NathanWhen Holly said she was a teacher, he’d assumed private tutor or possibly college professor. He didn’t expect her to actually be a public school teacher, let alone the one he was giving an award to. He hadn’t paid any attention to the name of the recipient for tonight’s award. He never did. He learned it two seconds before the speech and promptly forgot it once the applause came.He wouldn’t be forgetting the name this time.He took his seat next to her, sipping on champagne and excited about the evening. This award just became a lot more fun.“So you’re Nathan Reed?” she asked him. Her green eyes held a touch of concern, as if she were no longer certain of him.“The one and only,” he replied.She looked like she was about to say something, but their food arrived. He was still full from lunch, so he didn’t plan on eating much. He looked over to see Holly had her fork and knife ready, but pausing at the plate.She set her fork down and turned to face him. Her brow was serious an
HollyThe kiss started slow and sweet. It was just his lips pressed against hers, but then his fingers came to her face and she wanted more.A lot more.Her hand went to his neck, pulling him into her. Her fingertips played with the bottom of his hair. He pulled back, her eyes still closed. He smelled of a masculine soap that made her breathe him in as deep as she could.The crowd disappeared from her mind. The band’s music faded, and the laughter receded until all she heard was the sound of her own heartbeat and Nathan’s soft breathing.Slowly, she opened her eyes, looking up and into his handsome face. His cheeks were flushed as if he’d been running in the cold. She could feel his breathing come hard and fast. His eyes were dark, pupils wide and not just because of the dim candlelight.Apparently he wasn’t the only one experiencing the flush of a mistletoe kiss.She kissed him this time. Pulling her into him and wrapping her arm around his neck. There was no stubble against her chee
HollyThe intense and sudden jolt of desire caught her breath. Every fiber in her being said she was doing the right thing. There was lust and desire, yet something else too. Something deeper and sweeter than just the physical.She didn't stop to think about or analyze the feeling. She just let her body take control. She let her brain stop worrying and fretting. She let herself have fun.Her hand went to his shirt, nimbly unbuttoning the shiny white buttons. She was surprised to see she didn't shake, even though her whole body was vibrating with need. She tugged at his shirt and he shrugged out of it, barely breaking the kiss in the process.Then, with a smooth motion, he lifted the hem of his undershirt up and over his head, giving her bare skin. She whimpered, her hands splaying against the strong muscles of his chest and abs. There was just enough hair to make him masculine, but not so much to make her think of a beast. The heat of his body through her fingers drove her wild.She f
NathanNathan woke to the soft sound of snoring.He opened one eye, and found the most beautiful woman in the world sleeping next to him. Her head had fallen off the pillow, but her arm was draped across his chest. He smiled, watching her sleep for a moment.He still couldn’t believe this was real. The connection. The way she made him feel. It was like fireworks going off inside of him the moment he touched her. He felt like a sixteen-year-old boy, unable to contain his unending enthusiasm for her. Luckily, he managed to perform better than a sixteen-year-old boy.Not to mention, he’d felt this attraction before she knew who he was. That almost kiss after the snowball fight told him that she’d wanted him even then. For the first time in a long time, he felt confident that she wasn’t just interested in him for his money.She actually liked him. That alone made her precious to him.She murmured in her sleep, moving closer to him. The sheet fell from her chest, exposing one perfect breas
HollyWhen Nathan said that he had a private pool, Holly had assumed it would be something like a hot tub near the main pool, maybe slightly enclosed or with some potted plants making it more private.She was wrong.It was a private pool that was very private.The resort’s hot-spring river started at the base of the mountain and ended at the big swimming pool just outside the main building. A steaming creek meandered around the property with small ponds branching off at various locations as it snaked down toward the main pool. There were bigger public pools for up to ten people, and smaller quiet pools that fit three or four. Trees and bushes helped create the illusion that there was lots of space between the pools and gave some privacy. The best pools were gated off from the others, but the very best were hidden.Nathan’s was one of the hidden pools. If she hadn’t seen him open the gate, she would have thought it was just another line of evergreen trees and not a separate area. Inste
NathanNathan had always loved this pool. It wasn't just that he beat Graham to it, although that did make it sweeter. There was a peacefulness to this pool. A quiet. He felt serene and comfortable here. He'd spent many hours in this particular place, watching the sky and the water.Today, it became cemented as his favorite place in the whole world.And it was all because of Holly.He'd loved watching her strip down to her cute little bikini. She seemed shy and slightly unsure of her body, but he found her absolutely stunning. She had curves. She was human and there wasn't a piece of plastic in her. It was a nice change from the Barbie-doll like women he'd found in California.And then she took off her top and he forgot everything.“Wow,” he whispered, his eyes staring at the beauty in the water.Holly grinned, looking sexy as hell.“Do you have any idea what you do to me?” he asked her, moving his hands through the water to cup her breasts. She was so soft under his fingers that he n
