Page 28 of Merry & Bright

Chapter Ten

24thDecember...

...one year later

I was knee-deep in paperwork when my phone rang.

I glanced at the screen. Freddy.

I sighed and swiped my thumb across the screen, lifting it to my ear. “What is it, Fred?”

“Where the fuck are you?” she yelled. In the background I could hear my least favourite Christmas song of all time,Merry Christmas Everyone, obnoxiously blaring.

“I’m working,” I said, my gaze still running over the words on my screen.

“It’s Christmas, for fuck’s sake! And you said you’d be here at six. It’s seven now.”

“Mmm-hmm. But I should really finish these reports first,” I replied absently.

“You’re on holiday,” she snapped. “It’s Christmas fucking Eve. The reports can wait. Christ, Quin. How can you— What? What’s that?”

I could tell that last part wasn’t directed at me, that she was speaking to someone else. There was another muffled voice in the background, then came the sound of the phone changing hands, and a new voice on the line. A deep, warm, very familiar voice.

“How long is it going to take you to get that gorgeous arse over here?” Rob asked in his easy way. I could picture his smile, and the warmth in those brown eyes. “I haven’t seen you since breakfast.”

I was already closing the laptop.

“Give me half an hour,” I said.

I showered and changed in record time, and by seven twenty-eight, was strolling into The Dragon.

I finally tracked Rob down in the back, sitting with about a dozen others, including Freddy, Ben and Leon. They’d shoved two tables together and had somehow managed to squeeze everyone round. I didn’t really notice anyone but Rob though. My gaze went straight to him, to my boyfriend of exactly one year, who sat there amongst my friends, more at ease with them than I would ever be, probably. My heart flip-flopped at the sight of him there. He was laughing at some joke Ben had made. He looked happy and relaxed and so very stupidly handsome.

He glanced up, as if feeling my gaze on him, and when he saw me, his deep brown eyes lit up and his big smile grew even bigger. Immediately, he stood and began extricating himself from the bench he was sitting on, his movements hurried and impatient. As always, his delight at seeing me surprised and touched me, and I knew I was grinning foolishly as I watched him make his way to me.

When he dug in his pocket and drew out a sprig of something green, holding it up for me to see—mistletoe—I laughed, and so did he.

He held the mistletoe up in invitation and I walked into his arms, planting a kiss on him while our friends erupted into cheers and whoops. His arms closed around me to deepen the kiss, and when our tongues slid together, I could taste the beer he’d been drinking. Probably one of those craft brews he liked so much.

I broke the kiss at last to turn my head and mutter in his ear. “God, I wish we were alone right now. I want to fuck you so bad.”

He laughed softly and carded his fingers through my hair in an easy, affectionate gesture. “Oh, you’ll get to fuck me later.”

“When?” I groaned. “We’re going to Space after this, and then we’ve got to get up early to go over to your mum’s and open our presents with Tim.”

He grinned at me. “You’re on a promise, hon,” he murmured. “So don’t worry. It’s happening, no matter how late we get home.”

My cock throbbed and I groaned again.