Just For Christmas (Just Us Series Book 5) Read online

  His mother looks horrified, sputtering and trying to cobble together a rebuttal, but she’s rendered speechless when a familiar figure pushes through the crowd to reach them.

  Emilie.

  She steps between Drew and I and slips a hand into each of ours, a silent show of love and support. “Sorry I’m late,” she whispers.

  Despite the drama unfolding, my heart swells with joy. “You’re just in time,” I correct her.

  Drew’s mother shakes her head in horror and disbelief. “I can’t believe this. Your father and I worked so hard to give you the perfect life, and you’re just throwing it away to live this disgusting lifestyle?”

  “Firstly, I’m not throwing anything away, and my life is perfect because I’ve made it that way,” Drew replies, “And secondly, if you can find something disgusting about this, about the people I choose to share my love with and find happiness with, you don’t deserve to be a part of that life anymore.”

  And without another word, he leads us out.

  Once we’re outside, Emilie launches herself at both of us, throwing her arms around our necks. “I’m sorry I overreacted. I just got so overwhelmed, and-“

  Drew silences her with a kiss before saying “No more apologies. Why don’t we just make this a clean slate? We’re out in the open now, and if anyone has a problem, they don’t need to be part of our lives. Let’s just…” he sighs, and the sound is one of relief, “Let’s just start over.”

  Emilie nods. “I like that idea.”

  I press a kiss of my own to her mouth and she melts into me. “Why don’t we take this back to our place?” I murmur.

  “Actually…I have another idea,” Emilie says, “If you guys are up to it, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Emilie

  “I can’t believe you got him down so easily,” I marvel as Joel shuts the door to Danny’s room.

  “He was crashed, it wasn’t that hard,” he shrugs.

  “You guys must have tuckered him out,” I chuckle.

  I’d brought the guys back to my place and introduced them to my son. I had been nervous about how to explain my relationship to my son, but I decide to just tell him the truth: These are Mommy’s boyfriends, who love Mommy and each other.

  And I quickly realize that I needn’t have worried. Danny doesn’t bat an eyelash at my explanation, and in fact, seems far more interested in the fact that now he has an extra player to play Hide and Seek with him.

  Joel and Drew had warmed to my little boy immediately, charmed by his infectious giggle and the hilarious things that come out of his mouth. I’d let him stay up a little extra late, because it’s a special occasion, and the two of them had soaked up every minute of it, turning into little kids, themselves as they play pretend with my son.

  I think I’m the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.

  “So, you guys want to help me finish wrapping?” I ask.

  “I think we were thinking more along the lines of unwrapping a present of our own,” Joel says, embracing me from behind and pressing a kiss below my ear.

  My breath hitches, but I play along, teasing. “It’s not Christmas yet. Why should I let you open your present early?”

  “Oh, I think you’ll see we have a very persuasive argument,” Drew assures me, leaning in and brushing his mouth over mine.

  His hands roam up my body to cup my breasts, and even through my clothes, I can feel the heat of his hands seeping into my skin, spreading through me like wildfire. When he pulls his lips from mine and drags them down to trail kisses along my collarbone, my knees go weak.

  “I don’t know,” I squeak out, “Seems like you two are being awfully naughty, maybe Santa’s going to come and bring you nothing but coal.”

  “Well,” Joel slides his hand under the waistband of my jeans and panties, “Whether Santa comes tonight or not, you’re going to.”

  The double entendre is silly, but when it’s coupled with his nimble fingers working between my folds to tease and stroke the most sensitive parts of me, I’m not exactly laughing.

  “Bedroom,” I gasp, “Now.”

  Regretfully, this means Joel has to remove his hand from my pants so we can shift locations, but it’s worth it when my jeans are on the bedroom floor and Joel’s head is buried between my thighs.

  His tongue is even more skilled than his fingers, and he traces patterns on my clit that have me writhing immediately. “Oh, God, yes, Joel, fuck,” I gasp.

  Drew is busy doing away with the rest of our clothes, stripping himself bare and removing Joel’s while he’s otherwise occupied.

  Joel sucks lightly on that tender little bundle of nerves and I press my lips together to keep from crying out loudly and waking up Danny.

  The pleasure is coiling inside me, tense and ready to explode at any moment, and when I crest the apex of pure bliss, the climax that rips through me shakes me to my core.

  While I come down, the two of them roll condoms on over their lengths. Drew tells Joel to lie down and instructs me to get on top of him.

  Even still tingling from one climax, I’m eager for more, so I straddle Joel enthusiastically.

  I feel his erection pressed against my entrance and I move my hips, aching to feel him inside me. He positions the head of his cock and his lips curl into a smile. “You ready for this, baby?”

  I nod and he slides into me, and I let out a low moan.

  He feels so fucking good, the heat of his thick rode buried deep inside of me, but I want more. I need more.

  I need both of them.

  And Drew is happy to join in the fun, getting into position behind me so he can fuck me from behind this time.

  “You want more?” he asks.

  “Uh-huh,” I nod.

  “What was that? I couldn’t hear you,” I can hear the teasing in his voice.

