Free The Christmas Wife by Elizabeth Kelly Page B

against him.  He rubbed the
small of her back as his other hand gripped her hip tightly.  He sucked on her
upper lip before licking at the seam of her mouth, silently urging her to open
her lips.  She parted them immediately and he thrust his tongue inside, tasting
the sweetness of her mouth as she moaned again.
    He had forgotten completely about the people watching them,
about the fact that the kiss was only for show.  He was sliding his hand down
to cup her firm ass when an elbow poked him in the back.
    He grunted and released Claire’s mouth.  She gave him a
dazed look as he glared at Jude standing behind him.
    “Save some of it for the bedroom, buddy.”  Jude grinned at
him and he flushed bright red before stepping away from Claire.  She swayed a
little on her feet, and he held her right hand in a tight grip as she touched
her swollen mouth with her left one.
    His grandmother was grinning broadly at them as Jude stepped
forward.  “What do you say we get out of here and go celebrate?”
    * * *
     
    “That was one hell of a kiss.”
    Claire ignored Ellen and continued to stare at herself in
the bathroom mirror.  As soon as they had arrived at Rosa’s home, she had left
Hattie with Ellen and excused herself to the bathroom.  She was still a little
off-balance from the kiss she had shared with Deacon.  Hell, off-balance?  She
was reeling from it and she needed a moment - or a fucking lifetime - to
recover.
    “I can see why you married the guy if he kisses you like
that every damn time,” Ellen said.
    “I don’t know what you mean,” Claire lied.
    “Are you kidding me, Claire?  He kissed you like he was a
man dying of thirst and you were a nice, cold glass of water.  It got me hot
just watching it.”
    “We, uh, we have good chemistry,” Claire said weakly.
    “I’ll say.  Now tell me why you look as surprised by that as
I do,” Ellen said.
    Claire could almost feel their carefully-constructed lie
falling to pieces around her.  But she hadn’t expected to feel such an intense
connection when he kissed her.  Hadn’t expected that jolt of electricity that
had surged through her body when his lips had touched hers. 
    Keep it together, Claire!
    She took a deep breath and smiled at Ellen.  “I’m not
surprised.  I just – sometimes forget.”
    “Right,” Ellen said, “you forget.”
    Ignoring her look of skepticism, Claire said, “Where’s
Hattie?”
    “She’s in the spare bedroom changing to her jeans and
t-shirt,” Ellen said.  “This house is something else, huh?”
    “Yeah,” Claire replied.  Rosa’s house rivaled Deacon’s in
size but while his was furnished with a modern look, hers was stuffed full of
ancient furniture and what seemed like thousands of small and delicate
figurines and vases and other decorative knick-knacks.  She shuddered at the
thought of Hattie rampaging through them like a miniature bull and smiled at
Ellen.
    “I need to find Hattie before she breaks half the stuff in
here.”

Chapter 6
     
    “Claire, this is Brandon’s wife, Donna, and their two boys,
Brandon Junior and Tyson.”  Deacon put his arm around Claire’s waist and held
her firmly against his side.
    “It’s so nice to meet you,” Claire said.  She held her hand
out and the woman shook it briefly.
    “This is my daughter, Hattie,” Claire said.  “Hattie, can
you say hi to Brandon and Tyson?”
    “Hi,” Hattie said.  “Do you like playing with trucks?”
    Brandon Junior just stared at her, he looked to be about ten
and favoured his father in looks, but Tyson nodded shyly.
    “Me too.  I don’t have my truck with me though.  Mama made
me leave it at home.”
    “Nana has a playroom,” Tyson said.  “There’s trucks in it. 
I’ll show it to you if you want.”
    “Can I, mama?”  Hattie said pleadingly.
    “Yes you may, honey,” Claire said.  “But remember to share
the toys with Tyson.”
    “I will,” Hattie replied.
    Donna patted her older son on the