A Christmas Wish Read online

  Evernight Publishing ®

  www.evernightpublishing.com

  Copyright© 2015 Sam Crescent

  ISBN: 978-1-77233-644-3

  Cover Artist: Jay Aheer

  Editor: Karyn White

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  DEDICATION

  I want thank Evernight Publishing for taking this story, and giving it a new home.

  A CHRISTMAS WISH

  Romance on the Go TM

  Sam Crescent

  Copyright © 2015

  Chapter One

  “Mummy, is Santa coming tonight?”

  Jemma Stein glanced over at her three-year-old daughter, Megan, her face covered in chocolate and her fingers creating little patterns on the white tray. The joy of finger-painting with food. It was the only thing she could think of for her children to do.

  “Not tonight, silly. I’m still at school, and Santa knows to bring presents when I’m not at school,” Billy, her eldest son, said. Billy spoke as he munched through the overflowing bowl of chocolate flakes. Allowing her children to make dessert using flakes, chocolate, and syrup had seemed like a good idea at the time. Now, seeing the mess, it didn’t look all that clever.

  Shaking her head, Jemma turned her attention to her youngest son, Sean. He sat in his baby chair while she fed him some pumpkin soup that she had made last week. She had made a big batch, and then placed it in little tubs in the freezer, to use when she needed it. Strangely, the little darling was enjoying the orange gloop, which was lucky. Usually Sean liked to throw the food right back at her, until she was covered more than he was. It wouldn’t be long though until he didn’t like pumpkin soup, and then she’d have to work through until he found something else he liked a little more.

  The smell of mince pies with the subtle hint of nutmeg scented the air while the children worked on their own desserts. Christmas was a few short weeks away, and Jemma still had all the food shopping to do, and a few toys left to purchase. Fortunately, she’d been buying toys and preserves throughout the year so it shouldn’t be a manic time shopping for the last few things. Being a single parent was incredibly difficult, but she was handling it.

  Well, unless you counted Ryan, her one savior through everything. She really couldn’t cope with anything without him. The man was a god and completely out of her reach, which her body refused to accept. He was her rock and the person she counted on more than anything or anyone. She wouldn’t have needed Ryan if it hadn’t been for the biggest disaster that had swept into her world, taking one of the people she loved most, her husband.

  Before the birth of Sean, Jemma had gotten that most hated visit, the one no wife ever wanted to get. In the middle of the night, her entire world shattered at the news that Simon, her husband, had been killed late at night traveling home by a drunk driver. Killed instantly without any pain. She was happy he wasn’t in pain, but it didn’t make her feel better. The man she loved was dead. The father of her children, gone. Ryan, her late husband’s best friend, had held her hand and given her a shoulder to cry on through all the bad times. He’d been her rock, and still was. Ryan hadn’t abandoned her. He’d helped her through the dark days where she’d not wanted to live herself.

  She had been heavily pregnant at the time with two small children still out of school, along with bills rising around her head, and she had felt so much despair. Everything just seemed to mount up, and she’d felt the whole world crashing around her, trapping her. Jemma still couldn’t believe how she’d managed to get through everything that happened. She wouldn’t have been able to deal with everything if it hadn’t been for Ryan. He’d helped to put her whole life back on track.

  He’d been there at the birth of her third child. Ryan held her hand as she screamed and cried all the way through the birth of Sean. When it was time to, he’d helped her register Billy for school, and had been there whenever she needed him. He’d also been there when Megan got sick. In a way, he’d taken over Simon’s place with the kids, only they didn’t think of him as a father.

  Ryan should be coming around very soon. Jemma checked out the time to see how much longer it would be. She did find that she missed him when he was gone for long periods of time. Five-thirty glowed back at her from the clock on the oven. She had another half hour and he’d be coming through the front door. Ryan had his own key, the one Simon had given him in case of emergencies if he wasn’t home and Jemma needed anyone. Jemma wondered if Ryan would like the chicken stew she’d experimented on, which was currently in the slow cooker.

  The very thought of Ryan had her body coming to life. Her heart quickened, and she ran her fingers through her straggly blonde hair wondering if she would have the time to run a brush through the wayward strands. Glancing down at her shirt, she hoped she’d have the time to change her shirt, which was covered in chocolate, flour, and pumpkin. There was no way that Ryan would be interested in her. He could have any woman on the planet. Why would he want her? She had three very young children, was a widow, and she had thick, rounded curves.

  There was no way he’d find her attractive.

  The past few months had scared her, as out of the blue she’d suddenly started to have feelings toward Ryan. Her feelings weren’t just ones of caring either. Jemma wanted him. At night, she would wake up yearning for his touch, her pussy dripping wet with her need for him. When she was alone at night, she’d slide her fingers through her pussy, and imagine it was his fingers inside her, not her own. She wondered what his dick would be like, hard and thick, pumping inside her pussy. Her own touch no longer satisfied her, and she’d wish it was him. The last thing she wanted to do was ruin the friendship they had because she was horny, and in need of him. She looked forward to his visits, and she enjoyed his company. He made her laugh, feel special.

