Chapter 13
THEA
“I love this so much,” Nora says, her eyes a little watery as she faces the town. “We have a five-way tie!”
We all smile at each other. Five of the pairs ended up with the same number of ornaments from the hunt in the park. But not accidentally. We all helped each other to find ornaments.
It started with Beckett realizing that the first two ornaments he found were hand-painted by Andi.
Patty confirmed that Andi’s art classes had painted all of the ornaments in the park.
Beckett is a big fan of Andi. Not just her art, but all of her.
It’s too bad for him that Andi has sworn off all dating, all men—especially younger, sunshiny, golden retriever hockey players—and even all flirting.
Still, Beckett decided he wanted to collect as many of Andi’s hand-painted ornaments as possible, so he made a deal to exchange any other ornaments he found with Andi ornaments that other people found.
That led to Jesse making the same deal, but for ornaments that her kids had painted in the classes they take with Andi.
Muriel then decided she wanted to collect all of the ornaments she had painted and agreed to do the ornament exchange with anyone who found those.
We all ended up in the middle of the park, looking over all of the ornaments and swapping back and forth until everyone had what they wanted.
And an equal number of ornaments because, at that point, that only seemed fair.
But, as Beckett pointed out when one of the judges came over to see what we were doing, there are no rules against trading ornaments or a tie.
It would have been a six-way tie, except Sam and Ashley never came over to see what the ten of us were laughing and conspiring about.
“I’m really proud of you,” Patty tells Muriel as the rest of the contestants begin to disperse.
Technically, we don’t have anything else scheduled until tomorrow morning. There are, of course, plenty of food and craft booths to peruse, treats to sample, and holiday decorations to enjoy, though if people are feeling festive.
“Why?” Muriel asks.
“You were really nice and cooperative during the ornament hunt, you didn’t insult anyone else’s ornaments, and you didn’t piss anyone off.”
Muriel just shrugs. “You’re the only one I like pissing off.”
“You like pissing lots of people off,” Patty argues.
“Okay, but you’re the only one I piss off on purpose,” Muriel corrects.
“But you admit you still like it when you piss people off besides me.”
“Nine out of ten times,” Muriel agrees.
Josh chuckles, and we exchange a look.
The easy way he gets along with the often-cantankerous Muriel is just one more thing I like about him. He seems to roll with whatever and whoever crosses his path. I’m sure that serves him well in his line of work, but it also makes him a very good fit for Rebel. We’re an…eclectic bunch.
He suddenly stretches and yawns. “Man, it’s been a big day.”
“There might be something else yet tonight,” Muriel warns him. “Don’t you be fallin’ asleep and missing a notification.”
He nods. “No worries. I’ve always got my phone on. But I might need a nap.” Again, he catches my gaze.
Suddenly, nap has a whole new meaning in my life.
And I need one too. Badly.
“It’s been so busy, I’ve got some paperwork and laundry to try to get done,” I say with a nod. “I’ll probably head back to my house and hope we don’t get a surprise challenge.”
Muriel shakes her finger at me. “You’d better keep your phone on, too.”
“Of course.”
But I’m seriously considering bribing my cousin not to surprise us with any challenges for at least an hour. Or two.
Without a word about a specific plan or a “want to come to my place?”, Josh and I start walking toward my house together.
We don’t talk. We also don’t stop, even when people call out to us with “Hey, Josh! Hey Thea!” or “You guys were great today!” We just lift our hands and give a quick, “Hi” and “Thanks!”
We climb the porch steps together seven minutes later, and I open the door.
What should I say? Should I invite him to my room? Should I just start taking my clothes off? Should I turn and push him up against the door and kiss him? Because I really want to kiss him, and I want him to know that. I also want him upstairs in my bedroom. Right now.
He steps in behind me and shuts the door. He locks it, then turns to face me.
I tuck my bottom lip between my teeth and wait.
Say something dirty and amazing. Tell me what you want. Tell me what to do. It’s been a really long time and…
“I’m crazy about you, Danger,” he says, his voice gruff.
That wasn’t what I was expecting. I was expecting something dirty and demanding, or maybe funny and flirty. But that was just straightforward and sweet.
So, I give it right back to him. “I think you are an amazing man, and I am so glad that you want to be here with me.”
He takes two steps forward and cups my face with both hands.
“I am so fucking glad that every other man who has ever been in your orbit was too damn stupid to see what was right in front of him. I am so glad you’re not taken.”
