you while you’re naked and on your back and I’m buried deep inside you.”
I’d never taken off a dress so fast in my life.
Minutes later, I was sprawled across the couch in Reid’s office. We were both gloriously naked.
And he made love to me as he murmured how much he loved me over and over again.
Neither of us cared how loud we were or if anyone heard us.
All we saw was each other, all we felt was one another and all we heard were those three little words whispered between us as we connected in every way two people could.
Evan
Christmas Morning
My heart lurched when the doorbell rang. My palms sweated when Mum called out as she passed the living room from the kitchen, “That will be Annie and Reid. I’ll get it.”
I heard their loud greetings of ‘Happy Christmas’ to one another, Reid’s voice more of a rumbling murmur in amongst our mums’ higher pitched tones. The sensation in my stomach was familiar. I’d felt that deep, nauseating dive that time my high school bestie convinced me to jump from the top diving board at the swim center.
Suffice it to say, my anxiety was through the roof.
After two weeks of keeping our relationship a secret, Reid and I had decided to tell our family on Christmas morning. It was a gamble and possibly selfish if we ended up spoiling everyone’s day. However, it was the one time our families would be together and in a guaranteed good mood. And we lived on the hope that this news would be a gift to our parents.
Reid had wanted to tell Patrick on his own, but I didn’t think that was fair. It wasn’t all on Reid.
Mum ushered Annie into the sitting room first and Reid’s mum came straight to me. I stood up on trembling knees to embrace her and accept her soft kiss on my cheek. “Happy Christmas, Annie.”
“You too, sweetheart.” She clasped my face in her hand, her dark eyes filled with tenderness. “You look beautiful. And happy. My son’s treating you right at that office, then?”
As hard as I tried I couldn’t fight the blush that heated my cheeks. “Of course.”
The corner of her lips turned up in a knowing smirk and suspicion rippled through me.
Did she already know?
My eyes flew past her to Reid.
Happiness engulfed me at the mere sight of him. The man made me giddy. Every morning I went to work, excited to be there, to see him, to steal secret kisses in his office. To leave before him, but then meet him by his car and drive to his apartment for dinner. Afterward, we made love. And then we’d lie in bed, talking about everything and nothing. Laughing. Cuddling.
Until he had to take me home.
Not this last week. He’d insisted I leave clothes at his apartment so I could sleep over.
Waking up in his arms, safe and content, was the best feeling in the world. And while it had been amusing for Reid to drop me off a block from the department store so it didn’t look like we’d arrived together, I was looking forward to the day we could walk through it hand in hand.
There would be gossip.
But I didn’t care what people thought.
Correction: I only cared what our families thought.
Reid held my gaze for a second or two, hiding nothing of his feelings for me. Then Dad embraced him, breaking the moment.
I felt a little discombobulated as we got the Christmas greetings over and Annie laid the Christmas gifts she’d brought under the tree. Patrick and Reid were the last to embrace.
“Happy Christmas, mate.” Pat clapped Reid on the back.
“Happy Christmas. You doing alright?”
“Well you’d know if you ever picked up the bloody phone,” Pat teased, but there was an edge to his voice as he sat down on the sofa. His posture was relaxed, but his questioning gaze never left Reid.
Reid swallowed. Since the man was excellent at hiding his feelings, including nervousness, I felt more than a surge of discomfort for him. I wanted to cuddle into him. Instead, I could only sit down on the edge of the sofa and stare.
“Been busy,” Reid eventually said. “No excuse, though, sorry.”
In truth, he’d been avoiding my brother because he hated lying to him.
Studying Patrick’s face, I knew he knew Reid was lying or being evasive at least. His eyes narrowed.
“Well.” Mum clapped her hands together. “Why don’t we open presents first before we have breakfast?”
My stomach lurched again as Reid and I