Free A Sweet & Merry Christmas by MariaLisa deMora Page B

when you come back?”
    “You got it,” she heard a yell from the back room, and then the door swung outward, and Jess came through, balancing two
trays. “Two is better than one, right?” she asked, laughing.
    “Yeah, thanks.” She reached up to grab the
box of edible decorations, sliding it across the countertop to
Jess. “Sprinkles are in here, lots of colors. There are some other
things like cinnamon bits for reindeer noses, candy for ornaments.
Go crazy, woman. Make the cupcakes beautiful.”
    Jess grinned up at her; a smile lifting the corners of her eyes and
turning the lovely woman into a spectacularly beautiful one and
Brandy watched mesmerized as Jess licked across her bottom lip. “Am
I allowed to taste-test?”
    God, yes. Please . “You bet, go for
it. Just don’t make yourself sick. Folks are bringing
sandwiches and snacks to the party, so there will be real food
there tonight in addition to the cakes we’re taking.” Brandy
massaged the pastry bag of icing briefly, trying unsuccessfully to
not think about doing the same to Jess’ ass, and then got started
icing the rest of the cupcakes.
    They worked side-by-side for a couple hours,
mostly in companionable silence, only broken by brief questions
about the flavors, or when they paused to laugh at a cupcake Jess
destroyed. That had been another moment when Brandy’s
breath caught in her throat, because Jess broke the cake apart, and
fed one half to Brandy piece by piece, her gamine features grinning
up at Brandy the entire time, her fingers occasionally trailing
across Brandy’s lips in an unconscious tease.
    When the chore was done,
Brandy leaned back against the counter, looking at the stacks of
boxes filled with iced and decorated cupcakes, ready to be packed
in her car for the trip across town to Jackson’s, the bar Mason
owned. Brandy groaned inwardly when she looked at Jess, who was studiously licking her fingers
clean of icing. The woman was going to kill her. She mused, Is
it possible to die from desire ?
    Loading up the sweet treats, she casually
suggested Jess ride with her, and before she knew it, they were
locked in her van barreling up the road with Jess controlling the
music. Laughing as they pulled into the parking lot
at the bar, they were both singing to silly, seasonal tunes and she
glanced over as she parked, catching a look she couldn’t quite
define on Jess’ face. Their gaze locked for a second, then Brandy forced hers away, bending her head to
avoid looking at Jess again while they gathered up their gloves and
scarves, preparing to exit the vehicle.
    At the back of the van, she was still
struggling with her gloves when she heard Jess say from right
beside her, “Hold still.” Freezing in place, she felt fingers
dipping alongside her neck, under her scarf, then tugging it up and
over her mouth and nose, the cloth of gloves grazing her skin as
the fingers retreated. Forcing her lungs to work again, she
muttered, “Thanks,” and opened the doors of the van.
    Before she could lift out the first stack of
boxes, she heard movement from behind them and swung to see a group
of men walking their way. She stilled because she didn’t recognize
any of them, and the man in the lead barked out a humorless laugh.
“Do you know where you are, pretty lady? Lady as good-looking as
you should be more careful where you show up.” The men walking with
him laughed mockingly, spreading out to the sides, sweeping towards
her and Jess like the outstretched wings of a bird, herding them
back towards the open van.
    One of the men had gotten close enough to
reach out a hand, tugging Jess’ toque off her head and tossing it
to the side. Brandy moved without thinking, putting herself between
the small woman and the large, intimidating man. “Don’t touch her,”
she hissed between tightly clenched teeth, leaning towards him as
she shoved Jess backward, away from the
man .
    One of the other men made a crude comment, and she felt a tugging at her