispers in my ear, before stepping back and leading Kara away.

I stand on the sidewalk and watch them walk into a jewelry store, before hustling to my car. When I get to the car, I sag against the side and breathe deeply in an attempt to calm my riotous emotions. I’m so damn happy for Jacob, and I finally feel like that part of my life is where it should be.

***

Kara

Walking into the jewelry store to pick out our wedding rings, Jacob puts his hand on my lower back and leads me to the counter.

“Good afternoon. What can I help you with?” The nice, older lady asks from behind the counter.

“We’re looking for wedding bands,” Jacob answers her, never taking his hand from my back. I’m not sure how he knows I need the contact, especially after seeing his ex, but I’m grateful that he does.

What are the chances we run into Samantha on our way to pick out wedding bands? Seriously.

“Anything in particular? Yellow gold, white gold, platinum, titanium?” The lady moves over to a display case, and we follow.

“Platinum for her and I guess titanium for me,” Jacob shrugs. He is such a man. I know he doesn’t care what goes on his finger as long as it’s manly and doesn’t turn his finger green. He told me so just last night after we decided to move up our wedding.

“Of course. Let me see your engagement ring, dear.”

I hold my left hand out while she fingers the ring.

“I have a few ideas. If you don’t mind waiting a few moments, I can pull together some rings for you two to look at.”

We both a
gree and she scurries away, leaving us alone in the storeroom.

Jacob turns to me with concern in his eyes. I can see they are sharply focused and intently studying me. Sheesh. I
’m not some weak flower that’s going to wilt just because we saw Samantha. Sure, I could have gone the rest of my life without ever
actually
meeting her, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious to see what she looked like and how the two of them would interact with each other.

“Are you okay with that whole scene back there?” He asks while gesturing towards the sidewalk outside.

“I’m fine. I wasn’t lying when I said I was glad to finally get a chance to meet her. And her daughter is absolutely gorgeous.”

“She is. I was afraid you were going to be upset seeing Sam. Especially given our history and what you thought about her and I before.”

“Jacob, please. You don’t need to worry about me. The past is in the past. You told me you were over her and I know you love me, so I’m good. We’re good.” I reassure him and wrap my arms around his waist.

“I do love you, Sunshine. You’re it for me. My beginning and my ending.” He reciprocates my hold and kisses me lightly on the mouth.

“Good. That’s all I need to know. So, I’m assuming you’re okay with the fact that
you
just saw Samantha?”

“More than okay, actually. Sometimes I still feel a little guilty about everything that happened between us. It was nice to see her and know that she’s doing well. I feel like I can finally let the guilt go and know that she’s going to have the future she deserves. Almost like closure.”

“That’s a good way to look at it.”

The lady rejoins us at the counter with multiple black velvet ring holders and my b
reath catches at all the stunning rings. How the hell am I going to pick one?

We spend the next hour looking at each one. Jacob quickly picks out a simple, wide banded, silver tungsten carbide ring with beveled edges. I, on the other hand, am having serio
us issues deciding. I might not care about the big wedding with a frilly, frou frou gown and tons of flowers, but I do care about my wedding band. I always assumed that once I saw the one, I’d know it right away. But right now, I’m suffering from a major case of indecisiveness.

“Don’t see the one you want?” Jacob finally asks after I’ve tried on what feels like a hundred rings.

I feel my emotions getting the better of me, when I turn to him with tear filled eyes. I shake my head and give him a sad smile. I feel bad making him stand here, but I can’t make up my mind and this is too big of a decision to not be sure. It’s a lot of pressure.

“Hey. Don’t worry about it. We’ll find you the one.” He pulls me in for a comforting hug and kisses my hair.

“We’re getting married in just a few days. I have to pick one,” I practically whine into his chest.

Jacob loosens his hold on me and turns to the lady, still keeping me tucked into his side.

“Do you have any other ones we can look at?”

“We do, sir. I have one that I think would be perfect for her, but it’s rather expensive,” she replies, referring to the price range we originally gave her.

“No. That’s quite alright,” I say quickly.

“Price isn’t a factor,” Jacob speaks at the same time.

The lady looks at us, unsure of which one of us she should listen to.

“I’ll just pick one of these,” I speak up.

“You will not. Kara, I want you to have the perfect ring. I don’t care how much it costs. You’re worth it. This ring is going to sit on your finger for the rest of your life. It has to be perfect. No ifs and or buts about it.” He looks back at the lady and says, “Please go get us more to look at.”

God, he
’s so wonderful.

“I hate the thought of you spending too much money on this,” I grumble under my breath.

“What good is money if I can’t spend it on you and, sooner rather than later, our kids? Now stop complaining.”

I guess that conversation is closed.

The woman returns with one ring and the world seems to stop when I pick it up to look at it. I have tunnel vision right now.

The antique band is contoured to fit with a ring similar to mine. It
’s set with pave diamonds and sapphires and is breathtaking. Surprisingly, it is the perfect complement to my engagement ring. I didn’t think that was possible.