Annihilate Me: Holiday Edition by Christina Ross Page A

  Clearly, I needed to say goodnight to
him.   And so I did.   I went to the adjoining door, saw that
the lights were dimmed, and when I knocked and stepped inside, he was standing
beside his bed getting undressed.   Apparently, he sleeps in his boxers—nothing else.   When I saw him, I swear to you that time
stopped.   I know that sounds like a
total cliche, but it did.   He was
wearing these tight-fitting boxer shorts that left nothing to the
imagination.   All I saw was the
bulge in those shorts, his arms, a chest that’s as broad as the map of America,
his ridiculous abs and thighs, and I just stared at him while he looked at
me.   I said that I was coming in to
say goodnight.   He said, ‘Is that
all you wanted to do?’”
    “Holy
shit.”
    “Oh,
girl, you don’t even know.”
    “Keep
going.”
    She
put her hand on my knee.   “I said,
‘I don’t know what you mean.   I was
just coming to say goodnight.’   And
he said, ‘I think we both know better.’   Then he walked over to me, he took me in his arms, and he kissed me full
on the lips.   And it wasn’t just any
kiss.   There was meaning and passion
behind it.   A part of me thinks
there even might have been relief in that kiss.”
    “I’m
dying here.   If it wasn’t so early,
I’d want a martini.”
    “Me
too!”
    “How
was he in bed?”
    “By
far, the best and most generous lover I’ve had, even though I’ve only been with
two men.   Still, he was
amazing.   It wasn’t at all about him
last night.   It was about him pleasing me .   Every time I
tried to do something that might turn him on—like going down on him,
which I really wanted to do—he just took control and turned the tables on
me.   He was fastidious and
exacting.   And loving.   He was rough at some points, but mostly,
he was tender and present.   He kept
holding my gaze with his.   I think
we went for a good three hours or so.   It was incredible.”
    “I
can’t believe it finally happened.”
    “Neither
can I.”
    “What
was said afterward?”
    “It’s
more like what was said during.”
    “Meaning?”
    “Ummm,
well, I might have told him how I felt….”
    I
blinked at her.
    “I
might have said that I loved him.”
    “Oh,
no, you didn’t.”
    “I
did, and I do.   I am in love with
him.   I’ve been waiting months for
last night to happen.   Finally, I
was truly intimate with him.   So I
told him how I felt.”
    “What
did he say to you?”
    “That’s
the thing,” she said.
    “What’s
the thing?”
    “He
didn’t respond.   When I said it, he
immediately came.”
    “And
what are we to make of that?”
    “I
don’t know.”
    “Maybe
saying that you loved him pushed him over the edge.”
    “I’d
like to think it did, but he never said that he loved me.   At that point, we were spent, and I felt
like a fool for being so open with him.   I think I jumped the gun.   But he did smile at me.   And
he did tuck me into his arms after I said it.   He held me close to him, and he nuzzled
his lips against my neck and kissed me there before we fell asleep.”
    “How
did you sleep?”
    “Like
a baby.   He held me all night.”
    “Obviously,
this is moving in the right direction.”
    “I
just wish he’d returned the sentiment.”
    “It’s
coming.   Maybe tonight.   We need to make tonight happen.   It’s Christmas Eve for God’s sake.   What are you wearing?”
    “Disappointment.   Ruin.   Mayhem.”
    “What
does that mean?”
    “It
means that Blackwell and her daughters are wearing couture.   I have a feeling that you’ll be wearing
couture.   So will Alex.   And what am I wearing?   Let’s just say that the dress I brought
with me was marked down seventy percent at Bloomingdale’s.   It cost two-hundred dollars, which is
what I can afford.   It’s pretty, but
it’s nothing special.   There’s no
way that it’s going to compare to what everyone else will be wearing.”
    “Do
you think that will