Sleighing Her Elf (Operation Reindeer Retreival Book 3) (2 page)

His body jerked, warmed, and he put his hands on her hips. He returned her kiss with interest, and she slowly pulled back.

Her voice was husky as she murmured, “Your soup is ready, and I will get you some more tea.”

“What did you just do?”

She climbed off him and backed away, “I am pretty sure you know what a kiss is.”

“Not that. The magic.”

“Oh. Didn’t we go over that already?” She scowled.

He looked at her with glazed eyes. “Did we?”

She hissed and got the soup, looked around and strained it into a watering pot. First, she was going to warm his core, then she would have to put him in her bed again.

When she approached him, he looked at her with wary eyes. “What is that?”

“Chicken broth. You need warming up, and apparently, you are resistant to my magic.”

“From a watering can?”

“Your hands are shaking too hard to hold a spoon. Now, open up.”

She spent twenty minutes getting warm liquids into him and then carefully manoeuvered him out of the chair and back into bed.

He was awake enough to wrap her in his arms and hold her close. She didn’t even have a chance to get her clothing off.

Merkoss settled against her and breathed deeply and slowly.

Penny gave up on her planned evening and let the even rhythm take her into sleep.

She woke several times when he was shaking in her arms, but a quick check on him and another blanket, he settled. When dawn finally approached, she settled her back against him, and he wrapped her in his arms.

He was aroused again, but his shivering had stopped. The arm around her glowed with warmth, and she was able to finally rest properly, knowing that she didn’t need to be on alert for his having a seizure due to cold was enough for her to actually get some proper rest.

Penny sighed and grabbed her favourite pillow, pulling it to her face and snuggling in. She might only get an hour of solid sleep, but that was all she needed.

Penny woke when she smelled bacon. She sat up and looked around. The other side of the bed was empty.

Merkoss came into the bedroom wearing only his jeans and carrying a tray.

She looked and winced. “Damn, I forgot to put your stuff in the dryer.”

“I figured it out.” He grinned. “I have made you breakfast.”

“Thank you, but you didn’t have to.”

“It is the least I can do considering that I stole a night’s sleep from you.”

“I should have realized that you were nearly frozen through.” She scooted up in bed, and he put the tray across her knees. It was a lovely gesture, but she had to pee.

She sighed and looked down at the bacon and egg smiley face. It was impossible not to grin back.

“Thank you for breakfast.”

“Thank you for my life. I don’t know why the magic sent me there, or how long I was in that casing, but I am glad you got me loose.”

She pierced the eyes of the happy face and dipped the bacon in the yolks. “I am glad I didn’t hit you square on.”

“I am glad of the same.” He winked and sat near her feet. “So, what did you have planned for today?”

She swallowed and frowned. “I just wanted to go for a walk and enjoy the daylight and snow. I am soon going to be back on the night shift, and I will miss the feel of the cold of the snow mixing with the heat of the sun.”

“We should do that then.”

Penny chuckled. “You are barely warmed up. I don’t think you really want to head back into the cold.”

“For you, I would gladly do it.”

She shook her head. “I can easily rearrange my schedule for a final day of watching movies and eating popcorn. I can’t do those things back at the workshop either.”

“You would do that?”

“Of course. You are here and that was not in my plans, so the plans will change.” She crunched through the bacon and eradicated the rest of the eggs.

Merkoss took her tray away, which left Penny free to get up and take a shower.

She enjoyed the feeling of heat on her skin before drying off and wrapping herself in a soft cotton robe.

Her last day in the human world was going to be spent comfy.

She wandered into the living room, and her DVD collection had been arranged in front of the television.

Merkoss smiled and sat back. “I have not seen most of these.”

She chuckled. “Is the popcorn on standby?”

“Of course.”

She reached in and arranged a stack of her favourites. “Then, let’s begin.”

He had made tea and set it on the coffee table, and as she put the first movie into the machine, she glanced back and he was sitting in the chair.

