Page 30 of Santa's Dark Secret

“Yeah, I just need a minute,” I tell him. “That was more than I expected. I mean, shit, Nick. Is it possible to die by orgasm? I’venever felt anything so . . . intense before. I thought I was actually going to crumble.”

“My bad,” he says with a proud smirk. “I had to outdo last year’s performance.”

I roll my eyes. “Last year’s performance was already incredible. I didn’t think it was possible to outdo it, but I suppose it’s part of your job description to make the impossible happen.”

Nick winks. “Jolly old Saint Nick at your service, ma’am.”

I can’t help but laugh. “I thought you said Saint Nicholas is what your dad prefers to go by.”

“Yeah, I did,” he says with an awkward cringe, the laughter quickly fading out of his tone. “It felt wrong the second it came out of my mouth.”

I shake my head, falling more and more in love with this man by the second, and fuck, I’m glad it’s him. With every word out of his mouth, I get to know the real him better, and I absolutely adore the man I’m getting to know.

“Come on,” he says a moment later, scooping his strong arms beneath my thighs and lifting me off the counter. He starts to make his way to the living room when I suck in a gasp and look back toward the kitchen.

“Wait. The list. I have to mark some things off.”

Nick chuckles to himself and performs a U-turn back to the kitchen. I almost tumble right out of his arms as I dive for the pen and paper, and the moment I’m securely back in his embrace, I glance down the list again.

“I think it’s safe to say that both February and December are deserving of being marked off,” I say as he lowers us onto my couch, and I immediately shift around to get comfortable before ending up straddled over his lap.

I get to work ticking off boxes.

February - Head over to the kitchen counter and give the walls something to talk about! (More specifically, fuck her with my tongue.) Spread her creamy thighs and go to town with my mouth. Show her how fucking great it can be.

December - Lay her down and tear her lingerie off with my teeth.

“Oh, and just so you know,” I say, glancing up with burning cheeks. “Tearing my underwear off with your teeth is going on next year’s wish list too. And the year after that. Actually, let’s put it down for the next ten years and then we’ll revisit it.”

Nick’s touch is feather light as he palms my waist, and it’s hard to believe that his strong, capable hands can be this gentle. It’s as though I’m the most precious gemstone in the world, and he’s terrified of breaking me.

“Next ten years, huh?”

“And more,” I say, all too confidently. “Assuming you don’t get bored of me and go find some other girl to spend your Christmas Eves with.”

Nick scoffs. “I don’t think you understand that when I say I’ve loved you since I was eight years old, just how infatuated I’ve been. No other woman has ever held my attention. It’s only ever been you. I spend every year waiting to see you again, and then when I’m finally with you, I spend the whole time dreading saying goodbye. There will never be any other girl for me. Even if you decide to eventually move on and start a family with some other guy, I’ll still be here, hoping like hell that you’ll still let mesee you every Christmas, even if it’s just to sit in your room and watch you sleep like I used to.”

My heart swells in my chest as an incredible warmth spreads through me. “I don’t think I could ever be with anyone else after this. Even during those long, lonely months, I couldn’t take my mind off you. I just don’t understand it. How can I feel so strongly about a man I’ve only met once?”

“When your soul finds its person, it knows,” he tells me. “You’re my person, Mila. There’s no point even trying with someone else when I’ve known it’s been you since I was a kid.”

“Why didn’t you ever wake me up? For twenty years you just sat in my room and watched me sleep. Why didn’t you ever introduce yourself? We could have had years together.”

He shakes his head. “I couldn’t. I wasn’t going to wake you up and demand that you love me. I needed you to come to me. I needed you to feel it first, and the moment you did, I wasn’t holding back.”

Taking his shoulder, I push up onto my knees before leaning in and kissing him once again. “Thank you,” I murmur against his full lips, appreciating him giving me the time I needed over the years. “I don’t know what this is or how we’re supposed to navigate it, but it’s more than I could ever ask for. I just . . . I have one question.”

“What’s that?”

“Is this all in my head? Are you only here ticking off all these wishes because I wished for it? I mean, what if I never wished for you to touch me?”

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