  Should she love the man who’d been her husband’s best friend? There were times she felt guilty when she thought of Simon, but he wouldn’t want her to be alone. They had talked about it before, not long after Billy was born. It had been a morbid topic, but one they had both felt the need to talk about. Both of them felt there should be a time for mourning, and a time to move on, to find love elsewhere.

  Jemma thought about Ryan and how everything had changed between them over the past couple of months. Ryan had always been there as Simon’s best friend, but that had evolved, changed, and now she saw him as a man, not just as a friend.

  Everything had changed one night when she had been curled up against him while they watched a movie. The movie was harmless and kind of sweet, which she loved. Then the two main characters on the big screen had decided their lust for each other couldn’t wait any longer.

  For ten minutes she had to watch two people fuck, make love, and generally do everything she’d been craving to do for some time. She missed being touched, being loved by a man.

  During the scene she had felt Ryan tense underneath her. Her own reaction had been instant, and she couldn’t resist glancing down to see if he was as hard as she was wet.

  His cock had created a large outline where it pressed against the zipper of his jeans. Without thinking, Jemma had looked up into his sinfully sexy green eyes, and he’d showed her so much with one look. She’d seen the lust and heat shining in his eyes, and she responded. Jemma had wished he reacted, or done something to acknowledge the heat between
them. In one moment they’d gone from being best friends, to being a man and woman, with needs.

  Ryan had moved first, leaning close toward her face. Jemma hadn’t pulled away but pleaded with all of her being for him to kiss her, to feel her, to touch her. In those moments she’d become more than Simon’s widow. She’d become a woman once again.

  “Ryan?” She had whispered his name, terrified to break the connection that was growing between them.

  “Mommy, can I have a drink? I’m thirsty,” Billy had asked from the living room doorway, shocking both of them apart.

  The moment had been lost, and they hadn’t even talked about it. The whole incident was as if it never happened.

  She came out of her memory as her son with his meaty fist, grabbed his pumpkin soup spoon and shook it vigorously, splattering Jemma with orange stains. At this rate she was going to run out of clean shirts.

  Some of the pumpkin soup landed on her cheek as well. That was the story of her life.

  “Thank you, darling,” she said, wiping the orange slop with a towel.

  She needed to calm her body down. Ryan wasn’t here, and she didn’t want to risk the happiness they had found together. Jemma also didn’t want him to think she was trying to replace Simon. She wasn’t.

  Her gaze wandered to the clock.

  Twenty-five minutes left until she saw him next. She couldn’t wait for his arrival.

  ****

  Ryan drove out of town after he’d made a quick stop for some groceries like he did every Monday. He smiled as he passed the townsfolk waving and greeting them back. The small town was full of activity as they were all doing some sort of Christmas shopping. He loved Christmas, and the town thrived at this time of year. Each shop was aglow with decorations, and lights. He wondered how long it was until Christmas. About fourteen days? He couldn’t remember, and did a quick check of the date on his dashboard. Yep, fourteen days. Time seemed to go quickly these days. Between work and spending time with Jemma and the kids his time to sit and think was limited. Not that he minded. It was nice not to wait for his life to go on by.

  He wondered what Jemma wanted to do this year. Last year, without Simon, they’d both tried to give the kids a lovely time, but Simon’s presence had been missed. Now, a year later, the children were coping and understood their father was in heaven and wouldn’t be coming home. Unfortunately, it didn’t stop this time of year being difficult for all of them.

  Ryan guessed they would have to sit and talk about this year. Would she want him around the house? Even with Simon alive, Ryan had always been around for Christmas dinner. In fact he’d always made sure he was there in time to see the kids open their presents. His life had been with Simon and his family, and he’d played a huge role within the family and one he was pleased he shared with Jemma.

  When he was honest with himself, he had to admit that he’d been in love with Jemma since, well, since forever. From the moment he’d glanced over the room, looking for Simon, and there she’d stood smiling at him. His heart had melted on the spot, and even to this day no other woman had ever come close to meaning something to him. Jemma owned his heart and soul. She was the one woman he loved more than anything. The only problem back then was the fact Simon had known her first, and Ryan loved his best friend. He would never ruin the budding relationship between Simon and Jemma. Instead, he’d stood on the sidelines, keeping his feelings to himself. He wasn’t a selfish man, never would be.

  Jemma had only been young when they’d all met. Simon at the time had been twenty-five, and she’d been eighteen, but the love could be seen by anyone who took the time to look.

  When Jemma turned twenty, Simon had gotten her pregnant and then married her. In the background, Ryan was the best man and then the chosen godfather, and adopted uncle. Now he didn’t have the first clue what he was. He didn’t want to take over from Simon.

  Ryan wanted so much to be the man for Jemma. To be the man she could fall in love with and the man she could trust with her three children. He loved them as if they were his own.

