Their Merry Little Christmas (Love Square)
Read Their Merry Little Christmas (Love Square) Online
Authors: Jessica Ingro
Their Merry Little Christmas
By
Jessica Ingro
Published by Jessica Ingro
Copyright © 2013 Jessica Ingro
THEIR MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS
Copyright ©
2013 Jessica Ingro
Cover design © Arijana Karčić, Cover It! Designs
Edited by Kathy Krick
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Amazon Edition, License Notes
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HERE
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To my naughty girls… this is for you!
Sam
“You better watch out. You better not cry…” I sing along loudly to the radio as I push little Hershey Kisses into the top of each peanut butter cookie. I smirk thinking of the name my grandfather always called them: “Itty Bitty Titties.” My crazy grandfather. I shake my head and refuse to let the sadness of his death overtake Christmas cookie making. Only the good memories are allowed to consume me.
“Santa Claus is coming to town…” I reach down and grab Tessa off the floor, where she is playing with her LaLaLoopsie doll, and twirl her around. Her little laugh is infectious as I continue singing to her.
“Wuv you, mommy,” my sweet daughter says and gives me a hug. I cherish moments like this.
“Love you too, baby,” I whisper and squeeze her tighter.
“Mommy has such a pretty voice, doesn’t she Tessa?” Aiden says from the doorway to the kitchen. There is a grin on his face, and it looks like he is biting back laughter.
Yeah, yeah. Laugh away Aiden. Your singing voice isn
’t much better.
“Will you can it? I’m not in the mood to be made fun of. I’m enjoying myself and don’t want you to ruin it.” I set Tessa down to play with her doll.
“Sorry, honey. You know I can’t help myself. I love teasing you.” He kisses my neck behind my ear and sends shivers down my spine. The bastard knows what he’s doing. Kissing me there is the easiest way to turn me on.
Two can play this game
…
“Are all these cookies for the ladies at my office?” Aiden asks before popping a chocolate filled cookie in his mouth.
“Yes. And don’t eat those.” I slap his hand playfully and laugh when he groans.
“Why can’t I eat any? You can’t tempt a man this way. It’s not right,” he grumbles good naturedly.
“I can do anything I please. Besides, I’m making some cookies for our friends and family too. There will be plenty for you to eat once I divvy them all out.”
The ti
mer on the oven sounds and I mentally smile at what I’m about to do next. I grab a pot holder and bend over at the waist, giving my derriere a little shake, knowing full well Aiden is watching me.
Men
… so predictable.
I take my time and set the cookie she
ets on the stove top. I rise slowly, swinging my hair back – ala a 1980’s rock video. My head turns and I watch Aiden’s throat work as he swallows. Ha ha. Sam – one; Aiden – zero.
“So not fair,” he mutters before grabbing another cookie and popping it in his mouth.
“The ‘Elf on a Shelf’ set finally got delivered today. I’m so excited to get it out and start playing with it.” I pick up the conversation, deciding to ignore the fact that he ate yet another cookie.
“You have real issues, you know that right? Tessa isn’t quite two years old yet and you’re going crazy with presents and decorations. I thought I had at least another year before your obsessive personality kicked in for this stuff,” Aiden complains.
“Look. It’s important to me. That’s all you need to know… And understand.” I add for good measure.
“Just don’t run yourself ragged doing this. It’s not the most important thing. Okay?”
I nod my head and mumble in agreement under my breath, continuing to set the warm cookies on the cooling racks.
“Daddy? Wanna watch Elmo,” Tessa says while tugging on Aiden’s pant leg to get his attention.
“Sure thing, Babygirl.” He scoops her up in his arms and walks over to me.
“We’ll finish this later,” he whispers his promise and kisses my nose. I smile, knowing how much fun it will be to finish our game later. Having a child puts a damper on your sexual spontaneity, but I must say the anticipation of being alone after she is asleep certainly makes it worth it.
I turn up the radio now that Tessa is with Aiden and continue working on the cookies. Baking has become a way for me to chill out. I enjoy making treats and goodies. And while I try not to sample my goods too much, I have to admit I’ve gained a pound or two since I really got into this.
Last Christmas we hired an as
sistant for me. Her name is Lily, and she is my godsend. She handles all my social media accounts, and she interacts with my street team and bloggers. Gone are the days of worrying about giveaways and deadlines. That is what she’s for. She keeps me moving and on target. Thanks to her I have time to do things I want to do, like baking.
I love her like she was a niece. She is young
– barely twenty-one – and has no family nearby. Aiden and I have taken her under our wings. She’s even planning on spending some time with us on Christmas when we go to my mother-in-law’s. She is such a recluse that I’m hoping I can get her involved with more people and maybe even find a nice boy for her.
