'Tis the Season

Chapter 25: Merry Christmas

Chapter Twenty-Five: Merry Christmas

Christmas Eve morning, I am woken up by Carson for a change. He hops on my bed like a child, catapulting himself into my sleeping body and wrapping his arms around me in a tight bear hug.

"Carson!" I wheeze out, still mostly asleep. "Can't... breathe...."

Carson rolls over so he isn't on top of me anymore but keeps his arms around me. "Santa comes tonight baby!"

I can't help but laugh, despite my sleepy state. "Yeah? Do you think you've been good enough this year to get everything you asked for?"

He smiles and nuzzles his face into my back, inhaling deeply before saying, "Good? Considering everything we've started doing, I would say I'm probably guaranteed to be on the naughty list."

I smile and place my hands where his are around my waist, pulling him to me tighter. "Well that's unfortunate. Maybe if you'd been a good boy Santa would have brought you what you wanted, but I guess there'll be nothing but coal for you."

"Hmm, I think I can live with that. You see, beautiful, I am currently holding in my arms everything I've ever needed, everything I could ever want."

I chuckle silently and turn over under his grasp to look him in the eye. He's got a big, wide, cheesy grin on his face, his eyes alight with mischief.

"Is that so?" I ask softly, my eyes falling to his lips. He bends his face a little.

"Yes," he whispers so softly I barely hear him, his lips so close to my own that I can feel his warm breath brushing my face with every word.

I close the distance between us, kissing him so softly but with all the emotion I can muster. The rest of the world melts away as I feel his hands press firmly into my back and he flips on top of me, deepening the kiss.

We break away for air and it hits me his voice isn't as stuffy and he doesn't seem anywhere near as tired as he has been.

"How do you feel this morning?"

Carson smiles, nuzzling my nose with his own. "Perfect now. But in terms of the pneumonia I think I've seen the last of it. I feel one hundred percent back to normal and when I took my dosage of the meds this morning it was the last bit left in the bottle."

I smile at that. "Look at you, getting yourself back into tip-top shape just in time for Christmas."

He chuckles and I feel a slight scruff on his jawline that isn't usually there as he starts trailing butterfly kisses down my neck.

"I give us a half hour before my mom comes looking for us to bake and decorate all the cookies for tomorrow," he speaks in between his kisses, his voice reverberating off of my skin and leaving me even more tingly than I already was.

"What exactly are you insinuating?" I ask cheekily, trying not to giggle as he slips his hands under my shirt and starts inching them up my stomach.

"I can show you better than I can-"

"Carson?" Emilia's voice cuts him off and this time I do laugh as he reluctantly takes his hands back out of my shirt, groaning a little.

"Carson? Are you coming to help or what?" I lean in and give him one last kiss before we both roll out of the bed to head downstairs.

"Looks like your estimate was a bit off," I tease and he looks my body up and down slowly, a smirk appearing on his lips.