Chapter Twenty-eight
E ven though it was twenty degrees outside, being stuck in that Santa suit for two hours left Sam overheated, which didn’t help when he had to switch right over to a tux for the bachelor auction. He stood backstage, waiting for his name to be called, loosening his collar and taking off his jacket for the fiftieth time, trying to get some airflow with sixty bodies huddled in a cramped space. It felt like a sauna of cologne and breath mints, and he wanted to get the hell out of there.
Sam hadn’t spotted Wren yet, but when he’d seen her after the crowd dispersed at the parade, she’d said she would be there. Sam wasn’t expecting anyone else to bid on him, given everything that had happened, but he didn’t wanna take a chance of going home with anyone else.
“Next up, Sam Griffin!” Merry called from the stage, and Sam walked through the curtain, carrying his tux jacket over his shoulder. Merry smiled at him before addressing the crowd. “This talented artist enjoys sunny weather, boating, and a bottle of good whiskey on a cold night. Ladies, not only do you get to enjoy Sam’s charming company, but you win a tattoo appointment of three hours and up to two hundred dollars. We will start the bidding at thirty dollars; do I hear thirty?” Sam smiled into the audience, even though he was blinded by a spotlight and couldn’t tell who was who, but a paddle went into the air.
“Thirty!”
“I’ll give you forty!”
“Whoa, easy ladies, the night is young. Will anyone go to fifty?”
“Fifty!”
“Sixty!”
It was like rapid-fire succession one after another, up and up it went until someone shouted, “Three hundred and sixty dollars!”
Sam’s throat seized up. It didn’t sound like Wren. Sam held his breath, waiting for Merry to count down to ‘sold’ when he heard his girl.
“Four hundred dollars!”
Sam grinned, spinning in a circle as his heart pounded in anticipation.
“I have four hundred once... twice... sold! To Wren Little for the bargain price of four hundred dollars.”
Sam heard some rumblings in the crowd, probably commenting that he wasn’t worth it, but their opinions didn’t matter.
Still, maybe there was a way to pacify the women of Mistletoe with some good clean revenge?
“You can pay up and pick up at the table by the stage.”
Sam held his hand out for Merry’s mic, shooting her a sheepish grin. “May I address the audience?”
Merry hesitated for several beats before she handed over the mic.
Sam brought the mic to his mouth and said, “Ladies, I know I haven’t always been the most sensitive guy. Although I pride myself on being honest, I wasn’t always tactful and conscientious of your feelings.”
There were a few angry boos and catcalls, but Sam kept going. “A lot of you called in to Jilly G a couple weeks ago and vented your frustrations with my character. I wanted to let you know that I heard you, and I want to apologize. More than that, I want to give the ladies of Mistletoe the opportunity to enact their revenge. Next Saturday, I will be at the Mistletoe Winter Games in the pie-throwing area. If you wish to throw a pie in my face, please come on by from noon to two, and I will take it like a man.”
Sam handed back the mic to Merry, who clapped along with the screaming audience. “Sounds like we’re gonna have a lot of fun next weekend at the winter games. Next up, we have the witty and wicked...”
Sam headed down the stairs, searching the crowd for Wren. He spotted her at the payment table, counting out hundred-dollar bills. Sam walked up next to her, grinning mischievously. “You do know that the prize is a tattoo under two hundred dollars, right?”
“I do know that,” she said, slipping her hand into his. “That’s why we’re headed to the shop now, so I can collect my prize.”
Sam’s jaw dropped. “You’re actually going to get a tattoo?”
“I guess you’ll have to come with me to find out.” Wren tugged on his hand, and he let her lead him out the double doors. Sam was surprised she didn’t drop his hand as they walked by the women of Mistletoe, who watched her curiously. He wondered what had changed, and although he’d expected her to bid on him, why the sudden interest in a tattoo?
When they reached her car, she unlocked it, tossing him the keys. “Do you mind driving? Heels are a killer.”
Sam caught the keys in the air and unlocked the door. “No problem. Where is Duke tonight?”
“At home. He doesn’t look as hot as you in a tux.”
Her playful demeanor made him smile. “You seem different tonight.”
“In what way?” she asked, getting into the car and shutting the door.
“I don’t know,” he said, putting the keys in the ignition. “Happier, maybe. You seem pumped up.”
“I’m just excited to see where the night takes us,” she murmured, placing her hand on his knee.
Sam started the car, and as they drove to the tattoo parlor, he covered her hand with his, lacing their fingers together. He had no idea what was going on in her head, but just the small gesture of holding hands in public gave him hope that maybe she was coming around.
He parked along the back of the tattoo shop and came around to the passenger side to help her out of the car. The long black dress she wore had thick straps, the neckline dipping into a deep V in the front, the material shimmering as she walked.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said.
“Thank you. I feel beautiful.” She tweaked his bowtie playfully. “You look good, too, but you always do.”
“You didn’t think so earlier when I was in my Santa suit,” Sam grumbled.
“That was you?” She laughed. “How did you get roped into that?”