  “Yes!” I burst out, riding Joel’s cock like I’m a pro cowgirl, taking that thick cock deep, deep inside me and crying out in pleasure as waves ripple through me. “Yes, I want more.”

  “Tell me what you want, baby, I want to hear you fucking say it,” he says, tugging my hair back.

  I didn’t know I was into hair pulling, but at least when Drew does it, I’m definitely into it.

  “I want your cock inside me,” I beg, looking up at him, “Please, I need to feel both of you inside me. I need you.”

  He kisses me, then releases my hair and moves one hand to my hip.

  Presumably, the other is on his cock, he positions it beside Joel’s, and while the other man stills so he can enter me, he begins the long, slow slide into my cunt, and with both of them inside me, I feel that fullness again, that sense of rightness.

  One way or another, this is where I belong. Right fucking here with them. Not just in bed with them, either, but just being connected to them both. Yes, the physical chemistry is intense, but this goes beyond that.

  Over these last few weeks, somehow, these two have become a part of me.

  Maybe this is what people mean by soulmates. The person, or persons, that make you feel complete in a way you didn’t even know was missing.

  I guess I’d just never thought I would find my person, let alone two of them.

  But the sentimental thoughts are blown from my brain when Drew begins to move, and the feeling of both of them pumping inside me overtakes me.

  “Oh, yes, that feels amazing,” I whimper.

  “Ride him, love,” Drew instructs me, “Show us how fucking good it feels.”

  He doesn’t have to tell me twice, and I gyrate, driving both of them in and out, in and out, faster and faster.

  Heat and pressure build inside me and I lose myself completely, giving over entirely to my body and letting my mind melt away until everything is sensation, and when I reach orgasm, it’s like an otherworldly experience, sending me spiraling into a tunnel of dark carnal bliss.

  My orgasm seems to set off both of them, and within a few more moments, I fe
el the heat of them both pouring inside me, restrained only by a thin latex barrier.

  The three of us collapse into a heap, and after tossing their condoms into the trash can below my nightstand, we squeeze in to my bed together.

  The full-sized mattress is plenty for me by myself, but it’s more than a little cramped for three.

  But I don’t care. I’d cram into a twin with them if it means keeping them close.

  “I love you both so much,” I whisper.

  “And we love you,” Joel says, leaning in and kissing me tenderly.

  “Hey, its midnight,” Drew says, “It’s officially Christmas. Aren’t you supposed to make a wish or something?”

  I shrug. “I don’t need to.”

  I’ve got everything I need, right here.

  Epilogue

  Emilie

  Christmas Morning, One Year Later

  “Why are we going outside? What kind of present is outside?” Danny asks excitedly.

  I tug at the blindfold over my eyes, wondering that, myself. Joel and Drew had told me they had something special for both me and Danny out in the driveway.

  I couldn’t figure out what it might be. What would they need to keep outside?

  “Just one more minute, bud,” Joel says, and I hear the joy in his voice.

  It hadn’t taken long after last Christmas for the guys to talk me into moving in with them, and they’d both stepped in easily to help me with Danny. They love him as much as they love me, and together we’ve formed an unconventional little family. Even Andi has happily taken to the role of “Auntie Andi.”

  As for Drew’s family, his mother had called him after the holidays and had us over to apologize. It was hard to believe, given all the horrible things she had said, but when we got there, she looked terrible.

  She had apologized, very sincerely, for everything, saying that she never should have said those things. She explained that we were absolutely right, that she had been valuing her reputation over her family, and that after some reflection, she was going to work on herself.

  We had accepted her apologies, but it was still going to take time to build any sort of amicable relationship with her and Drew’s father. We had gone to their Christmas Eve party last night, though, and it had actually been kind of nice.

  “Ok, ready? Aaaaand blindfolds off!” I hear Drew call.

  I pull off the blindfold and open my eyes. There, in the driveway, is a brand-new Jeep, the same bright blue color as the little electric one I’d bought Danny last year. He rode in that thing every single day, and I’d had to talk Drew and Joel out of getting him one in every color.

  Drew, sitting in the driver’s seat, gleefully revs the engine.

  My jaw drops. “You guys got a new car?”

  “We got you a new car,” Drew corrects me, climbing out of the car, “Baby blue here is all yours,” he slaps the hood of the vehicle.

  “Hey, Danny, why don’t you go sit in the driver’s seat?”

  Danny runs for the vehicle and launches himself inside, clambering up and settling himself behind the wheel. He turns the wheel this way and that, pretending to drive, then honks the horn happily at us.

  I laugh. “You guys are crazy, I have a perfectly good car!”

  “Yeah, but this one’s more fun,” Joel says, looping an arm around my shoulders and kissing the top of my head.

  I shake my head in disbelief.

  “Hey, Danny, can you bring your mom the keys?” he calls.

  Danny reluctantly hops down, racing over to me with a carabiner and thrusting it into my hand before darting back to the car and climbing back into the driver’s seat.

  I laugh. “I don’t think I’m ever gonna get to drive it,” I joke, “I think this is Danny’s car now.”

