I stood there for a moment and realized he was right. Hanging the tinsel, I was careful not to step on Rhage’s tail.

“You going to miss me when I leave on Wednesday?” he asked, stepping back to allow me to get the tinsel wrapped around the tree.

“Maybe,” I said, tucking the edge of the tinsel back into the branch. Brock was going to be at the Philly branch with some new recruits my father wanted him to look at. He was supposed to come back Saturday afternoon. Straightening, I took a step back and admired the tree—our tree. “It’s so pretty.”

“I think I’ve found something prettier.” He wrapped his arm around my waist, drawing me back against his chest. “And I’m also kind of offended that you said maybe.”

Resting my hands on his forearms, I laughed. “Didn’t realize you were so sensitive.”

“I am.” He shifted his head, causing me to gasp as his rough jaw dragged along my neck. He nuzzled the skin there. “I need my ego stroked.”

Emboldened by his touch, I lowered a hand and reached behind me. My fingers roamed over the line of his zipper. My cheeks heated as I said, “Something else need to be stroked too?”

Brock’s deep, husky chuckle sent shivers down my spine. “That always needs stroking.”

“Is that so?” I bit down on my lip as I felt him harden against my hand.

He pushed his hips against me. “Mmm.”

Hiding a grin, I slipped free and turned around, facing him. The way he stared at me, his jaw clenched and his eyes so dark they were nearly black, made me weak in the knees. My heart started pounding in my chest. I took another step back.

“Now where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

I raised a shoulder. “I think I might get a piece of that pumpkin pie in the fridge.”

Brock held my gaze as he slowly shook his head. “I’m thinking I want to have dessert now.”

“You want a slice, too?”

“Yeah. I want a slice.”

He moved so incredibly fast and was standing in front of me within a heartbeat. Before I could even process what he was doing, he dipped and had an arm under my legs. In a blink of an eye, I was up in the air and my stomach was coming down on his shoulder.

A wild-sounding laugh escaped me as he turned and started walking back toward the bedroom, leaving the softness of the twinkling Christmas lights. “This was not the kind of slice I was talking about.”

“You sure about that?” His hand came down on my behind, causing me to shriek. “You liked that.”

I did.

I really did.