Yule Be Mine Read Free Page A

her stomach fluttering and her blood taking off in a wild race through her system…
    â€œFrances?” He whispered her name against her mouth.
    Dazed, her eyes flickered open. “Hmm?”
    Booker held her face tipped up, brushed her jaw with his thumbs, and kissed her again. It was a gentle, closed-mouth kiss, but there was nothing platonic about it. His mouth was warm, soft, moving carefully over hers. His tongue traced the seam of her lips with such enticing effect that her toes curled and her hands lifted to his hard shoulders. Booker groaned, tightened his hold—and Frances came back to her senses.
    â€œBooker.” She shoved him away, suffused with indignation and hurt and an awful yearning. “What do you think you’re doing?”
    Because she was nearly as tall, her push had thrown him off-balance. He caught himself, grinned at her, and said, “Something I’ve been thinking about doing for a long time.”
    Frances touched her mouth, equally doubting and flustered. She could still taste him. “You have?”
    â€œYeah. I have.” He closed the space between them again. Frances inhaled the clean scent of his aftershave and the headier scent of his body. She could practically feel the heat in his unwavering gaze. He touched her chin, tipped up her face, and asked, “Haven’t you, Frances? Ever?”

2
    F rances swallowed hard. Think of him? Of course, she had. There were nights when she couldn’t sleep at all, fantasizing about Booker, about kissing him and touching him, feeling his weight on top of her, naked flesh to naked flesh. But all she did was fantasize because he was already with someone else and she would never, ever be blamed for breaking up a couple.
    She couldn’t lie to him, but she wouldn’t be a party to him cheating either. “Yes, I have.”
    His expression tightened, his voice went deep. “Tell me.”
    God, he was potent in seduce-mode. “No. Because I’m not going to do anything about it.”
    â€œWanna bet?”
    Oh, the wicked way he murmured that. “Booker Dean, have you forgotten that you’re already involved? Have you forgotten about Judith? ” Damn, she hadn’t meant to sneer the woman’s name. It wasn’t Judith’s fault that Booker had fallen in love with her long before Frances had even moved into his apartment complex. She scowled. “You know you don’t really want to do this.”
    â€œOh, I want to all right” He kept inching toward her, forcing her to back up. “You probably have no idea of all the things I want to do to you.”
    Her mouth fell open, then snapped shut. “Let me rephrase that. I won’t let you do them.”
    He reached out and brushed her cheek with the back of his knuckles. His voice was soft, mesmerizing. “Even though Judith and I aren’t together anymore?”
    â€œYou aren’t…” Her eyes narrowed. “Since when?”
    With a load of satisfaction, Booker said, “About twenty minutes ago.”
    Forget indignation. Frances was outraged. She stopped retreating and took a stand. Through stiffened lips, she said, “Judith breaks up with you twenty minutes ago and so you come tripping over here expecting…what? You want me to comfort you, Booker? Is that it? You want to use me to forget about her?”
    Booker looked momentarily nonplussed, then annoyed. “No, damn it. That’s just dumb. Besides, she didn’t break up with me.”
    That surprised Frances. “You’re the one who broke things off?”
    He worked his jaw. “Well, not yet. Not officially. But see…”
    Frances threw up her arms. “I don’t believe this. Go home, Booker.” She turned and stomped down the hall to her bedroom. Not officially , she mimicked in her mind. Damn. She hit a pillow, but it didn’t help. She’d wanted Booker too long to play games like