Cowboy Christmas (A Henley Christmas Novella) (Down Under Cowboy series)

Cowboy Christmas

All rights reserved.  This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only.  This eBook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased or publicly performed or used in any form without prior written permission of the publisher. 

Thank you for respecting the work of this Author.

Cowboy Christmas is a work of fiction.  All names, characters, places and events portrayed in this book are either from the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, with exception to Artists named, and their song lyrics, and direct quotes from movies whose titles have been named.  Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, or events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.

Copyright © 2013, Kasey Millstead

Cover design © Arijana Karčić, Cover It! Designs

DEDICATION

Anyone has read my previous books, will know they’re all dedicated to the same person.  But this book,
this
book is for YOU!  Wherever you are in the world, whatever your name is, I dedicate this book to you.

Merry Christmas!

Other titles by Kasey Millstead

Steele Investigations

Sapphire

Emerald

Down Under Cowboy Series

Cowboy Town (Eden & Jackson)

Sky Cowboy (Ava & Jeremy)

Cowboy Christmas (A Henley Christmas Novella)

Stand Alone Novels

Fighting to Stay

COMING SOON

Cowboy Dreams (Jules & Clay)

Cowboy Endings (Edie & Jackson, Ava & Jeremy, Jules & Clay)

Illicit Desire

ADD THEM TO YOUR WANT-TO-READ SHELF ON GOODREADS.COM

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Troy – God blessed the broken road that led me straight to you... 

To my four beautiful babies – I love you beyond measure.

To Mel and Wurry, I think “
I II III IV III II
” says it all. Mwah.

Thanks to Meri for listening to me rant and rave and for letting me bounce ideas of you.

Thanks to my mum and dad, the best parents,
ever.
  And an extra special thanks to my mum who implanted a deep love of reading in me at a young age by reading The Adventures of Blinky Bill & Nutsy to me every night when I was a little girl. 

“If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”

Stephen King

Thank you to Emily, again, you’ve gone above and beyond for me.  Never underestimate the depth of my appreciation for you and everything you do for me.  I’ll never be able to thank you enough!

Kylie at Give Me Books blog – You. Are. Amazing!  You’ve become a great friend and I can’t wait to work with you more. Your dedication, hard work, professionalism and honesty is an inspiration.  You are one of the most devoted and enthusiastic bloggers I’ve ever met and I’m so glad I found you.

Lisa Watmough at Rock Wat Designs – you are unbelievably talented and creative.  Thanks for keeping me stocked with unique swag.

Thank you to the super talented Ari at Cover It! Designs for creating such a beautiful cover.

To each and every blogger that participates in my cover reveals, blog tours and book blitzes – THANK YOU!!!  I wish I could list you all individually, but that would be a novel on its own!  Thank you for everything you do.  Your hard work never goes unnoticed and it’s appreciated from the bottom of my heart.

To the girls in 101 – Wow! You ladies are such knowledgeable, friendly, helpful people.  I’ve learnt so much since I found y’all, and I’m so very grateful. <3

Lastly, thank you to each and every one of you that reads this book.  You are making my dreams come true.

A whole bunch of readers requested this book be written, so here it is. I hope you enjoy spending Christmas with the Henley’s and with your loved ones.

Www.authorkaseymillstead.com

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www.twitter.com/kaseymillstead

Goodreads.com – Kasey Millstead

If you liked Fighting to Stay, please consider leaving a review on Amazon and Goodreads.

One Year after The Double Wedding

JACKSON

Merry fucking Christmas.

It’s stinking hot outside – must be forty five degrees in the shade – it’s humid as Hell and to make matters worse, there’s a filthy hot breeze blowing.  You’d think I’d be inside, relaxing with my woman and kid, enjoying the coolness that only an air conditioner can provide.  But no, not me.  I’m outside in the heat, standing on a ladder and hanging fucking Christmas decorations from my guttering. 

It’s December first and according to Edie, come rain, hail or shine, we
have
to put the decorations up
today
. I grab a rag off the top shelf of the ladder and wipe it across my face and chest to collect the river of sweat that is running down my body.  I take one of the little plastic clip things that Edie brought, and attach it to the gutters.  Then, I thread through the Christmas lights and repeat.  It’s the same process around the entire exterior of our house.  Edie went batshit crazy buying a couple hundred meters of lights and a whole bunch of other shit I don’t even want to look at, but I know I’ll have to put it all together after I finish here.

I sigh.  Lucky I love the woman.  Be fucked if I’d be caught up here otherwise.

“How’s it goin’, mate?”  Jeremy walks up and rests his ladder against a tree.

“’Bout time you got here, a
sshole.”  According to Edie, she and Ava had decided that the Christmas Light Operation (she had named it this) would be put into effect over two weekends.  Jeremy would help me at our house on the first weekend, and then I’d return the favour at his and Ava’s place on the next weekend.  Jeremy’s just shown up – four hours after go time.

“Sorry, man
,” he apologises.

“No worries, just get your ass on the ladder and give me a hand.  Sooner these are done, the sooner we can relax inside with a beer.
”

We continue
hanging the lights until we’ve completed the guttering.  Climbing onto the roof, I set up a Santa near the chimney.

