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December 20th
“BLAIR, WE FOUND MY dad! He’s staying at one of the inns here in town. My mother just called to let me know that she spoke to him about an hour ago.” Relief slammed through him. In fact, he was so relieved that he couldn’t bother to be angry at his mother for waiting a whole hour to inform him.
“Oh, thank goodness,” Blair said, releasing an extended breath. “I’m so happy.”
His heart clenched just hearing her voice. Something that happened with regularity now. Whenever he heard her, he’d react. One part of him would be soothed by her gentleness, the other part of him would be overtaken by an animalistic need to be near her. It was incredible that she could both comfort him and drive him insane with a few words.
“Definitely a relief,” he said, sinking down into the leather chair in front of the desk. He’d been using the study as something of a command center all day as he’d worked to locate his father. Colson had been up at the crack of dawn to resume his search and after what must have been a thousand phone calls and several car rides in the area, evening had settled and he’d finally received word that his dad was safe. After getting the welcome update from his mother, Blair was the first person he’d thought to call with the good news.
She’d been the one to support him through this frustrating, maddening episode with his father. Without her help last night, Colson would have been a total wreck. Blair had helped to put everything in perspective. Helped to give him clarity when he was on the verge of losing it. First she’d talked him off a ledge, next she had offered to help him search, and then she’d discovered some family history that he hadn’t even known was lost. Finally, it had all culminated with her initiating a kiss.
That kiss last night served to ignite his out-of-control feelings. Though, truthfully, there was nothing to ignite—Colson would always want her. Constantly. Relentlessly. Not even Blair asking to keep an emotional distance was going to stop his hunger. He’d just be fooling himself if he ever truly tried to suppress his feelings for her. And Colson hadn’t tried to do that. Suppressing his desire would have helped him keep his sanity when she shut the door on them ever having a relationship, but he was never the type to do things the easy way. He still wanted his chance with Blair, and last night’s kiss was a sign that this wasn’t over. Not by a longshot.
“So, I guess that means he’s okay,” she continued, dragging him from the chaos and turmoil crashing through his mind.
“Yeah. According to my mom, the old man is pissed off but at least he’s safe,” Colson explained.
“Did you get to talk to him?” Blair asked.
“No, he’s still refusing to take my calls when I try his cell, and his room phone rings without an answer,” Colson replied, sighing heavily. “Which means he’s either ignoring me or he could be out of his room. Much as I hate to say it, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was holed up in a bar right now. This feels like one, long bender. A week ago I wouldn’t have believed it, but that’s the vibe I’m getting.”
“I’m sorry,” she said gently. “It sounds like he’s spiraling a bit.”
“He’s too old to be acting out like this,” Colson said in exasperation. “Even when he’s being a prick, he’s always levelheaded enough to keep his nerve. What the hell is going on with him?”
“Sounds like after years of being levelheaded, he’s cracking. He’s got to be under a lot of pressure between the company and Bennett family obligations,” she pointed out. “Not to mention the grief of losing his grandmother recently.”
For the first time in ages, Colson didn’t feel the need to automatically denounce his father. “You reminded me earlier that people grieve in different ways. So yeah, he could be going through things he refuses to talk about.”
“It certainly doesn’t seem like he’s the type to express his feelings,” she said in agreement. “Which would explain why he lashed out and pulled a disappearing act. If he doesn’t know how to process his feelings and talk to his family, escaping might have felt easier to him.”
Naturally, she’d be the voice of reason. Blair typically was. At least, she was as long as they weren’t talking about his two great-great-grandmothers and their compulsion to hang mistletoe everywhere. That thought almost made him chuckle to himself and his eyes landed on the silver ring box. The box was on the desk beside the stack of journals and envelopes that Blair had discovered last night. A clue that somebody in his family had gotten something meaningful out of the holidays. If Opal could find meaning through all those setbacks, then, damn it, so could he.
“I’m just grateful that he’s safe and not in a ditch somewhere,” Colson said.
“Yes. That’s something to celebrate,” she said. “Bit of a Christmas miracle, huh?”
Colson had been so ready to convince Blair to give them another chance, but then his father had disappeared, which had put that goal on the backburner. Except, now, he’d found his old man. There was nothing stopping him now.
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat, ready to man-up and ask her the one question that had felt off limits until she’d kissed him last night. “Since we have something to celebrate, would you like to come over?”
“Come over?” she asked, her voice shaky with what sounded like hopeful anticipation.
“Do you want to spend the night with me?” he asked.
