Carole Mortimer - A Dream Christmas

They couldn’t sleep together again, she told herself. She wasn’t going to do that again. But she could just kiss him, just for a little while longer.

His stubble tickled as he touched his lips to her cheekbone, nibbled her jawbone. His fingers found her breast and through the material of her shirt he massaged her nipple and teased it into an excited peak. She felt her panties dampen and when he started fumbling with the buttons on her shirt she knew that she had to stop because if he kissed her one more time, if he touched her there she would be lost … again.

Riley pushed her hands against his chest. ‘James, stop.’

It took a couple more kisses and the zip of her jeans was down before James got the message. He glowered down at her. ‘We’re really stopping?’

‘Yes.’

He dropped an F-bomb into the heavy silence that followed her answer. ‘ Why ?’

Riley pulled up her zip and straightened her shirt. ‘Because we’re not doing this again. Because we’re not going to have another one-night stand. Because I’m slowly getting my friend back and I don’t want to lose him again! Because I’m leaving … Pick a reason, James. Any of them work.’

‘They all suck,’ James muttered, his eyes tightly closed. ‘If I don’t get sex soon I swear I am going to die.’

He was James Moreau—surely he got sex all the time? While the thought of him being with anyone else made her feel physically ill, she wasn’t stupid. James was a good-looking, rich, charming man who could get all the sex he wanted whenever he wanted it and she couldn’t imagine him abstaining for any length of time.

He opened his eyes to glare at her. ‘Do you know how long five months actually is when you’re not having sex?’

‘Um … five months?’

‘Far too bloody long.’

Then a bank-load of pennies dropped—five months was when they were last at Bon Chance together. ‘You haven’t had sex since … me?’

James held her eyes and nodded.

Well … hell.

Except that she wasn’t idiot enough to believe him. ‘According to the entertainment pages, I wouldn’t have thought so. Your social life has been as hectic as ever.’ Riley grimaced at her waspish tone.

‘You know better than to believe anything you read in the press, Riley. I haven’t had sex with anyone since you,’ he said, emphasising every word.

‘Liar,’ Riley whispered.

‘Truth.’

Not knowing what to think, she waved at his trousers. ‘When that subsides, you’ll thank me.’

‘Trust me, I won’t,’ James grumbled.

‘It’s for the best, James.’ Riley managed a small smile. ‘I’m glad you like what I’ve done with your place but I think I’m going to go now.’

As in right now … while my legs are still receiving messages from my brain.

‘THAT WAS SUCH FUN. I haven’t skated for years.’

Riley, her face bright pink with exercise and cold, shoved her hand into the crook of James’s arm as they walked past the magnificent giant Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center, its two glorious trumpeting angels on either side. Her lips twitched from trying to keep her laugh from bubbling out. ‘Your style was … interesting.’

James looked down at her. ‘Oh, you like the way that I grip the railing? Jeez, a snail could’ve passed me.’

‘Three-year-olds did,’ Riley pointed out. ‘It’s so nice to know that you suck at something, Moreau. You always do everything so well that it’s a relief to know that you aren’t perfect.’

‘Far from it, Ri.’ James knew that her words held merit. And they should since he’d worked hard to perfect the facade he presented to the world—rich, fun, charming, unavailable, and he knew exactly how to project whatever the situation required. Very few people had ever managed to peek behind the mask and he liked it that way. Except that Riley did and always had.

There was little room for failure in his life and it felt odd to feel as relaxed, as comfortable with Riley as he did, the other party in one of his two personal failures. It was all such a long time ago and he’d been young and she’d been even younger and a part of him thought he could almost forgive the stupid kids they’d been. It didn’t mean that love was on the cards for him—until he understood the concept, he’d avoid it—but he was happy to be with her, to have her friendship again, even if he did live his life semi-erect these days since sex with Riley was pretty much all he fantasised about.

She was too good a friend and too talented an employee to lose.

‘I need to get home, Jay,’ Riley said as they stopped at a traffic light, her gloved hand now in his bare one. ‘Whistle for a taxi for me?’

James turned to face her. ‘Come home with me. I have a surprise for you.’

Riley sent him her patented what-are-you-up-to-now? look. ‘A good surprise or a bad surprise?’

‘A good surprise, oh, cynical one. And, to sweeten the pot, I’ll tell you that I’ve received a case of Bon Chance’s Merlot—’

‘My Merlot?’ Riley almost danced on the spot. ‘The 2004?’

‘Yep,’ James confirmed. ‘But you’ll have to come to my place to drink it. And you’ll have to do a bit of work.’

‘Jeez, I’ve decorated your apartment, I’ve bought your Christmas gifts and I’ve organised your Christmas party,’ she complained good-naturedly. ‘What else do you want me to do?’

‘You’ll see,’ James said cryptically. ‘You haven’t bought Morgan and Noah’s wedding present yet; is that why you’re hanging onto my credit card?’

She looked at him from under those long, long lashes. ‘Mmm. I suppose I should tell you that I used it at a number of Madison Avenue stores today. Thanks for my new winter wardrobe, by the way.’

James shook his head and grinned. ‘Liar.’

Riley sucked in her cheeks to keep herself from smiling. ‘How can you tell?’

James placed his hand on the back of her neck. ‘Firstly, you can’t lie worth a damn. Secondly, you’re not the type to allow any man to buy your clothes and thirdly, you would consider using my card for your benefit stealing. And you’re the most honest person I know. And lastly …’

‘What?’

James laughed down at her. ‘No banking alerts.’

Riley shrugged and gave him a shoulder bump as they crossed the street. ‘So, did you look at those portfolios I gave you?’

He pretended not to know what she was talking about because he hadn’t looked at anything to do with the possible candidates to replace her. He had no intention of ever looking at anyone to replace her. ‘What portfolios?’

‘Dammit, Moreau. You told me to look for someone to replace me; I found six people, all of whom would do a stupendous job as window designer.’

‘Is your portfolio in there?’

‘James …’ Riley said in warning.

‘Then not interested.’ He dropped a kiss on her nose and sent her a grin. ‘Stop fighting with me; you’re going to spoil your surprise.’

‘You are the most annoying human being alive,’ Riley muttered.

James shrugged, knowing that she wouldn’t feel like that for long.

‘A CHRISTMAS TREE? You bought me a Christmas tree?’

‘The American tradition is to decorate it on Christmas Eve but I thought that it would be fun to have one up for the Christmas party, and it’s your favourite thing to do at Christmastime.’

‘That and singing carols.’

‘Which you are amazingly bad at.’

Riley pulled a tongue at him and then her eyes went back to the massive bare fir tree that stood in the corner of James’s apartment, dropping slivers of green onto his expensive floor. As soon as James took her coat she walked over to the tree and touched its branches.