6. MILA
6
MILA
M y head crashes against my pillow as my not-so-mysterious Christmas Eve stalker comes down beside me, his hand resting against my ass as we each struggle to catch our breath.
“Shit, Mila. I could fuck you every minute of every day for the rest of my life and still not have enough of you.”
A stupid grin stretches across my face, and I drop my hand on his chest, feeling the rapid beat of his heart below. “Is that a challenge? Because I think you might have worked out that I’m not the type to shy away from a challenge.”
“No, you’re certainly not,” he agrees.
I can’t help but laugh as I simply stare at him. This can’t be real. This man is far too perfect for me, and yet I don’t know a damn thing about him. “Are you ready to tell me your name now?”
A cocky smirk pulls at his lips. “I thought you would have put it together by now.”
My brows furrow, unsure what he could mean. It’s not like I can simply guess his name. All this time, I’ve been assuming he was Santa Claus, but that couldn’t be right because I saw Santa when I was six, and this guy wasn’t him. Don’t get me wrong, he was certainly there, but he wasn’t the old man in red putting presents under my tree.
“Honestly, I don’t really know,” I admit, pushing up until I’m sitting cross-legged beside him. “From that very first time I saw you when I was a kid, my little brain assumed you were Santa’s son, and that’s stuck with me all this time.”
He nods. “Well, your little kid brain was right. I am his son. Only he’s no longer Santa Claus. I am, but I prefer to go by Nick.”
My face scrunches. “Santa Claus, huh?” I say slowly, letting it really sink in as a million different thoughts filter through my brain. I mean, how can his father simply not be Santa anymore? But also, is he Nick as in jolly old Saint Nicholas?
Nick sits up against the headboard and lets out a heavy sigh. “Okay, then. Hit me with it. I know you have questions.”
“If you are Santa, what the hell are you doing here with me? Don’t you have like . . . I don’t know, a billion gifts to deliver to kids all over the world?”
“Two and a half billion,” he corrects. “And no, I’m all done for the night. You’d be surprised just how quickly I can get my job done when I know there’s a beautiful woman here waiting for me to fuck her into oblivion.”
A stupid smile pulls across my lips as I feel my cheeks begin to flush. “Okay, so you’ve made all the children of the world happy, but how did you do it? Is the whole reindeer and sleigh thing real?”
He nods and points toward the ceiling. “They’re waiting up on the roof.”
My eyes bug out of my head. “Holy fucking shit. You’re lying. There’s magical reindeer on the roof right now?”
Nick laughs. “Yes. They can be dicks sometimes, but after the night they’ve had, they’re pretty chill right now. You could come up and meet them if you’d like.”
“Really? Would that be okay?”
“Of course.”
I bite down on my lip, feeling a swell of butterflies deep in my stomach, knowing if I’m not careful, I could so easily fall in love with this man, which is so stupidly ridiculous considering I will only ever see him once a year. Assuming he wakes me up of course.
“So, how come you’re Santa now? You don’t exactly look like a typical Santa.”
Nick laughs. “Believe me, I know,” he says. “It’s a bit of a sore point with my old man back home. But being Santa is a family thing. Passed down from father to son for generations, and a few years back, my father—the Santa of your childhood—retired and passed the reins to me.”
“So, you’re it now.”
“Yep.”
“Shit. No pressure, huh?”
“You’ve got no fucking idea,” he murmurs before setting his gaze on me, a heaviness beginning to settle between us as I realize it’s almost time for him to leave.
“You have to go, don’t you?”
Nick nods. “Yes, I’ve completed your wishes and the type of magic I have to do that won’t allow me to abuse that power.”
“Damn,” I sigh. “Does it make a difference if I don’t want you to go?”
“I wish it could.”
Willing myself not to break, I crawl across my bed and right into his lap, straddling him as he holds my stare. “When you say you’ve completed all my wishes, does that mean you heard what I said in the fountain?”
He smiles. “Not only did I hear you,” he says, digging into his pocket and pulling out a piece of paper. “I also got a printout to make sure I didn’t miss anything.”
