An Early Spring

by Ann Lister

  “Never,” he said. “You can put your mouth on me any time - and anywhere you want.”

  He stood up from the trail and brushed the snow off the back of his legs, then zipped and buckled his pants, before sitting down on the seat facing Colby. He held her gaze, wondering what she was thinking. His body was still flushed with heat from the pleasure she had given him only minutes before. His fingers stroked at her cheek, then he ran the pad of his thumb across her swollen lips.

  “You make me so happy,” he said.

  “Me, too,” she said. “More than I think I could explain.”

  “You don't need to explain,” he said. “I can see it in your eyes and Lord knows I can feel it in the way you touch me.”

  Colby hugged him tightly. “Take me back to your cabin,” she said.

  Nick reached for her helmet beside the snowmobile and helped settle it onto her head, then secured the strap beneath her chin.

  A few minutes later, Nick drove the snowmobile up in front of the porch to his cabin and cut the engine. He stood up, swinging a leg over the seat to stand in the snow, and removed his helmet.

  “My legs are still weak,” he said with a grin. He unbuckled Colby's helmet and lightly kissed her lips, then bent to collect her clothing bag from beneath the seat of the snowmobile. He took her gloved hand and squeezed it, then stepped onto the porch to unlock the front door of the cabin.

  Once inside, Colby removed her coat and set her boots next to the door, then she carried her bag of clothing into his bedroom. Nick walked to the fireplace and loaded a few logs into it, preparing to start a fire.

  He heard Colby swear and went to the bedroom; standing beside her and his bed.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “I forgot to pack pajamas,” she said, shuffling through the clothing in her duffel bag.

  Nick slid his arms around her waist and raised one eyebrow. “Do you really think you’re going to need pajamas?”

  “In case I get cold,” she said.

  “Cold? We shared a bed two months ago in a cabin that didn’t have heat in the middle of a blizzard. Did I let you get cold then?”

  Colby glanced at him over her shoulder and smiled. “No, you didn’t.”

  Nick kissed her neck, then tipped her head to kiss her mouth. “I’m not going to let you get cold, baby,” he said, teasing her lips with his tongue. “In fact, I'm planning on keeping you hot and bothered the entire time you're here.”

  Nick led Colby to the couch in front of the fire and sat down, tugging her onto his lap.

  “What would you normally be doing on a Saturday night?” she asked, tenderly stroking the side of his smooth face with her fingertips.

  “I’d probably be hanging-out at the club with Glen.”

  “Picking-up girls?”

  Nick chuckled. “Not all the time. Sometimes we go just to hear the music.”

  “That’s your story and you’re sticking to it?” she asked.

  “Yeah, something like that.”

  Colby slid off his lap and curled up against his side. He dropped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her tightly to him. She was too quiet, making him wonder what was going through her head.

  “What’s on your mind, baby?” he asked, kissing her forehead.

  “Do you still keep in touch with Sarah?”

  “I haven’t spoken to her since the day she moved out. Every once in a while, Glen will let something slip about what she’s doing, but that’s about it. Last I heard, she was living somewhere in Florida.”

  “Is she still with the ski instructor?”

  “Nope - and she's probably had a few dozen so-called boyfriends since him.”

  “Do you still think about her?” Colby asked softly.

  “Not really. Why?”

  “I still think about Wayne,” Colby said, dropping her eyes from Nick’s. “Sometimes I wonder, if he had lived, what he’d be like now as a man. I wonder if we’d still be together, married…if we’d have any kids. I bet that sounds pretty crazy to you, doesn’t it?”

  Nick watched the expression change in her face and rubbed at her shoulder. “That doesn’t sound crazy to me,” he said. “The way your relationship ended with Wayne is completely different than how things ended with me and Sarah.”

  “Does it upset you to know I still think about him?” she asked.

  “No, I'd expect you to.”

  “A part of me feels guilty,” she said.

  “About what?” he asked.

