Mistletoe Mischief (9 page)

“Sorry.” He nipped the edge of her earlobe. His hot breath sent a delicious tremor rippling along her sensitized flesh before he moved on. “I worked a couple hours this morning before leaving to pick up Reese for school.”

“Don’t apologize, I like it.” She drank in the scent that had warmed and strengthened in the height of their passion.

He kissed his way along her jaw, so she framed his face with her hands, holding him still while she dipped her chin to capture his lips with hers. Raw desire gave way for something more tender and yet equally arousing. They pulled back at the same time, breathing deep but not labored.

Marissa stared wide-eyed at Eric’s stunned expression. An emotional connection thrummed in the air like she’d never felt before. Her chest bound so tight, drawing sufficient oxygen proved difficult, leaving behind a sensation of lightheaded intoxication that had nothing to do with the wine.

“Daad!”

Marissa blinked and dropped her arms at the same time Eric took a hasty step back.

“Moomm!” A second later Reese and Heather skidded to a stop on the workshop porch, flashlights bobbing in their hands. The two girls stared at the adults.

“Come on, Dad, when are we going to start the campfire?” Reese asked with a hint of a whine.

Marissa couldn’t make herself look away from Eric. Their severed physical connection did nothing to diminish the emotional link still hovering between them. He cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair before finally transferring his full attention to his daughter.

“Ah...how about right now?”

“Yeah! Let’s go!” Reese dashed back the way they’d come. Like the flip of a switch, she jerked to a stop and retraced her steps. Heather hadn’t even had a chance to move. Reese aimed her flashlight down and leaned over to scoop something off the floor. She shook off the sawdust. “Oh, cool! Mistletoe.”

She didn’t question where it’d come from, just held it over Heather’s head and kissed her on the cheek. The two erupted in giggles. A second later they sprinted across the lawn toward the bonfire pit. “Last one there has to kiss a toad!”

Marissa reached for her crutches before looking up at Eric, a little nervous, but mostly happier than she’d been in a very long time. He extended his arm with a smile that matched the emotions singing inside her heart. She used his strength for balance and handed him the crutches on the other side. Halfway across the yard, he halted with a snap of his fingers.

“I forgot matches.” After a glance toward the occupied girls, he dropped a quick kiss on Marissa’s lips and handed her the crutches. “I’ll be right back.”

He loped back to the house and up the porch stairs by the time Marissa reached the girls. She found a comfortable seat by the fire pit and propped her foot up to ease the throbbing.

Eric returned with a stack of newspaper, matches to light the fire, the makings for s’mores, and a patio chair cushion. The latter he arranged under Marissa’s ankle as Reese cupped her hand and whispered to Heather. When flames had engulfed the wadded newspaper to lick along surfaces of the tee-peed chunks of wood in the fire pit, Eric dragged a chair next to Marissa’s and sat down with a relaxed sigh.

Reese and Heather slithered in between the chairs and faced Eric, each of their faces wreathed in a wide grin. Heather held out her hands, cupped one on top the other. Suppressed merriment threatened to escape from the girls at any moment. Marissa knew they were up to something, but hadn’t been able to decipher any of their covert whispers.

The moment Heather lifted her top hand, a toad leapt onto Eric’s chest.

“What the—!” He jumped back in his seat, sending the girls into a fit of hysterics. By the time they’d contained themselves, he held the toad above his chest, the amphibian’s feet dangling.

It peed on him.

Marissa’s amusement burst free so hard she snorted. Then she couldn’t stop laughing for the life of her.

“Take this thing,” Eric ordered as the toad let loose a couple of frantic chirps.

Reese shook her head. “You were the last one here.”

“I—” Eric broke off with a reluctant chuckle. “Get outta here. I’m not kissing a toad.”

Reese pulled a hand from behind her back. With a triumphant grin, she held the rapidly disintegrating sprig of mistletoe over the toad. Eric gave a bark of laughter as a few pieces of sawdust fell onto his chest. He swung his head in Marissa’s direction, his expression an obvious plea for help.

She shook her head and managed to curb her mirth long enough to say, “Mistletoe rules.”

Eric looked from Marissa, to Reese, to Heather, and finally, with a sigh of resignation, at the toad. “Does she have a name?”

The toad gave three indignant sounding chirps.

“Warts is a boy,” Reese announced.

“Great.”

Marissa’s cheeks ached from her permanent grin. Eric brought the toad closer with a comical look of distaste, then laughed with the rest of them when Warts squeezed his eyes shut tight at the split-second touch of his lips.

While handing the toad back to Heather, Eric snatched the mistletoe from Reese’s grasp with his free hand. In the blink of an eye, he sat up and held it above Marissa’s head. The girls pointed and snickered but were smart enough to scamper a safe distance away.
 

“Hey!” she protested, trying to catch her breath from laughing so much.

Leaves floated down in front of her face and one berry dropped down the v-neck of her black shirt to lodge in her bra.

“I’m taking whatever I can get now that we have an audience again,” Eric warned as he leaned in for another kiss.

She halted his forward movement long enough to wipe the toad cooties from his mouth, then partook in some child-friendly mistletoe mischief with a newfound affection for Christmas in July.

Epilogue

Eric wound his way through the crowd, aiming for the garbage can to toss empty coffee and hot chocolate cups. The mall teemed with holiday shoppers and fighting his way back to his girls wasn’t exactly a walk at the zoo. But the effort was oh so worth it.

He paused to watch the three of them where they waited by the fudge shop. Whether dressed for business, or casual in jeans and a sweater like now, Marissa never failed to take his breath away. Next to her, with carbon-copy honey-blond hair and blue eyes, Heather was sure to be just as beautiful when she grew up, the lucky little girl. And Reese…well, he may be a little biased, but she was as perfect as an angel sent from heaven.