“No way,” I laugh, taking the piece of paper and glancing over the exact wishes I had made with Carolina while shivering outside of the fountain, my teeth chattering from the cold.
I wish to be dicked down so hard that my knees will shake for weeks after.
I wish to be thrown around, flipped over like a pancake and railed within an inch of my life.
I wish to be dragged down my bed only to feel a warm mouth close over my clit and scream as he works me with his skilled tongue.
I wish to make him come apart in my mouth.
I wish to come alive, to feel things I’ve never felt before, and to be screwed so good that nothing will ever compare.
“Oh my god. This is so embarrassing,” I say, covering my face. “And yet, I can’t bring myself to regret it.”
“Even if I told you my old man saw these too?”
My face drains of color, and I gape at him in horror, my heart racing as humiliation washes over me. “Please tell me you’re lying.”
“Really wish I could,” he tells me, not bothering to spare my feelings for even a second, though he doesn’t strike me as the type to play silly games. He’ll give it to me straight. “So, tell me, Mila. Have I completed your wishes to your satisfaction?”
“Ooh, I don’t know,” I tease, reaching across to my bedside table and pulling out the top drawer to fetch a pen, my gaze momentarily lingering on my charm bracelet and getting butterflies at the thought of this man being responsible for that. Sitting up straight, I hold up the list and drop my gaze. “Let’s see, shall we?”
Nick rolls his eyes. “Did I dick you down so good your legs shook?”
I grin, not bothering to be shy about it, especially after what he just did to me. “Yes.”
He nods to the paper. “Tick it.”
I wish to be dicked down so hard that my knees will shake for weeks after.
“Good girl,” he murmurs, watching as I confidently tick off my first wish. “Now, did I flip you over like a pancake and rail you within an inch of your life?”
I smile again, remembering it so damn clearly that my pussy clenches. “You certainly did.”
“Good. Tick it.”
I get back to work, clutching the pen as I tick the second box.
I wish to be thrown around, flipped over like a pancake and railed within an inch of my life.
Glancing back up and waiting for him to continue, I realize he hasn’t glanced down at the paper once. It’s as though he has every last one of my filthy Christmas wishes completely memorized, which only has my heart racing just a little faster.
“What about that sweet little clit of yours?” he questions, his hand falling to my hip and gently squeezing, making my skin burn with electricity from his touch. “Did you feel my mouth and how I worked you with my tongue? Did I make you scream, Mila?”
“Oh God, yes,” I groan.
“Mark it off.”
I wish to be dragged down my bed only to feel a warm mouth close over my clit and scream as he works me with his skilled tongue.
“Now,” he continues in that deep, gravelly tone, leaning in so his lips are gently brushing across my ear. “We both know damn well how you made me come apart in your mouth, so go right ahead and tick that one off. But the real question is, have you felt things tonight that you’ve never felt before? Did I screw you so good that no other man will ever compare to how it was with me?”
I suck in a breath, my body so responsive to everything that he is.
I don’t get a chance to respond before his arms are around my waist and he rolls us until he’s hovering over me, his body heavy against mine, but not so heavy that he crushes me. “Tell me, Mila. Will any other man ever compare to this?”
“Never,” I say just as he slides that thick cock back inside of me, slowly rocking back and forth as his lips come down on mine, and at this point, I don’t even know where the list or the pen have gone. All that matters is how he feels inside of me.
It’s slow and sensual, almost like some kind of beautiful goodbye.
I hold on to him as he brings me to the edge and it’s not long before we’re coming together again, and considering that wasn’t one of my wishes, I can only guess that it was nothing more than a gift from him to me.
His lips come down on mine with a heaviness that tears me to shreds. He sighs. “I’m sorry, Mila. I have to go.”
I slowly nod, willing myself not to break as I clutch his hand in mine. “Is it still okay that I walk up to the roof?”
“Of course.”