  I look down at the keys in my hand and notice something sparkling. A keychain? I turn the carabiner over in my hand and see that there, hooked next to the car key, is a ring.

  I look up at Joel and Drew to see both of them, watching me intently. “What is this?” I ask, my voice tiny whisper.

  “Why don’t you unhook it and see?” Joel asks.

  I unhook the ring from the thing and take a closer look. The jewelry is exquisitely beautiful, delicate gold and silver filigree surrounding a glittering square diamond. I look at them again, tears welling in my eyes, and the smiles on both of their faces cement my suspicions.

  “Yes. You don’t even have to ask, the answer is yes!” I launch myself at Joel, simply because he’s closest, and smother his face with kisses.

  With a laugh, he pulls me away after a few moments and spins me toward Drew, who gets the same treatment.

  “What’s going on?” Danny asks, rejoining us at the sound of my squeals and the laughter.

  Drew kneels down to Danny’s level. “Well, buddy, you know how much Joel and I love you and your mom, right?”

  “Yeah,” Danny says, “I love you guys, too.”

  Drew grins. “Thanks, bud. But since we love your mom so much, we decided to ask her to marry us. What do you think about that?”

  “Does that mean we have to move?” Danny asks, looking distressed.

  I laugh. “No, sweetie, we don’t have to move, why would you think that?”

  “When Jenny McMillan’s mom got married, she moved away,” Danny says with a frown, “I don’t want to move away.”

  “We’re not moving away, bud,” Joel reassures him, “We’re staying right here, I promise.”

  “Well, I guess that’s ok, then. Can I have a cookie?”

  I can’t help but laugh. “Yeah, kiddo. Come on.”

  And with the three men in my life surrounding me, I follow my son back into the house, overwhelmed with joy.

  I lean in the doorway and watch my little boy insistently telling my fiancées that the trees taste better than the wreaths, and they play along, comparing Christmas cookies with all the solemnity of scientists conducting an experiment.

  Between the love and the Christmas cheer, there’s so much happiness bubbling inside me I feel like I could burst. I never knew it was possible for life to be this perfect.

  “Come on, Mom, we saved a tree for you!” Danny says, snapping me out of it.

  He’s right. No need to stand here and be a sap. I want to go soak up every moment I can get.

  After all, Christmas only comes once a year.

  The End

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  Keep reading for a special inside look into Just This Once!

  Special Inside Look into Just This Once!

  Chapter One

  Lacey

  My best friend greets me at the baggage claim of the airport with all of the deranged excitement of a cocaine-fueled squirrel. She pounces on me, nearly toppling me over, and her squeal of excitement leaves my ears ringing.

  We haven’t seen each other in close to a year now, and I know Max (short for Maxine) has missed me. And frankly, it’s my own fault I haven’t come to visit. “Max, you’re crushing me,” I wheeze, wriggling in her embrace and trying to blow a handful of her brown curls away from my face.

  “Suck it up,” she replies cheerfully, “The price of staying at Chez Maxine is the destruction of your ribcage.”

  I manage a weak chuckle despite her vice-grip, and briefly wonder about punctured lungs. But she finally releases me and looks me up and down fully. “Holy shit, girl, you look amazing!”

  “Yeah, well, stress diet,” I say with a small smile.

  Max frowns. “Did you manage to find a place before you left?”

  I nod. “I found a cheap month-to-month place for now.”

  She makes a face. “Sounds skeevy.”

  “Better than the alternative,” I sigh, snagging my bag off the carousel, �
��I can’t afford to keep staying in hotels, and all of the apartments in my price range seem to have no vacancies.”

  “You could move out here with me,” she cajoles, grabbing my bag from me and leading me outside.

  I snort. “Like I could afford it, it’s ten times more expensive to live out here, even if I am splitting with you.”

  “You could find a job that actually uses your degree instead of wasting your talents,” she shoots back.

  I hold my hands up placatingly, laughing. “Ok, ok, I’ll think about it, I promise.”

  She tosses my bag in the trunk and we get into the car. “But seriously, are you holding up ok?” she asks.

  I nod firmly. “Good riddance to bad rubbish.”

  “And everything else? No more headaches, no more dizzy spells?” she looks at me worriedly.

  “Not for a while, no,” I say.

  I find myself subconsciously reaching for a spot on the back of my head. Carefully concealed under the top layer, there’s a spot where my blonde hair is only about an inch and a half long, in the places around the scar where it actually grew back.

  Max reaches over and pats my leg. "Don't worry," she says, "By the time I'm done with you, you won't even remember his name."

  "Whose name?" I ask, a smile beginning to curl the edges of my lips.

  "Attagirl!" Max crows.

  I grin, but the truth is that I've barely given any thought to The Asshole since The Incident. It was freeing to be rid of him.

  But being single again had me thinking about… Him.

  Adam.

  My "One that got away."

  Adam Olsen had been my high school sweetheart, but then he had gotten an incredible scholarship at a school I couldn't afford, and being split across the country had ruined us.

  But I'd never really moved on. I had tried, but no one compared. And so I had ended up in a string of awful relationships, with the latest being the worst.