Read Online A Christmas Together by Tara Quan - Free Book Online Page B

hiatus, his libido had returned with a vengeance. Needing a distraction, he remarked, “You’re not wearing glasses.”
    “I don’t need them. I had LASIK surgery a year ago.”
    One of the countless changes he’d catalogued. The dark circles under her eyes caught his attention. “Do you still have trouble sleeping?”
    “Not since I left D.C.”
    He squirmed. The woman had a gift for inciting guilt without ever issuing a direct accusation. “Why aren’t you pissed off at me?”
    She filled a kettle and placed it on the stove. From one of the cabinets, she pulled out a teapot and two Japanese-style handle-less cups. “For what?”
    “For being a shit husband. For breaking our marriage. For getting my cover blown and pinning a target on your head.”
    She shrugged. “Anger is counterproductive. And our marriage didn’t break, it just never really existed.”
    Leaning back in his seat, he cocked a brow. “That’s one pretty-sounding load of bull. Did you practice the line in front of a mirror?”
    Her face froze. Then she laughed. “I chanted it, actually, in front of an ocean while balancing on one leg. Clearly, I need more practice.”
    He’d forgotten how much he loved her sense of humor. “Or you could stick with the facts. Our marriage existed. You left. I never chased after you. You have every right to throw things at me.” He’d rather she did. It would make him feel better.
    She tilted her head to one side. “Why didn’t you…chase after me?”
    “Part of it was pride. I came back from a cluster fuck of a mission to an empty house and divorce papers. Once I’d calmed down, I realized I couldn’t make you happy without quitting my job, which I hadn’t been willing to do. Since I’d promised to leave the service before I got down on one knee, the blame’s all mine.”
    “If I remember correctly, you never got down on one knee. You raged about your death benefits going to waste and dragged me to the courthouse on Christmas Eve. I was surprised you’d remembered to buy a ring. An hour after we signed the papers, you dropped off the face of the earth.” The oven timer went off. She grabbed purple silicone oven mitts before spinning and bending down. His gaze became glued to her terry-cloth-covered bottom. Perhaps because he didn’t know if she wore anything underneath, her current attire seemed sexier than the dress she’d worn in her office.
    While he understood things could never be the way they once were, his cock didn’t give a damn. Every instinct recognized her as his. Shear willpower prevented him from lifting her onto the kitchen counter and settling his hips between her thighs.
    He leapt to his feet. “Let me help you.”
    She unearthed a large baking sheet laden with angel-shaped cookies. “I’d rather you didn’t.”
    With a loud clang, she dumped the metal tray on the counter and kicked the oven door shut. “You asked me to be honest, so it’s what I’ll do. I was married to you for four years, so I sure as hell can tell when you’re horny. Since I don’t trust you to behave, I suggest you keep your distance. I’ve let our chemistry cloud my judgment once before. It won’t happen again. If you don’t mind, please plant your butt back down and eat these cookies.”
    *
    The last thing Brennan should think about was licking her husband’s abs. She didn’t understand why he had this effect on her. So what if he had a six-pack? Her personal trainer had one, too. She’d never once thought of licking any part of Marko’s body. She’d ogled the man, as any warm-blooded female had the right to, but there’d been no heat, no chemistry—nothing like the sexual tension sizzling between her and Karl at this moment.
    No one had ever affected her the way he did. A year ago, she’d toyed with the idea of dating and discovered her sex drive in deep hibernation. She’d flirted and danced with a few of Dubai’s most eligible bachelors, but never once did anyone make her want