Marianne's Christmas by Susanne O'Leary

Author:Susanne O'Leary
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Christmas romance, Romantic story set in France
Publisher: Susanne O'Leary
Published: 2016-11-05T00:00:00+00:00

7

Daisy’s words echoed in Marianne’s mind during the next few days: do yourself a favour and sleep with him. She went to the window in the morning, as if pulled by invisible hands and peeped through the crack in the shutters. There he was, as beautiful as ever, working hard to heal his injured shoulder and to get fit for his trip around the world. It was something he had always dreamed of doing, and now he finally had the courage. She felt a dart of shame as she stood there, like some peeping Tom. But as soon as Christmas was over, he’d be gone, and they might never meet again. Why not enjoy the sight of his perfect, toned body while she still could?

But things swiftly changed as the weather turned colder. Arctic air suddenly descended over Europe, all the way to the Riviera. The garden was enveloped in a damp mist, and the sound of foghorns echoed across the water like ghosts calling ships to home. Ross changed his exercise routine, now doing his workout in the gym in the basement, wrapped up in sweatpants and a warm pullover. Marianne no longer had her early-morning peep show to look forward to—both a relief and a disappointment. She laughed at herself and turned her mind to the Christmas party, which demanded some last-minute preparations.

The night before Christmas Eve, everything was in place. The drawing room was ready, with socks hanging across the mantelpiece of the large fireplace and the Christmas tree beautifully decorated by Marianne and Ross, who showed surprising skills in that area. For all the children, there was a pile of presents wrapped in colourful paper under the tree.

Dressed in silk pyjamas, Marianne sat in one of the white sofas sipping mulled wine, admiring their handiwork, and enjoying the warmth of the fire, when Ross walked in dressed up in a Santa costume. She burst out laughing. “Where on earth did you get that?”

“Galeries Lafayette in Nice,” Ross replied, his voice muffled by the white beard. “I thought the kids would enjoy meeting Santa.” He stuck out his stomach. “But I’m lacking a bit of embonpoint, don'tcha think?”

“I’d say drink more beer and eat pizza for a month, but even that wouldn’t work.” She grabbed one of the silk cushions from the sofa and ran up to stuff it under the Santa jacket. Job done, she patted his now fuller stomach. “There. Better.”

He grabbed her hand. “How about a kiss for Santa?” Before she knew what had happened, he dragged her to the sofa, sat down, and pulled her onto his lap. “Have you been a good girl?” he said in a low old-man voice

Marianne giggled. “No. I’ve been very, very bad.” She planted a light kiss on his mouth. “There. That’s for being Santa.”

“You taste nice. What have you been drinking?”

“Mulled wine.” She pulled off the beard. “This tickles.”

Ross didn’t reply. Their eyes met. Then Marianne took his face and kissed him hard on the mouth. Ross stiffened and tightened his arms around her and kissed her back.

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