  “Guilty because I’m happy and because it didn’t feel this intense with him. After Wayne died, I compared every guy I dated to him and he was always the better man - until I met you. I finally feel like I’ve moved on, and that gives me a certain amount of guilt. I always had a special place in my heart for Wayne and now I feel like there isn’t any more room for him, because of how I feel for you.”

  Nick lifted Colby’s chin and made her look at him. “Colby, you don’t have to forget Wayne to love me. I understand how important his memory is to you and how important he was in your life. I’m okay with it.”

  “After I broke-up with Tom, I asked Wayne to find me a decent guy, someone to really love me and make me feel special, the way he did,” Colby said, as tears began to trickle down her cheeks. “And, then I met you.”

  Nick smiled at her and wiped the tears from her cheeks. “Maybe Wayne was instrumental in having our paths cross that day on the mountain.”

  “I’d like to think he had something to do with it.”

  Nick tipped his head in thought. “Originally, Glen was going to be the one to try and find you, but I knew he had plans that night, so I told him I’d do the rescue. Maybe if Glen had gone that day, you’d be cuddling with him right now instead of me?” he teased, trying to put a smile on her face.

  “Doubtful,” Colby said.

  Nick eased her flat against the couch and shifted himself on top of her. He studied her face, his fingers gliding over her skin and into her long hair. “I do love you, Colby, and you are very special to me,” he whispered.

  “Let’s go to bed,” she smiled.

  “Are you tired?” he asked, gently rubbing his thumbs against her temples.

  “No.”

  A slow smile formed on Nick’s face. “Oh,” he said, pressing his chest to hers; his lips covering hers. “Then, what exactly are you looking for?” he sighed into her open mouth.

  Colby slid her hands down his back and squeezed his butt. “Protein.”

  “More protein? Damn! I guess it was good I ate that steak for dinner,” he said. Nick stood up from the couch and held out his hand for her. He brought her into his bedroom and slowly removed her clothes, then pulled back the quilt on his bed and helped her settle against the pillows at the headboard.

  Nick held her gaze and began untucking his shirt from his pants, then unbuttoning it as he walked toward the bed. He removed his shirt and tossed it onto a chair in the corner of the room, then undid his pants and slid out of them, throwing them on top of the shirt.

  Colby watched his strip-tease show with interest, smiling coyly at him above the top of the quilt. “You are a gorgeous man, Nick,” she said quietly, almost breathless from the sight of his naked form.

  Nick crawled onto the bed and rolled against her beneath the sheets. “I’m glad you like it,” he smirked.

  “Like it? I love it - especially this,” she said, circling her fingers around his expanding organ. “You’re well put together.”

  “So are you,” he said. He kissed her slowly and with love, cradling her face in his hands.

  Nick spent hours loving her with his fingers; his lips, until she begged to be penetrated. Even after his first thrust, he continued to drive her to insanity by building his rhythm so slowly, Colby was beginning to plead with him for more.

  “Please, Nick, I need more!” she requested, grabbing at his hips. “I want to feel you all the way inside.”

  Nick plunged into her deeper. “Is that what
you want?”

  “Yes!”

  Almost instantly, the orgasm ripped through her body, pushing Nick over the edge, too. She clung to him tightly, riding the wave with him, until he finally lay quiet on top of her, his face pressed between her breasts.

  Colby ran her fingers through his hair. “I love you,” she sighed, still feeling him pulsing inside her body.

  Nick turned his head and playfully bit her breast. “I love you, too,” he said, dragging his tongue across her nipple. “And I’m really glad you decided to stay with me tonight.”

  It was almost noon the next day, by when Colby began to stir in Nick’s bed. He had already gotten up, showered and dressed, and was in the kitchen making them brunch. The rich smells of cooked bacon, scrambled eggs, and hot coffee drew Colby to the kitchen. She came up behind him wearing nothing more than his discarded t-shirt.

  “Why did you let me sleep that long?” she asked, standing beside him at the stove.

  He slipped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him, kissing her on the forehead. “You looked too peaceful to wake,” he smiled. “Are you hungry?”