A renewed excitement builds deep in my chest, realizing that I still have a few minutes to hold onto this insane fantasy—a fantasy not a single person across the globe will ever believe.
Nick climbs off my bed, pulling me up with him, and as he finds his clothes and starts to dress, all I can do is grab my silk dressing gown and watch, still unable to believe tonight is even real. After kicking off my heels and switching them out for a pair of slippers, I pull the gown tight around me, tying it in a knot at my waist.
Nick fixes his pants and steps into his boots before grabbing his big red coat off my armchair and pulling it on. Only he doesn’t bother doing it up or strapping his belt back on. Instead, he simply wraps it around his hand and leads me out of my bedroom.
We cross the living room and before I know it, Nick is taking my hand and helping me through my fire escape. “You know,” I say as he climbs out behind me, then makes sure to close the window to keep the chill from getting in. “Every year since I was a little girl, I wished you would come back.”
“I know,” he says, starting up the stairs toward his reindeer, who are no doubt waiting as patiently as ever. “I received every single one of them.”
“You never let me down,” I muse. “You came every year.”
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, Mila,” he says, stopping on the stairs and stepping right into me, crowding me against the railing. “I’ve belonged to you since I was eight years old. There wasn’t a single year I didn’t want to come. Even if you never wished me back, I would have found my way here.”
My heart races, but I really don’t know how to feel. He’s leaving me, and I’m just supposed to wait for him to return. My heart is so full, but at the same time, it’s breaking in a way I never thought capable. “So,” I say, trying to deflect the pain growing in my chest. “Are you a creepy, stalker Santa who likes getting his rocks off, or are you a genuine man who simply wanted a girl’s Christmas wishes to come true?”
Nick grins and lets his hand fall into mine as we continue up the next flight of stairs. “Two things can be true at the same time.”
“Wait. What do you mean? Just how much stalking are we talking about?”
“Don’t ask questions you don’t want answers to, Mila.”
I swallow hard, wondering just what kind of man he is. Is he truly stalking me? Does he come to see me more than I know, or is it much more sinister than that? One thing I know for sure is that he’s right. I shouldn’t ask questions I don’t want to know the answers to. I’m happy living in my little delusional bubble, assuming he’s some kind of white knight who’s going to show up every Christmas Eve and make all my wild Christmas fantasies come true.
“So, you’re all about the whole spreading joy thing, I take it?”
“No,” he laughs. “My old man is all about spreading joy. Me? I prefer to spread legs.”
Holy fuck.
A shiver sails down my spine, as a strange need pulses through my core. How could I possibly be ready for more after the fuck fest he just put me through? “Yeah,” I say. “And you certainly do it well.”
Nick laughs, and as we near the roof, he glances down at me, his eyes sparkling brighter than the stars in the sky. “You know the song ‘I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus’ ? ” he questions.
My brows furrow wondering where the hell he’s going with this. “Yeah,” I say slowly. “Isn’t that the one where the kid sees his mom with Santa, only we all knew it was just his dad?”
Nick shakes his head. “Uhhhh . . . maybe I shouldn’t have brought this up.”
“What the hell are you talking about, Nicholas Claus? Wait. Is that your last name? Or is it Kringle? Like Kris Kringle?”
“It’s just Saint Nicholas. No last name. But don’t be calling me Saint Nicholas, that’s my father. I just go by Nick.”
“Okay, Nick. Tell me the kid in that song wasn’t actually seeing you kiss his mom.”
Nick laughs as his smirk widens. “Guilty,” he says. “Only, I wasn’t kissing her, I was fu—”
“HOLY FUCKING SHIT,” I screech, cutting him off. “That’s one of my favorite Christmas songs, and now I can never sing it again.”
“I’m kidding,” he chuckles. “That song’s been around for years. It was actually my grandfather who was caught getting his dick wet.”
“Ewwww.” I go to reprimand him further when my eyes widen in horror. “Wait. Does that mean I’m not your first Christmas Eve screw while on the job?”
