The Variations by Jones M (christmas read aloud txt) 📖

don't think I feel the same way around you?" Chris shouted at her.

"What?" Kate was taken aback.

With quick steps, he was in front of her. Marie was confused, more so when Chris' hands reached for her cheeks. In a quick move, he had his lips pressed against hers.

She had not been expecting it, mostly because of the emotions he suddenly evoked in her. The moment their lips made contact, Kate felt fireworks light up in her stomach. Her eyes closed on their own accord as she kissed him back.

His hands moved lower, grasping her waist and bringing her form flush against his. Chris brought one of his hands lower to hold onto her back, caressing it as his lips rubbed against hers.

Kate soon realized what she was doing, and she moved to end the contact.

"Chris--"

"It has been you all along, Kate," he told her, shocking her. "You are the one I was talking about. You are the girl I have a crush on. How could you have not seen it all this time?"

Kate had so many questions, but she was cut off when his lips descended on hers again. It felt more intense that time as he held her firm against him, not giving her space to escape him.

At that rate, he was going to leave her breathless and putty in his hands.

"Chris--"

"Tiffany is my cousin from my father's side, and she has a boyfriend," he confessed as he rubbed her cheek with his thumb.

Kate stared at his brown orbs, unsure to believe what was happening.

"What?" she asked, losing herself in his brown orbs.

"You are not some girl that I can just use, Kate. No one else matters to me like you, and I want you to be mine."

"Chris--"

"I was going to tell you that night. I didn't plan to let you leave without knowing if you felt the same way. I was going to show you how much you mean to me."

Kate's heart thudded at his words.

"Tiffany showing up... It was unexpected. We don't usually see each other, and I can actually count the conversations we had last semester. She lives some towns away from Stonedale, and so I had to talk to her before the year ended."

Chris' words seemed to make sense to her.

He hugged her to his form, burying his chin into her neck as he caressed her back. Kate felt a delicious shiver run through her form as she accepted his embrace. Her eyes teared up again, but in relief.

She had been wishing for that moment, and it had come true. Chris wanted her as much as she wanted him. It felt so wonderful that she had a problem accepting it was reality.

"Am I dreaming?" she asked, but she had intended it to be in her thoughts. Chris had heard her, and so he moved to face her. His eyebrows furrowed as he frowned when he saw her glassy eyes.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. It's a good thing we know now because I wanted to do this," Chris warned before placing his lips back against hers again.

His lips devoured hers in a passionate kiss that made her feel momentarily lightheaded. Her heart thudded from all the emotions she was experiencing once again through the feel of Chris' lips. They rubbed against hers, producing sounds that were loud to her ears. In an instant, their breathing picked up as they held onto each other.

Chris' hands held firmly on her form, hugging her close to him so that no contact was left between them. Her clothed chest pressed against his, allowing no movement as Chris ravaged her mouth. Kate gasped and moaned into the kiss, tightening her arms around his neck. His lips kept moving and rubbing against hers, making her shiver with all the shocks traveling through her form. 

He soon opened his mouth, probing Kate's lips with his tongue. She tensed in surprise. He kept probing, licking and tapping, but Kate was uncertain on whether to give him access to her mouth.

He decided to lower his hand to her back. His hand grabbed on her ass and squeezed, and Kate gasped at the unexpected action. Chris took that moment to push his tongue in.

Kate was tense for a moment at the foreign feel of Chris' tongue in her mouth, but she moaned when it moved in her orifice. Pleasure shot down her body the moment his tongue rubbed against hers. The difference in textures and body heat had her moaning in delight, and she could have sworn she felt Chris smirk into the kiss. 

"Chris," Kate gasped his name when his lips moved to her cheek. He pecked her there, giving her small kisses as he nipped at the skin. His hand buried itself in her hair, holding her as he devoured her with his hot mouth.

His lips moved back to hers, and he groaned when his tongue found hers once again. He rubbed it against hers, and Kate mewled at the contact. Chris' hold on her tightened, pressing her closer to him.

Seconds of furious kissing passed, and their bodies needed air. Chris stopped kissing Marie, and they soon started panting for breath.

"Did that feel like a dream to you?" he asked her, his eyes a deep shade of brown as he stared at her. Marie felt a bit disoriented from the kiss. She knew she looked it too when she noticed Chris' rumpled shirt and his slightly-red lips. 

"Are you going back to college today?" Chris asked her. Kate had been in a daze, thinking over what had happened in the last few minutes, when she focused on him.

"Hmm?" she asked. Chris went to repeat his question, but the ringing of Kate's phone cut him off.

