Eggnog Gone Astray

Author's Note: This is a short Christmas fic I did over at Forbidden Love for our Christmas story collection for our members. I thought I would share this here with all you wonderful readers since you all are so awesome! Merry Christmas everyone!

How difficult could this be? Sami thought as she tried again rather unsuccessfully to make the drink before her taste anything remotely like what her grandfather used to make for their family during Christmas time. She took a sip of the frothy brew she had mixed and spit it out rather unladylike into the sink.

"Ugh, I'll never get this right," she lamented, her back turned to the door which she guessed was why she hadn't heard him approach.

"What won't you get right?" EJ asked while standing directly behind her causing Sami to jump slightly. While she wasn't normally skittish it seemed like whenever EJ got close to her lately she was on pins and needles.

She hated for anyone to see her fail at something that should be so simple, especially the man who apparently wasn't going to move until she turned around to face him. Reluctantly she twisted around a little to look up at him, her face screwed into a slight frown at his untimely arrival.

She had thought she'd be alone; everyone else had gone home for the day and with the kids out to a movie tonight with Abby and Chad she had believed she might be able to finalize the last few things for Gabby and Nick's wedding. She had been hoping she could make at least a halfway decent tasting eggnog as one of the punches they could serve at the upcoming wedding reception. She had tried to budget her time, grateful that EJ had encouraged her to help with the wedding even though she didn't fully understand his generosity because she knew without a doubt he wasn't fond of any of the Hernandez clan.

Well he had been fond of Arianna which caused Sami's face to scowl even more without her ever realizing it. She didn't like to think about Ari or how close she had been to EJ before she had died.

"Hate to see me coming that bad eh?" EJ asked her, taking a finger to wipe against her upper lip which had some kind of strange concoction upon it.

Sami pulled back away from his rather intimate touch realizing she must have residue from her latest attempt at another eggnog batch on her mouth. She felt herself blush as she wiped her hand across her mouth realizing she did indeed have an eggnog mustache from drinking the latest batch she had tried to make.

"No, I don't mind seeing you," Sami attempted a look of what she hoped was nonchalance as she reached behind her to the counter hoping to find a napkin to wipe off any remaining eggnog left on her face.

"Here allow me," EJ offered as he reached over her to get said napkin and before she could object he took it and gently wiped off the rest of the gunk from her face.

Damn the man didn't believe in personal space, never mind how her heart began to race with his nearness she thought uncharitably as he moved closer in instead of backing off from her when he was finished with his self imposed task.

"Thanks," she mumbled taking the opportunity to back off herself before she got lost in those all too knowing eyes that belonged to EJ. A man shouldn't have such beautiful eyes let alone those spiky black eyelashes that graced his features too.

She must have imbibed a wee bit too much with the bourbon if she was musing over EJ DiMera's eyes as she began to busy herself at the counter even though he just moved in behind her again, this time looking over her shoulder to examine the mess she had made of mixing up eggnog.

"Trying out punch recipes for Gabby's wedding or were you going to surprise us at the upcoming company Christmas party with some homemade brew?" he asked as she could feel the warmth emanating from him closeness.

"What Christmas party?" Sami asked longing to throw in an elbow for good measure if it would make him move away from her even if it was only a few inches. He smelled nice and it was making her stomach do what must be akin to back flips at the moment.

"You didn't get the memo? Company Christmas party is tomorrow night with a fully stocked bar and the kicker is that clothing is optional depending upon the amount of alcohol consumed," he announced as if she should know these things without him telling her.

"You didn't send out a memo and who would come anyway with those kinds of options? The lab tech's and your rather busty secretary?" she asked before she realized how that might sound.

He just chuckled, maybe Samantha was jealous of Veronica, whom he had to admit was rather blessed in the busty department, but she really couldn't hold a candle to the woman who was trying her best to maneuver away from him even though he kept right up with her.

He loved it when he knew he was gaining ground with her even when she tried her best to deny it. The pull between them was growing daily and he knew it wouldn't be long before she gave in and kissed him.

God he hoped it wasn't going to be a long wait this time around. It had been over a month since he'd last kissed those very kissable lips of hers and it was driving him crazy. His plan of patience and biding his time with her was difficult to do when all he had to do was reach out and touch her, they were standing so close right now it was like he could feel her body hum with anticipation.

Or was that just wishful thinking on his part again? Probably the latter he surmised as Sami successfully scooted away this time although in her haste to escape she managed to spill what was left in her glass all over the counter.

