8 Traditions
TRADITIONS
Lucy
“ W hat’s the plan? Strap the tree to the top?” Justin motions to the custom-configured Escalade in which the five of us were chauffeured to the Christmas tree farm.
Rolling my eyes, I pull him along behind the rest of my family toward the office. “No, silly, we pay them to bring it to us after we cut it down.”
He stops me halfway there. “Why exactly are we doing this?”
“It’s tradition. We cut down our tree every year and then decorate it that night. This is my brother’s and my favorite part of Christmas because it’s one of the only times we’re just a normal family… who wears ugly sweaters.” She gestures to the attire we’ve all donned for the occasion. “The tree is never perfect, holds all our homemade ornaments, and is the one Santa leaves presents under.”
“The Santa you don’t believe in anymore? You could have told me about this tradition instead of your made-up Santa’s milk and cookies story.”
“It wasn’t made-up, but we stopped doing it around seven years old after we learned the truth. Plus, it was worth it to see you stunned speechless,” I tease, only to have Justin tickle me, causing uncontrollable laughter.
“Justin, stop!”
“I will for a kiss,” he whispers in my ear.
“Justin,” I plead between fits of laughter. Trying to twist from his hold is impossible.
“Come on, Lucy. One kiss. I won’t even require tongue.”
“Ugh, fine,” I relent, not seeing any other way out.
He finally stops and gently brushes the hair from my face. With both hands framing my cheeks, he leans down and softly grazes his full lips against mine. It feels like heaven. Our mouths dance with each other until my tongue darts out for a taste, and he suddenly pulls back.
“Uh-uh. No tongue, remember?” He smirks.
I pull away and wipe my mouth. “Whatever. I was only doing it because you made me. I didn’t even want to.”
“So, that was just a slip of the tongue then?” he jests.
I groan in frustration and continue toward the rest of my family, not bothering to wait for him.
Last night, he said he wouldn’t touch me again until I begged. That is not happening. The chemistry between us is intense, but I won’t allow myself to fall for his charm again—I learned that lesson last time. Damn him and his kissable lips.
“You two looked pretty cozy over there,” Trevor says quietly as he steps out of the office where our parents are checking in.
“Shut up.”
He laughs before taking a serious tone. “He better not break your heart again, or I’ll break him.”
“Don’t worry, it’s not like that, trust me.”
“Just be careful,” he warns quietly while looking past me.
A few seconds later, Justin plops his arm on my shoulder. “Who’s ready to have some fun?”
Trevor’s pointed look says it all.
Justin
Yesterday was an experience like no other. Holidays with a rich as fuck family are truly something else. After decorating the tree, another formal dinner, and enough spiked eggnog to fill a trough, Lucy and I ambled to bed without any pretenses. I didn’t even have the energy to try and get her worked up for me, which is my number one goal after my promise not to touch her until she begs.
However, with the busy schedule, it will be some time before I can focus on that. Unfortunately, my attention will be on her dad and brother this morning since golf is first on the agenda today.
“What would’ve happened if I’d never swung a club before? Does he not care if I can play or not?” I ask while finishing up in the bathroom. The door is open, and Lucy is leaning against the frame.
She shrugs. “If you don’t golf, he won’t approve of our marriage, so this is just another one of his tests.”
“Great. So play well is what you’re telling me?” I turn toward the doorway, fighting the temptation to kiss her.
“It doesn’t really matter since we’re not actually together. You’re taking this way too seriously.” She rolls her eyes, and my willpower snaps.
My hand reaches for her hair, and I pull her head back to look up at me. “Would you rather I not give a fuck and cause your dad to disapprove of me? I’m sure he would be all too eager to bring Nathan in to take my place.” I lean down to her neck and brush my nose along her jawline. “Is that what you want, Lucy?” My lips faintly skim her soft skin, causing her to moan.
“No… I want…” she starts to say with a whimper but trails off.
“Hm? What was that?” I whisper and nip her earlobe.
She’s panting now, right where I want her. “Justin…”
“You can do it, baby. Tell me what you want.”
“Justin, I—” A knock on the bedroom door causes her to jump back and stumble, catching herself on the dresser. She stares at me for a second and looks down at my raging hard-on.
“Coming,” she yells while frantically combing through her hair with her fingers before opening the door to a smug-looking Trevor.
I don’t hide while readjusting my swollen cock. Bastard should know what shitty timing he has.
“Hope I’m not interrupting anything, but it’s time to go, and we need Justin.” I haven’t wanted to punch the smirk off someone’s face this much in a long time.
“No. You’re not. Perfect timing, actually. Justin just finished.”
It’s my turn to smirk at her choice of words. “I certainly wish I had.”
Lucy groans and looks at Trevor. “That’s not what I meant. We weren’t doing anything, I swear.”
I walk over to her with a look of admonishment. “Don’t lie, baby. Your brother can see right through you.” Leaning down, I kiss her forehead before she shoves me away.
Lucy
“Sorry, sis. I know you wanted to take Justin around town today for some shopping, but we got a little carried away,” my brother says as he and Justin stagger into the library together.
“Yeah, these guys thought I couldn’t hold my own. I showed them,” Justin slurs, leaning against the doorframe for support.
“It’s fine. We can go tomorrow. Is it nap time, then?” I address them both.
“You just want to get me into bed, don’t you?” Justin retorts.
Both guys laugh.
“Okay then. I’ll take that as a yes. Come on, big guy,” I say to Justin as I thread my arm through his and tug him toward our room.
“Guess how many different golf-named drinks there are?” Justin asks in wonder.
