Page 56 of Tied Up In Tinsel
“I’d say hell yes,” I breathed, still trembling as he helped me out of my position. He pulled at the tinsel, releasing my wrists.
“And what do you say,” he murmured, holding up the glittery strands, “about letting me be the one tied up next?”
My lips curved, pulse quickening. “You want me to tie you up?”
“Hell yeah,” he growled, heat flickering in his eyes.
I laughed softly, the sound husky with everything he’d just done to me. Brooks bent down and scooped me into his arms with infuriating ease, carrying me toward the stairs as though I weighed nothing. My arms looped around his neck, my cheek pressed to the steady thud of his heart.
Step by step, we climbed, his chest brushing mine with every rise, his gaze locked on me like I was the only thing that mattered in the world.
“Thank God Ruby’s a deep sleeper,” I whispered, breathless at the thought of how reckless we were being.
“Truly a blessing,” he murmured against my temple, his lips grazing me in a way that made my toes curl.
The bedroom door shut behind us with a quiet click, sealing us off from the world. Whatever waited in the morning—the wrapping paper scattered across the floor, the fire burned low in the hearth—could wait. Tonight was for us. For hours spent tangled together, bound by more than glittering strands, wrapped up in sheets that smelled like him.
Annie
“Mom! Come quick! You have to come home right now!” Ruby’s high-pitched voice squeaked through the phone, sharp with urgency.
My stomach sank. I was already on my way back after a long day at work, but the panic in her tone had my pulse racing.
“What’s going on? Isn’t Brooks there with you?”
“Yes! But he fell!”
My grip tightened on the steering wheel. “Fell?”
“He tripped on the step and he can’t stand up. Listen!”
A groan rumbled through the speaker, deep and guttural, making my heart lurch.
“Oh God. Okay, get him some ice, sweetheart. Did he hit his head? What hurts?”
Ruby repeated my words to Brooks, then relayed his answer, giggling nervously as she spoke into the phone. “He says… all of it.”
I pressed my lips together, torn between panic and disbelief. “How in the world did he fall down the steps?”
“We were having a tea party,” Ruby explained breathlessly. “He went upstairs to change and then he fell down!”
My jaw dropped.My nanny fell down the stairs… in a princess dress?The image was so absurd it almost made me laugh, but dread quickly followed. There was no way he’d want to stay now, not after that humiliation.
I thought about last night, about the promises we put into words, about how we’d deepened everything between us until the early hours of the morning. We didn’t talk anymore about what it looked like for him to stay, that conversation could come later.
And now? Guilt twisted in my stomach.
“I’m almost home, honey. Just make sure he stays awake, okay?”
I pressed the gas pedal harder, tires humming against the pavement, traffic laws forgotten. My brother was the sheriff, and honestly, he’d forgive me if I explained I was racing to save my—what? Babysitter? Lover? Future?
I didn’t even know what to call Brooks yet.
Moments later, I pulled into the driveway, Ruby still chattering on the other end of the phone. Her voice became background noise as I threw the car into park and bolted up the porch steps, heart hammering.
The front door opened and suddenly a pair of much-too-big hands clamped over my eyes.
“What the fuck?—”