My heart starts thumping harder. “I am too,” I tell him honestly. “I’m glad you finally showed up.”
He gives me a grin and strokes his thumbs along my jaw on both sides. “Sorry it took me a little bit.”
“I think it’ll be worth the wait.”
Heat flares in his eyes, and his smile fades into a hot, hungry look. “Oh, I can guarantee it.”
He lowers his head, but I’m already arching to meet him partway.
Our mouths collide, and I feel an equal mix of lust and relief.
I’ve been wanting this all day.
Maybe all my life.
He seems to feel the same. His hands drop to my waist, and he pulls me more firmly against him as he deepens the kiss. I thread my fingers into his hair and hold him close as I try to show him that I am all in here. I want everything.
It’s going to be complicated and messy to explain this to everyone, but I’m going to worry about that later.
It’s not like this is the first time I’ve done something messy and my family stood beside me. This whole town did. I have to believe they’ll be happy for us. And they’ll believe us when we tell them what’s really going on.
He kisses along my jaw to my ear. “This is your chance to tell me I still have to wait, that it’s too soon, that…whatever. But take that chance quickly. Because I want to strip you down, spread you out, and make you scream.”
Oh, God. I want all of that.
“I don’t want to wait.” I feel like I’ve been waiting.
It’s too…romantic, or something, to think I’ve been waiting for Josh specifically.
That doesn’t happen, does it? The soulmate thing?
The there’s-only-one-guy-who’s-perfect-for-me thing can’t be real.
But I have never felt so sure of someone before.
He takes a long breath in. “If I get you naked, you’re not getting dressed again until tomorrow morning, and I’m spending the night in your bed, Thea.”
“I know.”
There’s a rumble in his chest, and then I’m being swept up and tossed over his shoulder.
I laugh and just hang on.
“You knew that was coming, right?” he asks as he starts up the stairs.
“I didn’t know, but I hoped. You know the firefighter thing is really hot.”
He smacks my ass and I gasp, then giggle.
“It does come in handy at times.”
In the upstairs hallway, he stops before making it to my room. He lets me slide down his body and then presses me against the wall.
“I need to start right here. Right where we were last night.”
Oh, I like that.
“I’ve had some very nice fantasies about how things went in this hallway if I were not as willing to be such a nice guy,” he says.
I grin up at him. “You are absolutely incapable of not being a good guy.”
“I said nice. Not that I wouldn’t be good.”
The word good carries a lot of sexy meaning.
“Part of me wants to tell you to go put on those pajama pants that I’m obsessed with,” he goes on. “But I don’t want to wait even another second.”
He slips his hands under the bottom of my shirt and then strips it up over my head. I happily raised my arms to help.
He takes me in, leaning against the hall wall, in my emerald green bra and blue jeans.
“Anything you don’t want to do, anytime you want to slow down, anytime you want me to stop, you just say the word,” he says.
I nod.
His gaze is intent on my face. “I’m going to need a ‘yes, Josh’.”
“Are you just testing that I know how to say, ‘oh yes, Josh’?” I ask, putting needy breaths into my voice.
He clearly likes that. He lifts his hand and drags his thumb over my bottom lip. “I want to know you’re completely with me here, and that you want everything I’m going to give you. But yeah. I want to hear a lot more of my name from these lips.”
I nod but also say, “Yes, Josh. I will stop you at any point that I’m not comfortable.”
He nods and puts his hands on the dip of my waist, running them up and down from the waistband of my jeans to the cups of my bra.
“And by the way,” I say. “The same goes for you. You can stop anything you don’t want to do.”
He doesn’t laugh that off. He nods. “I will.”
Consent is so fucking sexy. And being with a man who wants it fully and understands that it goes both ways is amazing.
“So, here’s what I’m thinking,” he says conversationally as he continues to stroke up and down my sides, sending goosebumps skittering in every direction and making my nipples pebble hard behind my bra cups.
“I strip you down to nothing, then I go to my knees, and I make you come at least once right out here in the hallway.”
This blatant sex talk is so new to me. It’s been a while since I’ve been with anyone, but I don’t think I’ve ever been with anyone who talks about it so straightforwardly.
“You don’t want to go to the bedroom?” I ask.
“Oh, Danger, I very much want to go to the bedroom,” he says. “And I fully intend to take you in there. But I’m going to start out here. Because you’ve indicated that this pussy has been sadly neglected lately. Isn’t that right?”
Oh…God.