The smirk turned into a full on grin. “Better than you remembered?”
“Way better. Now come here and show me the rest of the ways you’re superior to my battery-powered buddy.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Foil crackled and a few moments later, he crawled over her, settling into the cradle of her hips. Needing to touch him, she wrapped her hand around his length, stroking from base to tip and back before aligning him with her entrance. Bracing his arms on either side of her, he pressed slowly forward, sinking into her, stretching and filling, inch by slow inch. They both groaned as he found his way fully home.
“Hannah.”
He lowered to kiss her, deep and gentle, and lacing his fingers with hers, began to move. She held his gaze as the pleasure built. With every stroke, the walls he’d put up between them were falling. And then they were both spinning out over the edge in a spectacular free fall.
At length their breathing slowed. Above her, he stirred. “You were right.”
“About what?”
“Rocking my world.”
She couldn’t help it. The giggle burst free. “You rocked mine pretty thoroughly, too.”
“I’d like to rock it again in the very near future, but I think we kinda have to sleep.”
“There’s always the morning. I mean, I don’t know about you, but that seems like a really good start to the day.”
He brushed a kiss over her lips. “I like the way you think.”
Once they’d taken care of the necessities, they crawled back into bed together, his front to her back, and he curled around her. She didn’t bother with the t-shirt, since he was a living furnace. It was pretty damned cozy and perfect. He fell into silence, and she wondered if he’d fallen asleep. She’d get there herself, in a little while. For just a few more minutes, she wanted to bask.
“Can I ask you something?”
She jerked herself back from the edge of dreams. “Sure.”
His hand stroked idly over her hip. “I don’t have any right to even bring this up because I know what I’m asking. But I’m going to ask anyway.”
Rousing herself, she flipped over to face him. This sounded like a Serious Thing. “What?”
He exhaled slowly, resuming the stroking along her hip, a petting she’d come to recognize as a form of self-comfort. “How do you feel about long distance relationships?”
Her smile spread so wide, she wondered if he could see it in the dark. Just in case he couldn’t, she leaned in to kiss him. “Extremely amenable.”
“Really? Because my schedule is insane, and I won’t always be able to say where I am or when I’ll make it home again. I can’t always talk on a regular schedule. I don’t even know when I’ll be able to next get leave and—”
She pressed a finger to his lips. “Stop trying to talk me out of it. The answer’s still yes.”
Curling a hand around hers, he pressed a kiss to her open palm. “Okay.”
She snuggled in against him, safe and warm and so full of joy and hope for the future she all but glowed with it. “Ryan? There’s just one more thing.”
“What?”
“Merry Christmas Eve.”
Ryan tucked a firm hand under Percy’s elbow as they got out of the SUV.
“For the love of God, I’m not an invalid,” Percy groused.
“You literally just spent two days in the hospital. No arguing about taking a little help.”
With a huff, he shuffled his slow way toward the front porch, muttering about being forced to use a wheelchair at the hospital and how long discharge had taken.
“Yeah, well, that would’ve gone quicker without your entourage, but there is no turning away the Casserole Patrol,” Hannah told him.
“Truer words,” Percy intoned.
“I think Miss Betty’s got a crush on you,” Ryan teased.
Color leapt in the old man’s cheeks, a welcome reprieve from how he’d looked in the hospital lying against the harsh white sheets in the sterile room.
“It’s true,” Hannah put in, shouldering the bag with all the new diabetic testing supplies. “She helped stock your kitchen while you were laid up. Everything’s set for you to transition to your new lifestyle. Her daughter’s diabetic, so she knows all about it.”
Percy cut a glance at Ryan. “Aren’t you gonna be riding my ass about this new diagnosis? Telling me all the stuff I can’t eat anymore, all the new crap I’ve got to do?”
“Nope. I figure you got enough of that at the hospital, and you’ll get more in the future as you sort out how to manage it. But today is Christmas, and I’m just happy you’re still around to celebrate it with us.”
He ducked his head, but not before Ryan caught the gleam of tears. “Wouldn’t be if not for you two. Thank you.”
Hannah scooted up to his other side, slipping her arm through his in a gesture that was as much affection as assistance. “We’re just glad you’re okay.”
They reached the top of the steps without incident, and Ryan loosened his grip, satisfied that Percy was moving well enough on his own.
“You should both be with your own families, not fussing over an old cuss like me.”
“I had Christmas with my sister this morning, and we did lunch before Ryan and I left to pick you up.”
He grunted. “I still don’t feel right about keeping you away from your mama, with you being stateside for the holiday. She gets to see you little enough.”
“Yeah, about that,” Ryan muttered.
The front door flew open and a chorus of “Merry Christmas, Percy!” about knocked them backward.
“What the—?” Percy’s eyes went wide as Ryan’s parents and both his brothers spilled out, surrounding them.
“We brought Christmas to you,” he murmured.
His mother, Trisha, wrapped Percy in a hug. “Oh, it’s so good to see you, Uncle Percy.”
“You’re here.” Percy’s voice quavered. “You’re all here on Christmas Day. Why?”
“You refused to come to us and we refused to take no for an answer, you stubborn old coot. We love you. Now come on inside. We’ve got a massive spread and dinner’s just about to come out of the oven.” Not allowing an argument, Trisha ushered him through the door.
At the panicked plea in Percy’s eyes, Ryan lifted his hands in a what-can-I-do? gesture. His mom was taking over now. That was the end of that.
With probably more fanfare than Percy liked and a helluva lot of talking, they finally got him settled in the living room. Duke, released by one of Ryan’s brothers from the crate they’d gotten yesterday, gave a joyful bark and whine, offering up a full-body wag and wriggle, pressing himself against Percy’s legs.
“Hey. Hey there, buddy. I’m happy to see you, too.” He bent low, rubbing and petting the dog, pressing his face into the brown and black fur. “I’m happy to see everybody.”
Ryan met Hannah’s gaze across the room, matching her brilliant smile with one of his own. Filling the house with family to greet Percy when he got home had been her idea, and the moment he’d called his mother to put in the request, Trisha had begun orchestrating the moving of the holiday with all the efficiency of a three-star general. It had absolutely been the right call.