He could hear her curse under her breath and he wanted to laugh out loud, but he knew if he did it would only make her madder than she already was at the moment. So he watched her clean up the mess because if he offered to help she would refuse as always. She was a proud and stubborn woman, one who wouldn't ask for help if her life depended upon it.

And he had to admit he really liked looking at her backside while she jerked her hands across the counter in an effort wipe up the remaining liquid from her spilled drink in that clingy bright red dress because it molded to her body perfectly.

He was hard just from thinking about how he wished he would just raise up her dress and he could take her from behind because it would be so damn good and they both needed it whether she would ever admit it to him or not.

So lost in thought of having Samantha in that rather precarious position amongst several others in his latest daydream of her he failed to hear her ask him if he wanted to see what was missing from her drink she was trying to make after she had cleaned up the counter.

"Earth to EJ," Sami waved her hand in his face, immediately bringing him back to reality, one that apparently did not include any hint of raised hemlines of dresses or having wild sex with this vixen while she was bent over the counter.

"Sorry love," EJ said shaking his head, not even realizing the endearment he was giving to her even though it wasn't lost upon her at all. "What were you asking me again?"

"Try this and see what you think it needs," Sami held out a newly poured full glass for him to take.

EJ gave her a doubtful look seeing as she had been complaining about how dreadful this beverage tasted when he had walked in on her just a few minutes earlier. He reluctantly took the glass from her as she eyed him expectantly waiting for him to take a sip.

The things he did to please this woman he thought as he took a sip, immediately grimacing as soon as it hit his taste buds and then he was off to the sink to unceremoniously spit out his portion that he had partaken making sure to rinse out the sink afterwards.

"I'm hopeless," Sami stated as she handed him a napkin, not offering to wipe anything from his mouth like he had done for her earlier.

"No, you're incredible," EJ stated matter of fact, "but we need to work on the elements that go into a proper tasting eggnog."

Sami placed her hand on her hip, ignoring his compliment of her and only hearing how he could make the drink better than her, "Of course you would know exactly what to mix up to make it taste good because you are always right about everything."

"Most things," he quipped not vying to take the bait from her to start arguing even though he did enjoy bickering with her since it seemed to help relieve the sexual tension that kept building up between them at the most unlikely times lately. "Let's look at your ingredients. I see you have eggs, milk, sugar, cream and bourbon, but the bourbon is where you are making your mistake. Eggnog needs brandy, sherry or wine instead. The bourbon is overpowering the other ingredients and making it taste like spoiled alcohol instead of the rich creamy creation it is supposed to be."

"Grandpa Brady always used bourbon when he made eggnog at Christmas," Sami recalled with a wistful look in her eye remembering the good times when he was still alive.

"Irish whiskey is more likely, and you probably didn't even drink it with alcohol in it since you were a child unless Grandpa Shawn liked to get you all tanked up for the holidays" EJ jokingly added which immediately caused Sami's brow to furrow.

"Just because we are Irish, it doesn't make us a lot of drunkards," Sami stated heatedly to which EJ only raised his eyebrows in disbelief at her statement.

This man could make her see red faster than anything, she thought closing the distance between them ready to strike him for even suggesting anything her grandfather had done was wrong. She was up in EJ's face ready to slap him and then tell him to go to hell when he caught her wrist before she could release her wrath upon him.

"Samantha, I was just joking. I thought a lot of your grandfather even though he didn't think that much of me," EJ spoke honestly to her all joking put aside and her rage subsided as quickly as it had arisen.

"My family just doesn't understand you. All they could see was that you were a DiMera and never looked beyond your surname," Sami said quietly. "They don't know the real you."

"Not like you do? Or like how I know the real you?" he asked back in a whisper, not releasing her from his grasp.

"I guess that would be the case," she nodded reluctantly, looking him straight in the eyes, not turning away this time even though she knew she should, things got hazy between them when they were actually being honest with one another and she didn't know what would happen if she let EJ back into her life this time around.

Her family would be fit to be tied if she and EJ were together and then she stopped herself from that train of thought because they were talking about her family and she knew even if her family never approved of her, or him, or god forbid them being together as a couple, that this man standing before her would always approve of her, challenge her, tease her and she could see it plain as day on his face, he loved her.

She knew it without a doubt, EJ still loved her, but this time around something was vastly different.

She loved him too.

She felt him immediately drop her wrist and could feel him trying to pull away from her, but she linked her now free hands around his neck instead, not allowing him to move.

"Samantha, I…"

She cut him off before he could utter another word, there would be time for words later, much later in fact.

Right now all she wanted to do was kiss him and so she did…

The End