Page 40 of Christmas With The Kings
Her arms wrapped tightly around my neck, and I carried her straight to the bathroom. The tile was cold beneath my feet as I set her down and reached for the buttons of her sweater. I didn’t want to rush this moment. I peeled her out of the layers, letting my fingertips trail over each inch of exposed skin.
She blushed under the attention, biting her lip like she didn’t know whether to squirm or preen.
“You’re freezing, baby,” I said, my voice low as I dropped her wet clothes into the hamper and began stripping out of mine. Her eyes lingered on my chest, then darted away. Still so shy, even after all this time.
She started to tremble again, her teeth chattering, and I frowned. That wouldn’t do.
“Hold on.”
I dashed out, returned seconds later with a thick throw blanket from the bedroom, and cocooned her inside it. Then I guided her back with me, one arm wrapped around her waist, my hand splayed over her belly. Her skin was icy to the touch.
The chaise by the fire was waiting. I got it roaring with a few practiced moves, then tugged on a pair of pajama bottoms before pulling her onto my lap, blanket and all. She tucked herself in without hesitation, burrowing close, her bare legs slipping around me like ivy on stone.
The fire crackled.
Her cheek brushed my collarbone as she whispered, “Thank you for everything. Daddy always takes such good care of me.”
My chest tightened at that. I cupped her face and tilted her chin so she’d look at me.
“It’s my honor,” I said, every word stitched with truth. “You are mine. Mine to have. Mine to use. Mine to care for. That’s never going to change, baby girl. Never doubt it.”
She blushed again, burying her face in the curve of my throat, but I caught the grin pulling at her lips.
“What’s that look for?” I asked, brushing my fingers up her spine.
She wiggled, and the blush deepened. “Just wondering if we’re going to use any of your gifts tonight…” Her fingers skated over my chest, playful and teasing.
I raised an eyebrow. “Are you asking,” I murmured, voice dropping, “or begging?”
“A little of both, maybe?”
“You’re fucking adorable, you know.” I laughed as I kissed her forehead.
“I love you, Nikolai King,” she whispered, voice almost inaudible above the fire’s crackle. Then she wrapped her arms around my neck and buried herself against me like she never wanted to let go. “There’s nothing like being in your arms…safe. Secure.”
My chest swelled at her words. I knew she meant every word. And with the past she had, with what it cost her to trust so deeply—I fucking soaredunderneath her words. I kissed her temple, inhaling the faint scent of honeysuckle still lingering in her hair.
And then she moved. A slow, deliberate shift of her hips. A roll that pressed her hot, bare center directly against my cock. Jesus. I clenched my jaw, already aching for her. She was trembling, breath hitching as she rubbed against me again—this time less subtly. More needy.
“Does my baby girl need something?” I asked, my voice low and rough, one hand sliding up her back to cradle the nape of her neck.
She nodded against me, her face flushed, her pupils blown wide.
“Use your words, please,” I murmured, lifting her chin with two fingers. I needed to see her. Needed to watch the want in her eyes.
She blinked up at me, lips parted, breath shallow. “Would you…play with me?” she whispered, then gave me a look that made me groan deep in my chest. “And then let me return the favor?”
I smiled possessively.
“My malyshka wants to play now, does she? Play like this?” I asked as I trailed my fingers along her collarbone, featherlight, then dipped lower.
I teased the soft slopes of her breasts but refrained from touching her nipples. She let out a quiet groan and bit her lip, trying to stifle it, her hips shifting ever so slightly under the blanket.
I stilled my hands immediately. She whimpered at the loss, desperate now, the silence between us weighted with expectation.
“Please, Daddy,” she whispered, her voice trembling with need.
I leaned in, brushing my nose along her jaw before murmuring, “Don’t I always give you what you need?”
