Layers Peeled (23 page)

A gentle touch
on my shoulder startled me.

“Allie, are
you all right?” Julian asked.

“Hi, yes. I’m
fine. How are you?”

Yeah, like that
will fly.

“You know
you’re going to have my niece or nephew soon, so you better learn
how to tell me when you need help.” He offered his arm for me to
take, and I did. “Let’s grab something to eat. It looks like my
brother is dismissing his duties as a future dad to feed you and
the baby, so I’ll just fill in.”

“Sounds good.”
Even if I knew Julian was kidding, it also felt nice to have the
attention of at least one Cross brother.

Julian packed
my plate full of my favorite appetizers, as if he’d read my mind.
But then again, anything Olivier had prepared was welcome in my
mouth.

“So, are you
going to tell me what had you so lost in thought?”

“I overheard
Kendra and Tristan’s conversation.”

“Oh?”

You’re such
a bitch, Allie,
I thought to myself, knowing I’d hooked Julian
in with
that
tad of information.

“It wasn’t a
big deal. They were just apologizing to each other for their pasts.
And I sort of felt guilty. I just feel so possessive of him.”

The tension
eased in Julian’s shoulders. “It’s part of Kendra’s treatment. She
needs to make amends and admit where she’s done wrong before she
can move on. But if you’d like to make Tristan jealous, I’m always
open to another kiss,” he grinned.

I punched him
on his arm playfully, “You will never let that go, will you?” I
remembered the time I’d mistaken Julian for Tristan and kissed him
with my full mouth.

“Nope. It’s
right here, deep in my heart. I will never forget that moment we
shared,” he said dramatically.

“What moment?”
Tristan said from behind us.

And Julian,
like a sneaky fox, kissed me on the cheek, saying in a melodramatic
voice, “A moment that will keep us bonded forever. Excuse me, but I
see the maid of honor needs my attention.”

I threw him a
dirty look as he left, but I had to admit, he did make me feel
better.

“Something I
should know about?” Tristan asked taking a plate.

“He’s just
teasing. Is everything okay?” I asked.

“Yes, perfect
now that I have you in my arms.” And that ball of jealousy I’d felt
earlier was gone. Today, both Cross brothers managed to make me
feel not only as part of their family, but also loved and cared for
like I’d never been before.

The Christmas
tree stood at least nine feet high. It was woven in ribbons and
peppered with traditional red and golden bulbs. The white lights
twinkled, reflecting in every piece of glass hanging on the
branches.

Sam and
Gabriel departed for their honeymoon right after the wedding. The
rest of the distant family had left as well, and the Crosses would
stay at the house until after the New Year. On Christmas morning we
all sat around the bottom of the tree, our legs criss-crossed like
little kids. The scene was like a first act of the kind of family
life Tristan described for me, and I couldn’t help but feel my
heart swell with happiness.

I glanced at
Kendra, who held the same look on her face I did, and I guessed we
had more in common than the Cross brothers after all. Had she
longed for a family as well? I’d never had a chance to ask her
whether they knew she was all right. I didn’t even know if she had
any family left at all; after all, she’d mentioned her parents had
passed. The way the Crosses behaved around her felt like she was
already part of their little cult.

“It’s family
tradition that the youngest goes first,” Emma said, “So let me do
the honors and see what my good Santa brothers thought of. And it
better be what I wanted, because if it’s not I’ll explode.”

I
chuckled.

“You know,
Emma, soon you won’t be the youngest one opening the gifts,” Julian
warned.

“Well, until
Barney knows how to open the gifts himself, I’m calling the
shotgun.”

“You’re having
a boy?” Mrs. Cross’s gaze shot up. She was so quick to pick up on
little hints.

“Emma, how did
you know?” Tristan scolded his little sister.

“Oops.” She
pressed her hand to her mouth. “People talk around kids. So do you
two.” She pointed from me to Tristan.

And before the
tears started falling, I gave a knowing look to Tristan and
confirmed, “Yes, we’re having a boy for sure.” I rubbed my tummy
and then welcomed the hugs and kisses from the Cross clan and my
mother.

