Once Upon a Holiday

  After putting it in the trunk, he opened her door before jogging over to the driver’s seat and hopping in. After putting on their seat belts, he turned to her. The expression on his face, the look in his eyes as he stared at her, made butterflies settle in her stomach. He wrapped his big hand gently around the nape of her neck, tugging her toward him.

  His mouth slanted over hers, covering her lips with his. A shrill whistle broke into their private party, and he broke away.

  “We’ll pick up where we left off when we get home,” he promised, his voice hoarse.

  The promise in his hazel eyes sent butterflies racing to her stomach.

  Chapter 11

  “Camille…what would you think about coming to dinner to meet my family?”

  Gideon’s question brought Camille fully awake. Coming home from the airport, he’d taken her directly to his house and within five minutes had had her naked under him.

  After allowing their bodies to calm, he asked the question he desperately wanted her to say yes to.

  Raising her body, she stared down at him.

  “Meet your family? Uh…for what?”

  “Oh, I don’t know, for the usual thing…to eat,” he said lightly.

  When she looked as though she would decline, he said, “It’s not a big deal. I just thought it would be nice for you to get to meet them and for them to meet you. I’ve told my mom about you and she invited you over to meet the family. Like I said, it’s not a big deal.” He mentally crossed his fingers. “Just a small family gathering.”

  She looked down at him, chewing her bottom lip, considering. “Just a small gathering?”

  “Yep, not a big deal at all.”

  When she nodded her head, he breathed a sigh of relief, pulling her back down to lay on his chest.

  Gideon’s mother had called last week, reminding him of the dinner she had planned for the family during Hanukkah, one he’d completely forgotten about. Hearing the hesitation in his voice, his mother had reminded him of his promise to come, and Gideon had mentally cursed, realizing the day fell on the same one that Camille would be returning to Houston.

  When he’d asked her if she could change the date, he’d had to pull the phone from his ear as his mother had gone on a diatribe about how long she’d been planning the meal, the inconvenience it would be to change the date…her rant coming to a halt when he’d said it was because he wanted to bring someone special home for her to meet.

  The change that had come over her had been as immediate as it had been laughable. After a slight pause, where Gideon could have heard the proverbial pin drop, she’d quickly switched gears, assuring him she’d take care of everything, and the change in dates would not be a problem at all.

  Now all he had to do was get Camille to agree to meet his family. Telling one small white lie wouldn’t hurt….

  Staring out of the window as Gideon exited the highway, Camille frowned as she nervously bit her lower lip.

  “Stop it.”

  “Stop what?”

  “Stop biting your lip.”

  “How did you know I was biting my lip?” she asked distractedly, thinking more about the fact that she was about to meet Gideon’s family in less than thirty minutes than about his uncanny abilities to see her without looking.

  She bit down harder on her lip.

  “You always do that when you’re nervous,” he rebuked lightly. “Besides, you have nothing to be afraid of. So stop.”

  Ignoring his reprimand, Camille continued to chew on her lip. She heard him sigh loudly.

  After taking the next exit, he came to a stoplight and turned to face her, turning her around until she was forced to look at him.

  “And the way you’re going at it, you’re gonna gnaw your lip completely off. Which would not make me happy seeing as how much I love your mouth.” Pulling her across the console, he kissed her. When the light turned green, he reluctantly moved away.

  “I can’t help it,” she said, but his kiss had managed to ease some of the building tension.

  After driving less than a mile, he turned into a gated subdivision. He pressed a button on a remote above his windshield visor, and the wrought-iron gate opened, allowing them to enter.

  “Well, as much as I love you, I’m not sure that would be a cute look for you. The whole missing mouth thing, I mean. Maybe the right lipstick would help…so as not to draw attention to the missing part. Of course there’s reconstructive surgery.”

  “You nut! I’m not that bad! Okay, okay…maybe I do bite my lip when I’m nervous,” she admitted when he lifted a brow, “But it’s not every day I meet your family. I mean, what if they don’t like me?”

