Page 327 of Screwged for Christmas

That did have her head coming up.

She peered up his chest and his warm palm scooped her face between them. Their gazes locked. “And I mean every word. I’d take you again right here right now if you didn’t have guests. I still might steal you away though.

“You sure know how to sweep a girl off her feet, don’t you?”

“His hands slide down to her waist and using his thumbs he skims beneath the rim of her jeans, teasing the edge of her panties.

“Ms. Winters, are you coming?” one of the little ones called after her, giggling.

“I guess that’s our cue.”

“Well, pick back up on this topic after all the work,” he promised his hands tightening around her. “Let’s do this and make a few kids happy. Then you and I can have a long talk.”

His expression turned passionate and she saw fire in his eyes. He might want to talk, but he also wanted to get her naked in the worst way.

“Deal.”

She could practically hear her heart pounding in her chest and she didn’t know what hanging lights made her so excited when yesterday she vowed to donate the huge ball of knots to Good Will.

Ivy didn’t know what came over her but as she tightened her fingers around his she felt more like herself than she had in a long time.

“Somehow I saw this all going a bit differently. According to my planner, that is.”

“What can I say.” His lip curled up in a sideways grin. “Sometimes the good things don’t happen by planning. We small-town folks like to live wild like that.” He winked and it was like he had a direct line to her core. Her pulse skipped a beat and she swallowed tightly.

She could feel her skin prickling under his heated gaze.

“How did you manage to get back into my heart, Aspen Kennedy.”

“Fun fact, Ivy Sunday, I never left.”

CHAPTER 13

Wild indeed. TheGriswoldshad better watch their backs. Aspen knew how to wield a hammer and a string of lights like no other man. Hot damn. She needed to change her panties already. In two hours’ time they had the entire place ready to roll with lights. Every column, railing, and bush would sparkle come nightfall. Which would be any time now and they still had a few things left to take care of.

Their little helpers, on the other hand, were another story. She smiled as the youngest pelted his older brother with a well-aimed snowball to the back of the head and suddenly felt a pang of nostalgia for her siblings.

In between hanging twinkle lights, the Howard kids took breaks to roll around in the snow and instigate more than one snowball fight. Her fingers were frozen, her nose beyond cold but she wouldn’t change it for anything.

Aspen’s words came back to her. He wanted babies. From the way his face lit up, he wanted multiple at that. He wanted to have a family with her and the idea caused a rise of emotions she didn’t know how to label. Watching him stuff every single drop of cum that slipped out of her this morning back in was the sexiest thing she’d ever seen. Getting pregnant hadn’t crossed her mind, but the idea of being round with is child didn’t exactly bother her. In fact, it warmed her heart. Having a family of her own had always been on the to-do list.

Snow fell as the early afternoon slipped into evening and darkness came fast in Dixen this far into the winter season. Gray skies darkened as the first signs of evening crested the horizon. Spirits were high as the women instructed the men on how straight, or rather crooked, the lights were as they perched on ladders. Whiskey, eggnog and apple cider came in no short supply from a hidden compartment in the refrigerator it seemed her gran forgot to mention. Thank goodness Mrs. Murphy knew exactly where to find the good stuff.

Ivy wondered what she must have put out into the universe to receive such blessings today.

Despite the cold everyone worked together, smiling and enjoying the time together.

To her surprise, even the indifferent teenagers set aside their phones and joined in helping the younger kids spread the star-shaped lights back over the bushes.

“Are you ready?” Aspen held up the business end of a bright orange cord that would feed power to the entire fenced-in area she liked to call Rocco -proofed. Or she hoped from now on anyway. This time she made sure to lock the gate and keep an eye out for her newly minted reindeer friend.

Maybe Jon had been right. Maybe the holidays did deserve another chance. Giving Lewis control over a holiday she grew up loving needed to end.

“Countdown please!” Ivy called out.

In chorus, they all started. “FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE.”

A kaleidoscope of white lights mingled with colorful rays of red, blues, greens and yellows illuminated the intimate spot and glittered across the snow. She looked on for a few seconds more and welcomed the warm pair of arms that slipped around her. She leaned back into a broad chest and let all her troubles slide away, if only briefly.

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