HollyShe floated in the warm water, turning slightly as the current moved through the pool. Hot water flowed from the base of the mountain into the various pools. It then collected and made its way to the main pool before disappearing into a mountain stream. The effect was that there was always a slight current through the pools, keeping the clean water flowing.She felt ridiculously light and happy. Beside her, Nathan floated as well, their bodies touching, then floating apart, then touching again. They floated in comfortable silence. Holly remembered her parents having the same kind of easy silence as they read together.Just being in the same space made them happy. They didn’t have to talk or be funny. They didn’t have to perform. Just the act of existing was enough to make the other content. She’d never understood just how wonderfully peaceful it could be until now.A large snowflake melted directly on her forehead and the water ran into her eyes. That was the only thing that aff
Merryweather“She's going to leave,” Flora said, frowning at the sky. “Maybe we should make more snow.”Merryweather sighed. “We can't make more snow,” she told her sister. “And it's okay that she leaves. We just need to make sure that he chases her.”Flora's frown slowly faded. “And you have a plan?”“Do I have a plan?” Merryweather scoffed. “Dear sister, I always have a plan.”Flora snorted.“Fine. This time I have a plan,” Merryweather replied, ignoring her sister’s eye roll. “I have a wonderful Christmas-inspired plan.”NathanNathan wished the night would go on forever. He wished that the dawn would never come. If he had the power, he would have frozen time so that he and Holly could stay in this moment forever.But, he had money, not power over time, and dawn came as expected.He lay in bed, his eyes closed against the sunlight, his arms wrapped tightly around the woman of his dreams. He didn’t know how she did it, but she just got better and better.They’d talked all night when
NathanThe walk up the small flight of stairs to Mark’s office was the longest one of Nathan’s life. He could feel Holly’s hand in his, but he still had to keep looking back and making sure she was real.They stepped into the office, and Holly closed the door behind her.“Are you really here?” she asked, a hint of fear in her voice and eyes. “I thought you said you didn’t think this was going to work.”“It wasn’t the way things were,” he told her. “But, I made changes. I hope I haven’t missed my chance.”“No.” She shook her head and smiled. “You haven’t missed it. But I need to know you aren’t going to leave again. That we’re not just going to end up in the same place as before.”Nathan reached into the back pocket of his Santa costume and pulled out a piece of heavy paper. He handed it to her.“This says you’re the owner of Elements Computer Technologies,” Holly said, reading the paper. She looked up at him still confused. “I thought you were always the owner.”“No. Paradigm was the
HollyHolly didn’t want to open her eyes. She had the covers pulled up around her chin and her body was comfortably warm, but her face was cold. If she opened her eyes, that meant it was morning.And for the first time in her life, she didn’t want it to be Christmas morning.Her phone began to buzz, telling her that it was almost time to leave. She had to be at the store an hour before the party to get everything set up.With a groan, she sat up, swung her feet out of bed, and immediately regretted the decision. Her apartment was freezing. Even with socks on, her feet were cold on the floor. She hurried to the bathroom, changing her clothes as quickly as possible before the cold could set in.Luckily, she’d had enough water that she wasn’t too hung over. Just a mild headache and she didn’t want any breakfast.She grabbed her things and paused at the small Christmas tree in her living room. Three presents sat under it. There was the big, bulky Christmas present for her father, a handma
HollyHolly sat before a roaring fire, watching the flames jump and dance around a yule log. She wondered if it would be appropriate to put another shot of rum in her hot cocoa or if three was already too many.She wanted to feel happy. It was Christmas Eve. She was warm and full of good food. Her father had made his famous pot roast and she’d eaten enough mashed potatoes that she was probably at least fifty percent potato herself. There would soon be presents and cookies.There was every reason to be happy and content. But, all she could think about was Nathan.So, she sat on the floor in front of the fire and drank rum.It was her annual place to sit on Christmas Eve. Holly and Mark had already watched the old Claymation version of Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Now they would exchange books as was their tradition.When Holly was a little girl, they used to do this every year. Her mother would pick out an educational book with beautiful pictures for her. One year, she got an encyclo