His eyes widen just a fraction before quickly recovering. “Might I remind you that you’ve had a boyfriend for the past however many years. Did you expect me to hold out all these years waiting for you to realize just how much of a filthy girl you are for me?”
I shrug. He kind of has a point.
“And just so you know,” Nick continues. “Creeping into your room in the middle of the night is hardly as much fun when there’s another man in your bed,” he tells me. “Where is he, by the way? Did you finally drop the dead weight?”
“The dead weight had an issue keeping his dick in his pants.”
“Oh shit. Sorry I brought it up.”
I shrug my shoulders. “You know, it’s been really bothering me these past few weeks since it happened, but after tonight, I don’t seem to care anymore.”
Nick holds my stare for just a moment, and I can feel the weight of all the things unsaid between us. Just as I try to figure out a way to explain the million different things rushing through my mind, we reach the roof, and my whole world explodes into a million pieces.
“What in the ever-loving fuck?” I mutter to myself, pausing on the top step as I see the big red sleigh surrounded by eight sleeping reindeer. My brain can barely process it, but it’s right there in front of me. Every Christmas story told to me as a child suddenly flashes in my mind, and I can’t help but gape at the sight.
“Which one of them is Rudolph?” I ask, keeping my voice down so as not to wake them.
Nick tugs my hand, bringing me closer to his . . . pets? Or are they employees? I suppose I don’t really know. “Reindeer only have a lifespan of fifteen to eighteen years. The original reindeer you would know from all those famous stories and songs are long gone. These are their descendants. There’s been generations of reindeer since the original ones.”
“Oh,” I say, feeling slightly disappointed, but I suppose it makes sense.
“This one though,” he says, striding up to the one sleeping closest to us before bending down and gently brushing his fingers between its eyes. “This is Tucker. He’s a direct descendant of Dasher and Comet.”
“Wait. Dasher and Comet had babies together? I thought all the reindeer were female.”
“No,” he says. “They have to reproduce somehow. But Dasher and Comet, theirs was a love story for the ages.”
A stupid smile pulls across my face, and I watch as Nick straightens up to his full height and makes his way back toward me, the heaviness in his eyes killing me.
This is it. He has to go. And then what?
My heart breaks as he steps back into me, and as if reading my mind, he takes my hand and pulls me into his wide chest. “Wish me back, Mila. As long as you wish for me, I will continue to come.”
I nod. Twelve whole months until I get to see him again.
His lips drop to mine, and he kisses me with such sincerity that every piece of my broken heart mends back together. Only when he pulls away, I feel myself falling apart again. His forehead drops to mine, and he almost looks pained. I can’t help but wonder if being here for so long is somehow physically affecting him.
His hand falls away from my waist and he digs into his pocket before pulling out a single silver charm and placing it into my hand. Looking down, I can’t help but smile as I take in the little charm. It’s the Naughty List with my name scrawled right in the center.
“It’s perfect,” I whisper.
Nick nods and squeezes my hand, and with that, he turns away, heading right for his sleigh as the eight reindeer suddenly wake, looking as though they have all the energy in the world.
Then in a blink of an eye, they’re gone, leaving the roof as empty as my heart.
I clutch the Naughty List charm as the tears begin to well in my eyes, and when the chill in the air becomes too much to tolerate, I hurry back down the fire escape and into my apartment. Making my way back into my bedroom, I collapse onto my bed before taking the charm bracelet on my bedside table and hastily adding this one to the string of others, putting it right at the front. This particular one will always hold so much more value to me than the others.
The tears don’t stop flowing, and as I roll over, I feel something in my bed. Feeling around the sheets, I find the red satin cloth he used to bind my wrists, the pen, and the printout of my Christmas wishes.
Taking the pen, I hold up the list and glance over the final wish before finally ticking it, knowing without a single doubt that no other man will ever compare to the night I just had with Nick. No other man will ever make me feel so alive, and no other man will ever make me feel the way he did.
I wish to come alive, to feel things I’ve never felt before, and to be screwed so good that nothing will ever compare.