And one after
another, everyone opened their gifts. Fred and Wilma exchanged a
book, which I found odd, and kissed each other. Tristan leaned into
my ear. “It’s a notebook. For the entire year they write what they
feel for each other, what their wishes are for the family, for
their future, and then trade at Christmas. They’ve been doing that
ever since I can remember. It’s always been the only gift they’d
swap.”

That’s the
sweetest thing I’ve ever seen,
I thought, pressing my hand to
my heart. And suddenly I missed my daddy. I wanted him here with
us.

My mother
leaned in from the other side. “He’s here in spirit. He’s always
been with us and guided us to meet this wonderful family.”

I’d given my
mother her gift earlier that morning, figuring a bottle of the
smooth Comisario tequila wasn’t exactly the most traditional
present. But when she saw the Kindle full of romance novels, she
just sat there with her mouth open until she managed to hug me as a
thank you
.

“It was
Tristan’s idea.” He’d noticed just as I had the bag full of books
she brought with her and ordered the package as soon as we got
here, oddly delivered by a flying drone—the newest invention by one
of the retailers. My mother embraced Tristan as if he were her own
son, and it took my breath away.

Emma of course
squeaked and cried and over-exaggerated every single surprise she
opened. I didn’t know half the gadgets she got and waited patiently
until she opened mine. When she lifted the lid off the small
elongated box, I knew she’d be speechless for at least a minute or
two.

She rammed
into me, tightening her arms around my neck. “Thank you. I love you
so much,” she said into my hair. “It’s the best gift ever.”

“Be careful,
Emma,” Tristan warned. But I’d already learned how to sit or stand
around Emma and not be a victim from her heart-felt embraces driven
by teenage hormones.

“What did she
get?” Mr. Cross asked.

Emma lifted
the pink pen out of its pouch.

“A pen? You
got her a pen and she likes it the most?” Julian asked, oblivious
to what the gift actually was.

“It says:
To the best godmother in the world.
” She read the
engraving.

“Ahh,” Mrs.
Cross cooed.

My mom wiped
away the sniffle with her sleeve.

“Yeah, I guess
that is better. Emma, when I have a kid you can name him too. And
you can be the godmother as well,” Julian bribed.

“You don’t
know what you’re asking for, brother,” Tristan joked, jutting
Julian in his ribcage.

Tristan turned
to me, saying, “It’s your turn Allie. Open your gift.”

“There are
none left,” Emma said. “Did you not get her anything? Because if
you didn’t, you’d better run to the closest store, if you can find
one open, and buy her the one you were looking at the other day
when we went out.”

“Emma!”
Tristan raised his voice.

Now I was
curious about what he’d gotten me. Tristan threw Emma a knowing
look and she knew to shut up.

Although I’d
felt like I’d already received the best Christmas present there
was: a holiday with my family.

“Allie’s gift
is somewhere on the tree. You have to find it, beautiful.” He
grabbed my hand and helped me up. I searched through the branches;
their fresh needles pricked my skin. The scent intensified, and my
hand finally caught on what felt like a velvet box. I pulled the
gift out and asked, “This one?”

“Yes.” Tristan
grinned from ear to ear.

I lifted the
lid open to find a beautiful platinum necklace, a bracelet, and a
matching pair of earrings. It was simple enough to wear every day,
and I appreciated that. I’d never worn jewelry while out in the
field, but now that I worked at Cross Enterprises this would really
come in handy. Especially since I’d been dying to buy a set for the
office.

“I love it,
thank you.” I kissed Tristan.

“Your turn,” I
whispered to Tristan, pulling out an envelope from a bag I’d held
onto. There was no way I’d risk a chance of anyone finding out what
I’d gotten him, and I’d never been so anxious to see his
reaction.

After all,
what do you get a man who already has everything? A surprise he
wasn’t expecting.

He carefully
tore the seam of the envelope and pulled out the Christmas
card.

“And it is my
wish that you keep it to yourself,” I said to him.

“Not fair,”
Emma whined.

First were the
coupons I’d made. He could use them anywhere and anytime he wanted,
no questions asked.

