Midnight before Christmas Read online

  She’d never experienced the wonderful things Max was doing to her body, and she thought, anymore and I’ll explode.

  His fingers dipped inside her panties, and she moaned when he slipped between her swollen folds. The giant balloon inside her quickly popped, and she shuddered as the pleasure of his touch, the warmth of his mouth on her breasts, and years of pent-up sexual frustration released inside her. Her hips surged forward trapping his hand between her groin and his, using that extra pressure and friction to make the feeling last even longer.

  When the sensation eased, she collapsed to the bed, her eyes rolling back in complete sated exhaustion. “Wow, that was—”

  “Fast,” Max finished for her.

  Startled, she opened her eyes and stared at him. “Did I do it wrong?”

  Max grinned like the cat that ate the mouse. His gray eyes were almost completely silver now. “You’re making it very easy for me.”

  “To what?”

  His voice deepened, and his brows lowered. “To bring you pleasure, of course.”

  “What about you? I want you to, you know, too.”

  “Rachel.” Max stroked a finger down her side until it caught on the waistband of her panties. “I will.” He kissed her with the softest press of his mouth against her lips. “I promise. But first.” He moved down her body and took off her underwear. He licked his lips as he spread her thighs. “You’re so wet. So beautiful. I bet you taste as good as you look.”

  Rachel blushed hotly. Embarrassed and turned on all at the same time. This was a man she’d only met the night before, and he was seeing her in a way no one ever had. But God he made her heart swell with such powerful emotion.

  In a move so swift it took her breath away, Max yanked her down the bed, and pushed her thighs back, leaving her widely exposed for his viewing pleasure. He dipped his head, his hot, almost scorching hot, tongue licked her from the sensitive skin just below her opening to her throbbing clit. He stayed there for a moment, sucking the nub between his lips, the suction adding to her pleasure as he twirled his tongue against the swollen bundle of nerves.

  Her sharp intake of breath drew his attention, and he watched her reaction with no small amount of satisfaction.

  “Oh Lord.” She reached down and grasped his hair, and even that felt hot. His entire body seemed to be a furnace on full blast. She felt her body cooling against his heat, but not in a way that made her feel less desire. If anything, it made her feel more.

  He pushed a finger inside her, thrusting it in and out, turning and twisting, as he feasted on her. She could feel the rush of energy building again, threatening to take her past the point of breaking.

  “Max.” She panted his name. Her breath quickened with every flick, every thrust, every lick and suck until her head felt like it would leave her shoulders. He accelerated his movements, and Rachel moaned as the quake of orgasm rolled over her once again.

  “I love the way you come for me. So sweet,” he growled, crawling up her body. He kissed her, and she could taste herself on his lips. The bulbous head of his shaft brushed her opening. “I’m going to have you now, Rachel. I’m going to have all of you.”

  She tensed as he entered her ever so slowly, wanting all that his words promised. He slid his way deep like a flaming sword into ice. He held her close, his body as rigid as his cock, and he waited. She felt herself melt around him, adjusting to his size and width, so much more than his fingers had been.

  “Am I hurting you?” He began to withdraw, but Rachel reached around him and held him close.

  She didn’t want him to stop. He completed her like nothing she’d ever experienced in her life. The way he filled her body with his, invaded her until she could feel him in every nerve and pulse, made her feel greedy for these sensations. She didn’t want them to end. She moved beneath him, rocking her hips gently, picking up a rhythm when he began to move with her. He held her close, her face against his neck as he rubbed the heat of his flesh over the cold of her own. When she opened her eyes, they were cheek to cheek. He peered down at her, his lower body moving with slow, measured thrusts.

  “God, babe. You’re so beautiful.”

  “Max,” she cried, her throat thick and her voice hoarse.

  “Tell me you’re mine.”

  “Yours,” she agreed. Anything to keep him inside her, keep him warming her from the inside out. The delicious pressure built once again.

