Unlikely Lovers (6 page)

“I guess that’s why I like it so much.” He leaned down and gave her a quick peck on the cheek and taking her hand in his, led her into the building.

The service was beautiful with the children’s choir performing a medley of traditional Christmas carols. When it was over, several people greeted Cody and spoke to Jessica.

On the way home, Cody asked, “
So do you usually open your gifts on Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?”

“When I was growing up, we opened family gifts to each other on Christmas Eve, but Santa’s gifts were in the morning. What did your family do?”

“Believe it or not, that’s exactly what we did. Are we going to wait until morning to open ours?”

“I think I’d like that.”

“Okay if you insist…”

“What’s the matter, you can’t wait to see what I got for you?” she
teased.

“More like I can’t wait for you to see what I bought for you, pretty lady,” he replied with a deep chuckle.

“You’re such a little boy at heart.”

“But you like that I’m a grown up boy at other times.” He gave her a look that
warmed her to the very core of her being.

“What’s the plan for tonight?” she asked softly.

“You’ll just have to wait and see.”

When t
hey pulled into the driveway, he parked and walked around to the passenger side to help her out. When he’d unlocked the front door, he surprised her by picking her up and carrying her inside. Depositing her on the sectional couch, he turned the Christmas tree lights on and turned off all the other lights in the room.

“Oh, Cody, it’s perfect, so cozy and beautiful.” She gestured for him to sit beside her.

“Wait just a minute, Jessie.” He went into the kitchen and returned with two glasses of red wine. He set them on the coffee table and lit the three Christmas candles in the centerpiece, which decorated the table.

When he finally sat beside her, he handed her a glass and taking the other one, he toasted her, “
To our first Christmas Eve.”

“How sweet, Cody,” She took a sip of the wine and leaned in for a kiss. She was not disappointed.

She leaned back and snuggled next to him, enjoying the sweet red wine and the tender moment. “Let’s watch Christmas movies or did you get burned out on them last night?” he asked as he gently rubbed her arm.

“Oh, you don’t know me very well, big guy. I never get tired of watching Christmas movies. Just ask my mother, it drives her crazy.”

“Well all right then, let’s see what’s on.” He reached for the remote and began surfing the channels until he found It’s A Wonderful Life.

Jessica jumped up from the couch suddenly. “I almost forgot my dessert, be back in a few.” She ran into the kitchen and unpacked her fondue pot. She placed chocolate in the pot and prepared it to melt then pulled marshmallows and graham crackers out of her grocery bag. She was planning to make
s’mores. She searched his kitchen cupboards and finding a tray, placed everything on it, grabbed some napkins and carried it into the living room.

“Here
’s your surprise dessert. I hope you like these as much as I do.”

He looked at the tray and said, “Is that what I think it is? I love s’mores.”

“Then big guy, you’re in luck, this is our Christmas Eve treat.”

“Is that the only treat I am getting tonight?”

“We’ll see, let’s watch the movie.” She laughed, kicked off her shoes and snuggled next to him on the couch.

They watched t
wo movies, drank the bottle of wine and ate all the s’mores during the course of the evening.

The next morning, Jessica awakened early in Cody’s arms. As she stirred, he woke and smiled
. “Merry Christmas!”

“I don’t remember coming to bed last night.”

“That’s because you conked out on me on the couch. I brought you to bed.”

“Oh, Cody, I’m so sorry. I can’t believe I did that.”

“There’s nothing for you to be sorry about, baby. You looked so peaceful, I almost left you on the couch but I just couldn’t bear to think of you downstairs and me up here all alone.”

“Aw…such a gentleman,
” she teased as she leaned over to kiss him. He pulled her to him and kissed her deeply, immediately igniting her passion for him. Never had she been so drawn to a man physically as she was to this one. And never had she made love on Christmas morning, just one more first to be experienced with Cody. He loved her slowly and tenderly. As he pushed her hair back from her face, he looked deeply into her eyes. The tenderness and emotion she saw there brought tears to her eyes.

Cody wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and softly asked, “Why are you crying, baby?”

“Happy tears, Cody, you make me so happy.”

“Jess
ie…” He kissed her again and they lay in each other’s arms for what seemed like hours before he finally said, “Get up, woman. We have gifts to open and food to cook. I promised you a Christmas feast and that’s what you’ll have.”

“Yes, sir, I’m on it
.” She got up and went to the closet. Pulling a robe off a hanger, she wrapped it around herself and tied the sash. “I’m glad I left this here, it’s chilly after being in that warm bed.”

“We could skip gifts and dinner and stay in the warm bed all day,” he joked.

“Not on your life, I can’t wait for you to open your gift.” She turned and ran down the stairs with Cody chasing her. She went into the kitchen and started the coffee. While she busied herself with making cinnamon toast, Cody set about taking a ham from the fridge and preparing it for the oven. Once the dinner was started and they’d had a quick breakfast of toast and coffee, it was finally time to exchange their gifts to each other.

Jessica ran into the living room and snatched his gift from under the tree. “You first,” she said as she handed him his gift.

“Santa Claus wrapping paper, really, Jessie?” he teased as he sat down.

She sat down beside him and said, “Well of cour
se, what other kind is there?”

He chuckled as he tore open the package. When he opened the box, he looked at the tickets
then looked at her with a look of sheer joy. “Jessie, I can’t believe this. This is great, Brad does a tremendous concert. You’ll love it. I assume the second ticket is for you.”

“So you like it?”