She let out a soft gasp then, and he thought she’d turn him down. Or tell him to go to hell. Which was her right, but that didn’t make the prospect of rejection any less soul crushing. But he had any hope of convincing her to give them another chance, he was going to have to be upfront. He still wanted her and right now, after everything they’d been through together, it was clear to him he always would. There was only one woman he’d ever want in his bed ever again. Colson just hoped like hell that she’d soon realize that she felt exactly the same way.
“Spend the night, as in...” Her voice trailed off. Colson could practically hear her blushing.
“As in, would you like me to give you the night of your life or not?” he demanded.
That made her laugh. “You think you’re that good, do you?”
“You didn’t complain the last time we did it,” he reminded her.
“No, it was the complete opposite of a complaint. I remember how much fun we had in my bedroom,” she said, laughing again. “But calling it a sleepover? Wow, this is so high school.”
“Well, I could make it more adult for you,” he said, reaching out to grab hold of the ring box. For some reason, he didn’t want to let the box out of his sight. The sterling silver felt cool in his head. Cool but heavy with a possibility he couldn’t quite put into words. Still, he’d get to the emotional implications of this later. Right now, he was on a mission to blow Blair’s mind before Christmas. “Do you want to come over and have mind-blowing sex with me, Blair?”
“Oh, my goodness.” But she was still laughing, so he took that as a good sign. “I can’t believe you.”
“You kissed me yesterday,” he reminded her.
Her laughter died down. “Yes. I did,” she said in a low, husky tone. “And I don’t regret it.”
“So it wasn’t a heat of the moment thing?”
“It was partially the heat of the moment,” she said. “But I wasn’t leading you on. I want to spend the night, but...”
“But?”
“I want it to be more than one night,” she said.
“Two nights then,” he said. “Two nights where I make you feel so good you never want to leave.”
“Now, how could a girl possibly say no to that?”
***
THE SECOND THE DOORBELL rang, Colson grabbed onto the knob and threw the door open. No point playing it cool. He’d been pacing up and down the foyer ever since their phone call. Now that she was here, he felt the desire burning through his veins.
She was so beautiful that he couldn’t breathe as he caught her quickly ripping off her coat. Dressed in a body-hugging sweater and skin-tight leggings, she looked utterly irresistible. Evening had fallen, yet her mass of blonde curls was so bright and golden, it practically formed a halo around her head. Her brown eyes were alight with the same desire storming through him, her pink mouth glossy after she took a second to lick her lips. Somehow, she managed to look angelic and seductive all at once.
Neither of them said anything as they just stared at the other.
Say something, you idiot.
“You made it,” he managed to force out.
Instead of responding, Blair rushed over to him, dropping her duffel bag on the way to get her arms around his shoulders. He took her mouth with his, sliding his tongue past her lips. The heat of her body burned through him, making him desperate to get the hell out of these clothes. Wrapping one arm around her to draw her close, Colson used the other to reach down and unbuckle his belt. Waiting until they got to his bedroom to take his clothes off would have been the gentlemanly move, but manners were already going out the window. Especially Blair’s manners, because while her mouth was still on his, she lowered her hands to help him toss the belt aside and start unbuttoning his jeans. He felt his cock stiffen as her hands worked.
If she managed to get her hands past the waistband of his boxer briefs, he wouldn’t last long enough to even get up the stairs, so he abruptly ended the kiss. “Want to go up to my bedroom?”
“I’ve never been to your room before,” she said breathlessly, her face coloring. She was so out of breath that he noticed the way her chest heaved. “Yes.”
Unable to resist her, Colson kissed her again, dragging his hand up to gently cup one of her breasts. Even through all the layers of clothes, and the curve of her breast, he could feel her heartbeat hammer wildly. Out of control, the same as his.
She moaned softly when he started circling her nipple with his thumb. Then her hands were yanking at his jeans and that movement knocked some sense into him. As much as he wanted her right now, Colson wasn’t going to accept them doing it on the floor of the foyer.
“My bedroom’s on the second floor,” he told her, inhaling a lungful of air as he took her small hand. I’ll show you.” But instead of him gently guiding her up the stairs, Blair was the one who started tugging, urging him to follow her to the second floor.
They raced up the stairs together, Colson stopping on the landing to take the lead and show her to his bedroom door.
The second he threw the door open, they were all over each other again. She wrapped herself around him, her hands in his hair, her mouth soft and warm against his. Her mouth was so pliant that her lips parted for him, Blair inviting him in with a moan. Stroking his tongue against hers, he lowered his hands to grab hold of her ass. Their bodies were so close together that he could feel every line and curve of her through the fabric of their clothes.
