between the two different periods of her life.
She would dearly miss all the friends she had made during her time here. Mariah, Sofia, Emily Tsu. And especially Winnie.
Ethan studied her carefully. “If I kissed you again, would you be able to hold on to your snickerdoodles?”
She met his gaze, unable to look away. “I can’t make any promises,” she whispered.
“I guess I’ll have to take my chances.”
When his mouth met hers, she released a sigh that seemed to come from her toes. She had wanted this all day. All week, really, since he kissed her the first time beneath Winnie’s giant Christmas tree.
She was falling for him and realized as his mouth danced over hers that it was far too late to do anything about it.
His hands tightened around her, and he somehow managed to settle them both on the sofa. It was one thing to kiss Ethan when they were both standing up. It was something else when he was half-reclined on her sofa, taking all her weight.
Oh, she had missed this heat surging through her, the delicious ache for more and more.
His hands were under her sweater, his mouth nuzzling her neck when she suddenly thought she heard a knock at her door.
“Abs? You still awake?”
She jerked away, scrambling to find her footing. The two of them stared at each other for a long, astonished second before she hurried to the door, pulling her sweater back into place as she went and hoping she didn’t look as aroused as she felt right now.
She cleared her throat so she could speak without a sexy rasp as she reached for the door and pulled it open.
Though it clearly had been Lucy’s voice she heard, Abby still couldn’t quite believe she was standing in the doorway, hand up as if ready to knock again.
“Lucy! What a surprise! I thought you weren’t going to be able to make it back for a few more days!”
Her friend beamed at her. “Surprise! I was able to talk another teacher into taking my last few days before the break, changed my flight and twenty-four hours later, here I am.”
She looked over Abby’s shoulder and shock flickered in her blue eyes, so much like her brother’s.
“Ethan! What are you doing here?”
Lucy really didn’t need to know the answer to that question right now. Abby looked down, feeling her face heat with a furious blush that could probably be seen from several blocks away.
“He was, um, just leaving. Weren’t you?”
“Right,” he answered, his voice strangled.
“Ethan was kind enough to read a story to Christopher tonight. The one about Snowball the reindeer. It’s his favorite. Well, one of his favorites. It seems like his favorite story changes every night, depending on his mood. He’s discovered all your old Christmas stories and is really enjoying the Jan Brett books, especially the ones with trolls.”
She was babbling, she realized, feeling like a troll herself. She clamped her mouth shut and stepped forward to hug her friend instead, hoping Lucy couldn’t smell Ethan’s scent on her.
“It’s so good to see you.”
“And you. And bonus, my big brother. It’s like a two-for-one sale of my two favorite people. Hey, you.”
She held her arms out and Ethan gave her a brief embrace. “I’m glad you’re home, sis. Next time give us all a little warning. I could have sent a car to pick you up from the airport.”
“I rented a car so I would have some wheels while I’m in town.”
“I could have loaned you a car, too, but okay. How was your flight?”
She shrugged, exhaustion pulling down the corners of her mouth. “I tend to forget how long it takes to get home from anywhere in Asia. I’m always so glad to step off an airplane. It’s so good to be home.”
“How long are you staying?” Ethan asked.
“I don’t have to be back until January third. How’s Winnie? She was busy talking to her friends and didn’t notice me. I didn’t want to ruin her big night.”
“Abby can probably answer better than I can.”
The only problem was, Abby didn’t have any functioning brain cells right about now. She forced a smile and tried to gather her thoughts. “She’s, um, good. The bruised ribs have healed almost all the way, and she no longer has to use a mobility help like the walker or even a cane. The cast has to stay on the wrist for another month, but the doctor says she’s healing better than he expected.”
“Oh, I’m so glad to hear