  “Yes,” she replied, pressing her face to his neck. He smelled heavenly; freshly shaved and the ends of his hair still damp from the shower.

  “Go get cleaned-up and, when you’re done, this will be ready,” he said.

  “Don’t you want me to help?”

  “Nope. I’ve got it all covered,” he said, pointing her hips toward the bathroom and swatting her on the bottom. “Hurry up so we can eat.”

  Colby turned around and faced him, setting her hands onto her waist. “Do I smell that bad?”

  “Baby, you smell really sweet - like sex,” he teased, blowing her a kiss.

  Colby rolled her eyes and drifted into the bathroom to shower. Twenty minutes later, she returned to Nick’s bedroom wearing only a towel.

  Nick watched her from the kitchen and waited until he saw the towel drop to the floor, then moved to the doorway of the bedroom. “Dress warm,” he instructed her. “I’m taking you outside after we eat.”

  “Outside?” she asked, pulling on a pair of white panties.

  “Yes. I’m going to show you how to have fun in the snow,” he smiled, watching as she concealed her breasts behind a lacy white bra.

  “I’m not sure that kind of fun is possible,” she said, reaching into her bag for thermal underwear.

  “I’m going to give you a new appreciation for the snow,” he said.

  They ate the scrambled eggs and English muffins Nick had prepared, then slid into their boots and winter coats to go outside. Nick grabbed a backpack filled with bottled water and some first-aid provisions, just in case, and locked the door to his cabin.

  “Where are we going?” she asked, stepping off the porch.

  “Hiking. I’m going to show you how beautiful it is on the trails this time of year,” he said. He took her by the hand and led her toward the first trail marker. They moved through the woods on the groomed trail, with Nick giving her a narrative on the mountain history and even pointing out various animal tracks. A while later, they reached a lookout point and sat on a large boulder exposed above the snow.

  “Careful,” he said, easing her onto the rock beside him. “Starting an avalanche is always a serious threat up here,” he said. “Especially late in the season, when we get the freezing and thawing going on, creating the different plates of snow.

  “That sounds scary.”

  “It can be,” he replied, shrugging his shoulders.

  “Have you ever been caught in an avalanche?”

  “I’ve come close several times, but thankfully I wasn’t hurt. I’m usually the one that arrives after the avalanche to rescue the people that weren’t lucky enough to escape.”

  Colby shifted on the rock and pressed her forehead against her bent knees.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked, sensing her mood change. When she rolled her head to glance at him, Nick saw the emotion in her eyes. “What’s wrong?” he asked, sliding an arm around her back.

  “Your job is very dangerous,” she said quietly. “I’m going to worry every time you leave for work.”

  “Yes, my job is dangerous, but I’m trained to know how to do it safely. You don’t have to worry about me, Colby. I don’t take chances.”

  Colby stood up and climbed off the rock. Nick followed and grabbed her by the hand. “Talk to me. What’s going through your head?” he asked, pulling her to his chest.

  She dropped her head to his shoulder. “You’re the first man I’ve really cared about since I lost Wayne. If something were to happen to you…”

  Nick held her face in his hands. “Colby. Nothing is going to happen to me. I’ve been doing this job for a long, long time without incident. I work safe. You don’t have to worry about me. I promise.”

  He hugged her for a several minutes, rubbing at her back, then kissed her forehead. “Are you cold?”

  “No, it’s not that bad outside today.”

  “It’s late in the season and the sun is getting stronger,” he explained as they began to walk down the trail. “Soon enough, all this snow will start melting and there will be rivers of water running down the mountain.”

  “Really?”

  “Yep. The annual Spring thaw. It’s pretty impressive. You’ll still see some desperate skiers trying to navigate around the water, as they ski the little patches of snow left on the slopes, wearing only shorts. It’s pretty crazy.”

  “Shorts?”

  Nick laughed. “Yes. You’ll see it.”

  “Do you ski?” Colby asked.

