Reese’s sudden appearance surprised me, and he must have seen me jump because he smiled softly at me and handed me a fresh cup of coffee. “Penny for your thoughts.”
I lifted the blanket and shifted my position so he could settle in between my thighs. He obeyed without a word, and soon we were tangled together under the blanket.
“I was just thinking about Christmas. I’m looking forward to it. I haven’t had a real holiday in… well, that’s not important. That was then. And you’re my now.”
Reese turned his head and stole a kiss. “You’re going to get a toothache if you get any sweeter. I’m looking forward to it too.” He settled back in against me.
For a few minutes, we just existed like that. Two men, in love, sharing a quiet cup of coffee. We tried to start as many days out here as we could. It was one of Reese’s favorite spots in the house. And I liked any part of the house he was in at that moment.
“I almost forgot to thank you, Mr. Callahan, for getting this patio built in such record time,” Reese joked, referring to our little tryst in the office a few days ago. We’d been riding the high from that role play for days now, and any reference to it never failed to make my cock hard.
“Anything for you, Mr. Callahan.” I buried my face in the curve of his neck and basked in the warmth of his skin and the way he smelled like home. Like mine.
“How much time do we have?” Reese asked, not-so-subtly grinding his ass against my cock.
“Plenty, but we’re not doing that.”
He exhaled a puff of air. “Mean.”
“You like it.” I wrapped am arm around his waist and dragged the tip of my nose gently up the curve of his neck. “Tell me about Christmas in California. What’s it like?”
“It’s about the same as anywhere, I suppose. Without the snow, of course. But you know. Christmas lights everywhere. Christmas music in all the stores. Santa hats and no fewer than ten office parties held at the bar over the last couple of weeks.”
“That sounds nice. Except for that last bit. The office parties sound atrocious.”
“They’re not so bad. At work, we usually have a betting pool going for who is going to be the person with the most regrets the next day.”
I bit back a laugh. “And how do you know who wins?”
“Believe me, you know. There’s always the one person who has a bit too much to drink and does or says something you know is going to haunt them.”
“That makes me exceedingly glad that I’ve had my own very small, very successful business for years and that I’ve never been subjected to the misery that is an office party.”
“You should come to the bar one night. They generally reserve tables, but I could always fit you in at the bar.”
“As if I’d sit anywhere else. And as if I need an excuse to watch you work.”
“I don’t get what you find so fascinating about it.”
I set my coffee aside and wound my arms around him. “It’s less the job and more about the person doing it.”
“What was Christmas in New York like?”
I should have expected the question. Reese had seldom passed up an opportunity to know more about me.
“Cold. Wet. Snowy. Loud. Most of the time, I didn’t do anything special. There’s no family to worry about spending it with. Sometimes I wasn’t even in New York for Christmas. I usually stayed in whatever city I was working in before the holiday to avoid the holiday travel rush the best I could. This will be my first real Christmas in years.”
Reese shifted around and looked at me. His brow was pinched, and his mouth was downturned into a frown.
“Don’t make that face, darling.”
“I wanted this to be your best Christmas ever because you’re with me, not because the bar is on the floor.”
“Two things can be true at the same time.” I kissed him, even though the frown never really left his face. “Now up you get. We can’t be late for breakfast with Morgan.”
“I think she mentioned shopping afterward. I’m going to warn you, Morgan is one of those people who can shop until the stores close.”
“I’ll make sure we have an exit plan. Don’t worry, love. I’ll take care of everything.”