"Let me get that," she said with a smile before moving into the dining room. She found her phone placed on the table, and so she quickly went to answer it.

"Hello?" she replied.

"Honey, are you still at home?" her mother had called.

"Yes, Mom," she replied.

"Good. Stay there," she said, puzzling Kate. "Your father and I are at the airport, and we are about to board the plane."

"Mom--"

"We were watching the news on a TV here when we saw an emergency broadcast. It says that there's a snowstorm coming that could last for days."

"What?" Kate was shocked. At that moment, her phone dinged with two notifications.

"I suggest that you should stay in the house. Go do some grocery shopping if you have to because I doubt the storm will let anyone out."

"Mom, why are you even boarding a plane right now? Shouldn't you be home?"

"It's okay," she replied. "Your dad and I will be flying away from the affected areas. Stay indoors, and I will call you to make sure you are okay."

"Mom--"

"We'll talk soon, honey," she said, and with that, she ended the call.

Kate stared at her phone in disbelief when she noticed the notifications on her screen. There were a message and an e-mail from her university, and they were confirming her mother's words about the storm. It was also going to affect the campus environs, and the opening day was being postponed by a week.

"Hey, did you see this message from school?" Chris said as he made his way towards the dining area.

"Yes," Kate sighed. "So, what do we do?"

"We should just do what they say," he said. "If we head back right now and get in the middle of that storm, it wouldn't be pretty."

Kate stayed a moment before exclaiming, "Damn it!"

"It won't be that bad," Chris told her with a shrug. "We had the same one last year."

"Seriously?" she said.

"Yep."

"So what do you usually do in such situations?" she asked him.

"Well, I stay with the family," he told her. "We buy enough food to last us for something like a week, and we also make sure that the generator is working."

"We don't have a fully-functional generator," she told Chris, shocking him.

"What?" he asked.

"You know how my parents are with traveling the world all the time," she told him, and he nodded for her to go on. "They didn't think too much about buying a generator because we were only here for two weeks. So basically, I'm screwed."

"You could come and stay with me," Chris told her. "My family is away visiting a sick relative. They were supposed to come today, but I don't think that will happen."

Kate thought about his offer. It did not take her long to make a decision.

"Can you help me with my stuff?" she said. 

 

Chapter 30

 

"You weren't kidding when you said no one was home," Kate commented as she entered Chris' house with her bags. She was immediately greeted by silence and the warm air from the heater that forced her to remove her winter gear. She looked around, noticing that the dining area and the hallway looked partially dark, even though it was still afternoon. 

"My parents texted me when we were coming here," Chris said as he dragged his own luggage and the groceries they had purchased into the house. "They will not be coming back today. Maybe after a few days or even next week."

"Huh," Kate said, looking around the deserted house. The living room and kitchen areas looked surprisingly clean from where she stood.

"How many days did you spend alone in this house?" she asked as she turned to face Chris.

"Just two," he told her. Kate looked away from him, silently admiring how he was able to keep the house tidy by himself.

"Do you want to change?" he asked her.

"No, I'm okay like this," she replied, motioning to her jeans and her blouse.

"Really?" he prodded. "Wouldn't you feel uncomfortable?"

Marie thought over his words. A part of her agreed with him, but then another part wanted to stick with her clothes. She was at his parents' home, and she felt like they would know if she dressed inappropriately in their home.

"How about some shorts?" she suggested. 

"And a different shirt," added Chris, eyeing her torso. Kate looked down at her form, not understanding why he was looking there. 

"There is nothing on my shirt, is there?"

"Nothing I wouldn't want to touch," Chris stated.

"Chris!" Kate exclaimed, feeling her cheeks flush as she widened her eyes.

"That blush on your face makes me want to kiss you," he added, making her blush even more.

"Chris, stop," she said, and she heard him chuckle.

"What? You're my girlfriend now, and so I have the freedom to speak my mind and get away with it."

Kate shook her head at him with a smile.

"So, where am I staying?" she decided to change the subject.

"In one of the guest bedrooms. I'll show you," Chris said, reaching for her hand. She grabbed his, and she felt small shocks travel up her arm. She tried not to focus on the feel of his hand as he led them up the stairs and into a hallway. They didn't go far before he stopped them in front of an open room with a white door.

"You can take this one," he suggested. The room was spacious. It was composed of orange walls, and there was a large window that had been obstructed by a gray curtain. A closet, a dresser and a large bed that was positioned in the middle of the room were also present.

"This is a guest room?" she asked him in surprise, earning a nod as confirmation.

"My parents want anyone who visits to