Tristan’s eyes
widened as he flipped through the twenty-page booklet of me
offering sex on the spot, blow jobs, mutual masturbation, pure
fuck-me-now requests, a few sixty-nines and massages—just so he
didn’t think I was a nympho. He adjusted his pajama bottoms with
discretion when he changed his sitting position, and then opened
the letter I’d written. I bit my lip, waiting for the reaction, and
when the tears began falling and his lips parted I knew he’d come
to the part where I’d told him we were having twins.

And the next
thing I knew I was in his arms being kissed with a deep longing of
happiness. When he pulled away, he said, “It’s the best Christmas
gift ever.”

“What’s it
say?” Emma pointed to the letter.

“It’s private,
but I promise to share the gift with everyone one day.”

“You’re
happy?” I asked.

“No, I’m so in
love with you and Puss” – he winked – “I can’t thank you enough.”
He pressed his lips to mine again.

“Get a room,
you two.” Julian interrupted.

And that was
exactly what I intended to do.

A few days
later, the family was getting ready to celebrate New Year’s Eve in
the small town in the valley. Truthfully, I had a feeling everyone
wanted and needed a change in scenery. As I reached for my jacket
in the closet, Tristan grabbed my wrist and guided me inside,
closing the doors behind him.

“What are you
doing?” I asked, acutely aware of how his fingers held onto my hand
so provocatively, almost burning my wrist, and how my heart raced
as he pinned me between him and the back of the closet.

“I want to
make you come.” His lips grazed my earlobe as his thumb caressed
the base of my neck.

I closed my
eyes, feeling my resistance dwindle. “Tristan, someone’s going to
hear us.” I tried to squeeze from between him and the wall, but his
mere strength was too much for me. And I didn’t really try that
hard to leave.

“Ah, come on.
Where’s your sense of adventure?” The soft light from the hallway
squeezed through the thin slit between the doors highlighting his
smug grin. He wouldn’t let this go. Tristan would have me here,
now, yielding to his will. And with that his mouth was on mine,
biting my lip and sucking on my skin like a possessed man who
hadn’t been kissed for centuries. God, he was so good! Yet I pulled
away, trying to stall, or perhaps teasing him on purpose. I wasn’t
sure.

“Tristan, I’m
serious. This isn’t the right place.”

“So am I. You
can’t expect to tease me with this cleavage and get away with it,
do you?”

“I’m wearing a
sweater, Tristan.” I giggled as quietly as I could, but resisted
him nonetheless.

“Can you blame
a guy for imagining what’s underneath?” He shrugged. “Besides, I
want to use one of my coupons.”

“That
fast?”

“Use them
while they’re fresh, right?”

Suddenly I
regretted being so creative with my Christmas gift.

But he’d
already yanked my pants down and his hand skimmed my inner thigh.
And when he reached my panties and touched the wet desire there, he
said, “You’re excited as much about this as I am.” He then lifted
my hand to the hardness straining under his zipper. I imagined his
warm flesh in my hand and squeezed my knees together.

And he did
have his coupon, fluttering it right in front of my face.

“Fast, do it
fast.”

“You know that
only makes me want to do it slow.”

“Okay, okay,
do it slow.”

He flicked my
heated bud. “Like that?”

Oh, gosh! I
nearly jumped up and closed my eyes. That little skim of his finger
on my sensitive part awakened a whole new enthusiasm in my
body.

“Yes, a little
faster, please.” I was already panting.

“Imagine my
tongue there,” he coerced. And
that
wasn’t too difficult to
do. The way he pulled my juices upward and circled his fingers over
my clit had my ass and thighs tightening, pressing in for more.
Once his mouth latched onto my neck and grazed up to my earlobe,
the world closed in. He smelled so good and so delicious. That
beautiful quivering sensation began to build between my legs, right
in the palm of his hand.

Opening his
zipper, I gripped him in my hand, stroking his smooth length from
the bottom up in the slow rhythmic motion of his hips. The heated
flesh expanded with each moan that escaped my mouth. I slid my
thumb over the moistened cap. The smell of his desire floated
around us, mixing with mine. My other hand lowered to his sack,
feeling the soft skin contract in my palm.