25. Chapter 25 The Best Valentine’s Day I’ve Ever Had
Chapter 25: The Best Valentine’s Day I’ve Ever Had
J ENNY
Jenny snuggled into Wade, already half asleep. She could hardly believe the last few hours were real, but she had a slight tenderness between her legs to prove it. In her whole life, she’d never known sex could be like this - fulfilling but also fun.
And Wade wasn’t only interested in his own release. Oh, no, he made sure she came several times for each of his orgasms. He was better than any book boyfriend because she heard his deep breathing and felt the rise and fall of his chest and knew he was real.
Not only was he unselfish, but he also said his arousal depended on her feeling good, too. It was the wildest thing she’d ever experienced. She always thought after-care was something in books after particularly raunchy sex. When he helped clean her up after sex, she was embarrassed and confused until she realized it was another sign of his caring nature.
Her last thought before she fell back asleep was hoping she could keep this going when they returned to the real world. But even if it only lasted the duration of their trip, it was still the best relationship she’d ever had.
The next time she woke up, the other side of the bed was cool to the touch. Before she even had time for disappointment to crash through her, Wade popped his head around the door. A huge smile broke over his face when he saw her.
“Hey, gorgeous. Great. You’re awake.” He frowned. “Or did I wake you? Damn it. I didn’t mean to, but I have coffee.”
“You didn’t wake me, or if you did, I don’t care anymore. I need coffee.”
Jenny covered her mouth as a yawn escaped, and she got the first whiff of her morning breath. Maybe it was a good thing Wade woke up before she did. He beamed at her and leaned against the door frame.
“We don’t have in-room coffee today. I woke up earlier, and I went on a hunt for the good stuff.”
Jenny giggled at his enthusiasm and sat up. The blanket fell to her waist, and she scrabbled to cover herself.
“No need to wrap up on my account,” Wade said with a teasing smirk, “but I understand some things are more comfortable at night. Why don’t I give you a couple of minutes to get dressed, and then we can have our coffee and surprise.”
Gratitude filled her as she stared at the charming guy hovering in the doorway with a mischievous expression on his face.
“What’s the surprise?” she asked.
“If I tell you, it won’t be a surprise. Now hurry up. Our coffee’s getting cold. There are two surprises now that I think about it.”
Wade closed the door behind him, and Jenny threw off the blankets. She grabbed a sweater, skinny jeans, and undergarments before she headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth and use the facilities. When she caught sight of herself in the mirror, she grimaced and then shrugged before she got dressed.
If Wade wanted to call her gorgeous, she’d let him. She brushed her teeth and removed last night’s makeup but didn’t bother trying to tame her bed head. Instead, she wrangled her hair into a low ponytail with a twist and swiped on mascara and lip balm.
She studied herself critically in the mirror before she finished dressing. Coffee was more important than looking good right now. Besides, he’d already seen all her flaws. While he might simply be using their unplanned closeness to his advantage, he’d gone out of his way to make the morning after less awkward.
“Oh, wow, you look great,” Wade said when she entered the sitting area.
Jenny blushed and avoided eye contact. She glanced around the room for a distraction. Her eyes landed on a plate stacked high with muffins, croissants, and cinnamon rolls. Confused, she looked back at him, her nerves forgotten.
“Where did this come from?”
“The hotel planned a big Valentine’s Day brunch today, but it was canceled due to the weather. They’d already baked a lot of stuff, though, so they have a big buffet downstairs. I went looking for good coffee for you and found this.”
“It’s amazing. Cinnamon rolls are my favorite. I love how they start out delicious but somehow get better with every bite until you finally reach the soft, gooey, perfectly sweet and spicy center.”
“Kind of like you,” Wade said in a low voice.
Jenny’s face flamed, and he chuckled. Just like that, her embarrassment was back in full force. Unlike her past relationships, though, she liked it even though she didn’t trust it yet.
“Take a seat,” he said. “Oh, they had mimosas and coffee. I only had one set of hands, though, so I prioritized the coffee. I hope that was the right call.”
Jenny had already grabbed one of the cups on the table to hide her embarrassment. After a big whiff, she took a cautious sip before she turned to Wade with a huge smile.
“Coffee was definitely the right choice.”
“Okay, good. There were a bunch of women hanging out around the mimosa station, so I worried I picked wrong.”
“Mimosas are fun, don’t get me wrong, but coffee is life.”
