* * * *
Holly had opened her eyes and was watching Zachariah, she could almost see the thoughts racing through his mind. She knew he was thinking about sending her home, and her dislocated shoulder was just the excuse he needed. Well, there was no way he was going to get rid of her that easily.
Zachariah’s gaze locked with hers. “You’re awake.”
“Yes.” She struggled into sitting position. “What time is it?”
“Late, you obviously needed the rest.”
“Why did you let me sleep so long? We’re going to be way behind now.”
“No matter, you needed time, so…” He shrugged.
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “So?”
Zachariah sighed. “So we might as well spend the night here now, it’ll be too dangerous travelling under the current conditions. The snow’s falling thick and fast, and the wind is even more ferocious than earlier and it’s causing drifting, so, we’ll stay, have supper and bed down for the night, and leave early morning.”
With that Holly had to be content, although it took a herculean effort to stop from questioning him further about which direction she would be taking in the morning, home or toward Nikolai?
Supper of hot soup and crackers eaten, they bedded down for the night. Fully clothed minus her coat and boots, Holly crawled into her sleeping bag and, snuggling under the down-filled padding, determinedly closed her eyes. But it was no good, after her nap from earlier, she wasn’t in the least bit sleepy. Turning her head she noted Zachariah’s eyes were closed and his chest was gently rising and falling and she envied his ability to fall instantly asleep. She shifted restlessly, her arm ached and she was freezing. Snuggling further down she pulled the sleeping bag high up over her cold nose. She should be tired, she told herself, she’d hardly had any sleep over the last few days so she should by now be almost comatose.
“Quit your wriggling, Holly.”
“Oh, I thought you were asleep?”
“Hardly, not with your mumblings and rustlings.”
“Well, I’m very sorry but my arm hurts and I’m freezing, but don’t let that concern you, oh so mighty Doctor.”
“Cut the attitude, Holly, if you’re cold all you had to do was say.” Climbing out of his bag, Zachariah quickly unzipped hers.
“Up you get.”
“Up?”
“Up.” Zachariah nodded, waiting patiently whilst she struggled to comply.
Shivering in the freezing air and hearing the ferocious howl of the wind as it raced around the tent as if all the demons in hell were after it, she hugged her arms around herself and watched as Zachariah zipped their two sleeping bags together. Wanting to protest she thought better of it when she was assaulted by another bout of shivering.
“Take all your clothes but the underwear off, Holly, and get in.”
“What? Are you mad? I’m not taking my clothes off, I’m already freezing.”
“You’ll get warmer much more quickly if we have body contact, you know that, it’s the most basic of first aid. I would suggest you strip completely but…”
He grinned. “But I don’t want my face slapped.”
“Well, you can get lost, Zachariah Black, cause I’m not taking anything off.”
“Come on, Holly, be sensible, you’re cold and still suffering a certain amount of shock, so the best thing is heat, and you can’t get any better heat than body warmth. So for a change just do as you are told without the stupid and pointless arguments.”
Staring at him in annoyance and knowing that he was right, Holly still hesitated. Sleeping with Zachariah again after all this time and feeling the way she did about him was a recipe for disaster.
“In you get.” He grinned boyishly. “Not scared are you?”
Complying, albeit reluctantly, Holly scrambled in, but not before sending him a filthy look. Scooting over, she stiffened as Zachariah climbed in beside her and took her in his arms.
“It’s just for warmth, Holly.”
Knowing she ought to protest, Holly held her tongue as the heat of Zachariah’s body seeped into her cold shivering limbs.
Chapter Ten
Holly’s eyes fluttered open. Staring into space she frowned slightly disconcerted by the feeling of disorientation. She was warm and comfortable and for some reason her arm hurt like the very devil. Then it all came flooding back and she groaned softly, feeling the fiery warmth of Zachariah’s length against her back.
“Settle down, Holly, it’s still too early to get up.”
“What time is it?” She peered at him through the dawn’s gloom.
“Early.”
She sighed, what was it with Zachariah? He never gave her a direct answer?
