A moment later, the cookies crashed to the ground. Owen's other arm went around my back, and he clung to me. He held me pressed against him as if just as desperate to see me as I was to see him.
We kissed for what felt like hours.
Eventually, my mother cleared her throat from behind us. "Excuse me."
I pulled away from Owen almost sheepishly, wiping at my (deliciously) wet mouth. "Oh. Uh, Owen, this is my Mom. Mom, this is Owen. He's the guy I met."
"I know," she said in a dry voice. "He called a few days ago so we could set this up."
"Your friend Barbie, huh?" I said, staring up into Owen's dreamy eyes. "So you guys were lying to me?"
"Not really lying," Owen said, a wide grin spreading across his gorgeous face. "I told my Mom I wanted to see about opening up a second bakery, and I might have suggested Boston to her. Your mom's friend Barbie owns a storefront that would be perfect for my needs. So...here I am."
My fingers twined in the front of his silly, silly cupcake shirt. "Please tell me you're coming in," I whispered.
"Absolutely." He kissed me again, and then stuck his hand over my shoulder for my mother to shake. "Mrs. Collins, it's nice to finally meet you in person. I'm sorry that the cookies I brought got, uh, trampled."
"That's perfectly okay," she said, and I could have sworn her eyes were damp as she smiled at me. "Merry Christmas, Luna."
"Merry Christmas," I whispered back. God, my mom was awesome.
She shut the door, letting us have our privacy on the porch. I turned back to Owen and dragged his face toward mine, kissing him over and over again. "I can't believe it's you," I said in between lip locks. "I can't believe you're really here. I thought I'd never see you again." A horrible thought occurred to me and I dragged my mouth away from his. "You're here to see me, right?"
He laughed and kissed me back. "Yes. Absolutely. Why else would I come to this place if not for you? It's not because of the delicate way you guys pronounce 'parking lot'."
"You're such an ass," I said as I cuddled him.
"I know, Boston," he said. "Anyhow, I figured I had one last competition in mind for you and I."
"Oh?" The pit of my stomach dropped just a bit. "What did you have in mind?"
"Well," he said, and his hand went to the small of my back as he pulled me against him. "I kinda thought it'd be fun to see which of us says 'I love you' first. I'm totally willing to bet you all the hot water, too."
"You're on," I told him.
Best Christmas ever.
About Jessica Clare
NYT & USA Today Bestselling author Jessica Clare writes under three pen names. As Jessica Clare, she writes erotic contemporary romance. As Jessica Sims, she writes fun, sexy shifter paranormals. As Jill Myles, she writes a little bit of everything, from sexy, comedic urban fantasy to zombie fairy tales. She lives in Texas with her husband, cats, and spends way too much time playing video games. To sign up for Jessica's new release newsletter, go to http://www.jillmyles.com/newsletter
Read on for an excerpt from The Expert's Guide to Driving a Man Wild - Coming January 7, 2014.
The Expert's Guide to Driving a Man Wild
Copyright © 2013 by Jessica Clare
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author.
Chapter One
Coming January 7, 2014
BRENNA WHISTLED TO HERSELF AS she left her cabin. She headed to the ATV shed on the far side of the main lodge that served as headquarters for Wilderness Survival Expeditions. She was alone, which meant it was the perfect time for sabotage.
After glancing around to make sure the coast was clear, she closed the doors and clicked on the overhead light, fanning herself. With the doors shut, it was probably a hundred degrees in the damn shed, but she didn’t plan on being in there long. Brenna moved to the first ATV—her favorite, the cherry red one—and squatted next to the front tire. She took the cap off the valve stem and then pressed her key into it until she heard the hiss of air. Humming to herself, she let out about half of the air before replacing the cap. Moving to the back tire on the same vehicle, she repeated it.
All done. Beaming to herself, she dusted off her hands and re-opened the shed doors, glancing at the empty parking lot. It was still early in the morning, the birds chirping and a breeze swaying the tall trees in the distance. Her gaze landed on Grant’s immaculate Audi gleaming in the parking lot.
A naughty smile curving her mouth, she moved to the hood, popped it, and surveyed the engine. She found the switch casing, opened it, and reviewed the list of switches until she identified the fuel pump switch. With careful fingers, she plucked it out of his car, closed the casing, shut the hood, and tossed the switch into a nearby garbage can.
Some days, she just loved her job.
Recently, their small business had expanded to include Colt’s aging father, who everyone called Pop. He mowed the lawns and did repairs, but there wasn’t normally enough to keep the man busy. Colt wanted his dad to feel needed, though, so Brenna was tasked with finding stuff to break for Pop to fix. She was great at it, too, though pretty soon she figured he’d be on to her flushing the tampon down the toilet trick. It was time to switch up her game a little, and a bit of vehicle maintenance would do the job just fine. Whistling again, she headed around the front of the main cabin and paused on the front steps.