  His skin flickered. Silvery gray scales decorated his sculpted cheekbones. His eyes were mirrors now, reflecting a vision so foreign and unfamiliar, Rachel startled. Inside her, she could feel him growing in size, and her own body adjusting to his new length and width.

  Max began to thrust with earnest, his hips pistoning against the inside of her thighs as he took her deep and hard. Rachel yearned for more. So much more.

  “Rachel, Rachel,” he said, burying his face in her hair.

  She screamed as the orgasm ripped through her body. The igniting release threatened to tear her apart. She jerked, her body bowing beneath Max, as he cried out with his own climax, pumping his hips in deep, rough thrusts until he spent his hot seed.

  She fisted his hair and breathed in his heady scent as the vibrations finally subsided. The rawness of her skin made everything both hurt and feel good at the same time. For the first time since she’d seen the reflection in Max’s eyes, Rachel looked at her hands. They were a pale blue, larger than her own, but yet, they were hers.

  “What’s happening to me?” She caught sight of her long hair, and it was blue like her mother’s had been. “Max.” Fear caught in her throat.

  “You are becoming your true self, Rachel.” He stroked her cheek and kissed his lips. “It’s beautiful to watch.”

  “But what’s my true self?”

  “Well, that would be a jotnar,” a voice said from the bedroom doorway.

  Rachel squeaked her surprise at the intruder. Had Tommy Ritter found them? With only Max between her and the stranger, she wished like hell she was wearing some clothes. Max’s expression became annoyed.

  He grabbed a pillow from the head of the bed and chucked it at the door. “Get out, Destan!”

  Simultaneously, Rachel felt both relief and horror. He wasn’t there to kill her. Yay. But meeting her lover’s family for the first time while naked. Not so yay.

  “Does this mean no cuddle time?” she asked.

  Max’s scowl turned to a frown. Then he smiled and kissed her so soundly, she couldn’t help but think all was right with the world.

  Destan smacked the doorframe. He was identical to Max on the surface, except his black hair was just past his shoulders. He gave her a crooked smile. “I like this one, Max. She’s a keeper.”

  Another man filled the doorway, again identical to Max except for the hair. “Come on, Destan. Leave them alone.” He touched his temple and gave Max a nod. “Get dressed you two. We have a lot to discuss.”

  Chapter 6

  Asshole, Max mind-spoke to his brother Destan.

  “Yep, you have one. Saw it,” he said. He flipped his hair back and swept his gaze over Rachel.

  “Stop it.” For the first time ever, Max wanted to protect what was his against his more outrageous triplet. Desty had a girl, or guy in some cases, in every town. His brother embraced his sexual prowess with the same vigor Eustan embraced numbers and order.

  Rachel was back in her jeans and the blue shirt she’d borrowed from Max that morning. She’d grown nearly a foot while they’d been having sex, and as a human, she might have been an ice princess, but in her other form, she was a winter goddess. Her cold had matched his heat so perfectly, and he knew he’d move heaven and earth to have her by his side until death they parted. She was his. She’d said as much, and he’d be damned if he’d let Destan or anyone mess this up for him.

  Destan held up his hand, a jovial spark of laughter playing in his eyes. “Easy, brother.”

  “Leave him alone, Dest. You can see he’s in no mood for your shit.”r />
  Destan nodded. “Aptly put, Eust.” Suddenly his eyes widened with unadulterated joy. “Oh, my fucking gawd! You’re Frosty Rachel Campbell!”

  He whacked his identical-down-to-the-hair brother. “Can you believe it? How many times did we watch Max obsess over her?”

  “Dest,” his brother warned.

  “He’d punched a hole in the wall when she took silver at the last winter games.” He grinned at Rachel. “You were totally robbed by the way. But woo-wee, how often does a boy get to boink his idol? It would be like me getting to crawl into bed with both Angelina and Brad.”

  “I’m telling you,” Eustan said.

  “Frosty Rachel. A jotnar to boot. Rare both on and off the ice. I bet you’re not frosty in the sack.”

  Max’s ire came to a boil. He punched his brother just under the chin, lifting him off the ground. He flew back against the cabin wall.

