Holiday Hoax (Windy City Holidates #3)

Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15

IAN

“Miss Mia is so wonderful,” Marta says as she dusts my office bookshelves. “The best of anyone you’ve dated. She’s very special.”

I look up at her from my laptop. “I think so, too.”

I have to bite back a grin at my housekeeper’s nosiness. It’s very out of the ordinary for her to work in a room I’m in. And while she and I know almost everything there is to know about one another, she doesn’t ever intrude into my personal life. The fact that she is now says a lot.

I have to admit, though, waking up beside Mia two mornings in a row now feels incredible. Seeing her toothbrush and skin care products on my bathroom counter feels good. Actually, good isn’t a strong enough adjective. Right. It feels right, like that spot had been left open for her all these years.

Last night as we were laying on the couch watching a movie she mentioned how perfect the corner of my living room would be for a big Christmas tree. She talked about the little artificial tree she has to pull out of storage for her apartment which got me thinking. That’s how I ended up spending all day searching for urban tree lots to shop at in the city.

I’m going to surprise her when she gets home tonight by taking her shopping for one. I don’t have any decorations either, so I’ve googled the best place to buy those as well. I have a list of everything we need ready to go.

She walks in after work with her cheeks a windblown pink and snowflakes dotting her hair. She walks right to me before even taking her coat off, wrapping her arms around me and pressing a kiss to my lips. Her nose is cold against mine as I nuzzle her and the kiss breaks.

“Hi,” she says with the smile that’s been driving me mad since the first time I ever saw it.

“Hi, how was work?”

“So busy. But I sold a few small pieces.”

“That’s great. Go change into something comfortable and casual. I have a surprise for you.”

Her eyes light up. “I love surprises.”

“Good.” I smack her butt to send her on her way.

She materializes five minutes later wearing a pair of jeans and a sweater, along with a pair of fur-trimmed boots and a scarf. I grab a stocking cap and put it on her head.

“Where are we going?” she asks as she puts her coat on.

“I’m not going to tell you just yet.”

“Are we driving?”

“Yes.”

“Okay.” She practically hops to the elevator in excitement. It’s the cutest fucking thing I’ve ever seen.

Her giddiness bleeds into me, making me feel unencumbered by the daily grind I’m used to living twenty-four seven every day of my life. Her very existence in my life makes everything feel brighter and warmer. I didn’t realize what I was missing, how dull my life had become, until she was here.

With every little revelation my attachment to her grows. The thought of her going home makes me ill. But even if I’m not afraid of my growing feelings for her, she might be scared of hers for me. She’s so young. I have to steel myself for the inevitable heartache if she decides after the holidays to move on without me.

My stomach sours just thinking of the possibility, so I force thoughts of the future out of my mind. Tonight is about having fun, living in the moment and embracing whimsy. As I pull up to an old warehouse, her eyes light up at the sight of Christmas lights strung from a series of poles illuminating dozens of Christmas trees ready to be claimed.

Families with young children mill around, checking each tree to find the perfect fit for their homes. An older couple walks hand in hand in front of us, the woman helping support the man as he shuffles down the slushy path. Snow continues to fall softly adding magic to the ambiance of the night.

“I think the trees are sorted by height,” Mia says as she looks around. “How tall are we getting?”

We.

I’m like a teenage girl with a crush every time she groups us together as a couple. Internally rolling my eyes at myself, I look around and zero in on a group of ten- to twelve-foot trees. This is the first year I’ve put up a tree in my penthouse, and I feel like I could get away with a tall one.

“How about one of these?” I lead her over to where my eye was drawn.

“Yes,” she agrees excitedly. “I’ve always wanted a huge, real tree. I know they’re a pain because you have to keep them watered, and they lose needles, but it’s going to smell so good.”

We spend a few minutes picking the perfect one and grab the tag. She wraps her arms around my waist and tilts her head up for a kiss as we wait in line. I cup her cheek and press a gentle kiss to her lips, running my nose along hers when we break apart.

“Do you have ornaments and lights for the tree?” she asks.

“That’s our next stop.”

“You planned the perfect date.”

I hope I can keep that happy sparkle in her eyes forever.

After an hour of shopping at a store entirely themed for Christmas and stopping for dinner, I get an alert that the tree is on its way to my apartment. We just get all the bags of decorations upstairs when I get a call that the tree is downstairs. I go down to help them maneuver it onto the freight elevator and enter the security code for my apartment.

Luckily, tree delivery also includes set up, and it takes them only about fifteen minutes to get everything perfect. I would have been lucky to get it done in triple that amount of time, even with Mia’s help. The tree is over twice her height, so there’s not much she could have done.

“I was thinking that maybe we should see if Marta wants to come decorate with us?” She looks over at me while I check the strings of Christmas lights. “Since she’s widowed and doesn’t have kids.”

“That’s a great idea. I’ll text her.”

She replies back right away that she’d love to, so I send a car service to pick her up. I don’t want her taking public transportation on a Saturday night. While we wait for her to get here, we get all the lights placed. Even without ornaments the tree looks beautiful.

“Mr. Jameson,” Marta says with awe in her voice as she walks off the elevator. “It’s beautiful.”

“Hi, Marta.” Mia walks over and gives her a quick hug. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

Marta meets my eyes over Mia’s shoulder as she returns the hug. It does something to see the two of them get along so well. I love my mother, and no one could ever replace her, but Marta holds a maternal spot in my heart as well. The time she’s worked for me is longer than any relationship I’ve ever had. I suppose that’s why it makes sense that warmth burns through my chest as I watch them embrace.