“I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say too many.”
“Fuck. You got it. Do you know how amazing you are?”
I’m shaking my head, grinning while pushing our door open to guide him inside.
“No, I mean it. You’re incredible.” He cages me against the door as soon as it closes behind us. “And beautiful, in case I haven’t told you lately. And you’re smart and funny, and you’re just the whole goddamn package, Lucy.”
He has no idea what he’s saying, and if I don’t stop him, he’ll regret this the minute he sobers up. The last thing I want is for the rest of this visit to be awkward, which means it’s time to move.
I sneak out from under his arms so quickly that he almost tumbles trying to stop me. “If you nap now, we might still have time to do something before dinner. Why don’t you get into bed, and I’ll shut the blinds.”
“I’ll only nap if you lie with me.”
“That’s not a good idea.” Picturing myself in bed with him after the incident this morning makes me hot. I can’t believe how close I was to giving in and asking him to kiss me.
“I completely disagree.”
“Of course you do.”
“Come on, Lucy. You know you want to.”
How can his voice be that sexy while he’s three sheets to the wind? I’m moving toward the bed, my feet taking over. He probably won’t give up, so I’m only prolonging the inevitable by arguing. I’ll wait until he passes out, which I bet won’t take long.
“I’ll lie down, but no funny business. I mean it,” I say sternly while a smile slowly spreads across his face.
“We’ll leave our clothes on. Just be next to me.” He climbs in and holds his arm out for me to join him.
So, I do.
He wraps his arm around me, lifting my upper body onto his chest. His sigh of contentment is contagious. As predicted, he’s out within a minute. My body melts into his as if it were always meant to be there. It’s already difficult trying to stay angry with him, and when he’s so sweet and feels this good, it’s nearly impossible.
Justin
Her smell infiltrates my senses. It’s the first thing to register as I regain consciousness, along with the satisfaction of holding Lucy in my arms again. I’m afraid to open my eyes and discover I’m dreaming, so I don’t. Instead, I relish the feel of her while taking in the moment. My mind starts to recall how we ended up here, making me smile at the memory of our banter and how adorable she is trying to fight this pull between us.
Confident I’m not in a dream, I peel open my eyes to see Lucy sleeping peacefully, her head resting on my chest and full lips parted in slumber. Remembering why I let her go all those months ago is becoming harder to recall and even harder to forgive myself for. It’s not fair to fault her for holding back after the way I handled things.
It was an awful moment in time for me, and my actions had dire consequences. Basically, I made a bad situation worse and have paid the price ever since. I want her back, but not because of some sob story excuse. No, she needs to want me, mistakes and all, because there’s no guarantee I won’t fuck up again.
This is my chance to right the wrongs I’ve committed and redeem myself—if she’ll let me. Her walls seem to be coming down little by little. I’m certainly more hopeful than I was a few days ago, and I think it’s time to take things a step further.
My hands begin slowly caressing her. One on her back, up and down, while the other moves to her face, tucking the hair behind her ears. She shifts her body and moans, causing blood to flow directly south. My arm snakes further down her back to her ass, feeling her soft curves, and my head lowers to her temple to feel her skin against my lips.
She sighs in satisfaction, giving me the green light to proceed. Lifting her chin, my lips find hers, and before I realize what I’m doing, I roll her onto her back and climb on top of her. Desperate to be even closer, I use her ass to pull her further into me as I kiss her neck.
“God, Lucy. You feel so good, baby.” My pelvis grinds into her, and we both moan at the friction.
I hit the sweet spot just behind her ear, and she rocks into me as she whimpers. My hand moves between her legs, and she instinctively opens them for me.
“Fuck. I need to see you come, baby. Will you let me do that for you?”
“Yes. Oh God, please.”
I’ll take that as her begging.
“Good girl.” My hand dips into her waistband, under her panties, finding her drenched.
“Damn, sweetheart, if you needed me this badly, all you had to do was ask. I’ve been dying to get my hands on this pussy for days now.” My fingers probe her hole, anxious to sink further.
“Justin…”
“Do you need me to fuck you with my fingers, baby? Do you want me to ram this tight pussy with my hand and make you scream?”
Her cry is the only answer I need, so without a word, I plunge two digits into her wet heat and revel in the feel of her channel sucking me in. My arm strains from the pressure I’m applying as my fingers flick her inner walls. She screams in ecstasy as my lips continue their assault on her neck while thrusting into her. My swollen cock is humping her leg like a dog, searching for release.
“I know you need this, baby. You want to be fucked so bad, don’t you?”
I grab her hair and pull, her feral gaze meeting mine when I raise my head.
“You’re going to look at me while I make you come. No one makes you come like I do. Isn’t that right?”
“No.” She shakes her head as much as possible with my grip on her hair.
“That’s right. Let me have it, then. Come for me.”
I pull her hair harder, find her G-spot, and she fucking explodes. Her tight pussy squeezes my fingers, pulsing as she screams her release.
My mouth descends, my tongue plunging into her mouth as my hips maintain their thrusting.
In the blink of an eye, I’m on my knees, unzipping my pants to finish myself while my other hand continues to milk her pleasure. I pump my cock furiously. Once, twice, three times, and I come on top of her stomach, marking her as mine.
“Fuck. Oh God, Lucy. Damn, your pussy feels so good.” I grunt my release until the very last drop before sinking back on my ass, slowly removing my hand from between her legs.
“Holy shit, that was incredible,” I say after catching my breath.
“Yeah. Good.” She pants each word in between breaths.