Jennifer Probst - The Holiday Hoax

He stopped before her. Reached out to wrap a wayward curl tightly around his finger. His breath rushed over her lips as he leaned in and spoke. “To see if my kiss lives up to your expectations. I already know you’ll pass.”

A beat went by. She didn’t move. Then he lowered his mouth. His lips moved sweetly over hers, gentle and firm as he learned her texture and taste with a leisurely motion that relaxed her immediately. His hands cupped her cheeks to hold her still, sipping, nibbling, tempting her lips to open for him. Isabella swallowed a moan of pure lust. Aidan dove in.

His tongue thrust against hers in hot male hunger. She clung to his shoulders as she hung on for the ride. The raw tension between them pulled and burned. Her head spun as she let go, giving it all back to him, everything she had, everything she was, and everything she’d been holding back.

He pulled away, whispered her name, then seized her mouth again. He drank deeply until she shook with the need for more.

Aidan stepped back, looking equally shaken. The knowledge he felt the same made a strangled laugh rise to her lips. “Wow,” she said.

Her tongue snaked out to lick her swollen bottom lip. Tiger eyes darkened with need and hunger as he watched the movement.

“I’m glad you came up with something because that left me speechless.”

“Yeah, I’m a real Shakespeare.”

He laughed and took his mug of coffee. “I’m going to hang on to this cup a while so I can keep my hands off of you. Wouldn’t want to piss off Liz. I’m afraid of her.”

She laughed back and settled with him on the overstuffed cream color couch. “You should see the kids. And she teaches kindergarten.”

He winced in mock horror. “Now I am scared.” He took a sip of the brew and murmured his approval. “Did you always know you wanted to teach?”

Isabella considered the question. “I tried a couple of other careers on for size before I settled. I lived in Manhattan for a while. I liked the idea of being in the fast lane. But after a while, I burnt out. I lived in a studio with a bunch of roommates, partied at the clubs, and worked low end jobs.” The memory of her betrayal flashed before her vision, but the accompanying cut of pain barely registered now. “Something happened that made me reconsider my options. I realized I wanted more, so I went back to school. Teaching was a good fit. I missed the mountains and small town life.”

His gaze sharpened as he snagged on her brief hesitation. “What made you reconsider?”

A smile tugged at her lips. “You don’t miss a thing, do you?” she murmured. “Do you really want to hear my backstory on our first night?”

“Yes.”

His simple admission and the gleam in his eyes urged her forward. Isabella took a sip of the hot brew and let herself go back. “Remember your questions in the car regarding my interest in men with money?” He nodded. “Well, let’s just say I got a firsthand experience of that lifestyle, and I’ll never go back. I met someone at a bar while I was waitressing one night. Seemed like a nice guy, well dressed, polite. We had a connection so when he asked me out, I agreed.”

Aidan remained quiet, but his fingers reached out to snag hers. The comforting warmth settled the memories and she pushed on. “We began to seriously date. His name was Mike, and I fell pretty hard for him. I was fine with taking it slow for the first few months, but then I realized he still hadn’t introduced me to his family. Kept me away from most of his friends. He’d whisk me away for romantic weekends, or late evening dinners, but we never did the ordinary things that couples usually do when they’re building a relationship. So, I began getting suspicious. Thought maybe he was cheating on me. Even asked if he had a wife.”

Isabella shook her head. “He denied it all. One evening, he made excuses why he couldn’t go out and said he was sick. Said he didn’t want me to come over, just wanted to sleep. I decided to drive over to his house. Imagine my surprise when he came out dressed in a tuxedo.”

Aidan winced. “This doesn’t sound very good.”

“Gets better. I followed him to an extremely lush country club. Hell, I couldn’t even get through the gates. I ended up spying through the bushes like a cheap tramp while I watched him mingle with his family and close friends. When I left, I realized there was a huge part of him I hadn’t even known existed.”

“What happened?”

Isabella sighed. “I confronted him the next day with the truth. He looked devastated, and finally confessed. He was an up-and-coming executive in his father’s business, and his family owned half of Wall Street. Seems there were only certain women good enough to be his wife. Women of breeding, power, elegance, money.” She fought the dark spot on her heart that still ached at not being good enough for someone she loved. “But not me. My family was poor and I didn’t even have a real job.” She shrugged. “I just wasn’t worth the fight to him. My heart was broken, and in a way, I understood. So, I came home.”

The comforting warmth of his hand on hers suddenly turned. Fire simmered along her nerve endings as his grip tightened. She caught her breath as her belly dipped, then his hands slid into the heavy length of her hair to gently tug her head back. Her neck arched. The delicious scents of coffee and male hunger rose to her nostrils, and Isabella realized she wanted him.

“He was an asshole,” he growled against her lips. “I’d fight for you.”

Then his lips took hers.

This time, he claimed her mouth like a marauding warrior bent on capture. His tongue swept in and took over, stroking every dark, wet crevice. The hard length of him pressed against her thigh, and his obvious arousal caused a fierce satisfaction to course through her, urging her on. She met him stroke for stroke as her arms wrapped around his shoulders and hung on. Her nipples rose and tightened against her sweater, and with a low groan, he slipped one hand out of her hair and under the soft fabric.

The breath hissed through her lips as his fingers tugged down her bra to cup her bare breast, his thumb urging her nipple to tighten further. Isabella fought the drowning waves of heat and dug her nails into his shoulders. Mindless pleasure drove her on, and she offered herself up to him, moaning as he stroked her breast with knowledgeable fingers.

His teeth nipped at her swollen lower lip as his thumb teased the turgid nub. Round and round he circled her nipple, then carefully grasped the peak between his fingers.

And tugged.

Fire speared straight down to, and burned between, her thighs. “Aidan!”

He shuddered in her arms. Then with slow, deliberate movements, he removed his hand and eased down her sweater. Amber eyes burned with lust and determination as he stared into her face. “I want you, Isabella. But it’s too soon. I want you to trust me.”

She realized in that moment she would have regret sleeping with him this first night. Who was this incredible man who knew more about her in a few hours than most men she dated? He could have swept her into the bedroom and she wouldn’t have denied him. Instead, he delayed his own pleasure for her trust.

Isabella reached up and traced the strong line of his jaw. The words ripped from her throat. “Thank you.”

A smile touched carved lips. “Welcome. But I don’t think I could do it again.”

She laughed and tried to change the subject. “You heard my sob story. What about you? Where did you grow up?”

His face drained of emotion. She blinked at the sudden change and he shifted in discomfort. “I grew up in the city,” he said carefully. “I never had a choice, though. I finished college and went straight into the family business.”