  “That’s really lame, Cami…of course they’ll like you. What are we, teenagers?” He laughed, and she punched him lightly on the arm.

  “I’m serious, Gideon! I’m nervous!”

  “I’m sorry, baby. Don’t worry. They’ll love you as much as I do, I promise. What’s not to love?”

  Camille paused, ready to rebut his claim, when the fact that he’d told her he loved her—not once, but twice in less than ten minutes—finally penetrated her mind.

  “What? Wait a minute, Gideon, back up…did you just tell me you love me for the first time, while chewing me out over me biting my lip?”

  He brought his Land Rover to a stop in front of a large, sprawling two-story brick home, cut the engine and turned to face her.

  “Uh, yeah. Well, I meant to tell you, but I was waiting for the right time.”

  “And you think now is the right time?” Camille asked, her voice rising as she turned to see an older-looking couple approaching, the woman waving her hands and smiling as they quickly made their way over.

  “Looks like my parents are coming. We’ll have to discuss this later.”

  “Discuss this later! Gideon, you don’t tell a woman you love her and expect her to…”

  Before she could say more, Gideon had hastily turned away from her, rolling down the window as his father approached.

  “Hey, what are you two doing out here? Come on in. Everyone’s inside!”

  Camille turned to see Gideon’s mother outside her door, waiting for her to open. Reluctantly, Camille opened the door and stepped outside.

  “So, this is Camille,” she said, her lips lifting in a ghost of a smile. “So glad you could make it, dear. Gideon’s told us a lot about you.”

  She then turned to Gideon and placed her hands out in front of her and he grasped them. She ran a glance over her son, her smile blossoming. “Boker tov Eliyahu…bubeleh.”

  “Now, Rebekkah, don’t embarrass him. Give the boy a break. Of course he remembered to show up. And not only that, he’s brought a…friend, along with him,” Gideon’s father said, coming up behind them.

  “And that is the reason I’m allowing this rascal to come inside and celebrate…because he brought such a lovely young lady with him.”

  Camille cast a confused glance at Gideon and he shrugged.

  “She’s just chewing me out for not being around lately,” he said, giving a rough translation of the Hebrew his mother had spoken.

  Camille remembered the gift she’d brought along and handed a small box to Gideon’s mother.

  “They’re chocolate truffles. My mom’s specialty. She makes them every Christmas and asked me to bring them tonight when I told her I was coming.”

  “Well, tell your mother I said thank you. Maybe one day soon, I’ll be able to meet her and we can exchange recipes. I make them myself around the season. I’d love to compare recipes with her,” she said, the smile she gave Camille made her more relaxed.

  “Well, now that the two of you are here, let’s go inside. Everyone’s waiting,” she said, grasping Camille beneath the elbow.

  Camille put a determined smile on her face and allowed the woman to usher her to the door, shooting darts at Gideon over her shoulder, mouthing the word, “everyone?”

  Chapter 12

  Camille had met so many of G
ideon’s family members that, by the time they sat around the dinner table, her head was spinning trying to remember them all, wishing they wore name tags so that she could keep them straight.

  At first she’d been nervous. Not only about meeting his family, but because of their differences—although she hadn’t given a thought to it before. She’d always been open to dating men outside her race and religion, so it had been a non-issue for her.

  But then again, she’d never gotten serious enough with any of her previous boyfriends to ever meet their families.

  After Gideon’s mother had said the prayer in Hebrew, which of course Camille didn’t understand, and they’d gone around the table and everyone had given thanks, it was Camille’s turn.

  She swallowed the lump in her throat, feeling on the spot, as all eyes turned to her.

  As she glanced around the table over the sea of expectant faces, she had a surreal moment, as though there were a neon flashing marquis above her head scrolling the words “clueless black girl.”

  She felt like she was in a real life version of the classic movie, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.