Turning onto her back, she lay staring up at the canvas. It dipped alarmingly in the middle where the snow had settled. She sighed again, her breath small puffs of icy air, like little clouds fluttering across a white sky. She stifled a giggle at her whimsy.
“Will you settle down?”
“Sor–ry!” she said belligerently, making a move to scramble out of bed.
Moving quickly, Zachariah covered her body with his own, pinning her to the ground.
“Where do you think you are going?”
“Up! I’m getting up and I’m getting away, as far away from you as I can!”
“Really? And how do you propose to do that?”
Staring up into his smugly smiling face, Holly felt an overwhelming anger.
“Get off me, you big oaf.” Still favoring her shoulder, she started to struggle, pushing at his chest and trying to kick him with her feet.
Subduing her easily, Zachariah laughed at her feeble attempts to push him off.
“Stop laughing, you pig!” She spat, growing angrier by the second. “I hate you.”
Zachariah stopped laughing and gazed silently into her face before he lowered his mouth to hers.
Resisting for but a few seconds more, Holly, unable to help herself, melted into his arms, hers wrapping around his neck as she pressed closer, her breasts pushing urgently up against his hard muscular chest.
Zachariah deepened the kiss, his firm, hungry lips drawing from her groans of need.
Pushing up and under the layers of thermal clothing his fingers closed unerringly over her hard, peaking nipples. Holly gasped, immediately on fire, a fire that shot aching arrows of desire from her breasts down into her stomach to arrive like an explosion in her pussy.
Forgetting her anger Holly cried out his name and began tearing at her clothes, wanting nothing more than to feel Zachariah’s hard, naked body against her own. Quickly removing his own garments, Zachariah came down onto Holly’s naked body.
Holly closed her eyes in delight at the feel of his naked flesh against hers. Running her hands lightly up and down his spine, she enjoyed his groans of pleasure. He in turn caressed her breasts, flicking lightly at her burgeoning nipples, his mouth closely followed his fingers and she gasped as his teeth nipped her sensitive skin. Reaching down, Zachariah stroked the feminine mound that protected her genitals and delicately brushed the petal-like folds of her vagina before gently inserting a finger. Holly’s breath caught in her throat and her eyes snapped open. Gently moving his finger backwards and forwards, he prepared her for his penetration. Biting her lip, Holly felt suddenly shy as her essence flowed onto his fingers. Gazing into her eyes, Zachariah cupped her face and kissed her. Then using a hard muscular leg he widened her thighs and, driving hard, entered her wide-open pussy in one swift thrust. Their coupling was hard and fast and had Holly’s breath catching in the back of her throat. Having Zachariah inside her felt like coming home, it felt so right, it was so right. Unable to wrap her legs around him because of the restricting sleeping bag, she contented herself with hooking her legs around his calves and holding onto his firm muscular buttocks with clutching hands. Urging him on she cried out, telling him to fuck her and fuck her hard.
Holly felt Zachariah’s thrusts becoming more controlled. As he
slowed down and seemed to be drawing out of her, she grabbed hold of his hips wanting to stop the withdrawal. But she need not have worried as speeding up he drove forcefully back into her pussy with deep dominant thrusts, his cock filling and stretching her. She cried out in delight. Yes, this is what she wanted, what she needed. She wanted to be dominated, wanted to feel mastered and most of all wanted to feel loved.
Zachariah drove his cock powerfully in and out of Holly’s pussy. She felt hot, wet and tight, her internal muscles fiercely tightening around his cock, making him work for his pleasure. Her breasts were soft, the nipples hard as they grazed his chest. She was all woman and she knew what she wanted. Breathing softly against his neck she pleaded with him to go faster, to pound into her and to screw her hard. His hips working hard he ground into her. Grabbing a pillow he quickly thrust it under her buttocks and gyrating his hips he pushed even deeper into her, seeking out her G-spot.
Holly could barely hang onto reality such were the feelings Zachariah was generating. The feel of his pubic hair as it grazed her clitoris only added to the eroticism, and the pillow under her bottom made his penetration deeper. Feeling like he was splitting her apart she gasped with sheer sensation, but she wanted more, wanted him to become part of her, to possess and control her. Her breath caught. She could hardly believe the eroticism of her thoughts.