“Victoria threatened me.”
“With what?”
“I don’t know, but her tone was scary.”
Wren laughed again. “Poor baby.”
“I’m not kidding, it was a rough night. I had to listen to Holly gripe and moan about her life and then bombard me with questions about mine. It was a nightmare.”
“But you did it,” Wren said, smiling.
“Of course I did. They were backed into a corner, and they needed a Santa.”
“Yes, but they asked you to do it. They knew you would come through for them, and even though Victoria threatened you, I’m sure she really didn’t have to, because you’re a good man.”
“Thank you.” Sam flipped on the lights inside the parlor, rubbing his hands together. “So, are you really going to get a tattoo, or did you just bring me here to seduce me?”
“It’s actually a little of both,” she murmured, and Sam’s heart slammed in his chest rapidly as Wren held out her arm. With her fingers, she traced something across her skin, and it took him a moment to realize it was a heart. “I want something like this.” She traced a second interconnecting heart onto her arm. “On this first heart, I want the date that you and I met nineteen years ago. Do you remember it?”
“Of course I do,” he said softly.
“Good. On this one,” she said, pointing at the imaginary heart on her forearm, “I want the date we reconnected, and then, hopefully very soon, we can add another heart. Smaller than the other two, with the date we find out I’m pregnant.”
Sam stared at her, processing what she’d just explained to him. A lump formed in his throat, and he swallowed, trying to speak. “So, you want two hearts, one with the date we met nineteen years ago and the other with the date we reconnected?”
“Yes. Maybe you have something I could look at? I’m not quite sure how I want the hearts.”
Sam pulled her in close and kissed her, cutting off her words, his fingers sliding into her hair, keeping her immobile as he poured all his love from his mouth to hers.
When they finally broke apart, they were both panting, although Wren released a breathless laugh. “Wow. I never knew you’d get so excited over giving someone a tattoo.”
“It’s not about the tattoo,” he said firmly, brushing back her hair. “Are you sure about you and me? I know you said that you didn’t want anything except a child, no complications, no relationships, and I don’t want you to regret this.”
“The only thing I regret is that I didn’t figure out what I really wanted before all of this started.” Wren brought his hand up to her mouth and kissed his palm. “I’ve done a lot of soul-searching the last few weeks, and I realized it wasn’t that I didn’t want a relationship, it was that I didn’t want one with anyone but you. It just took me a little longer to figure it out.” Wren held Sam’s hand to her cheek, gazing up at him as she continued, “You have always had my back. You have stepped up when I needed you, and even after all this time and all the drama in the past, you were still the guy for me. That is why if I’m gonna put anything on my body, it’s gonna be about you. We are going to make an amazing life together because I love you.”
Sam’s stomach bottomed out for a split second before elation overcame him and he cradled her face in his hands. “I love you, too.” Sam’s vision blurred as he bent down and kissed her again, soft and slow, as happy tears trailed down his cheeks. “I love you.”
Sam’s fingers reached around the back of her dress, finding the zipper and bringing it down slowly while Wren discarded his bowtie, tossing it across the room. Her dress slid down her body, catching on her hips before pooling at her feet. There was no hurry as she removed his shirt this time, their motions slow and loving. Memorizing this moment, this core memory etched in their minds forever.
When the final article of clothing hit the floor, Sam sat back in the tattoo chair, and Wren climbed on top of him, straddling his lap. He kissed her gently, his lips cascading kisses along the column of her throat. When Sam reached the rise and fall of her breasts, he kissed both the hard peaks of her nipples as she lifted herself up above him, rubbing her already soaking wet pussy against the tip of his cock. Sam lifted his hips, answering her need with his own, his cock slipping into her. Wren held his shoulders and sank farther down his length, their eyes meeting with unwavering contact as he slid to the hilt inside her. Wren’s head leaned back, a moan escaping her.
They barely moved together, rocking against each other. Wren wrapped her arms around his shoulders so that the front of their bodies pressed together, skin to skin. Sam had never felt closer to another human being in his life, and grasping her hips to bring them even more fully together, he felt her muscles clench around him. Her body shook, and her head fell back as she let out a cry of release.
Sam continued to grip her hips, moving her over him, picking up speed until his balls clenched in his body. He was so close, and as he held her against him, furiously pumping into her, the force of it shook him. He moaned her name over and over, jerking, and thrusting inside until he was spent. He collapsed back onto the chair, eyes closed and his hands no longer gripping her hips, but stroking them lovingly. When Sam felt her soft lips feathering kisses over his neck and jawline, he opened his eyes and gazed at her with all the love in his heart.
“That was wonderful,” she whispered, running a hand over his chest and pushing herself to a sitting position, grinning down at him. “Now about my tattoo.”
Sam chuckled. “Give me about fifteen minutes to recover, and I’ll get you started.”
She giggled, pressing a kiss on his mouth, and said, “I’m only teasing. We don’t have to do it today. We’ve got the rest of our lives.”
Sam loved the sound of that.