Somehow, even though his brain was short-circuiting, enough sense remained for him to move towards the bed. He’d always known that the master bedroom was huge, but in his desperation to get to the bed, the room suddenly felt immense. Vast. Irritatingly so, as he half-kissed, half-jostled her to the bed on the other side of the room. Blair’s hold on him tightened and she was now on her tiptoes as she returned the kiss.
Finally, after some maneuvering, they crashed onto the bed together, Colson’s body covering hers when they landed. That didn’t interrupt the kiss. The heat of her mouth was so intoxicating, his mind started spinning and he swore he was losing himself to her. Every part of his anatomy was focused on a single goal. Having Blair underneath him for the rest of the night.
At that moment, he began to feel her squirm against him. Every protective instinct kicked in and he rolled away from her. “Blair, are you okay?”
She didn’t answer at first. Because she seemed to be struggling to get out of her sweater. Blair started laughing in frustration. “This is hopeless.”
“Need help?” he asked, chuckling.
“Yes, please. These buttons are driving me crazy.” She sat up and laughed again, the sound wrapping around his heart.
He could deny her nothing, and since they were both on the same page, it was easy for him to take the momentary attention away from kissing her to help her unbutton the sweater. Finally, he got the buttons loose and helped her pull the sweater off. She was wearing an undershirt, but she was already tearing that away too, revealing a lacy red bra.
Everything stopped as he took her in. Damn, she was perfect. He’d seen her body before, but that didn’t matter. Because he knew he could see her a thousand times and each time would feel like the first. Blair took his breath away every time he saw her. That fact was just heightened in the moment of watching her get undressed in his bedroom. And right now she was tearing off the rest of her clothes, until she was stripped down to her underwear—the lace bra and a skimpy pair of red panties.
Slowly, he reached out to trace down the strap of her bra, then his fingers brushed against her exposed flesh. The part of her that the lace didn’t hide. Her skin was creamy, silky to the touch. She gasped as he skimmed his fingers across the curve of her breast.
“Can I take this off?” he asked.
She kept her eyes on his as she reached behind her to unhook the bra. “I’ll take care of it,” she said, her voice a soft purr as the bra slipped away, revealing more of her to him.
Blair had the most perfect pair of breasts he had ever seen. Small enough to fit in the palm of his hand, topped with rosy nipples. She blushed when she caught him staring.
“You’re so gorgeous,” he choked out, still stunned by how beautiful she was.
She got down on her back, stretching her arm out to tug at his shirt. “Your turn,” she said, desire flashing in her brown eyes.
He didn’t hesitate. The second she gave him the go ahead, he starting yanking his clothes off. Colson didn’t pause at his boxer briefs and tugged those off too before grabbing a condom from the nightstand. After taking a second to hand the condom over to her, Colson lay back down on the bed beside her.
Her cheeks flushed an even brighter shade of pink as her gaze lowered down to his erection. Blair’s eyes widened and she licked her lips. A gasp escaped her, so forcefully that her chest heaved and then she was biting down on her lower lip.
“I don’t want to wait anymore,” she said. “Come here.”
He moved closer, carefully getting on top of her so he could cover her body without crushing her. When she angled her mouth against his, he groaned. Desire jolted through him as she took charge of the kiss, thrusting her tongue past his lips. Damn, she tasted so good. Sweet and spicy all at once.
Colson returned the kiss eagerly. A hard, bruising collision of lips that he paused to soothe by occasionally wrenching his mouth away so he could caress her full mouth with his thumb. Then, to soothe her again, he dragged his tongue across the curve of her lower lip, gently encouraging her to open her mouth again for him. Her lips parted, her tongue meeting his. A sigh escaped her, the sound cut short as she stroked her tongue against his, turning the kiss from something punishing into something more passionate. Lust surged through him, the relentless need for her making his heart pound.
He had to resist the primal impulse to rush his way through this. Even though they’d been together once before, that hadn’t satisfied his appetite for her at all. If anything, having her once made him want her even more. Which was why he had to slow down so she’d be able to enjoy this. No matter how much he ached to bury himself inside her, Blair’s pleasure was most important.
Tearing his mouth away, he leaned closer to whisper into her ear, “Do you want to spread your legs for me?”
“Yes.” Writhing beneath him, Blair moved to take off her panties. As she took off the final article of fabric, he heaved himself off her.
When she spread her shapely legs, instantaneous lust flooded his brain. The sight of her bare flesh aroused him like nothing ever had. It took all of his strength to tear his gaze away to look up at her. Their eyes met and she didn’t look away as he moved to position himself between her supple thighs. They were each watching the other, both of them seemingly eager to see what the other would do next. Eyes still on hers, Colson dragged his hand to her knee, silently coaxing her to wrap her legs around him. She followed his lead and locked her legs around him so tightly, he felt her guiding him until he was at her entrance.