Aiden
’s cell phone buzzes on the counter. I wipe my hands on a towel and pick it up. The screen flashes the name Rocky, and I shrug wondering who Rocky is. I jog into the family room and hand him the phone.
“It’s Rocky,” I say while he flips it open.
“Hey, Rocky. What’s up?” His face looks relaxed and content while he listens to the unknown Rocky. “Yeah sure. I can meet you over there. It’s no problem. I’ll be there in a half hour.”
“You’re leaving?” I ask after he hangs up the phone, trying not to show my discontent that he won’t be spending Saturday afternoon with us.
“The Tillman project ran into a few snags this morning. I’m going to go offer some advice. I shouldn’t be gone long.” He kisses Tessa’s head and walks up the stairs to get ready to leave.
Well damn. I thought these weekend excursions were over now that thin
gs had died down at work for him. I could really use the help with Tessa while I try to get all this baking done.
I cover Tessa with a blanket and sit next to her on the couch, letting her finish watching her DVD before making her come back in the kitchen
with me. When Aiden comes down the stairs, I tip my head on the back of the couch, and he leans over to kiss my mouth.
“Who is Rocky?” I ask before he can leave.
“Just a new architect at work.” He shrugs and kisses Tessa’s head. “I’ll see you in a little while. I’ll call if I’m going to be late.”
My heart sinks at his last statement. That isn
’t what I wanted to hear. This Christmas season is really important to me, for more reasons than he knows. I just wish I felt like it was as important to him too.
I shake off my impending bad mood and focus on Elmo. Singing to Tessa and tickling her, quickly helps me to forget that Aiden is missing again.
***
Jacob
“So what are you getting Kara for Christmas?”
I turn to look at Mack. We’ve been watching video surveillance for what feels like forever, in an attempt to gather evidence against a murder suspect. I have to shake myself from my stupor. I feel like a zombie after watching hours of people walking in and out of a parking garage.
“A yellow diamond necklace from Tiffany’s. She’s going to love it.” My lips start to turn up into a grin at the thought of how much Kara is going to love the little piece of sunshine I’m giving her. I figure she’s given me enough of it over the last couple of years. I owe her some back. I’m thinking this is going to become a recurring theme for my gifts to her. It’s perfect really.
Mack raises his eyebrows and whistles. “You can never go wrong with diamonds my man.”
“Tell me about it.” A yawn escapes me and I shift in my chair, stretching my legs out in front of me. We’ve been cooped up in here for far too long and have yet to spot the man we’re looking for. Finding the bad guys isn’t always exciting. In fact, it’s rarely like anything you see on television. Yet everyone who has seen those shows expects us to find them swiftly and easily. I hate to break it to the world at large, but DNA tests take far longer than twenty-four hours to come back, and criminals don’t always leave behind clues.
Mack looks at his watch and groans. “I’m not sure how much more of this I can take today.”
“I couldn’t agree with you more. I wouldn’t mind getting home at a reasonable time tonight. I haven’t gotten to spend quality time with Kara in a few days, if you know what I mean.”
He gives me a knowing grin before giving in. “Then let’s get one of the interns to keep looking through these and flag anything that looks suspicious. I don’t think we’re going to find anything anyway. Witness accounts place him in the area an hour earlier than our current spot in this footage. At this point, it’s just a precaution.”
“Works for me.” I clap my hands and stand, stretching my sore muscles. Now that I am headed out of here, my mind starts to wander to what I want to do to Kara tonight. Visions of her naked and writhing in front of the fireplace have my jeans starting to tighten. For as uncomfortable as it is to be in a constant state of arousal, I secretly hope things will always be this way between us. She consistently turns me inside out, and I can’t seem to get enough of her.
I follow Mack out of the room, we grab our coats and head out towards the front desk. While he talks to Regina about putting an intern on our assignment, I stand to the side and wait for him. Facing the front door, I spot a familiar face walking in. Just as the previous times I’ve seen her, her black hair is pulled back into a tight bun low on her head, and her glasses are perched on her nose making her look intellectual and serious. Her blue scrubs peek out from under her heavy coat, telling me she must have come straight from the hospital.
Mack joins me, and his eyes follow mine. His body stiffens slightly, and I
’m more than a little curious about his reaction.
“Isn’t that Dr. Huntley from Sibley Memorial Hospital?” I ask, nudging Mack with my elbow.
“Yeah. I believe it is.”
I watch as his eyes track her movement. She meets up with Detective John Katz and kisses his cheek, before following him back towards the interrogation rooms.
“I wonder what that was all about.”
“I’m not sure.” He clears his throat before taking a step in that direction. “I’ll catch you tomorrow. I have something I need to take care of.”
I don’t even bother responding because he’s quickly gone, following after John and the good doctor. I shake my head, perplexed by his actions.