“I love it, you couldn’t have picked out anything better, babe.” He kissed her then got up to get her gift from under the tree. He handed her an exquisitely wrapped box.

As she touched the sparkly blue and silver paper, she said, “It’s too pretty to open.”

“But you’ll never see what’s inside if you don’t open it, silly.”

“Okay, okay…let me see.” She gingerly opened the small box and was delighted with what
she found inside. It was a very dainty, small tennis bracelet. She held it up, amazed at the magical glittering of the tiny diamonds. He took it from her and fastened it on her wrist, planting a kiss on her nose as he finished.

“Cody, it’s beautiful. Thank you so much.” She leaned over and gave him a thank you peck on the cheek. He wasn’t settling for it and pulled her to him for a real kiss.

She spent much of the day admiring the bracelet. Cody did indeed prepare a feast as promised and the day passed by quietly. As the day came to an end, she thought, this is undoubtedly the best Christmas I’ve ever had.

Jessica didn’t have to report back to work until the day after New
Year’s so the next few days were divided between catching up on chores, spending days with Missy, and nights with Cody.

She and Missy drove to the mall to check out the after Christmas sales.

“So how did it go meeting Andy’s family?” Jessica asked as they relaxed with a cup of coffee after making their purchases.

“It was good.
They’re nice people. Evidently, Andy had pre-warned them we’re only friends, because no one teased us. There was none of the usual trying to get us to kiss under the mistletoe or anything like that.”

“And he liked the clothes you bought for him?”

“Yes, he did. He bought me a really cute shirt and a necklace. He said his mom helped him pick it out.”

“Okay then, I guess all is good.”

“I love the bracelet Cody bought you. He has good taste. Who would have thought it?”

“It
’ll always be very special to me. The concert tickets were a big hit. I’m glad I finally figured out what to get him.”

“You’re glad? You nearly drove me insane, girl
,” Missy teased her friend good-naturedly.

“I’m sorry, but it had to be just the right gift.”

“Jess, I’m going to sound like a broken record, but if you’re getting serious about Cody, you need to have a talk with him about your life.”

“Yes, I do. But not today, let’s go home. I’m ready to put my feet up.”

“All right, I’m ready, too. What are you doing for New Year’s Eve?”

“I don’t know yet.
I’ve been waiting to see if Cody invites me out or not, how about you?”

“My mother is coming for a visit, so I’m not going out. She and I will have some quiet time together. It’s been
a while since we’ve been able to get together.”

“Is Andy going to meet your mom?”

“I don’t know, hadn’t really thought about it. I guess I’ll see what he’s doing.”

Jessica glanced at her friend.
I believe she cares for him more than she is letting on.

And when New
Year’s Eve arrived, Andy did, in fact, spend the evening with Missy and her mother. They attended a party at Andy’s family’s home. When Jessica heard the plans, her every instinct told her Missy and Andy meant more to each other than they were willing to admit.

Cody invited Jessica out for dinner and dancing. When the clock struck midnight, he pulled her into a kiss on the dance floor.
Afterward, he told her, “You know what they say. The person you kiss at midnight is the person you’ll be spending the year with.”

“Is that what they say?” Jessica laughed and kissed him a
gain.

The holidays were over and life had gone pretty much back to normal for everyone.

Jessica had been plagued by
numerous calls from Dan all week wanting to work things out.

“And then there’s Cody,” she told Missy over lunch one day at their favorite café. “We’re still seeing each other, a few nights a week and every weekend. The sex is still hot and I’m still trying to figure out how I feel about him. We get along so well together.
The holidays with him were like nothing I’ve experienced before.”

Missy cautioned her again about keeping her secret then told her
sadly, “I’ve received my orders. I’ll be going to Ft. Riley, Kansas in a few months, probably in the late spring or early summer. You’d better be ready, Jess.”

“What about Andy?” Jessica asked.

“What about him? We’re only friends. He’s a great guy, but I told him up front I wanted nothing serious and that I didn’t intend to stay here forever. Which is what you should have done, my friend.”

“How was I to know Cody would turn out to be more than a fling? I figured a month or so of good sex and that
’d be it. The sex is better than good and I love being with him, in and out of bed. He is wonderful, funny, charming. And he can cook. He makes this marvelous pasta sauce and Christmas dinner was out of this world.”

“
Oh my God, Jess, listen to yourself. How much more is it? Are you actually falling in love with him?”

“I really don’t know, Missy.
I’ve never felt this way before, so I don’t know if it’s love or not.”

“Well, you’d better figure it out fast, my friend. You’ve kept a secret that could really complicate things when your orders come through.”

“I know. I just don’t want to ruin things. I’m not sure how kindly he’ll take to the fact I’ve been lying to him all this time.”

“More like withholding the truth. Does he love you, do you think?”

“He’s never really said the words, but I know he’s not seeing anyone else. I think it started as fun and games for him too, but I don’t think either one of us thought it would last this long.  It’s been months and we’re still going strong. He’s perfect, Missy, in every way. He’s the man I’ve always dreamt of meeting.”

“Which is exactly why you need to tell him soon,” Missy insisted.
“I hate to tell you this but you are way beyond a brief fling, my friend.”

“But how can I
tell him?” she asked sadly.

“You’ll find a way.”

“What’ll I do when I have to break it off with him and leave?”

“That’s why you were supposed to end it way before it got out of hand.”

“I can’t.”

“
You’re in way over your head, girlfriend. You play it out however you see fit. If it’s meant to be…who knows?”