A Perfect Bride For Christmas (25 page)

He heard Mom and Clint laughing out in the

kitchen and noticed the way Jesse’s eyes skirted in that direction before going back the game. The fringe twirled again.

Clint came through the door with several plates of apple pie and passed them out. Mom hobbled in and put her pie on the small table by her chair. She started to sit until she looked out the living room window. She turned to Clint. “Sweetheart, is that a horse trailer in my front yard?”

Clint passed Jesse her plate, not daring to look at Mom. “Ah, yeah.”

Oh yes
, Alex took a bite of pie.
He wouldn’t be
the only King brother with an interesting Christmas.

****

home to roost. Alex lay back in his bed, wondering what Zoe and the girls were doing and understood 197

Dyann Love Barr

the feeling. He wanted to see his children again. He tossed and turned in the dark until he heard a car pull up in front of the house. It had to be Sydney.

She had her house key—she could let herself in. His mind still worked to untangle the knots.

The bright blue numbers on the digital clock

read three-fifteen in the morning. In the stillness of the night, he heard the door open, the clatter of keys as she tossed them on the hall table. Sydney’s

stumbling footsteps sounded like thunder—she’d

had too much to drink.

Mom could put a bat to shame when it came to

hearing, she knew every creak, moan, and sigh this old house made.
Shit.
He didn’t want his mother to find Sydney drunk on her ass.

He threw the heavy covers aside and raced

across the cold floor to intercept any Mom versus Sydney action. Sydney made it to the landing with an open bottle of champagne in one hand, with her Oliveri shearling coat in the other. She was as naked as the day she was born except for a pair of four-inch black heels boots and a new Brazilian wax job.

“Hey ya, baby.” She leaned against the newel

post, legs crossed at the ankles, small, tidy breasts thrust out, sporting a goofy smile on her face. “I missed you tonight.” Sydney held up the bottle, giving it a little shake. “We both missed you.”

The bubbles hissed. She’d probably opened it

right before she got out of the limo. He bet the driver got more of a tip than he bargained for if Sydney stripped in the car.

He shot a look over at the door to his mother’s room. She’d insisted on leaving the guest room

downstairs to sleep in here where she had for the last forty-three years. Alex knew she could hear the bubble’s dying screams.

A light came on under her door.

Shit, shit, double shit, and damn.

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A Perfect Bride for Christmas

He did the only thing he could do under the

circumstances. He hustled Sydney into his darkened room and closed the door as quietly as possible.

Sydney giggled as she rubbed up against him.

Her perfect breasts grazed his ribs, nipples hard and ready for attention. “Oh, baby. I want you,” she crooned in his ear. Her teeth closed over his earlobe with a sharp nip.

While her hands slid over his naked chest.

Pouting lips roamed over his jaw and neck in hungry little nibbles.

The smell of liquor on her breath curled the

hairs in his nose. “Shhh, I think my mother is up.”

Sydney ignored his urgent whisper. Her mouth

attacked his neck with the voraciousness of a

vampire. A tiny bite and a swish of her tongue

usually sent shock waves through his system, but tonight, the only thing shocked would be his mother if she came through the door.

He let out a gasp at the feel of Sydney’s fingers sliding into his pajama bottoms and closing over his balls. “Stop it.” Alex considered batting her hand away but decided it could get too dicey, unless he wanted to take up a career singing castrato.

“Unh, unh. Don’t care about Mamma. I want to

know if
you’re
up.” She gave him a less than gentle squeeze. “No? Umm, let me fix that, baby.”

Before he knew what had happened, she’d

dropped to her knees, taking his bottoms with her.

Her hot mouth engulfed him, licking, swirling her talented tongue around the head of his penis. Oh, dear God, he’d be dead meat if Mom walked in.

“Cut it out,” he hissed.

Sydney ignored him, working harder to arouse

his unresponsive body. “What’s wrong, baby?” She asked around his limp dick.

Mom’s familiar one-knuckle knock tapped

against his door. “Alex, honey, are you all right? I 199

Dyann Love Barr

thought I heard you out in the hall.”