“Give me
a hand,” I shout out to Jeremy.

“Just a sec.”  He hangs another decoration and then climbs up to help me assemble the giant reindeer and Santa with sleigh light display.
  After that’s done, we string some more lights in a pattern across the roof and climb down to start on the lawn display.

Ava and Edie are placing baubles, lights and tinsel on a tree off to the side, so Jeremy and I set up the blow up Santa Claus.

“You want some punch, babe?”  Edie calls out.  I look over to my woman.  The sun is shining through her dark hair, making it look like it’s shimmering.  She’s wearing a loose white shirt and I know the top button of her denim shorts is popped open.  Don’t ask me why she insists on wearing them.  Her stomach is too swollen with my spawn for them to fit anymore, but she won’t let that stop her.  One hand rests on her stomach, while the other wipes the sweat from her forehead. 

My dick twitches.

If she ain’t the sexiest woman alive, I’d like to see who is.

Images
of last night run through my head.  Edie on her hands and knees, ass in the air, legs apart.  Her swollen, wet pussy just aching for my cock.  My hands splayed across her back with my fingertips circling her hips, her big tits hanging down, her nipples dark and fat from the pregnancy.

Jeremy’s laugh disguised by a cough pulls me from my daydreaming.  My cock is pitching a tent in my pants, so I adjust myself before punching Jeremy in the shoulder.  “Shut up, asshole,” I mutter.  Edie’s still standing there, looking at me expectantly. 

“Punch would be good, Ace, but a beer would be better.”  She shakes her head and walks off.  I watch as her ass swings from side and side with each step she takes.

“Seriously, man, stop eye raping your wife,” Jeremy laughs from beside me.

“Can’t help it, mate.”  I grin at him and then walk over to the power board.  I plug everything in and place it undercover, so it’s out of the weather.  We’ll have to wait an hour or two until it’s dark to turn them on.

“Daddy.” 
My heart skips a beat and I turn around at the sound of my name.  Olive comes running toward me before slamming into my leg.  Her chubby arms go around my thigh and she squeezes.  “Daddy,” she repeats.  “Up.”  I lean down and pick her up, settling her on my hip. 

“Did you just wake up, baby girl?  Did daddy’s girl have a good sleep?”  I kiss her on th
e cheek and hold her close.  Second to her mother, she’s the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.  Smooth, soft skin, black hair, blue eyes; she’s had my heart the moment she took her first breath in our bathroom.

“Come here and give Uncle Jez a cuddle.”  Jeremy holds his hands out, so I hand Olive over and take the beers Edie gives me.

I twist the top off and take a long pull.

Fuck that’s nice
, I sigh.

“Here,” I say, handing Jeremy his beer.

“Thanks, bro.”

“You boys did good.  I can’t wait ‘til the kids see it all lit up tonight,” Ava says, sliding an arm around Jeremy’s waist.

“They’re going to love it!  Just you wait and see,” Edie claps.

I shake my head at my wife.  She’s the most adorable person I’ve ever met.  I never thought I’d settle down, until she came to town…Huh! I’m a poet and I don’t even know it.  A chuckle escapes my lips and Edie’s brows knit together.  I lean down and whisper in her ear.  “Gonna fuck you so good tonight, Ace.  Can’t wait to be inside you, darlin’.” I groan and pull her earlobe between my teeth.  She whimpers and I feel her shiver.

Fuck yeah!
  I love the effect I have on her.  I know my daughter just woke up, but all I really want to do is put her back to bed, tell my brother to piss off to his own place and go inside and take my woman.  Hard and fast.  Then soft and slow.

“Come on, you two.  Let’s get the
Barbeque started, I’m hungry.”  Ava breaks our moment.  She links arms with Edie and pulls her inside to get the salads ready.

“You hear my woman, she’s hungry.  Fire up that piece of shit you call a Barbie and let’s get this show on the road.”

“Jealous,” I mutter.

We’r
e only taking a jab at one another – except he really is jealous.  Last Christmas, when we had our joint wedding with Jeremy and Ava, Edie bought me the fanciest barbeque known to mankind.  It was so fancy, it took me a week to learn how to use all the functions!  But, now I know how to operate it, you can’t get me off it. I cook us dinner most nights.  It can roast, grill, smoke, char – it’s even got a rotisserie for Christ sake.  It was the best present ever, and what makes it even better, is knowing Jeremy’s jealous as hell over it ‘cause he doesn’t have one.  Saying that though, I bet this year, Ava buys him one for Christmas.

I take the meat from the fridge and fire up the hot plates.  In the kitchen, I can hear Edie laughing with Ava. 

“Nearly done?”  Jeremy asks, handing me another beer.

“Shouldn’t be too much longer.  Where are the kids?”

“Oscar put a Thomas DVD on, so he and Olive are watching that.”

I nod.  Oscar loves his Thomas the Tank Engine.

“You talk to Mike?”  Jeremy asks before taking a long pull of his beer.

I shake my head.  “Nah, why?”