Nathan“Mr. Reed?” a soft feminine voice asked at Nathan’s office door. “I have some files for you. May I come in?”“Sure,” Nathan said, motioning forward. He was glad for the distraction. No matter what he did, he couldn’t seem to be able to focus on work. His heart just wasn’t in it.The woman came in with a stack of files in her petite hands. She wore a black pant suit with a soft, pale green undershirt that brought out the light green color of her eyes. He wasn’t sure what her age was. Her hair was so blonde it appeared to be almost silver against the black of her jacket.“Why are you delivering files?” he asked as she set down the folder on his desk. “The mail-room usually handles that.”“I’m an intern,” she explained. “And since it’s Christmas Eve, there just isn’t a lot to do right now. My boss said to find something to do.”“What’s your name?” he asked her. Now that she was here, he found he liked having some company and didn’t want her to leave just yet. The office was too qu
Holly“There,” Holly whispered, carefully placing the last piece of tape.She smiled at her work. The wrapping paper was neatly folded around the corners and she’d even made the tape look nice. She wrote Nathan’s name in neat print on the corner. It was possibly the best wrapping she’d ever done on a present.It was just a copy of A Christmas Carol, but it seemed like the perfect Christmas Eve present for Nathan. She’d agonized over which book to get him for the Christmas Eve tradition, but had finally settled on this one.It was tradition in her family to gift a book on Christmas eve. She was excited to share this tradition with Nathan. She was excited to share everything with him.Life was good. She tucked the book under the small tree in her apartment next to the other gift she’d picked out for him. It was just a t-shirt with the name of the town and a printed mountain background. It wasn’t much, but she thought he would like it since he was moving his company here. It felt like a
NathanNathan sat in the empty office, staring at his bank account numbers on his phone.He was down ten million today, but the market looked like it might swing up by the end of the day. A ten million dollar fluctuation was nothing, but it was worrying. He hadn’t had a good up day since meeting Holly.He could see the choice in front of him. Holly or the money.The money had always been there for him. Since the beginning, money had given him what he needed. It wasn’t his family that had made him successful, it was the fact that he liked seeing the numbers in his bank account go up.He wished he could have both worlds, one of business and one with community and friends. He knew it couldn’t be. It had to be one or the other. That was the way it had always been, and up until this moment, the easy choice had been the money.He wanted to forget the smiles on the children’s faces today. He wanted to forget the warmth of the town. The way everyone said hello and treated him like he’d always
NathanLucy stood, hand on hips, dressed in dark red and with murder in her eyes.“There you are,” she scolded. “Where have you been?”Nathan frowned, not understanding. There was no meetings until later in the day. He’d double checked.“What do you mean?” he asked her.“I messaged you. We need to talk,” she said. “Didn’t you get my text?”Nathan fumbled for his phone and found two missed messages from Lucy. He had been so caught up in designing the laptop in his head, he’d neglected his phone entirely.“Wow. She’s even more in your head than I thought,” Lucy said, crossing her arms. He knew she was referencing Holly. The way she said it twisted Nathan the wrong way. No one should talk about Holly like that.“What do you want, Lucy?” Nathan asked her. He could feel his time in the R&D department slipping away from him.“We need to talk. In private.” She turned on her heel and began walking. “Follow me.”Nathan raised an eyebrow and glanced at Gregory.Gregory grunted.Nathan had to ag
NathanNathan couldn’t remember the last time he was this happy.He couldn’t remember the last time that his mind had felt this unfettered and his soul didn’t feel like it needed to escape his body.And it was all because of Holly.She was magic. She was everything he wanted. And right now, he had a glimpse of a beautiful future.He would continue to work on Elements. She would come and visit him in California, and he would show her everything the state had to offer. For once, he was excited to share his wealth with someone and not be worried that they would try and take advantage of him. He knew Holly would never do that.Then he would purchase a house here in Devonsville. They would move in together after an acceptable amount of time, but sooner rather than later because her apartment was tiny. They would build a life together. They would live happily ever after.He could see it all coming together like something out of a fairy tale. He was Prince Charming and she was his snow bunny
Holly“You’re coming to the parade today, right?” Holly whispered, her head cradled on Nathan’s bare shoulder. He smoothed her hair with his hand against his head. The room was still blissfully dark with only the edges of the curtains showing any hint of morning light.“I am. I made sure to schedule it with Lucy and everything,” he replied.She grinned, snuggling into him. This was heaven. She was warm, safe, and completely satisfied. If it weren’t the fact that she’d been looking forward to this parade for the last month, she would happily stay in bed with Nathan for the rest of her life.She wondered what their future looked like. Would there be more days like this? She knew it wouldn’t be perfect or easy, nothing worth having ever was, but she hoped there would be days like this. Perfect, content days.“What are you doing for Christmas? Since you’re working, will you be staying here?” Holly asked.Nathan shrugged beneath her. “I think so. Would you like me to stay?”She sat up and