Wade chuckled again while Jenny took another sip.
“That’s what I thought you’d say. Do you need any cream and sugar? I wasn’t quite sure since sometimes it seems like you use it, and sometimes you don’t.”
Jenny’s heart swelled. He’d already paid more attention to her habits in a few short days than Chad had in the year they dated.
“I prefer it black when it’s good quality coffee like this. If it’s bad or mediocre, though, it needs a little assistance to be palatable.” Jenny laughed and added, “But I would probably have drunk this black even if it was vending machine coffee to contrast with the sweetness of the cinnamon roll.”
“I wondered if you were going to eat any. You keep looking at them, but I noticed you haven’t chosen one yet.”
“I don’t usually eat that much sugar on an empty stomach, but they look so good, I might have to make an exception.”
“Oh, that reminds me! I got bacon, too. I forgot that plate in the kitchenette.”
Jenny goggled at him.
“What? How did you carry all this stuff by yourself?”
“They gave me a drink carrier for the coffees—I got two for each of us, so no need to ration it—and they boxed everything else up and put it in a bag. I could tell you didn’t like the in-room coffee even though you didn’t complain. Since I wasn’t quite sure what treats you like, I got a little of everything.”
He shrugged like it was no big deal that he woke up before her and went in search of something to make her happy.
“It’s Valentine’s Day,” he said, “but since this whole relationship was unexpected, I don’t have anything planned. I still want it to be special for you.”
Battling the moisture in her eyes, Jenny set down her cup before she got up from her chair. She took Wade’s coffee cup from his hand and put it on the table too before she straddled his lap. Once there, she wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him. With her head on his shoulder, she cleared her throat.
“Thank you. This is already the best Valentine’s Day I’ve ever had.”
Wade scoffed, but his face softened when he realized she wasn’t exaggerating.
“Next year.”
Jenny lifted her head and searched his eyes for clarification.
“I told you.” His voice was quiet but firm. “This is real for me. It’s not a fling or a convenience. I want to be with you, but I understand you need time to trust it.”
This time, Jenny couldn’t hold back the tears.
“I got you,” he said.
Wade rocked her in his lap as she cried for the woman who’d been told again and again that she wasn’t enough. She tried to let that woman go so Wade wouldn’t have to pay for the sins of past boyfriends, but she knew it wouldn’t be that easy.
“Oh, God, what a terrible girlfriend I am,” she said with a gasp. “I’m crying all over you when you did this lovely thing. Don’t be so nice to me.”
Instead of being annoyed, his face was wreathed in a huge smile.
“That’s the first time you’ve referred to yourself as my girlfriend when we were alone.”
Jenny blushed.
“But it’s time to tell you about the other surprise, though I’m not responsible for it. Go to the window and look outside.”
“Did it snow?”
“You’ll have to see for yourself.”
Jenny gasped when she looked out the window. It had more than snowed. No wonder the roads were closed and all events canceled. She turned to him with eyes full of wonder.
“It’s beautiful.”
“Yup. The guys messaged me earlier to ask if we’d be interested in winter games like sledding and snowball fights. What are your thoughts?”
“That sounds awesome. I haven’t played in the snow in years.”
“I’ll let them know.”
While she admired the snow, Wade grabbed the bacon and pulled scrambled eggs out of thin air. Jenny giggled and rushed back to the table. She sat in her chair and piled eggs and bacon on her plate.
“Hey, aren’t you going to sit in my lap again? I liked that.”
Wade fake-pouted at her, and she laughed. This was the best Valentine’s Day ever, no matter what he thought.
“I need to face the table to eat.”
“Harumph.” With a mischievous grin, Wade pulled her chair closer to his and scooted his own chair next to hers. “I guess this’ll have to do.”
Smiling, Jenny ate delicious bacon and eggs, happiness in her heart. It wouldn’t always be this good, but she would enjoy it while she could without expecting things to sour.
After devouring her breakfast, she was ready for the cinnamon roll. Jenny was a bit of a cinnamon roll snob. However, it was her desire to savor this moment and commit it to memory, not her worry about being disappointed in the sugary treat that stayed her hand.
“Is something wrong?” Wade asked.
“No.” Jenny blushed. “I want to remember this moment.”
Wade grinned at her over his coffee cup. Her heart swelled at his expression.
She peeled a hunk of the outer layer off the cinnamon roll and popped it into her mouth. Her eyes widened in appreciation, and she moaned.
