AN: Hello. This is one of several Christmas Detty stories I will be posting, but please note that they do NOT go together. They are all seperate stories. Thanks so much, and please leave me a review? They help. Would ya, could ya, hun?
Excitement and drunkenness buzzed through the air at the club MODE had reserved for their Christmas party this year. Duos used the strategically placed mistletoe as an excuse to neck while others were too inebriated to notice or care.
At a table for two, Betty Suarez sat in the corner alone, slowly sipping her third glass of punch since the party had begun two hours ago. She stared into the crystal tumbler or red liquid, forcing herself to find something of interest and deciding the best she could do was to watch the ice melt. After several minutes of observation and nearly nodding off twice, she grunted and considered trying to locate her boss in the crowd, but thought better of it.
Daniel Meade looked positively godly in his snug jeans, iridescent hunter green shirt and dark gray jacket. When she had first spotted him that evening, it had taken all her strength to stay standing. Now, with a few glasses of punch in her system, she dreaded to think of what his proximity would do to her senses.
"Hey, Betty."
'Oh, that's what,' was the last cognitive thought she experienced after Daniel approached her side. She looked up and felt her blood hum through her veins as she met his electric blue eyes. Thank goodness for her auto-pilot faculties when he was near or she would constantly look like a gaping fish. She snapped her attention back to the present.
"So, what are you doing over here?"
"Watching the dancing… sipping punch. I, uh… I don't dance like that," she said softly as she flicked her gaze towards the grounding and gyrating people on the dance floor. She looked at her punch. "That doesn't take much technique… and some people just look better doing it." Even though her head was still down, she knew he had just snapped his head back towards her.
"Don't give me that, Betty. I'm sure you look much sexier doing a salsa than they do dancing like that." Her cheeks changed color several times and she refused to look up, so she never noticed Daniel flounder for a moment before disappearing from her side. When she looked up, he was gone and she was positive she had misheard him.
Betty's eyes slowly returned to the dance floor, watching some couples stumble about while other moved in ways that should have been redistricted to pay-per-view channels. She chuckled quietly and took another sip of her punch. That was when a hand landed on her shoulder and she looked up into familiar blue eyes. He smiled.
"Let's show them," he muttered. As the words drifted past his lips, the song cross-faded to a lively Latin rhythm she recognized from one of her father's Tito Puente albums. She groaned.
"Daniel…"
"Don't worry," he said, his voice confident as he watched the floor clear. He clasped her hand in his and practically dragged her onto the dance floor. "I've taken some lessons."
With a little push-pull, she went spinning onto the floor and Daniel caught her, lowering her into a dip. They spun in maddening circles, their arms tangling and untangling with fluid ease and experience. Daniel had, indeed, taken at least a few lessons; she did not have to see him to know her phone lesson had done very little for him. Now, he spun her expertly around the floor and, with a flourish and twist, pulled her tight against his body and flexed her into one final position.
Applause broke out around them, accompanied by the terribly shocked expressions of her co-workers. Some of the MODE employees approached and told them how great they were and Betty found herself a tad surprised. She was about to turn and thank Daniel only to find he had disappeared into the crowd. Her heart gave a little flip that she could not thank him, but her attention was brought back to the group around her and she fought back her groan.
Soon, soft dance music came back on and the crowd around her dissipated, leaving her on her own once again. Betty returned to her spot at her little table and took another sip of her drink. The smile on her face refused to disappear and it was another half an hour before she even spotted him. When he saw her, he immediately moved towards her and she stood up.
"Thank you, Daniel!" she rushed out and he halted a few feet away, clearly confused. "For… for the salsa. It just… thank you."
"Oh…" he muttered with a smile. "Um… you're more than welcome," he said softly and reached his hand out to her. "Pay me back?" he asked and watched her smile back at him and accept.
The soft Christmas pop song wafted through the air. It was not the normal music selection, but, when the boss requested a song, it was as good as done. Daniel pulled her terribly close and they began to sway. He smiled.
Snowy nights
Where it's warm here by the fire
Here with you
I have all that I desire
It's been a long year
But somehow we got by
Now it's Christmas Eve
And love is on our side
I don't need hundred gifts beneath the tree
Don't you know the best thing you could give to me?
Nothing else will do
All I want is you this Christmas
The lyrics assaulted her mind and she wanted desperately to flee to the ladies room, but the warmth of his embrace kept her body flush against his. His hand moved to rest on her hips and he brushed his fingertips along her sides. The desire to gasp in surprise or moan in delight was strong, but she contained it.
Children sing
Christmas carols at our door
Spreading joy
That's what Christmas time is for
Though we don't have much
You're got me and I've got you
And with a little faith
Miracles come true
I don't need hundred gifts beneath the tree
Don't you know the best thing you could give to me?
Nothing else will do
All I want is you this Christmas
I don't want the love of any other girl
I want only one thing in this whole wide world
Nothing else will do
All I want is you this Christmas
'How wonderful,' she thought to herself, 'if the only thing he wanted was me.'
"No," she said outloud and looked away quickly when Daniel tried to catch her gaze. She was being fanciful and doing so in front of or near Daniel would only lead to her dying of shame and embarrassment. The song played on.
