A Mistletoe Proposal: Marry Me under the Mistletoe / A Little Bit of Holiday Magic / Christmas Magic in Heatherdale

As he walked down the hall, he heard the sounds of the animated elf band he’d set up around the Christmas tree. He frowned. That was odd. He hadn’t remembered hearing it on his way to the kitchen.

Clearly mystified, he headed for the living room and collided with a heavenly female form just coming down the hall in jeans and a melon-colored cotton sweater.

Andrea, as he lived and breathed.

A cry escaped her throat. “I thought I heard you in the kitchen.”

“I needed food.”

She bit her lip. “In case you weren’t dressed, I didn’t want to surprise you, so I turned on the elf band.”

His hands shot out to steady her. Sharon must have let her in this morning. “How long have you been here?”

“Not long.”

“What a welcome surprise,” he murmured in a gravelly voice. Maybe he was dreaming. All he knew was that he had to taste her mouth again. He’d been hungering for it since the other night.

“No, Rick—” she begged. “This isn’t why I came over.” But it was too late. He’d already stifled most of the sound. In the next instant he pressed her against the wall in the hall and found himself devouring her, bite by delicious bite. What made everything more miraculous was that she was giving him breathtaking permission.

Between the flowery scent of her hair and the warmth of her luscious body, he felt transported. He forgot the time as his hands roamed over her back and hips. Being with her like this made him feel young and alive again. She clung to him in a way that told him she was experiencing ecstasy, too.

“Why do you say no when you mean yes? You’re torturing me.”

“It’s not on purpose,” she whispered against the side of his neck.

“Yes, it is. Do you have any idea how beautiful you are? How exciting?” He kissed her scented throat. “Ever since I saw you through the display window, I fought not to want you, but it happened anyway.”

“I know,” she admitted, sounding breathless. “I never thought I could feel this way again and I didn’t want to either. I still don’t.” She eventually tore herself from his arms. “This couldn’t be good for you. I came to find out if you were all right. How are you feeling?”

Andrea could ask him a question like that after what they’d been doing in the hallway? “Would that I could wake up every morning feeling this...marvelous.” If he wasn’t mistaken, she blushed. “But I need a minute to shower. Promise me you won’t leave, or you’ll have to put up with a grubby firefighter whose beard must be two inches long.”

Her eyes studied his features. “Maybe an inch,” she teased.

“By what miracle are you here?”

“I called to see how you were. Sharon said you were still sleeping and Tessa had gone out with her grandmother. When I asked if there was anything I could do, she said I could babysit while she went shopping. Since I promised to stay till she came back, you have my word I won’t leave. But after your shower, you need to lie down, Rick. Doctor’s orders.”

He grinned. “Yes, nurse.” Rick pressed a hot kiss to her mouth before disappearing, but knowing she was waiting for him, he decided it was going to be the fastest shower and shave in history.

CHAPTER FIVE (#u9c8600ad-2cdd-5907-993a-0890cfd66ca8)

RICK MIGHT BE recovering from smoke inhalation, but the way he’d kissed her in the hallway just now, she still hadn’t recovered from what she considered a more serious problem. Andrea sat down on the couch and had to acknowledge she was crazy about him.

To be alone with him for any length of time could be disastrous if she didn’t want to end up in his bed. Hopefully Sharon would return soon. Rick seemed to have this power over her. When she was near him, rational thought ceased and only desire remained. Deep down she’d known from the first he could become an addiction. He already was her addiction. The only way to break it was to go cold turkey.

“Andrea?”

She hurried into the hallway. “Yes?”

“I’m waiting for you. It’s the last door on the right.”

Since she’d told him to lie down, she couldn’t very well tell him it wouldn’t be a good idea to join him. Her stomach got flutters when she found him clean shaven and stretched out on top of his bed in a different pair of sweats and T-shirt. He was gorgeous no matter his physical condition.

“What took you so long?” he asked in a deep voice that sent delicious chills through her body. “Come and sit by me.” He patted the place next to him.

Since he didn’t have a chair, Andrea chose to sit near his feet. His half smile turned her heart over. With charm like that he could get her to do whatever he wanted. “Can I bring you something to drink?”

“I’m not hungry or thirsty. What I want is to talk to you. Without Tessa, it’s the perfect time to get some matters straight with us.”

Andrea took a shuddering breath. “I agree, but doesn’t your throat still hurt?”

“No. That long sleep did me a world of good. Finding you here has made my day.”

Finding you alive yesterday made mine.

“I have a confession. On my way home from Barrow’s Cove, I bought a book for Tessa. I was going to send it to her from me, but everything has changed since then. Since I agree she needs the emotional love that gifts can’t give her, I thought maybe you could slip it in with her toys from Santa. It’s in my purse in the living room.”

He leaned forward with a concerned expression in his eyes. “I’m sorry I came across so heavy-handed with you in the beginning, Andrea.”

“But I understand why you did.”

“You’re an amazingly forgiving, generous person. You need to know I’m no longer going to tiptoe around Tessa where you’re concerned. You shouldn’t have to either, because I intend to go on seeing you. Yesterday I told her you’re my friend. It gave her a lot to think about.”

Andrea stood up in panic. “We can’t be friends, let alone anything more. It won’t work.”

His handsome face darkened with lines. “Why not?”

“You know why.”

“Because of Tessa?”

“That’s a part of it.”

He got to his feet. Suddenly the bedroom seemed so small. “What’s the other part?”

“I meant what I said before. I don’t want to get into another relationship if that’s where this is headed. Just a few minutes ago you admitted you fought your initial attraction to me, too. It’s because in the end I can’t give you what you want any more than you can satisfy my needs. We’re better off parting company for good today.”

A dark brooding look descended. “How can you be so cold-blooded when just a few minutes ago we were communicating in the most elemental of ways and didn’t want to stop?”

She lifted her chin. “That’s called chemistry, but it doesn’t supply all the other things needed to make up a relationship that will last forever.”

“You and I have both learned the brutal lesson that nothing can be counted on to last forever, but a fire’s been lit and it’s not going to go away any time soon.”

“It will if we don’t see or talk to each other again,” she responded emotionally.

“You think it’s that easy to douse the flames licking at us? I fight fires every day. Some become fully involved. That’s what has happened to us.”

Andrea shook her head. “I don’t believe it can’t be put out. I met that attractive female firefighter Susie at the party. Deanna told me she’s single. During the time I was there, she didn’t take her eyes off you. A woman with interests like yours would be a great match for you.”