“No, I’m fine.” He gasped at the feel of Sydney’s nails digging into his ass as she bring him closer and drew him in further.

“Did Sydney, make it back?”

Sweat beaded his upper lip. “Yeah, Mom.” He

put his hands on either side of Sydney’s head trying to decide whether to pull her closer to quiet the noises she made while she worked him over with her mouth, or push her away.

“Oh, okay, well good night then.”

“‘Night, Mom.” His legs buckled with relief at

the sound of his mother’s door closing.

“Let go,” he ground out, hand braced against the antique dresser and pushed Sydney away. “Go to

your room.”

Sydney stood, hands on her hips. “What’s up

with that?” She pointed at his less than enthusiastic member.

Alex pulled his pajama bottoms over his hips.

“Nothing is
up
. It’s been a long day, Syd. I’m tired.”

He grabbed up her coat and held it up for her to slip on. “We need to talk in the morning.”

The dark couldn’t hide the pout in her voice. “I have a lot to do yet for the wedding. There’s no time to talk. Maybe later.”

“It can’t wait.”

“I’m tired too, and drunk.” She sighed. “There’ll be plenty of time to talk after the wedding.” Sydney clutched the lapels together. She pointed at his crotch. “You better have that bad boy up to speed by the time we hit the tarmac in Paris. I have some big plans.”

Alex closed the door behind her and swiped his

face. What was wrong with him? He’d never turned down the chance for a blowjob, but the whole time Sydney knelt in front of him, Alex felt unfaithful to 200

A Perfect Bride for Christmas

Zoe. Zoe, who said she’d never stopped loving him, had. The truth shone bright in her eyes when she admitted her feelings, followed by a wistful sadness.

For a man who took pride in being able to read

people, why had he been so blind to Zoe?

The memory of Zoe, soft, sweet and wild had his flesh stirring, growing harder with each pump of his heart. He reached down to palm the painful erection straining the fabric of his bottoms, willing it to go away. The urgency to bury himself in Zoe’s body, to admit he loved her too, took him to his knees. He sank on his bed and flopped back in defeat.

There was one way out.

He only had to say four little words, ‘the

wedding is off’. But the snowball of events had already rolled from the top of the hill and gained momentum. The guys were going in for their tux

fittings tomorrow, Mom scheduled Zoe to bring by food for her and Sydney to sample, the girls were coming for a visit with Gramma, and there he stood at the bottom of the hill—waiting.

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Dyann Love Barr

Zoe finished up with the samples she’d prepared for Amelia and Sydney. A variety of appetizers and sweets were labeled, packaged, and stored away for tomorrow.

She looked out at the gray sky. The flurries the weatherman promised came in fits and starts, not enough to make driving difficult but sufficient to put everyone’s nerves on edge. The big storm wasn’t supposed to hit for a couple more days, hopefully before the big event. Zoe wondered how Amelia

planned to host a reception and accommodate

parking with another nine inches predicted. She’d make the food, worry about getting there when the time came, and let that be the end of her

participation.

Her heart squeezed in her chest. How could Alex marry that woman? Didn’t he see Sydney’s true

character? No matter what Zoe said, Alex defended Sydney. It broke her heart.

She closed the door of the commercial

refrigerator, turned out the lights of her work kitchen, and went into her personal kitchen. The house was quiet. The girls were asleep upstairs, and Cherri had called and said she wouldn’t be back until after Christmas. The snow Kansas City got the other day lumbered across the state and now

clobbered St. Louis.

Zoe decided she needed a cup of coffee.

A half a pot remained in the carafe. She poured a cup, adding a healthy dose of half-and-half to 202

A Perfect Bride for Christmas

smooth out the flavor. Her shoulders cramped from leaning over the stainless steel counter while she worked on the samples, and sitting down seemed

like paradise to her aching feet. She breathed in the aroma of the coffee.

The scent triggered a gut deep reaction. Alex’s last kiss had tasted of coffee.