Cheek to cheek
The lights are low
A kiss beneath the mistletoe
Your face lit my the fire's flow
That's all I want tonight
"Stop it!" she whispered harshly to herself and looked around to make sure no one had heard her, but Daniel had.
"Stop what? Dancing with you?"
"No! Yes… I… I've got to go," she mumbled and took off towards the main exit. He followed and caught her wrist as she stepped through the archway.
"Betty…"
"Daniel, let me go," she said with a strangled moan and tried to tug her hand free of his grasp, but failed.
"Betty, please! I really need to talk to you. Betty…" he said and she swiped at her tears while continuing to fight her captor. He tugged her hand a certain way and she felt herself falling, squeezing her eyes tight in anticipation of connecting with his frame.
"Hey, everyone!" Amanda yelled and the entire magazine turned towards the intoxicated blond standing on the table. Betty landed chest to chest with Daniel and, desperate to avoid his eyes, looked at the receptionist. "Daniel's stuck under the mistletoe with Betty!"
Maybe looking at Amanda was a bad choice after all. The crowd that had been turned to the drunk blond now looked to her and her boss who she was currently pressed against. She looked up.
"Daniel…" she murmured as she felt him help her in regaining her footing. A slow smile spread across his face. "Daniel?"
"What are you gonna do, Daniel?" Amanda yelled out, making Daniel spin towards her. "You're not seriously going to kiss her, are you?" she gagged while people scattered throughout the crowd began to chuckle.
Although his face was turned away, enough of Betty's body was pressed against Daniel to feel his whole body tense. His chest heaved with each deep pull of air into his lungs and Betty knew that is was taking all of Daniel's willpower not to explode with fury. She squeezed his hand.
"Daniel, don't do anything stupid," she whispered by his ear and he turned back towards her with the smile he had given her earlier. "Daniel?"
"I promise," he said softly and his hands rose to cradle her cheeks. "Nothing stupid." Then, his mouth descended upon hers and the rest of the world faded to nothing around them.
Daniel's lips were warm and supple, making Betty moan the instant they met with hers. They moved together and massaged each other in a slow and intimate caress, his eyes barely more than slits as his tongue poked out to tease the center of her upper lip. When she whimpered against his mouth and let hers open, she felt his passion spike, igniting her own.
Daniel's lips stilled several moments later and she would have jumped to the conclusion that he regretted his actions if he had not continued to press tiny kisses to the corner of her mouth. He grinned and held her face between his hands.
"That," he whispered, "is what I wanted to talk about."
'He can think?' he mind screamed out. "I, uh… I don't…" she stammered and her stomach flip-flopped when he smiled again.
"Come with me," he whispered and tugged her towards one of the little curtained areas. She stayed rooted to the spot and looked up when he turned back towards her.
"Daniel, those are private," she mumbled, her face turning a lovely shade of red. "For couples?" she said in further explanation, but finished with a gasp when he tugged her back into his arms and into another deep kiss, effectively shutting her up. She whimpered.
"Come… with… me," he repeated and, this time, Betty was incapable of denying him. He wrapped his arm around her waist and guided her to one of the small curtained areas on the other side of the building.
"Daniel, please…"
"Do you have any idea how long I've wanted to do that, Betty?" he breathed out, shocking Betty into stillness. Her eyes swung up to his and she saw him smile, but her mind was too muddled.
"What?" she breathed out. The world spun beneath her feet and she fell onto the couch behind her. Daniel was immediately crouched down before her, holding her hands. "Daniel…"
"Betty, are you alright? I didn't overwhelm you, did I?" he asked quickly and she could not prevent her smile.
"Only… a lot," she murmured, her head still reeling from all his words. He looked terrified and she sighed gently. "In a good way."
"Betty…" he whispered and she lifted her gaze she had unconsciously lowered. His eyes were swimming with desire and she could feel her own blood boil. "I've wanted to tell you for a while. I'm sorry we couldn't talk before I kissed you," he said softly.
"Well…" she mumbled with a blush staining her cheeks, "it wasn't bad as far as Christmas presents go." A smile covered Daniel's face and he chuckled shyly. "Oh, my gosh… are you blushing, Mr. Meade?" she asked, giddy as his cheeks burned an even deeper crimson. "Aww…" she hummed and her smile lit up her whole face, earning a grin in return. Slowly, his eyes turned smoky again.
"Betty Suarez, you are going to be the end of me," he said and got to his knees in front of her, resting his fists on either side of her legs against the couch. "Betty," he said and took a deep, shaky breath. "I love you."
Her smile was instantaneous and tears slipped from the corners of her eyes, but he just smiled, knowing that these tears were not of the bad variety. She lifted her hand to his chest and felt his heart pounding beneath her fingertips.
"I love you, too," she whispered and felt her breath catch in her throat when his face neared hers for the third time that evening. This time, however, she was not caught off guard or surprised. Her mouth awaited his arrival and, when they met, their warmth pulled a low moan from Betty's throat.
Suddenly, the clock chimed midnight and Daniel and Betty parted reluctantly. Soft smiles covered their faces while the MODE employees rejoiced and small sparklers went off be the disc jockey's area. Daniel slipped his hands into Betty's.
"By the way," he breathed into her ear, making her squirm with shivers, "Merry Christmas, Betty," he whispered and pressed a kiss to her temple. She wrapped her hands behind his neck.
"The best yet…"
FIN