An excerpt from
My Christmas Surprise
by Cora West
We took the elevator, still laughing and talking, and I caught myself smiling at other guests. I was amazed at how my mood had completely turned around from the bleak outlook I’d had this morning.
At my room, Mike stayed just inside the doorway while I put the cookies on the dresser and changed my shoes. When I said I was ready to go, he didn’t turn to leave.
I tried to reach for the door handle but he was standing still, blocking my way, and he was looking toward the ceiling. “What are you doing?” I asked.
“I’m looking at the mistletoe,” he said.
“What?” I was right next to him, and I looked up to see what he was seeing. “There’s no—“ Just as I started to speak my confusion, I felt his arm wrap around me, and that same wave of comfort that I’d felt in the lobby washed over me again. I knew I’d decided I only wanted to be friends with him, but why did this feel so right?
He was looking down at me, waiting for me to look back at him. “Can we pretend there’s mistletoe?” he asked in a husky voice that made me forget all about the beach.
I hadn’t kissed anyone romantically since my husband, and I hadn't thought I'd been missing it. But being in Mike's embrace felt so right and his sexy smile was so inviting. Suddenly any reservations I may have had earlier were nowhere to be seen.
I looked deep into his eyes — they were more gold than green today — and without answering I stretched up and brought my lips to his. He returned my kiss immediately, but he was so gentle. His lips were soft and warm and perfect, and I felt those tingly first kiss thrills that I didn’t expect and wouldn’t have even imagined I’d ever have again. The excitement of having just met him and of not knowing what would happen next made me feel things I remembered feeling when I’d first dated Jason, and it was such a lovely surprise to experience those sensations again, after so many years.
Mike’s arm tightened around my waist and he tenderly rubbed my back as our kiss lengthened. He wrapped his other arm around me and I brought my hands up to his face, eager to touch him and wanting desperately to stay connected to him.
As our kiss deepened I felt his tongue brush mine and a broad swell of desire took me by surprise. It was then that I fully realized that I wanted him. I wanted more than this kiss.
As if sensing my thoughts, Mike turned me so that my back was against the door and he held me there, his body pressing into mine as we explored each other, hands running through hair, fingers touching faces, cheeks, lips.
Our breathing became ragged and heat raced from my belly down between my legs, where I was now wholly aware of Mike’s pelvis pressed up against mine. I felt his desire and I moaned against his mouth.
“We’re not going for a walk, are we?” he said as he laid a line of kisses down the side of my neck.
I let my head fall to the side, feeling his mouth light my skin on fire, then I pushed away from the door and pulled him back into the room. “No, but you’re still going to get some exercise.”
I saw the smile in his eyes as he went in for another kiss, and we half stepped, half stumbled, bodies joined together, as we made our way toward my bed.
My blankets were in disarray from the pity wallowing I’d done this morning, just a few hours ago. I couldn’t believe I was returning now and bringing a man with me to this bed, with feelings a million miles away from pity.
Desire and disbelief were leading my emotions, and when I looked at Mike as we stood right next to the bed as if standing together on the top of a cliff deciding whether to jump, I saw those same things reflected on his face.
He pulled away, just a small amount. “It feels important for me to tell you that I didn’t come over here with this in mind,” he said. “I want this, but only if you want this.”
This was my chance to come to my senses, to return to my plan of not leading him on, but I was too far gone.
“I want this,” I said, and I pulled us down together, off the cliff and into the beautiful unknown.
Cora West lives in the U.S. desert southwest where she half-heartedly fights an addiction to sweet iced coffee. She's been reading short, steamy fiction for all of her adult life, and when she realized she was making up new stories in her head, she decided to start writing them down.
.jpg)
