This week's feature from The Naughty List is Everything Christmas by yours truly.
New in town, Merry has been so busy with opening her new store that she hasn't really had time to unpack. She always seems to be in a rush and accidents seem to follow her around like sleigh bells at Christmas. Her new neighbor, the hunky tall guy in a cop's uniform is definitely drool-worthy, but he always seems cross with her about something. He'd even issued her three tickets, all in the same day! So no one is more surprised than Merry when he rushes to rescue her from what could have been a nasty situation.
Reese has had his heart broken before, and he's not eager to go through that again, so he intentionally dates a string of women that are definitely NOT his type. Unfortunately, the cute little redhead across the street is exactly what he would look for in a woman - if he were looking. He tries to keep her at arm's length by being intentionally rude, but if ever a woman need a protector more, he'd yet to meet her. Seriously, he wondered how she'd made it this far already!
In this excerpt, Reese finds Merry teetering on a rickety ladder while trying to put up Christmas lights on her condo. Enjoy!
“What are you trying to do now, break your fool neck?”
Damn, she thought as she scrunched her eyes in disappointment. Not exactly the warm, heartfelt greeting she would
have hoped for. Regrettably, it seemed, Sergeant
Surly had returned.
“I should think it’s obvious, officer. But if you can’t figure it out… I’m hanging Christmas
lights.
“I can see that, Merry.
I meant, what are you doing up on that ladder. It looks like it’s late for an appointment with
a wood chipper.”
“Oh… Well, I found this in the garage. The previous owners must have left it.”
“Of course they did, it’s a piece of crap. Get down before you fall and hurt yourself.”
Finally she turned and looked down at him, “Excuse me, Officer,
but am I breaking a law?”
“No, but you are violating a condo rule. Decorations have to be approved by the board. It’s another $250 fine.”
“You’re kidding me! You can’t even hang Christmas lights? Who are you people a bunch of Scrooges that hate
Christmas? Furthermore, I read through every
one of those rules and I didn’t see a single one prohibiting holiday decoration.
“That’s because it's under outdoor adornments.”
“I thought that meant statues and fountains and stuff.
“It does, but it also applies to anything that is affixed or
positioned in a way that detracts from the uniform beauty of the residence.
“I can’t believe this. You wrote those rules, didn’t you?”
“Guilty as charged. Now please do as you’re told and get down”
“No.” However, she did
get down from the ladder, but not because he told her. Instead, she moved it a few feet to the right
and was soon stomping back up to work on the next section. “Christmas lights don’t
detract from the beauty of anything. I have
always had lights and nothing is going to change that. What are you going to do, arrest me for having
Christmas spirit?”
Suddenly, there was a loud creak of wood as she strained to attach
the next hook.
“Merry—,” he began in warning, but his words were cut off when
the rung she was standing on gave about two inches and knocked her off
balance.
“Reese!” She squealed in alarm.
He grabbed for the ladder, looking up to see Merry lurching sideways,
hands frantically searching for something else to hold on to. Unfortunately, she found the gutter which pulled
away from the house in her hands.
Hanging on by a thread, she kicked her legs wildly, trying to
gain purchase on the side of the house, but she couldn’t find a toehold. She started
to panic until at last, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her thighs.
“Let go, Merry. I’ve got
you.”
She hesitantly let go and he lifted her, easing her away from
the house. Palms and fingers burning from
scraping against the sharp edge of the gutter, her fingers curled inward against
the sting.
As he set her on the ground, he pulled her hands toward him. The skin was raw and bleeding in a few places. “You’ve cut yourself. Let’s get you inside and take a look.”
“I can do it, Reese.”
“Merry, I’m beginning to wonder how you make it safely to work
every day.” He lifted her and carried her
into her condo.
“That’s not fair.” Hurt
by his blunt words, she felt tears begin to clog her throat. “I didn’t know the ladder was old and weak.
“Good Lord, woman! All you had to do was look at it to tell it came over on the Ark.
Ignoring his sarcasm, she flapped her hands against the stinging
pain. “I can walk you know, there’s nothing wrong with my legs.”
“I know, but I figured this was the quickest way to get your
naughty ass in the house. Where is your
first aid kit? You have one of those,
don’t you?”
“In the kitchen.”
He carried her easily and set her down on the kitchen
counter by the sink. She felt like a little girl who was waiting for her daddy
to put a band-aid on a boo boo. Pouting
like one, she remained silent while he wet a cloth and handed it to her. “Let’s do the right hand first since it’s
bleeding.”
Pulling it toward him, he gently uncurled her fingers. Sifting through the supplies, he pulled out
some antiseptic swabs and bandages.
“When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?”
“I can’t remember.”
He grunted, evidently expecting that answer. If she was careless about her safety, her health
was probably a low priority as well. “You’ll
need one, then. Do you have a regular doctor?”
Her silence was his answer.
“Dammit, Merry.” He didn’t utter another
word until he had cleaned and dressed both hands. He had applied a thin layer of antibiotic ointment
to all the open areas in hopes of warding off infection from the dirty guttering. The right hand was the most seriously injured
with large raw patches of abraded skin, so he had applied a Telfa pad and
wrapped it with a self-adhering bandage.
The other had only a small abrasion for which a band-aid was sufficient. “All set.
Do they feel better?”
“Yes, Reese. I guess you
rescued me again, huh?”
“Yep, so you know what that means, don’t you?”
She knew exactly what he meant. He’d warned her the night of
the assault. The next time he found her acting
recklessly, he’d promised to spank her. Uh-oh! Before she could mount a protest, he had his big
hands wrapped around her narrow waist and he was lifting her off the counter. He tugged her along to the kitchen table where
he pulled out a chair. The next instant she
found herself draped over his lap.
“Wait—”
“No.” His hand smacked hard against her bottom. She was wearing snug black leggings which diminished
the impact of his blows. After about four thuddy swats, he realized they were having
little effect and slipped his fingers into her waistband, prepared to bare her naughty
behind.
“Stop, Reese, you can’t pull down my pants.”
“Watch me.”
Before she could utter another word, her pants were around her
knees and he resumed the spanking. Now that
only a thin layer of nylon separated his hand and her bottom, she felt every square
inch of the fire he ignited as he set a blistering pace. She lay stiffly across his lap in a state of shock;
her breath frozen in her chest. She’d fantasized
about Reese hundreds of times, but never in this position. Her tongue was paralyzed and she couldn’t even
manage a whimper as each stunning blow connected with her backside. The only noise was the hum of the refrigerator
and the slapping sound of skin against skin as it echoed off the ceramic tile floors.
Buy on Amazon
Buy on Blushing Books
Buy on Amazon
Buy on Blushing Books
This title is part of our holiday "box set" offering, "The Naughty List" - Available for a LIMITED TIME only! Grab this amazing holiday collection of five novellas from some of old-fashioned romance's favorite authors. Each of these five books is all-new for the 2013 Holiday season. Almost 130,000 words of reading for one great low price. (50% less than purchasing separately)
Congratulations to our last week's winner of the drawing for the boxed set: Thianna Doesitmatter
To enter into a drawing for a free copy of The Naughty List, simply leave a comment about "Everything Christmas" below. I'll be giving a copy away each Wednesday through December. Good luck.
No comments:
Post a Comment