  Rachel grabbed his arm before he made another move toward his brother.

  Eustan picked Destan up from the floor.

  Destan never stopped smiling. “You know I’m just messing with you, bro.”

  The problem was, everything Destan had said had been too on the money. Would Rachel think he was only interested because he was a fan?

  She managed to surprise all the brothers when she stepped forward and held out her hand to Destan. “You’re right. I’m Rachel Campbell, and there is nothing frosty about me in the sack.” Her mouth quirked up into a smirk, and she winked. “Nice to meet you.”

  Destan’s mouth dropped open for a moment then he began to laugh, a good, hearty, all the way to the belly laugh. “Oh, I really like her, Max.”

  The tension uncoiled in Max’s belly. “Me too,” he finally said. Now back off, he added telepathically.

  Destan put up his hands again. No worries here, little bro.

  Eustan offered her his hand next. “I’m Eustan, and you’ve just been regaled with bullshit from our oldest brother, Destan. He means well.”

  Destan looked offended. “No, I don’t.”

  Eustan shook head and shrugged. “No, he doesn’t.”

  Max worked on not punching his brother again. Rachel snorted. He snapped his gaze to her. She opened her mouth, and the sound that came out could only be described as a guffaw. After, she started laughing. It lasted for nearly two minutes, and Max thought she was going to stop breathing a couple of times.

  When the laughing finally stopped, she looked at Max first then Eustan and Destan. She considered them both for a moment before asking, “What do you know about jotnars?

  * * * *

  Rachel thought about Destan’s information on her species. Even after she’d seen her mother change before her very eyes, she’d managed to live in a mild state of denial. But growing a foot and turning blue pretty much killed the elephant in the room. Max had shifted a little into his other self as well, and she hadn’t freaked out. It had just been another facet of this man she already adored.

  According to Destan, unlike banshees and harpies, jotnars didn’t predict death or cause it, but their screams could disable even the most powerful of beings. According to legend, they’d been remarkable as allies to Caledon during the Giant Wars throughout the sixteen-hundreds. They used the horns of dead ancestors to cripple their adversaries. Because of the stories, they’d been hunted to extinction. Almost.

  Humans and other worlders alike sold and used the powder from their horns for everything from fertility, virility, and boosted power. As far as Destan knew, there hadn’t been a frost giant sighting in over two-hundred years according to their father’s journals of the various species in their world. It had been assumed they were all dead.

  “My mom’s head brushed the ceiling. She grew nearly eight feet tall. How come I didn’t get that big?” Rachel asked.

  Eustan shrugged. “I can only assume you have a mixed heritage. We are mixed as well. There are some things we inherited from both our parents, but there are also some things they can do that we can’t.”

  “Since you said this is the first time you’ve changed, I’d bet diamonds to dollars your dad is human. You all tend to be latent or never. Which is probably why your mom kept you in the dark. We have fairly strict rules,” Eustan told her.

  “But rules are made to be broken.” Destan winked. “Aren’t they Max? Like the rule about observing and not engaging. Dad is already gearing up for your ass-kicking.”

  “Ugh.” Max shook his head. “You told him.”

  “We had to. But at least we waited until we were nearly here.”

  That meant they’d all be in trouble with grayman.

  “I get it. I see your little giantess. I might have broken all the rules for her too.” Destan wiggled his brows.

  Max growled.

  “You’re too easy, bro.”

  Eustan cleared his throat. “It’s nine o’clock. We only have a few hours to get our shit together.”

  He picked up a large black duffel bag from the floor. He set it on the small dining table. The unzipped bag revealed guns, knives, grenades, flash bangs, and three swords.

  “Jesus,” Rachel said, craning her head around Max to get a better view.

  “Okay,” said Max. “Weapons covered.”

  “Wasn’t sure what we’d need, so I just grabbed as much variety as I could.”

  Destan slapped Eustan on the back. “You are the model of efficiency.”

  “Let’s make a plan.’

  Rachel put her hand out and smacked the table. All three men startled.