  Although his family had made her feel welcome, this was all new to her. She didn’t want to say something wrong.

  Sitting next to her, Gideon leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Anything you want to say is fine, baby. There is no right or wrong answer.”

  “Guess this is a lot different than what you’re used to, Camille, isn’t it?”

  Camille, as well as everyone at the table turned to the man who spoke. Camille frowned, trying to remember who he was and what was his name.

  “I’m not sure what you mean…Evan is it?” she asked, perplexed.

  “I mean you’re probably used to celebrating that Kawanzaa your people celebrate. This must be foreign to you since it’s a lot different than what your people do.”

  A collective gasp went around the table, and Camille felt her indignation rise.

  “My people?”

  “Actually, Evan, Kwanzaa and Hanukkah have more in common than you think.”

  Camille turned surprised eyes toward Gideon’s mother as she broke in. Rebekkah caught her glance and winked, before turning back to Evan.

  “In fact, like Hanukkah, Kwanzaa is a week-long celebration that honors heritage. Although differing in the amount of days the candles are lit, in the celebration of Kwanzaa there is also lighting of candles.”

  To Camille’s surprise and growing admiration, she continued to “educate” Evan on the similarities between the two celebrations, and by the time Rebekkah Taber finished speaking, Camille knew more about Kwanzaa than she ever had before. To say she was impressed was putting it mildly.

  “And Evan, for the record, not every black person celebrates Kwanzaa, which is a cultural holiday not a religious holiday like Christmas. Just like not every Jewish person celebrates Hanukkah.” Camille was trying hard to keep her laughter at bay, as she glanced over at Gideon and saw the same strained expression on his face, trying to hold back his laughter.

  “In fact, when was the last time you went to Temple?” Rebekkah asked pointedly.

  When Evan turned five shades of red and proceeded to profusely apologize to Camille if he’d offended her, the ice had truly been broken and Camille relaxed, at ease with his family and able to enjoy the remainder of the evening after Gideon’s mother had put a classy smackdown on cousin Evan.

  As the evening came to a close, Camille was truly sorry to see it end. When it was time to go, his parents followed them to the door. After Gideon had hugged both his parents, Rebekkah turned to Camille and surprised her when she leaned down to give her a short, tight hug.

  “Thank you for what you did during dinner,” she said, smiling at the taller woman.

  “Oh, that?” she waved a dismissive hand. “Don’t take what he said personally, sweetheart. Whenever Evan drinks a little wine, the man gets a severe case of Foot in Mouth disease,” she said, and Camille laughed along with her. “And besides, I have always found it preferable to focus on the similarities in cultures rather than the differences.”

  At that, Gideon brought his arm around Camille’s waist. She glanced up at him and exchanged a secret smile. He brought his head down to hers and gave her a soft kiss, breaking it when his mother coughed.

  “Okay, you two, looks like you’re ready to be alone,” Rebekkah said, her mouth twitching. “Now, be careful out there…it’s getting cold outside,” she said, surprising Camille further when she fastened the buttons on her jacket, much as her own mother would, forgetting Camille’s age. Gideon had a smile on his face and lifted one shoulder, shrugging, when Camille’s startled glance met his.

  She then turned to Gideon. “And as for you, make sure I see you at Temple this weekend, young man. And bring Camille with you. I want to introduce her to the rabbi. I have a feeling he’ll be meeting with you two soon, anyway,” she said, running a sly glance over the arm Gideon had wrapped around Camille.

  Hastily, Gideon rushed Camille out the door before his mother could make any more covert demands.

  After leaving his parents home, Gideon brought Camille back to his loft. Suddenly nervous around him, Camille went into her normal M.O.…chattering about any and everything except the very thing on her mind.

  The two of them.

  She eyed the king-size bed in his bedroom and jumped when she heard him approach her from behind after storing her bag in the closet.

  He placed his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him. “It won’t bite, you know.”

  “What won’t bite?”