“Blair,” he choked out. One thrust and he could be inside her. His cock ached with the need to possess her body. But he wanted to slow down to make sure that she was comfortable. To make sure that this would last and she would take her own pleasure. “Condom?”
“Oh.” She started laughing as she realized, then moved to open the condom wrapper. “In my excitement, I sort of forgot.”
He laughed, taking the latex sheath from her, then sliding it on. Colson bit back a groan. His cock was throbbing and he had to make sure he didn’t come so fast that he left her unsatisfied. It was going to take all of his willpower to last as long as possible.
“Are you ready?” he asked, his voice low.
“So ready that it’s driving me crazy. I’ve wanted you all this time,” she said, her voice ragged and gasping. Emphasizing how desperately she wanted him, she grabbed hold of his hair. “I want you right now so don’t make me beg.”
Well, he sure as hell didn’t want to make her wait any longer. Propping himself up on his elbow, he lowered his free hand, allowing himself to feel the flare of her hips against his palm. As he moved to grasp her waist to steady her, Colson entered her with one powerful thrust.
Blair moaned in response, her hold on his hair tightening. Then, she lifted her hips provocatively, meeting his next thrust eagerly. This time, he thrust deeper, plunging every inch of his erection into her wet warmth.
“Yes.” She clenched around him, flooding him with relentless bursts of pleasure.
Already, he sensed that he wasn’t going to last if he didn’t get a hold of himself. Groaning, he decided to drive into her slowly. A rhythmic pace that they could both withstand. More pleasure shot through him, forcing him to close his eyes as he braced himself against a tidal wave of sensation.
“Yes. More. Harder,” she pleaded, her cries filling the room.
Colson thrust into her again and again, eliciting breathless whimpers as she dragged her nails down his back. The sweet sting of pain spurred him on, and he pounded into her harder. Faster. Until his thrusts were so frenzied that he could barely breathe. Forcing his eyes open, he sucked down a lungful of air. The onslaught of their shared pleasure spiraled through him, with such power it felt like the ecstasy was expanding beyond his body. This was not something either of them could contain. Overwhelming as this was, they’d have to ride it out.
She threw her head back, begging him not to stop. Then she lowered her gaze to meet his, her eyes blazing with a lust that shocked him. He’d never seen such clear passion on a woman’s face before. In that moment, he knew that even though he was the one setting the pace, he needed her. Needed her to guide him through the storm tearing through him. Groaning her name, he pressed his forehead to hers.
Colson was on the verge of release, his body tensing with the rush of pleasure coursing through him. Pleasure, then an upsurge of what felt like euphoria. The sensation was indescribable. He felt it through his entire body, swelling upwards through his veins, his muscles taut. Colson felt his body strain against the waves of pleasure that slammed through him, knocking the breath out of his lungs.
It had never felt this good with any woman, ever. For a second, the sensation was so devastating he thought he was going to black out from the force of it. But instead, he saw an explosion of meteors behind his eyes. Pleasure swelled into a crescendo and then, the climax tore through him.
Blair cried out, her body trembling as she fell over the edge with him.
They lay there together for what felt like eternity, Blair gasping for breath as his body covered hers. He’d never experienced something like this with anyone. Just lying here with her felt as good as having sex with her. That should have alarmed him after a lifetime of settling for casual, physical relationships and nothing more. But it didn’t alarm him at all. It did the opposite. For the second time in his life, Colson didn’t feel the restless urge to rush off or give in to a sense that sex had no meaning beyond his bedroom. The first time he hadn’t felt the urge to run was when he was with Blair. That night at her apartment. Now here he was, at peace again. A peace he eventually found whenever they were together, even when they argued or disagreed. Because he knew that they each wanted what was best for the other. He knew Blair wasn’t only trying to look out for herself, she was looking out for him too. Considering him. And he was determined to always do the same. Always.
Damn, was that what he wanted?
How the hell could he make something like this last when they lived two, separate lives? He lived miles away in Boston while she lived here. That was a reality that couldn’t be reconciled.
With a million thoughts bombarding him, Colson finally found enough strength to move off her, rolling onto his back before he pulled her close.
“How was that?” he asked her, wishing he could ask her something else. Something more.
She laughed and then kissed him. “Amazing. I’m pretty sure I woke the whole neighborhood.”
That made him laugh and he held her until they both fell asleep in each other’s arms.
