Forever This Time by Maggie McGinnis

coming up with the Swiss Army knife he’d probably been carrying since he was twelve. “I’m going to have to cut you out of it, I think.”
    â€œWhat? No! No knives!”
    â€œYou afraid I’ll take out ten years of frustration on you?” His eyebrows lifted in challenge.
    â€œMaybe? Seriously, no knives. Dad’ll kill us if we ruin his Santa suit.” She winced at how that sounded, given that Dad was currently in a hospital bed and could hardly care less about something as stupid as a Santa costume.
    He pressed against her again to look behind. “Jos, there is no way we’re getting you out of this thing without ripping it. You’re snagged by a mess of nails back there, going every which way.” He pressed on her back lightly. “I can’t believe you’re not bleeding. Shit. You probably are. Have you had your tetanus shot? These things are rusty.”
    â€œEthan! I don’t care about tetanus! I need to get out of this soaking wet costume. Can’t we slither it over my head or something?”
    â€œYou’ll be impaled if you try.”
    Josie sighed. “Could you maybe just hold it out in back and I’ll try to slide out?”
    He grimaced, obviously unconvinced it would work. He stepped directly in front of her, still crouched because he was too tall. “Okay, let’s try it. Arms first.” He held the end of the right sleeve tight as she pulled her arm toward her body. “My God, this stuff shrinks when it’s wet.”
    After a few desperate pulls on each side, Josie’s clammy arms were trapped inside the costume against her body, and Ethan stepped closer again, almost sending her to her knees with his heat. He braced himself directly in front of her and put his arms over her shoulders, trying to lift the wet fabric from her skin. “All right. Slither.”
    She closed her eyes and bent her knees, trying to slide out of the costume without ripping her back to shreds on the nails. After a few tugs and snags, she was finally free to stand almost upright, and it was all she could do not to hug him in thanks.
    Then she caught sight of his face.
    Ethan’s mouth opened in an O as his eyes traveled down her top half, and too late, she remembered what she had on.
    Which was not much.

 
    Chapter 11
    Josie flopped her arms across her chest, trying in vain to hide her hot-pink Victoria’s Secrets from Ethan.
    His mouth stayed open. “You’re—what did you—you have no—huh.”
    Josie arched an eyebrow.
    â€œWhy—uh—why are you—” He pointed vaguely at her body.
    â€œNaked, practically?”
    He nodded, and was it her imagination, or was he having trouble keeping his eyes on hers?
    â€œWell, here’s the thing. Someone—whoever it is that does the scheduling these days—keeps putting me on the costume list. So for three—wait, is it four?—days now I’ve been roasted alive by noon. Today I thought I’d be smart and try fewer layers so that no one would find Santa splatted in front of Rudolph’s Ridic—”
    â€œRazzamatazz.”
    â€œWhatever.” She waved a hand. “Santa. Heat stroke.” She pointed her chin downward. “I obviously forgot to figure in the risk of pond-diving—or getting stuck underneath the bridge afterward. Silly me.”
    â€œNot—” He swallowed visibly, his eyes traveling over her. “Not good planning.”
    â€œEthan, you can close your mouth. You’ve seen it before.” Josie’s cheeks felt like they were being licked by flames.
    He shook his head. “I haven’t seen it like this before.”
    â€œPrincess dress. Now. Please.” She held out one hand, leaving only one to guard her privacy.
    His eyes darkened as they traveled her body again, this time more slowly, making her shiver in all the right places.
    Dammit.
    â€œYou’ll never get this