  Ten minutes later he parked outside her house. No fairy lights or decorations covered the front of the house. It was bare. When Simon had been home he and Ryan use to decorate the entire outside, lighting it up. Last year, Jemma refused to get the decorations out, let alone placing them up around the house. Too soon and too painful, the lights were a reminder Simon was gone, and not coming back. Sighing, Ryan took in the rest of the street. They were the only house not to be alight with Christmas. It was time to move on, and Simon would hate for Jemma not to enjoy life.

  Would she ever move on from the memory of Simon? A few months ago he’d finally believed it was possible. He’d been shocked and happy at her reaction to him while they’d watched a steamy scene during a movie. From the look in her eye, she had wanted him. The kiss they would have shared would have been their first, but Billy had stopped that by wanting a drink. When she’d come back after putting Billy back to bed, Ryan had known she was withdrawing from him. He could only hope that one day soon she would give him another chance. He’d show her the love and devotion he felt for her.

  Taking the bag of groceries, Ryan made his way to the house that contained his future with the woman who owned his heart.

  The moment he opened the door, Ryan heard the children laughing. Smiling, he placed the bag on the floor and went in search of the fun taking place.

  Ryan found them all in the sitting room. Jemma was play fighting with Billy and Megan while little Sean lay on his front bobbing about in some form of a crawl. He looked more like a seal or an otter. The sight made him smile. There was nothing better than watching their enjoyment. Jemma dived for Billy pulling him against her and tickling him under the arms. Megan jumped on her mother’s back, attempting to tickle her.

  Smiling and laughing, the trio collapsed in a heap on the floor.

  Ryan clapped his hands together. “Bravo,” he said, chuckling.

  “Uncle Ryan,” Megan and Billy screeched, leaving their mother panting on the floor. Ryan hugged the two children as he stared at Jemma. She lay on her back, but her eyes were on his, a smile and a welcome. She wore a baggy tracksuit, covering every single curve. Her top was stained, but to him she looked beautiful. She was both a mother and sexy as hell as her chocolate brown eyes stared back at his.

  “Guess what Mummy said? Guess? Guess?” The little devils pulled on his shirt and tugged to get his attention back on them.

  “What? What?” He laughed enjoying himself as they kept on tugging.

  “Mummy said we could get the lights out and decorate the house,” Billy said, pointing outside.

  Ryan glanced over at Jemma as she stood up, silently waiting for her to tell him what she wanted.

  “I wondered if you would like to help us decorate the whole house. Inside and out?” Jemma patted her hair, pulling it up into a ponytail.

  Ryan couldn’t help but wonder what it would feel like to run his fingers through the glorious length. He’d fantasized about it many times.

  “Would you?” she asked him, smiling as she walked closer to him.

  “Hum?” He had to concentrate not to watch as her tits bounced. He was a man, and he desired this woman unlike any other. Seeing her naked would be a dream come true. He wanted her so bad it was close to an obsession. Even in a bra she was full and curvy, more than a handful, and he loved it. Ryan closed his eyes as he felt the first stirring in his groin. Getting hard in front of the children wouldn’t do. He stemmed the arousal, and forced himself to focus on what was most important.

  “Will you help us decorate the whole house?” Jemma asked. If his heart could explode from his chest, it would. Ryan saw the glow that had gone out with Simon’s death. She was finding herself once again.

  Ryan wondered what this new side of Jemma meant. Could she be moving on? Did he stand a chance to be with her? He was going to grasp everything that he could, and never let it go. Smiling down at the giddy children, he spoke to them. “
I’d love to.”

  Billy and Megan cheered while baby Sean squealed from the floor. Ryan scooped him up and melted as the little boy kissed his cheek.

  He really wished this family was his own.

  “So, when are we getting ready for Christmas?” Ryan asked everyone. He bounced Sean on his hip as they walked through to the dining room.

  “Tonight, tonight, tonight, tonight.” Billy and Megan both begged, and chanted the one word.

  “Not tonight. I’ll get everything ready, and we can do it this weekend.” Jemma came to him and took Sean from his arms.

  “You putting them to bed?” he asked.

  Jemma nodded.

  “I’ll help.”

  Ryan watched as it looked like she was going to reject but stopped and allowed him to pick the other two and take them upstairs.

  Chapter Two

  With her heart pounding and hands shaking she served up her chicken stew with boiled rice on the side. The stew was a new recipe with tomatoes, basil, onions, and paprika. At least it smelled good, and if not she had the pizza place on speed dial. Some of her experiments never worked, and every now and again, something did.

  Jemma heard Ryan coming down the stairs. She pulled a beer from the fridge and some bottled water for herself. Looking down at her shirt, she cursed. She should have changed. The awful shirt was covered in stains.

  She sighed in frustration, but he must be used to her looking like a mess. It seemed most of her time was spent in stained clothes.

  Ryan entered the kitchen and smiled.

  His smile made her pause for a second. Ryan was a handsome man.

  “They asleep?” she asked, moving to the drawer to pull out knives and forks for them to eat.