  He nodded his head toward the bed. “You’re looking at it as though it’s going to come to life any minute, when you’re not looking.”

  She shook her head, fighting away the smile. “Sorry. I guess I was just thinking….”

  He ran a finger down her face, his expression sobering. “About?”

  She shrugged a shoulder. “Me. You. Us…”

  He grasped her hand and led her to the bed and sat her there. He stood and hunched down near her feet.

  Taking off one shoe and then the other, he rolled her socks off her feet.

  “Gideon, what are you doing?” she asked, but he ignored her.

  He rose and lifted her bottom to slide her slacks down her legs, along with her panties, and then motioned for her to raise her arms, quickly divesting her of her sweater before going back down to her feet.

  “Gideon…” she moaned when he lifted her foot, his tongue darting out to tease her instep. An unexpected giggle erupted when he swirled a path around her foot, which quickly turned into a purr of delight when he captured it in his mouth and sucked.

  “Oh, God, Gideon…what are you doing?”

  “Taking care of you,” he said. “Something I’d like to do for the rest of your life, if you let me.” His eyes met hers, and Camille stared at him, her heart thudding against her chest.

  Giving her foot one final kiss, he placed it down on the floor and stood, ridding himself of his clothing.

  As he laid her down on the bed, he kissed a path slowly up her body. He took both sides of her face in his hands and peered deeply into her eyes before placing small kisses over her face, down her throat and back up.

  “You’re beautiful, Camille,” he murmured huskily.

  A shiver ran over Camille when Gideon peeled the straps from her bra down her arms.

  “Inside and out,” he said, before cupping a breast and bringing it into his mouth.

  She’d never had a man make love to her as Gideon did. With one look…one touch, he did it for her unlike any other ever had. As he kissed her breasts, lapping and tugging on them, she felt his body shift before centering himself between her, the tip of his shaft poised at her entry.

  She tugged on his head to draw him away from her breasts. As much as she loved the way he kissed her, she wanted…needed to look in his eyes as he made love to her this time.

  The look in his eyes made her gasp. Raw, open
emotion blazed in them, so much emotion she closed her eyes against the sight, afraid to believe what she saw.

  “No…open your eyes. Look at me,” he demanded, his voice gruff.

  He lifted her thighs and pushed her legs up until they were planted near her waist. This time it was he who shut his eyes as he slowly pressed deep inside her body.

  Once fully seated, they released moaning sighs before he slowly moved his hips.

  The easy glide of his shaft stroking deep into her core soon gave way to an increase in tempo, becoming short, slick and lethal until Camille cried out, “Yes, yes…oh. God, Gideon…oh, God, oh, God,” her cries blending into one long cry of passion.

  He spread her legs impossibly further apart as he dug into her body, grinding his groin against her clit until Camille was mindless with pleasure.

  “Gideon!” she screamed, feeling the orgasm begin to unfurl deep inside her body.

  He released her legs and grasped her wrists, bringing them above her head, and paused.

  Her eyes flew open, a cry on her lips, as she tried to get closer to him, tried to make him move.

  “Why did you stop?” she panted, her chest heaving.

  “Tell me how you feel about me, Camille,” he demanded, the ends of his nostrils flaring, sweat running down the side of his face.

  “Wha-what are you—”

  He leaned down, flicked her nipple with his tongue, and she whimpered.

  “Tell me.”

  Camille glanced into his eyes, trying to read him, trying to figure out what he was demanding of her.

  “Tell me, Cami…”

  “Tell you what,” she cried, not wanting to say what his eyes were demanding.

  “Tell me you know we belong together. That what we have is special. That you love me as much as I love you.”

  The break in his voice and honesty in his eyes forced the admission from her.

  “Yes, God, yes…I love you, Gideon!”

  As soon as the words left her mouth, he claimed her mouth with his and resumed making love to her. Lifting her legs high, he stroked inside her, over and over, until she felt stars ricochet behind her tightly clenched lids.