Page 60 of Catching the Mistletoe

“Sure thing.” I took a few more moments to watch Arabella with the kids, before calling out, “Alright, who’s up for some sledding action?”

More cheers went up, and we headed over to the sledding hills, where Sarah and her volunteers had set up a sleigh load of toboggans and sleds. “You good to take the kids down?”

“Sure.”

“In you get then.” She gestured to a toboggan, and I climbed in, ready to take the first kid on my lap. “Here you go, buddy.” Arabella helped a little boy onto my lap, grinning at me as she gave me a push to get started. We hit a routine pretty easily, with Arabella sorting the younger kids, loading them onto my lap when it was their turn, cheering them on, high fiving and hugging them when they got back to the top of the run.

“Ellabella, aren’t you going to have a turn?” This was from a little girl called Lucy, who was maybe five years old, with short brown hair, brown eyes and a missing front tooth.

Smiling at the way Lucy mispronounced her name, Arabella shook her head. “Maybe later, sweetheart. I’ve got to help all you kids right now.”

Lucy’s face fell in disappointment. “Oh, I wanted to see you go flying. It’s so much fun.”

Sarah stepped in. “Of course you should have a turn. I’ll stand by here with the kids.”

Arabella turned to me, her brow raised in question. As soon as I nodded, she said, “Oh, alright then.” With a cheeky grin, she climbed onto the toboggan, settling in my lap, wriggling her ass against me, making me curse softly. “Ready?”

“You’re going to pay for that.”

She laughed, the sound making my heart flip over. “Promises, promises.”

With a push from Sarah, we were off, speeding down the hill, Arabella laughing and gasping as we hit a bump and almost went airborne. Just before we got to the end of the run, I wrapped my arms around her, tilting my body to the left a little so that we tipped over sideways. I held her close as we rolled over and over, laughing and breathless, ending up in a tangle of limbs, her lips inches from mine.

“You’re crazy, Mack.”

“Hey, you asked for it.” Christ, she looked so gorgeous, half lying on top of me, her hair a mess, the tip of her nose pink, her eyes sparkling with laughter. Then her smile faded and an intense look came over her face.

“I could seriously kiss you right now.”

That had my pulse leaping. “Ditto.”

Before either of us could act on the urge, Sarah came rushing over. “Oh my god, are you two alright?”

“Sure, we’re fine.” Arabella smiled brightly, brushing snow out of her hair as she scrambled to her feet. Fuck, her blush was adorable.

We made our way back up the hill and just as we got to the crest; I shot a quick look around to make sure no one was watching, and reaching out, grabbed Arabella’s ass. “Snow on your ass,” I said, when she shot me a look of surprise.

A quick glance around let her know that no one had seen, then her lips curved in a hot smile. “Oh, sure sure.”

The whole incident had my blood running hot, though. Made me want to drag her back to the RV and give her what she so desperately wanted from me. But I wasn’t a teenager with raging hormones I couldn’t control. I had plans for Arabella Snow and I wasn’t about to let my need for her overshadow them. No matter what it cost me.

We spent the rest of the afternoon sledding, playing snowball wars, building snowmen, and drinking hot cocoa. Of course, handing out the gifts was a huge highlight, as always. It was fun and exhausting and by the time the sky was starting to darken, we were both more than ready to pack it in. Sarah and her volunteers waved us off, thanking us profusely for our time and support. Arabella leaned back in her seat, closing her eyes and sighing. “That was such a good day.”

“It was.”

She was asleep within two minutes of me pulling away from the curb and it was all I could do not to stop the RV and just... stare at her. Even a quick glance, with her hair falling loose over her face, her lashes brushing her cheeks, her lips slightly parted, had my heart rolling over. I forced my gaze back onto the road, navigating to the RV park, using every ounce of my will not to look at her again.

She woke the moment I cut the engine, stretching and yawning. “Are we here?”

“We’re here.”

We went about the usual evening routine, making dinner, washing up and getting ready for bed. Arabella disappeared into the bedroom and came out a few minutes later, with her hair piled on top of her head, wearing a skimpy tank top and tiny pajama shorts. She may as well have been naked and since it was far more revealing than the flannel pajamas she usually wore, I sensed I was being played.

I bit back a smile, because holy fuck, this was gonna be fun. “New pajamas?”

She shot me a sultry look. “Oh, this old thing?”

“Cute.” Now that I’d let her know I’d noticed the pajamas, I sat down on the couch and reached for the tv remote, not giving her so much as a sideways glance when she plonked down next to me.

---