  “I’m going alone.”

  “No,” Max said gently. “You’re not.”

  She fisted her hands, seething at Max’s betrayal. “You promised you wouldn’t fight me about this. I can’t risk my family.”

  “I never promised.”

  “You nodded.”

  “Not a promise.”

  “It’s really not,” Destan said.

  “Shut up,” Max and Rachel said at the same time then turned their hard stares back to each other.

  Rachel put her hands on her hips, feeling ridiculous and hopeless as she faced off against a guy a foot taller than her, and had the added advantage of being someone she was definitely falling for.

  Eustan interrupted the deathly silence. “Why don’t we all agree that Max won’t let you go in without him, and we aren’t going to let Max go in without us.” He held out his hands. “It will make the planning stage much quicker.”

  Rachel crossed her arms across her chest. “Fine.”

  “Fine,” Max agreed.

  “Whatever,” Destan quipped.

  Eustan waved his hand dismissively. “Just saying.”

  “We were supposed to be enjoying an uncomfortable family silence around the Christmas tree tonight. Callie drinking a little too much egg nog. My father doing his crosswords while listening to his favorite carols. My mother clucking her disapproval of my life while she finishes up a whole slew of pies. Pumpkin, apple, and my favorite, blackberry.” Her words caught in her throat. Rachel turned to Max and took his hands. “Oh, Max. She always makes my favorite pie. I need you to promise me you can keep my family safe.”

  “I’m going to do everything in my power to get them home in time for Christmas, Rachel. I promise.”

  It wasn’t the answer she’d wanted, but she’d been in enough competition battles to know shit happened. Hence, the two silver medals and not golds.

  Max’s phone beeped. He’d received another text from Tommy. “Don’t forget. No later than midnight. Time is ticking.”

  There was a picture attached this time instead of a video. In it, her mother had blood smeared in her hair just above her forehead on the left side. She had a gag in her mouth, and her eyes were wide and pleading. Rachel’s father was tied next to her, his face full of outrage. A large handheld a smart phone up in front of her mother with the time of 9:00 p.m. displayed on the front screen. The background in the picture was no longer the ice of the skating rink. It was a small room like
a closet. Behind her parents were a hand-crank auger and a bench.

  Mom and Dad were still alive, at least in the past fifteen minutes. Suddenly, her chest squeezed with an aching dread. “Where’s Callie?”

  Max tilted her chin up so he could look her in the eyes. “We have to stay focused. The only way to get them back, all of them, is to work together. We’re a team now, you and I. I have your back.”

  Rachel had never been much of a team player, but the sincerity of Max’s words, the strength of his belief in her, in them, made Rachel want to try. Finally, she nodded. “I’m going to need my skates.”

  Chapter 7

  It took twenty minutes to take Rachel to her mother’s house to get her skates. He’d half expected Ritter and his minions to be waiting with a trap, but no one was in the house. Max waited as she quickly changed clothes and grabbed an old pair of skates from the utility room off the kitchen. She pursed her lips and paused to take in the broken tea mug on the floor.

  Her chin trembled. She quickly brushed the tears from her eyes. “I want him to pay for this,” she said through clenched teeth.

  Max held his hand out to her. “He’ll pay,” he promised.

  It was the one promise he’d make damn sure he could keep. The moment he’d locked eyes with Rachel, he’d felt that instant connection, a pull so indescribably powerful he couldn’t have ignored it if he’d wanted to. Her pain wrenched his heart as if it was his own. Which was why, whatever happened, Thomas Ritter was going down.

  Rachel slipped her cool hand into his and interlaced their fingers together. She slung her skates, tied together with the laces, over her shoulder with her free hand. “I’m ready.”

  There is some movement around the skating rink. It was Eustan. Four men. All armed with rifles. Shit.

  What is it? Max sent back to him.

  We aren’t going to be able to sneak in like we thought. They’ve turned the outdoor lights on and have three spotlights pointed toward the sky.

  It’s almost as if they’re expecting us, Destan added, sarcasm apparent.