Title: 'Tis the Season
Author:
fangirl_utopiaFandom: Eureka
Pairing: Jack Carter/Allison Blake
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I don't own Eureka...yadda, yadda, yadda.
Summary: Allison wakes Jack with an early morning Christmas surprise and ends up getting one of her own.
“So, Sheriff…have you been naughty…or nice?” Allison threw back the comforter and swung her leg over Jack’s torso, settling herself so that she was fully straddling his stomach.
“Ally, at this point, I’ll be whatever you want me to be,” he panted, his fingers creeping up her naked thighs to disappear underneath the hem of her red satin nightgown.
The corners of her mouth ticking up into a pleased smile, she reached behind her and lightly rested her hand on the front of his boxers. Beneath the soft, navy-blue cotton, she could feel something deliciously large and hard pressing against her palm.
“Hmmm…” She squeezed gently. Jack’s eyes slipped closed and he groaned softly, his hips arching into her touch. “Seems like you already have a Christmas surprise for me. I knew that waking you up before the kids was a good idea.”
“In my defense, I have a Christmas surprise waiting for you every morning.” He opened his eyes and threw her a wink. “Can’t help it…it’s a guy thing.”
Allison laughed and draped her body over his, nuzzling his neck before running her tongue along the sweeping curve of his ear. “Well, Merry Christmas to me.”
“Merry Christmas to us both.”
She shivered with pleasure as he ran his hands up and down her thighs then under her panties to cradle her bottom in his warm palms. As was the norm whenever he touched her, Allison’s mind was starting to glaze over with desire. Before she’d even realized her intentions, she was grinding her lower body against his and nibbling on his earlobe.
Jack growled and tightened his grip, pressing himself against her. When she felt his muscles tense in preparation to reverse their positions, she shook herself out of her lust-filled haze and pushed herself back.
His eyes popped open, his gaze burning with lust. “What? You want to be on top? Because I’m good with that.”
“I’ll bet you are, but that’s not quite what I had in mind.” She braced her hands against his chest and sat up. “At least not yet.”
“You woke me up at four thirty on Christmas morning just to feel me up? Now, that’s just cruel.”
“No smarty pants,” she said, giving his side a playful pinch, “I woke you up at four thirty on Christmas morning to give you this.” She leaned over, pulled a small, brightly-wrapped present from beneath her pillow and held it out to him with a flourish.
“For me?” Jack’s entire face lit up at the sight of the festive green wrapping paper and slightly squashed red and white striped bow.
Allison flashed him her best impish smile. “No, it’s actually for that other man that I’m madly in love with.”
“Oh, you’re a laugh riot at four thirty in the morning.”
“I try.”
“Uh-huh.” When she tried to lift herself off of him, he shook his head and grabbed her hips. “Nope-you stay right there.” Sliding one hand to the small of her back to steady her, he reached over the side of the bed and rummaged around on the floor.
She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. “What are you up to?”
“Just one more sec.” Another long moment passed before the look of fierce concentration on his face morphed into one of triumphant glee. He sat up, brandishing a small silver gift bag and held it out to her. “Merry Christmas!”
An astonished smile stretched across Allison’s face as she slowly took the bag from him. She’d fully been expecting to surprise him this morning, not the other way around.
“Great minds, huh?”
“Great minds, indeed,” she said as the bag swung gently from her fingertips by the braided, snow-white handle. As much as she wanted to tear into her present like a giddy five-year-old, she resisted the urge and instead held out the green-wrapped package toward Jack.
“Uh-uh.” He inclined his head toward her gift. “You first.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. But you’d better hurry up before I change my mind,” he added with an insouciant grin.
She leaned back a little, his hands large and reassuring as they braced her lower back. She could feel the heat from his skin through the rich fabric of her nightgown and once again had to fight the urge to forget everything else and have her wicked way with him.
“I know that look, Ally,” Jack said, his voice growing low and deep, “and we can either unwrap presents or I can unwrap you.” His hands slipped down to her backside and squeezed. “I know which one I’m partial to.”
“Don’t tempt me,” she said, though her insatiable hunger for him was doing just that.
Before he could distract her again, Allison set his present on the bed beside his thigh, then placed the gift bag between them. With the eager anticipation of a child, she quickly reached inside, her fingers impatiently pushing past the crinkly silver and white tissue paper to wrap around a solid cardboard frame. She pulled it out and froze.
