Page 91 of Outlaw Xmas
“Wanted to find out what we were doin’ on Tuesday night. Seems like some people torched and killed Chad Bridgewater and his loser cohorts.” The three men guffawed.
“Feel like a pool game?” Tiny asked.
“Sure. I got time. Kimber’s coming home late tonight.” Throttle picked up his glass of whiskey and sauntered over to the pool table with Tiny and Wheelie following close behind. Taking out three joints, he handed one to each of them and they lit up, enjoying the weed they stole from Chad’s place the week before.
Grabbing a pool cue, he walked to the table, bent down low, and took the first shot.
***
Throttle put theribs he’d picked up at Big Rocky’s into the oven. Kimber would be home soon and he wanted to surprise her with dinner. He’d planned on asking her to marry him after the charity event a couple of nights before, but with the snatching of Braxton and Harley, all focus was on getting the boys and making the dirtbags pay.
He wrapped the twice baked potatoes in a second layer of aluminum foil and popped them in the lower oven. The chef at the restaurant prepared a Caesar salad kit for him, and he placed it in the refrigerator. Glancing around, he made sure everything was neat and tidy. Kimber was obsessed with keeping things in order and could get easily distracted if she saw something out of place. That night, he wanted her focused totally on them.
The jiggle of the doorknob signaled she was home. He leaned against the kitchen island waiting for her to come in. When he saw her, she smiled and he swept her into his arms.
“You’re so cold,” he murmured, rubbing his face against hers.
“It’s fucking cold out there. And I stepped in a puddle of water that one of the new idiots we have working at the shop made with his hose. My feet are soaked.”
“I can warm you up real good, babe.”
“I know you can, but I don’t feel that sexy in my coveralls. I need to take a warm shower.” She pulled away and cocked her head. “I smell barbecue sauce.”
“I picked up dinner from Big Rocky’s.”
Her eyes lit up. “Really? You’ve never done that before. What a great idea.” She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and ambled away.
The scent of roses and patchouli wound around him as he stared at the television screen, and a slow smile spread across his face.
“Feel better?” he asked as she sank down next to him on the couch.
“Much. My feet are still ice though. I should’ve put on a thicker pair of socks.”
He rose. “I’ll be right back. You want to eat?”
“Yeah. I’m starving and ribs sound so good right now.”
He went into the kitchen and turned on the ovens and then headed to the bedroom. Coming back with a pair of pink fuzzy socks, he went over to the couch and sat down. Tugging her legs toward him, he placed them in his lap and took off her thin socks. He blew on his hands and rubbed them over her cold feet. He glanced up. Her eyes had that smoky, languid look sending warm ripples of desire through his body, thinning the air in his lungs.
The sound of her shallow breathing, the soft rose in her cheeks, and the parting of her full lips filled him with a fierce longing. “Kimber,” he whispered as he bent toward her, gripping her shoulders, pulling her into him, pressing himself into her. His hungry mouth melded into hers, the tip of his tongue brushing against the seam in her lips, and she opened to let him in, moaning with each urgent thrust. Desire licked through him as she slipped her arm around his neck, melding her body to his. Groaning low in his throat, he circled his arms around her, fusing them even closer, easing her down on her back, still kissing.
“Throttle,” she smothered against his lips as his hands moved under her fleece top.
“You consume my heart and my thoughts. You fuckin’ rock and I love you so much.”
“I adore you. You’re my soul mate, and you know when to say it’s okay and when to just listen to me when I just need an ear. I’m so connected to you.”
“Our bond is like steel, babe.” He crushed his mouth against hers, swallowing her words, loving the small whimpers coming from her.
An ear-splitting sound sliced through their sensuous haze, and Throttle leapt up, his body tense and ready to fight. He glanced at the door and looked down at Kimber who was laughing her ass off.
“What’s so funny?” he asked.
“It’s the timer on the oven. You must’ve set it when you turned it on to warm up dinner.”
Jerking his head toward the kitchen, he saw the green light flashing intermittently, and he joined in laughing. “Fuck. I thought someone was messing with me. That’s an annoying sound, and it’s so goddamn loud.” He shuffled over to the oven and turned it off.
After dinner, they sat on the couch, him holding her close, the fire dancing in the fireplace, and the soft strains of Queensryche’s “Silent Lucidity” filling the room. Throttle traced his fingers on her arm, the side of her neck, and her throat. “I love your skin.”