Her cup clattered against the tabletop. Zoe got up and leaned against the kitchen counter, arms around herself to keep the heartache inside. How could she live without him? She’ done it before, but now it would be a thousand times harder, every time he came to see the girls, holidays, school meetings, A flush of heat washed over her at the sight of her table, such a benign thing, a place where her children ate their morning cereal. Now it was a flashpoint in her life. Alex had almost taken her on that table. She’d been a willing participant the moment he kissed her cheek. Zoe touched the spot where she’d wanted to take him inside her. Every feeling, every sensation rushed back in detail. An ache of longing grew between her legs, her breasts swelled with need.

But Alex wasn’t here. Sydney had staked her

claim.

She swiped a tear away, angry with herself for

allowing this to happen again. She’d become an Alex addict with no hope of recovery. And like most

addicts, admission was the first step. Making

reparation to Sydney would be hard. She had to let Alex go. It might be the hardest thing she’d ever done, but she had to. For her and her children’s sake.

Zoe knew it was time to go on with her life,

maybe look for love in the future.

The coffee in her cup grew cold. She poured it

down the sink and started to get a new one when her cell phone rang. The caller ID flashed Brenda’s 203

Dyann Love Barr

number.

“Hi, Brenda.” It took everything Zoe had to keep the impatience from her voice.

“Zoe, I wonder if I can ask a favor?” Her voice sounded cotton candy sweet and melting. She

wanted something big.

“Ask away, I’ll give you an answer after I hear what you have to say.”

Brenda’s words tumbled out with the finesse of

clowns in circus car. “Look, here’s the thing. I’m in a bit of a bind, a financial bind, and I wondered if you could, you know, like loan me about twenty-thousand dollars.”

Zoe bit her lip to keep from saying anything

vicious. She shouldn’t be surprised, Brenda always came up short of cash, but she’d had over fifty-thousand last year.

“What happened to the money James left you?”

“You know, this and that. I thought if you could help me out, tie me over until I find another job—”

“Another job? How many does this make this

year? Three—four?

“Look, it doesn’t matter. I need some cash quick.

My car is going to be repoed, my rent is overdue. You don’t want to see me out on the streets do you?

Besides, you owe it to me.”

Here it comes,
Zoe thought. Brenda thought she’d bought Zoe a one-way ticket for a guilt trip. It wouldn’t work this time.

“No, I don’t owe you anything. Most of the estate is in trust for the children, the rest is for monthly expenses. I don’t see you anywhere on my list of debts.” She knew she sounded harsh but she couldn’t help it, not after what she told the girls.

“Okay, okay, I get it. I’m sorry.” Brenda

hesitated for a moment. “I want to come to Kansas City to deliver my presents in person before they track me down and take the car. Can I at least do 204

A Perfect Bride for Christmas

that?”

Zoe rubbed the headache blooming behind her

forehead. Damn it, she didn’t want to deal with Brenda right now. “Sure, why not? I’ve got a big event on Christmas Eve, so why don’t you try to come tomorrow. The highways should be clear by

then.”

“Okay. Thanks, Zoe.” She let out a little laugh.

“I didn’t want to spend the holidays alone.”

“Fine, well, I’ll see you tomorrow. Drive safe.”

Zoe frowned when she hung up. What could she be thinking? She really didn’t have time to put up with any of Brenda’s woe-filled bullshit. Still, it
was
Christmas, and James would want peace in his

family—just not at the price tag of $20,000. He’d made it perfectly clear what he thought of Brenda’s over-the-top spending and drinking. Zoe promised herself she wouldn’t be an enabler anymore, but that didn’t mean Brenda couldn’t see the girls.

****

bite, just poked around at the garlic mashed

potatoes covered in white gravy. Even the green beans were untouched.

“What’s wrong?” Alex got to his feet, picked up the empty plates, and headed to the trash. “You’ve never had Chicken Fried Steak before?” Mom had

gone into the living room, exhausted. She’d asked Alex and Sydney to clear the supper table. As if Sydney would lift a finger to help.

“It’s so—fattening.” Sydney’s lip curled. “A

simple salad with raspberry vinaigrette would have sufficed.”

“You eat here, you get comfort food.” He scraped the bits and pieces on one of the plate into the trash.

“There are fixings in the fridge if you want a fancy salad. Nothing’s stopping you.”

Sydney eyed him with surprise. “You know I