“I knew it,” he crowed. “It’s good, right?”
“It’s amazing,’ she mumbled around the next bite.
Wade’s phone vibrated.
“Excuse me a moment while I check this.”
He responded to a few texts back and forth while she inhaled the decadent treat. Jenny normally peeled each layer and ate them separately to draw out her enjoyment, but it was too delicious.
She moaned again when she took a sip of her black coffee before her next bite. The contrasting flavors exploded on her tongue. The entire cinnamon roll disappeared in this manner. When she finished, she blushed at the heightened color on Wade’s face.
“We should go,” he said. His voice came out in a low growl that raised goosebumps along her arms.
“We don’t have to play in the snow. Couldn’t we just play right here?” Jenny bit her bottom lip with nerves.
Wade groaned.
“The guys just messaged, and I agreed we’d meet them outside in a few minutes.” At Jenny’s crestfallen expression, he added, “I promise to make it up to you later. Besides, who knows when we’ll have this much snow again.”
Wade helped her into her coat, which made her feel cherished. When he zipped it up for her and untucked her long hair from the collar of her coat, she tugged him closer.
“You’re going to make it up to me later? I’ll hold you to that,” she said.
Then she kissed him. Their kiss started out sweet and gentle but exploded into more. Jenny pulled back, dazed and breathless.
“Wow,” Wade said.
He looked as shocked as she was by the intensity of their simple kiss.
A few minutes later, they exited their suite, wearing matching smiles. When they reached the foyer downstairs, they found Wade’s friends at the mimosa station. Wade poured one for each of them, and they drank while they waited. The group was much larger than she expected, but she wasn’t the only woman.
“We’re waiting on one thing before we head out. This is gonna be so much fun. And when we’re done, there’s a hot chocolate bar, too,” Brian said with more enthusiasm than he’d shown for anything else.
Jenny liked him the best of Wade’s conference friends, and she delighted in his boyish excitement. The years fell away as he smiled bashfully. Then Wade turned to her with a huge grin of his own.
“That reminds me. You’ll never guess what the hotel is serving for lunch. It’s more food from their canceled event, so it’ll be buffet style.”
Jenny looked at him blankly.
“Um, sub sandwiches?”
“Better. Breakfast for lunch. Pancakes, waffles, and more bakery treats.”
“Blueberry compote?”
“Blueberry compote.”
Jenny grabbed his hand and pretended to tug him towards the door.
“Then we’d better go burn off some of that breakfast and make room for brunch. Cinnamon rolls and pancakes with blueberry compote on the same day? You’re setting the bar pretty high for future Valentine’s Days, Wade.”
Wade’s laughter echoed around them.
“We have to wait just a little bit longer for the second part of this surprise.”
“What?”
Before he responded, a hotel clerk approached their group.
“If you’ll follow me, we have your gear ready.”
Jenny shot Wade a questioning look, but he winked at her instead of explaining. Curious and excited, Jenny followed the group as they were led through the atrium and into a smaller, less glamorous mudroom.
“This is awesome!” “So cool.” “I haven’t done this in years.”
Jenny gasped when Wade led her to a toboggan.
“Oh my gosh, a sled. I can’t wait,” she exclaimed.
“Everyone will have to fill out a waiver and sign this form before you can check out a sled or toboggan,” the hotel employee said in a voice loud enough to be heard over the excited babble. “Be sure to have your room number ready.”
A few minutes later, the sound of sled runners mixed with delight as they followed the employees’ directions for a clear hill without trees.
Two hours, dozens of minor spills, a massive snowball fight, and a full bladder later, Jenny, Wade, and the group trudged back towards the hotel. Wade halted unexpectedly. Since they were holding hands, Jenny stopped with him. She glanced at him to find his lips set in an uncompromising line.
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
“Suzanne.”
He nodded ahead of them, and Jenny looked towards the hotel. Her eyes had been focused on the ground while they walked after a few near accidents. As a result, she was entirely surprised by Suzanne’s presence.
“Ignore her,” she suggested. “We won’t let her ruin today for us.”
Jenny hoped she sounded more confident than she felt. But when they approached the hotel, Suzanne called out.
“Looks like you guys had fun. I was wrong about you. My group is sledding next, so I guess I’ll see you at the next conference or something. Be happy.”
Then she walked away without another word. Jenny and Wade exchange surprised looks before they clasped their hands tighter and walked into the hotel.