  “Not as often as I’d like to for recreation, but yes, I ski. It’s part of the job.”

  “I bet you’re really good,” she smiled at him.

  “I can hold my own,” he said. “I’m guessing you don’t ski?”

  “I’ve never tried.”

  “I could teach you. It’s easy enough to do,” he said.

  “As you’ve already pointed out, I have trouble walking safely. Do you think it would be wise to put someone as clumsy as me on a pair of skis?”

  Nick tipped his head and tried to hide his grin. “You make a good point.”

  Colby playfully shoved him on the arm. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

  He spun around and grabbed her by the hips. “I love every uncoordinated thing about you,” he chuckled beneath her ear. “Besides, with me in your life, you’ll always have someone around to rescue you when you crash and burn.”

  Colby pressed her lips to his and felt his arms circle, then pull her tight against him. His mouth opened to hers, his tongue dipping inside, and she closed her eyes. Once again, Nick was sweeping her away to that magical place that always made her body vibrate with electricity.

  She moved her hand between their bodies and gripped at the hardness growing between his legs. He moaned into her mouth, then in the blink of an eye, he lost his footing and fell to the snowy trail onto his back, with Colby landing on top of his chest.

  “Now who’s the klutz?” she asked, smiling down at him.

  He rolled over quickly and positioned Colby beneath him, kissing her again, pitching both their internal temperatures a few degrees in the process.

  “You’re right,” she said, wiping the moisture from his lips. “It is possible to have fun in the snow.”

  Nick smiled at her, then stood up, pulling her to her feet. “Come on, we better start heading back to the cabin. It’ll get dark soon.”

  After they returned to Nick’s cabin, Colby packed her things and allowed Nick to bring her back down to the lodge for dinner, then walk her back to her room.

  “I had a really good time, Nick,” she said, as they stepped inside her room.

  “Does that mean you’ll say yes to a second date with me?”

  “Yeah. I think I could handle seeing you again.”

  His eyes met hers and held. The emotion in them was very deep and real. “I wish you’d stay with me again
tonight,” he said, his lips softly making contact with her mouth.

  “I can’t, Nick. We both have to work tomorrow.”

  “I know. I understand. Maybe we can meet tomorrow for lunch or after work for dinner - or both,” he smiled.

  “I’d like that,” she said, wrapping her arms around his neck.

  “I’ll call you,” he said, and stepped toward the door.

  Colby followed him and opened the door to the hallway. Nick moved close to her and pressed his cheek to hers. “I love you,” he whispered, kissing her with tenderness.

  She touched his face with her fingers. “I love you, too,” she said, feeling the moisture building in her eyes as he shifted into the hall and waved good-bye.

  Chapter Eleven

  Colby met Nick for lunch the next day and again for dinner, then he spent the night in her room. In the morning, he walked her to work and kissed her outside the entrance door to her building, before heading toward triage to start his own work shift.

  As soon as Colby settled into her office, two of her co-workers filled her doorway. Both women had huge smiles on their faces.

  “What?” Colby asked, knowing exactly what was on their minds.

  “So? Are you and Nick Gaffney…together now?” one of the women asked.

  “Together?” Colby replied, trying to hide her grin.

  “Yes, together. We just saw him kiss you and it was hot enough to fog up my glasses!”

  Colby spread a few file folders across her desk and smiled. “Well, yes, he did kiss me,” she shrugged.

  “And? Come on, Colby! Give us some details!” her co-worked demanded.

  “How long have you been dating?” one woman asked.

  Did he stay in your room last night?” the second woman asked.

  Colby shook her head at them. “I really don’t want to talk about it.”

  “You can’t be serious. You’re going to leave us hanging like that?”

  The sudden ring of her cell phone interrupted their interrogation and Colby quickly answered the call.

  “Hello,” Colby softly said into her phone, waving good-bye to her co-workers.

  “Hey beautiful,” Nick said in a tone so sensual it made Colby blush. “Did I catch you at a bad time?”