Mia puts on Christmas music while we decorate the tree. Marta talks to us about her family’s holiday traditions when she was a child. Mia shares memories of her extended family’s Christmas and their annual Feast of the Seven Fishes Christmas Eve dinner. Both of them have such rich experiences around the holidays, it makes me look back on my childhood so differently.

I received every present I could have wanted and then some, but our meals were usually filled with business associates and society contacts. I’m not close with anyone in my extended family; in fact, I would probably pass by most of them on the street without realizing. I don’t want that for my future family.

Thoughts of Mia being here with me next year, my ring on her finger, fill my head. That image morphs into her pregnant and then holding a baby in front of the tree. I try to erase her from the future photos in my mind, but I can’t.

It hits me as I watch her smile and laugh with Marta that I’m very much in love with Mia Mattia. I’m going to make her my wife. It occurs to me that she might not be there yet with me, but I’ve never had a goal I didn’t achieve.

After seeing Marta downstairs to her ride home, I come back upstairs to find Mia standing in the dark with only the tree illuminating the room. She looks so beautiful bathed in the warm white light. I walk into the kitchen to pour a couple glasses of wine to sip while we sit and take in our work.

She turns as I take a seat on the couch and begins to walk toward me. Instead of sitting down beside me, she crawls onto my lap, her thighs on either side of mine. I set my glass down and grip her hips while she wraps her arms around my neck.

She brings her mouth to mine in a slow, sweet kiss. I pull her closer until our chests press against each other. Her fingers sink into my hair, nails scratching against my scalp. This is all I’ve ever wanted, and now that I have it, I don’t want to let her go.

Some of that desperation bleeds into our kiss as I take it from sweet to lurid. My tongue laps into her mouth, as if I’m trying to consume her. She reaches down and pulls off her sweater, revealing a lace midnight blue bra. It doesn’t even stay on long enough for me to fully appreciate it as she reaches behind her back and unhooks it.

I don’t know what I did to get this sexy striptease, but I’m not complaining. She grabs the hem of my shirt and pulls it over my head. It lands on the same rapidly growing pile of her clothes. Her hands roam down my chest to the button of my jeans while I pull her mouth to mine.

I could get lost kissing this woman. I groan against her lips when she palms my erection over my pants before unzipping them. She breaks the kiss with a devious grin as she shimmies down my legs and onto the floor, hooking her hands in the waistband of my briefs and jeans. I lift my hips to help her pull them off.

She looks like a goddess on her knees for me. My cock twitches under her palm as she wraps her hand around me and strokes. I can’t wait to feel her mouth around me, but first I need her to be as naked as I am.

“Stand up and take the rest of your clothes off first.” I barely recognize my own voice. It’s so full of need and gravely desire.

She follows directions and pushes her leggings down her legs. Her panties go with them until she’s standing in front of me, fully nude with her delicious curves and slightly round stomach on display. A fucking feast for my starving eyes.

She lowers herself between my knees, dragging her fingernails softly up the skin of my thigh and sending chills of anticipation racing through my body. I watch transfixed as she runs her tongue along the underside of my cock from base to tip. My abs clench at the soft heat of her tongue while her eyes never leave mine.

I reach down and tuck her hair behind her ear, so I can see her face clearly. “You look so beautiful with my cock in your mouth.”

Heat gathers in my balls as she takes me all the way into her mouth. I nearly lose it when she gags around me, my tip hitting the back of her throat. She works my cock until I’m so close to coming down her throat that I have to look away. But that’s a mistake because in the reflection of the window I can just barely make out the curves of her ass and her glistening, pink pussy.

I cup her cheek and pull her mouth off me. Her eyes meet mine as she climbs into my lap. My cock notches in her slit, so close to being able to slide right into her, but I need to make her ache the same way she’s made me ache.

I palm both her breasts, each more than filling my hand and pinch her nipples between my thumb and forefinger. She grinds her pussy against my cock, teasing both of us while she kisses me again. I run the back of my fingers down her belly to her wet folds. She’s so fucking soaked I know she’ll just slide right down my length.

I want more, though.

I need to be drenched in her.

She cries out as my fingers find her clit, circling it while I continue to pinch and tease her peaked nipple with my other hand. I feel her tremble against my cock and the hand on the tiny bundle of nerves at the apex of her thighs. My cock weeps pre-cum for her.

Her nails dig into my shoulders as her body quakes with an unexpected orgasm. She leans her forehead against mine as wave after wave of pleasure moves through her. I reach down and drag my dick along her slick slit, causing her head to fall back as she holds onto me.

“More,” she begs.

“Fuck,” I groan as I line myself up with her entrance and slide inside her.

She cries out again and begins to move her hips. My hands knead her ass as she sets the pace, rocking against me and using my cock for her pleasure. Watching her ride me is almost as satisfying as feeling it. Her tits bounce and sway, her pulse beats away in her neck, she cries out my name as her walls begin to quake again.

I want to blurt out that I love her, to tell her over and over again while I’m planted deep inside her body, but it’s too much, too soon. Leaning forward to take her nipple in my mouth while she grinds on top of me, setting the pace for her pleasure, I whisper it against her skin.

I love you.

I love you.

I love you.

I don’t stop until I feel my cock erupt with hot ropes of cum, filling her pussy like it’s mine, because it is. She’s mine. I’m going to love her and take care of her until she realizes it, too. No matter how long it takes.