Penny sighed. “You are never going to seduce me from over there.”

Merkoss blinked. “I did not want to infringe on your personal space.”

She grinned. “I have as much personal space as I want at the workshop. I need companionship today. It is the biggest thing that is missing for all of us.”

He got up and moved to the couch. “And yet, you have chosen a solitary occupation.”

She got up and grabbed the remote control, settling next to him on the couch and leaning against his shoulder. She started the action comedy and relaxed with another being in her personal space.

By the end of the first movie, his arm was around her and she was tucked against his chest. She sighed and moved away from him, putting the DVD away before tucking the next one into the machine.

“This time, it is a comedy.”

She scooted around the coffee table, and she settled against him again. He put his arm around her, and he rested his chin on her head.

“So, Merkoss, what do you do at the workshop?”

He sighed. “I am an auditor. I take a look at the reports that the others bring in, and I make recommendations to determine whether the children are naughty or nice. I take those recommendations to Santa, and he approves them or not.”

“Do you get out a lot?” She turned her head to look at him.

“Only when necessary. Two months out of the year are spent clarifying the decisions of the watchers.”

“That is still more than me.” She smiled.

Over the next half hour, she focused on him, on his body, the smells, the heat coming from his skin. She finally whispered, “So, when are you going to get around to seducing me?”

He blinked. “I was waiting for the romantic comedy.”

She smiled, “Okay. That’s up next. No pressure.”

“I will be ready for it.” He lifted one of her hands to his mouth, and he pressed his lips to her wrist.

She smiled and shifted closer to him as the movie continued to play out.

With her blatant permission expressed, he slid his hand into her robe, and cupped her breast as they continued to watch the movie.

She settled into his embrace, and when the movie was done, she felt cold. Every place that his hands had touched now wanted him back. She wanted to steal his heat and that in itself was a little odd. She normally put out more heat than she could use.

Her hands shook as she flipped the DVDs, and when the romantic comedy started up, she walked back to the couch and untied the robe.

Merkoss smiled, and she settled against him, but he pulled her across his lap. She looked at him, and he took the remote, setting it down on the coffee table.

The first kiss was sweet, and it rapidly changed to a roiling heat.

She twisted in his arms and wrapped her hands around his neck.

He moved his hands into her robe, and he stroked her skin with long, even pressure of his fingers, waking her nerves and sending his own particular energy into her.

She had no idea what he was doing until he found a spot just over her hip, and he ran his finger over the small patch.

Her nipples tightened, she felt a surge of liquid between her thighs and her breath caught.

“What the hell was that?”

He chuckled and pressed his lips to her neck. “I find the truth of things and make decisions.”

She wasn’t quite sure what that meant until he pressed his fingers along her spine and she arched toward him with a thud. He made a slight exhalation as she relaxed a bit, and he smirked at her. “Like that.”

Penny cleared her throat. “That is an interesting skill. How did you come by it?”

He grinned. “Years of practice.”

She leaned against his chest. “Hooray for practice.”

On the screen, the heroine had just met the hero in a ridiculous way. Penny didn’t really care.

She pressed her breasts against him and shifted slightly, dragging her skin across his.

He sighed and stroked his fingers down her back to tease the spot he had just applied pressure to.

His kiss was sweet, and she moaned into his mouth as that spot sparked a cascade of sensation that made her shake.

He took his time waking her, moving her in his lap until her robe was on the floor and she was straddling him. He bit at her lips, and she responded in kind.

Writhing on him took her past the heroine realizing that the man of her dreams might be the guy in front of her. Penny had to smile at her split attention, but she was a girl after all. She could multitask.

Finally, she sat up and started to work on his jeans. The button fought her for a moment, but she calmed and eased it free. The zipper went down with deliberate care. Males tended to get fussy if the zipper was too quick.

