Stranded On Christmas Read Online Free

I'll show you where you can sleep.” His eyes lingered on mine
for a moment longer than would be considered normal.
    Was
he asking me if I wanted to sleep with him?
    I
liked the idea of that. Seeing him undressed would probably be very
pleasing to the eye. But him seeing me undressed would embarrass me
to death. Someone like him would have been with some very beautiful
women.
    I
couldn't sleep with him, but I wouldn't mind cuddling with his warm
body, and then waking up with his arm around me. That would be nice.
The lucky woman that he would marry one day would get to do all of
that with him.
    Would
she know to appreciate him? Perhaps she would never have a Jamie type
of guy in her life, and she would only know Gideon. She might take
him for granted.
    I
walked over to the door he was holding open for me. He was the
perfect gentleman.
    I
went to the stairs and peeked over my shoulder. Pumpkin was following
me. “Umm – he usually sleeps with me in bed. I understand if you
would rather he didn't.”
    He
thought about that for a while. “I'm gathering that you don't want
to sleep alone.”
    “ I
guess, I don't.” It was something that I had taken the time to
train Pumpkin to do. I had laid doggy treats on the bed and taught
him to jump up. With time he had found his place. He slept by my feet
every night. I had tried to get him to sleep in my arms, but he
preferred my feet. It was what he saw all day long anyway.
    Gideon
went over to the fireplace and grabbed Pumpkin's basket. He carried
it up the stairs, and Pumpkin hopped up the stairs behind him. I
followed the two of them up.
    Gideon
laid the basket down in the corner of his bedroom. Pumpkin jumped
right into it, again like he had done it before. Gideon seemed to
have a way with him.
    “ You
honestly don't have to give up your room for me. I could – we could
– Pumpkin and I could sleep in another room.”
    He
cocked his head to the side and looked at me for a while. “I kind
of thought that maybe you wanted to – I mean we were kissing and
now – Never mind.”
    “ Are
you serious?” I couldn’t believe that he wanted to sleep with me.
He was even nervous about asking, like rejection would truly hurt
him. He was good at this. The butterflies were fluttering in my tummy
again. He played the innocent shy guy so well that my heart was
softening up.
    “ I
didn't mean to insult you; I just kind of thought that we had a
moment downstairs. I hoped that you wanted to continue it – ”
    He
looked so hopeful that I had to smile. But the idea of getting
undressed with him watching would be too embarrassing.
    “ I
got the picture. I overstepped a boundary. My apologies. You have
been through so much today. I was insensitive.” He went over to a
drawer and opened it and pulled out a pair of pajamas. He tucked them
under his arm and went to the door.
    Somehow
I didn't want him to leave. “I umm – Thank you for everything
that you did for me today. I’m so sorry for showing up out of the
blue, like I did. I’ll be out of your hair as soon as possible. In
fact, I can't believe that I’m intruding like this. I would feel
more comfortable if you slept in your own bed. I can't kick you out
of here, too.”
    He
set his pajamas down on the bed and took hold of my face in his
hands. He kissed me so tenderly that I felt my eyes moisten up with
emotion.
    “ I
think I’ve fallen in love with you. I didn't know that something
like that could go so fast. Just hearing you talk about being out of
my hair – ” He shook his head, like the thought was too much for
him to bear. “I like it when your fingers are in my hair.”
    “ I
like you a lot, too,” I admitted.
    He
kissed me more deeply, and I felt myself swooning. I wanted to be
loved and held. I even needed it, but I knew out of experience that
after a guy got sex that a girl became uninteresting to him. Men
would either leave, or want you to leave, or they would turn on the
TV and ignore you completely.
    “