The box she was holding was small and square and a world-famous robin’s egg blue.
“Would you open it already, woman?” he exclaimed after she could only sit and stare at the box in mute awe. “I’m on pins and needles here.”
Chuckling softly, she looked down at the object in her hands, her eyes following the lines of the snowy white ribbon that curved gracefully into an impossibly perfect bow. “Can’t I have a minute to bask in the moment?”
“Come on…don’t you want to know if I have any taste?”
“Honey, you bought this from Tiffany’s. I don’t need to open it to know that you have taste.”
“Would you still feel that way if you knew that I had a little help from Zoe? I mean, it was my idea…I just needed help with the particulars.”
“Of course I would.” She rested her hand on his cheek and pecked him soundly on the lips. “And I do.”
“Glad to hear that.” He gave her hips a gentle squeeze. “Now would you hurry up and open it? The anticipation is killing me.”
Allison took a deep breath, grabbed one end of the bow and pulled. The ribbon fluttered to the bed, the contrast between the stark white satin and the dark material of the comforter striking. In one fluid movement, she removed the top, pulled out a small, black box, flipped it open and gasped.
Nestled inside, standing out vividly against the midnight backdrop, were two of the most beautiful diamond solitaires she’d ever seen. The round, half carat gemstones were winking vibrantly in the bedroom’s dim lighting, and even with her untrained eye, she could see that the color and clarity were exceptional.
“Jack,” she whispered, only able to utter that single, astonished word. She looked up at him, unable to hold back a joyous smile at the sight of the ear-to-ear grin stretching across his handsome face.
“I did good then?”
“You did excellent.”
“Wow…bad grammar. I must have really knocked it out of the park.”
Her smile widened. “You most certainly did, Sheriff.”
“Good.” His blue eyes sparkled happily at her affirmation. “Try them on for me?”
“I thought you’d never ask.” She carefully removed the earrings from their case and slid them into her ears. Pulling back her hair, she tilted her head and flashed him a coquettish smile. “Well?”
Jack eyed her appreciatively. “You look beautiful, just like I knew you would.” He lifted a hand and tenderly ran his thumb along her cheekbone. “The platinum setting looks great against your skin.”
A heated flush stole over her, and if she didn’t know better, she’d swear she was blushing. “Thank you.” She leaned forward and rubbed the tip of her nose against his. “For everything.”
“You’re very welcome.”
“Okay.” She was nearly bouncing with excitement as she snatched up his gift and pressed it into his hand. “Now it’s your turn.”
In seconds, Jack had torn through the wrapping paper and was staring at the contents of the box with an unblinking stare. “Ally, is this what I think it is?” he asked after a long, silent moment.
“Well, I certainly hope so or I was royally cheated.”
“Oh, wow…” His voice was hushed as he absorbed what he was seeing. “Jackie Robinson’s 1948-49 Leaf rookie card. In near-mint condition.” He looked up at her with wide eyes. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything. The look on your face is more than enough.”
With the deferential touch of a true collector, Jack lifted the baseball card out of the small ivory box and held the clear protective plastic in front of his face. He studied it for several long minutes before turning it over to look at the back.
Allison felt a surge of joy wash over her at the look of unabashed delight playing across Jack’s features. It had taken her three attempts over six months to get her hands on the baseball great’s rookie card, but it had all been worth it. It was why she loved this time of year so much: making other people happy made her happy.
And judging by Jack’s ecstatic expression, she’d just made him a very happy man.
Without speaking, he took the card and carefully laid it back in the box, cradling it in the white tissue paper as if it were a defenseless newborn. He made sure that the top was firmly closed before snatching up her gift bag and placing both items squarely in the middle of the nightstand beside the bed.
Before she could even blink, Allison was lying flat on her back with Jack’s lean body stretched out on top of her. She couldn’t contain her jubilant laugh. “I take it that you like your gift then?”
“More than words can say,” he murmured, pressing her hands into the mattress and intertwining their fingers. “That’s why I’m going to spend the next couple of hours showing you just how much I love it...and you.”
“Is that a promise?”
“What do you think?” he asked, his eyes flashing hotly as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
“I think that I’m a very lucky woman.”
“And you’re about to get luckier.”
Allison purred with pleasure as Jack’s fingertips danced slowly over the insides of her wrists and down her bare forearms. “Now that does sound promising.”