She slid her hand into the fabric, and the thick column of his cock sprang free. Penny didn’t think she would ever get used to that. It was always sudden, like a perverse jack-in-the-box.

When his cock was free, she pressed a soft kiss to the head, lapping at the creamy salt emerging from the tip. She had always been a fan of the salt
lick.

He groaned and arched his hips to coax her to take him deeper. She obliged with a few long sucks and then moved up his body, licking a trail from his groin up his chest.

When she got to his neck, she bit him gently and then not so gently. His grunt and the firm grip of his hands on her hips made her smile as she released him.

He murmured, “Do it again.”

She switched sides and bit down again with careful control.

He reached between her thighs and pressed two fingers into her. His digits went in easily, and he quickly replaced his hand with his cock. The wide head pressed against her, and he gripped her hips to pull her onto him in short, controlled presses that brought him into her completely.

She closed her eyes and focused on the feeling of him inside her. Humans were heat, but it faded quickly. Merkoss felt like coal. He was lighting slowly, but he would burn a long time.

She smiled, then she began to ride him. Her hips moved in slow and steady beats to the sound of her own heart. His heart was faster, but she chose her own as counterpoint. He could pick when he was on top.

Penny no sooner thought of her smug position than he flipped her and pinned her to her own couch.

She draped one leg over the back of the couch and wrapped the other around him as he used his own heartbeat for the rhythm. Her body soon caught up.

She bucked against him, looking for more contact, more pressure, just more.

She clawed at his shoulders, and he pinned her hands above her head. He paused and lifted her legs until they were draped over his shoulders and pinned her hands again. The new position drove him deep, and she grunted with the impact of each inward thrust.

She felt a glow take over her skin, and her horns sprouted into short protrusions. She whined and gripped his hands with hers, bucking to bring her to release.

She could barely move in the pinned position, but finally, she moved just enough to send her over. The noise she made wasn’t human, but neither was her lover.

He released her hands and reached under her to press that spot on her spine.

The pulses of release burst into flame, and she heard herself shout again. She clawed at his shoulders and smelled blood. He jerked forward, and his hips slammed into her with harsh repetition before he groaned and collapsed on her.

She was exceedingly glad that whoever had furnished her home had a comfortable and wide couch.

Merkoss had his head in the crook of her neck, and it was when she felt his lips curling in a smile that she knew she hadn’t killed him. The heat she had given him had been paid back, with interest.

“Can you let my legs go now? This is getting less than comfortable.”

He chuckled and slowly lowered her legs. He also moved out of her, which made getting the feeling back in her legs a lot easier.

She smiled as he grunted and squirmed with her until they were spooned together and watching the comical end of the film.

“That is going to be a nice memory until I get the nerve up to escape again.” Penny smiled.

He held onto her with his arm around her belly. “This is where I have news for you. I would like permission to court you when we return to the workshop.”

She twisted until she could see his expression. “Are you kidding?”

“No. Despite what you may think of us elves, we choose our lovers carefully. Well, I do at any rate. I have seen you returning from your annual rounds and been awestruck at the grace and strength that you have exhibited as you were led to the stables. You must have been exhausted, but you held your head high.”

She chuckled. “Reindeer have stamina. Under normal circumstances, we can go all night.”

“Well, with your big day looming, we should leave that for another night.”

Penny sighed. The credits were rolling on the film. She should get up and change the disks, but she was content where she was.

Merkoss pressed a kiss to her shoulder, and the DVDs moved. The machine ejected the romance and the case floated up to catch it.

Penny was startled. “You can move things with your mind?”

“Sometimes it is necessary. I can only shift inanimate objects, but it does help with the filing.”

The next movie was more action, and her DVDs settled themselves neatly as he continued to hold her.

She lifted her hand to her head, and to her relief, the horns were gone.

“Are your horns out at the workshop?”

She nodded. “Usually. We don’t bother with human seeming when we don’t have to, just like you guys.”