Someone bumped into him from behind. The person continued without looking up or even bothering with an apology.

“Happy Holidays,” Eric offered with a smile before resuming his trek. He’d definitely been blessed over the last five months, so he’d be the last one to act like Scrooge.

Eric stepped up behind Marissa and wrapped his arms around her to rest his chin on her shoulder. “Anyone want dessert?”

Marissa turned her head with a positive, “Mmm,” and he pressed a quick kiss to the corner of her mouth.

“Now or later?” he whispered.

“Both.”

“I’ll have a cookie, please,” Heather said.

“Daaadd,” Reese whined. “You said we could go see Santa now.” She made it sound as if getting a treat would take hours instead of only two minutes.

Eric stepped back to pull some money from his pocket. “You want a cookie or not?”

She looked at the display case full of fudge, cookies and other treats. “Yeah.”

When Eric paused and lifted his eyebrows, she corrected her response with a small smile.

“Yes, please.”

Five minutes later they took their place in the line to see Santa Claus. It didn’t take long to understand why the wait was so long, even though it was only the weekend before Thanksgiving. The mall had gone all-out on the North Pole set-up, including real trees to give off a fragrant pine scent, fake snow falling gently in the background, and most impressive, a live reindeer stalled just to the left behind St. Nick so the antlered animal would be in all the pictures.

The girls munched their cookies and found something new every couple seconds to point out to each other or their parents. Five months and it still amazed him how little the two fought, especially since in August Nina had agreed to joint custody and they now spent a lot of time together.

“So what did Mark have to say when he called earlier?” Marissa asked as they shuffled along.

“He ETS’s in two weeks and should be home a few days later.”

“ETS?”

“Sorry—military speak for expiration term of service. Once they process all the paperwork, he’ll be all set. He won’t make it for Thanksgiving, but he’ll be here for Christmas.”

“It’ll be nice to have him around more.”

“So long as he behaves,” Eric agreed, watching the kids in line ahead of them.

“Oh, come on. He’s fun to flirt with, but you know you’re the only man for me.”

“And it better stay that way,” he warned with a mock scowl.

“Always.” She lifted her face for a kiss and it took some effort to keep the affection public-friendly. The look in her blue eyes promised him sinful dessert later. “I love you.”

He threaded his fingers with hers and
 
raised her hand to his lips. “I love you, too.”

She kissed him again before leaning her head against his shoulder. As they inched along closer to the front, Eric found his attention drawn more often to the jolly, bearded man in the red velvet chair. A lady dressed as Mrs. Claus stepped over to adjust the man’s hat before the next child took a seat on his lap. She paused to kiss his rosy cheek. The two shared a loving smile, and that’s when it hit him why the man looked so familiar. A glance at the redheaded elf taking pictures cinched it.

Marissa had bent to pick up a stray mitten and when she straightened, Eric leaned close so the girls wouldn’t hear. “Recognize Santa?”

She stared for a long moment.

“Check out Mrs. Claus,” he suggested.

A smile curved her lips. “Judy.”

“Yeah. I’m glad we get to see them again.”

“Me, too.” Marissa’s grin told him they both remembered that first mistletoe kiss in Santa’s cart at the zoo.

Reese was next in line, and she scampered up to Santa to make her requests. When Heather finished her turn, Santa Butch called them both back and set one on each knee.

“Janey,” he said to the elf behind the camera, “get a picture with both these little darlin’s. Mother, come over here with us, too.”

Judy hugged Heather to her side while they all smiled for the camera. Butch winked at Eric and Marissa just before the flash. Eric nodded to Mrs. Claus as the girls slid off Santa’s lap, and then stepped forward to shake the man’s hand.

“Santa. Eric Riley—don’t know if you remember us from this past—”

“I remember, boy, I ain’t senile.”

Eric chuckled and put an arm around Marissa. “Well, then, let me formally introduce you both to my wife, Marissa Riley.”

Santa’s brows disappeared under the trim of his hat. “You don’t waste no time, do you?”

“No, Sir,” Eric said with a chuckle. Judy admired the newly acquired diamonds on Marissa’s left hand.

Heather sidled up next to Santa’s knee. “Mom and Eric got married in October. Reese and me got to be flower girls.”

Santa leaned forward, looking from one girl to the other. “And you were both beautiful.”

Their eyes widened. Reese whispered, “How’d you know?”

“Same way I know if you’ve been naughty or nice. You girls keep up the good work, you hear?”

They both nodded with wide grins.

“We’d better let you get back to work,” Marissa said, glancing back at the long line. “Thanks so much for everything. This is amazing, by the way.” She indicated the North Pole scene surrounding them.

Judy beamed with pride. “Our granddaughter Janelle set everything up.”

The short, cute photographer nodded her thanks, her red curls peeking from beneath the white trim on her green cap.

“Before we go, can I get your phone number?” Eric asked Judy. “I have a present for the two of you that I’d love to deliver before Christmas.”

Reese giggled. “Daddy, that’s backwards.”

“She’s right. I bring the presents, not the other way around,” Butch scolded. “Though, it looks like my work with you two is done fer this year.”

“Actually…” Marissa threaded her fingers with Eric’s. “Santa, I have a request.”

Butch insisted she sit on Santa’s knee. Eric gave her a smiling frown of confusion, but she just settled down without releasing his hand. Her other palm pressed against her stomach.

“We wouldn’t trade our girls for anything…” She lifted her shining blue eyes from Santa to Eric. “…but I think it’s time for a boy.”

It took a moment for her words to register. Eric’s grip slackened in shock. The camera flash jarred him from the momentary daze. He blinked toward a grinning Janelle, then focused on his wife.

“A baby? Already?” he asked in a stunned whisper.