“Oh God, Zachariah, please, please fuck me. Fuck me like I’ve never been fucked before, screw me hard, tear me apart, I don’t care. I just want to feel you, feel you complete me.”
Zachariah pulled out of Holly and she gave a cry of dismay, her hands clutching desperately at him, not wanting him to leave her.
“No! Oh no, Zach, please I haven’t come, please don’t go.”
Quickly unzipping the sleeping bags, he pulled the pillow from under her bottom then pushed it protectively under her injured shoulder. Lifting her legs around his hips, he pushed the tip of his cock past the quivering lips of her pussy and in one deep thrust penetrated her opening. Holly gasped and cried out at how deep his cock was inside her, it was amazing, wonderful, sensational!
Zachariah sat back on his heels as he knelt between Holly’s thighs. With his cock still sheathed inside her, Zachariah continued to thrust. With his hips working for her satisfaction he reached down and fingered her pussy’s lips apart. Gazing down at her swollen throbbing clit he pushed her thighs wider, loving the look of her pink, wet pussy bathed with her honeyed essence.
Flicking and pinching her clitoris, he watched intently as it seemed to throb with a life of its own. She was beautiful. Her pussy was like an opening lotus flower, soft and pink, its petals quivering with life and its honeyed essence waiting for just the right bee to pollinate it. He smiled in satisfaction, glad to be that bee.
Holly screamed at Zachariah’s touch on her clit. It was as if she were powerless, caught in the sensual heat of his possession, and she wallowed in it. Feeling the sleek length of his cock drive inside her brought about an unbearable ache, an ache that needed to be assuaged, and the feeling overwhelmed her. Then, as the vibrations began to rise she clutched blindly at Zachariah’s muscular forearms and groaned a deep primitive sound that caught her unawares. The ripple of an orgasm started in her throbbing clitoris and insidiously wound its way through her veins and pulsated in her blood. It was like a fire, hot consuming, scorching. The sensations were like nothing she had ever experienced before. She was soaring high above the clouds, leaving the earthly plains for something more spectacular, an ecstasy that was so intense it shook her to her core. Zachariah’s growling orgasm made her limbs tremble and her breath come fast and shallow. And then, as her second orgasm exploded inside her, Zachariah ejaculated his seed deep into her womb.
* * * *
Movement awakened Holly and she slowly lifted heavy eyelids. Peering through her lashes, she watched as Zachariah began packing up their few possessions. How she was to face him? She had no idea. Silently groaning, she squeezed her eyes tightly shut as she recalled the things she’d said to him. God knows what made her behave so wantonly, it was as if she had been obsessed. Yes! she thought cynically. Be truthful, you were obsessed, obsessed by the urge and need to be possessed.
“So, you’re awake at last,” Zachariah said without turning from his task.
Curses! How did he do that? How did he always know when she was awake even though she hadn’t moved as much as a finger?
“Get a wriggle on will you, we’ve lost around eighteen hours messing about here. There’s some porridge in the pan, and when you’ve eaten, we need to get moving. I’ve fed the dogs and changed their bootees and they’re raring to go.”
Messing about! Messing about! How could he refer to what they’d done here as messing about? Shame burned hotly in her cheeks. So, she was just someone to mess about with was she? The nerve, the very nerve of him. But, whilst she wanted to scream and shout at him for his hideous uncaring, unfeeling attitude, she thought better of it and instead focused on the very crux of his words, the “need to get moving”!
“Does this mean that I, well, that we’re going to go on with the competition? What I mean is…” She continued as he stared at her. “You’re not making me go back?”
“Could I do that, Holly?” he surprised her by asking.
“Well, yes, I suppose you could, even though I hate to admit it, because with my shoulder still sore, I’m going to need help, your help.”
“Yes, so you are, therefore we’ll make a deal, Holly.” He waited with a raised eyebrow for her to interrupt but she pursed her lips, determined to stay silent. “I’ll let you continue the race and help you all I can, and in return…”
“You want me to continue to mess about with you,” she interrupted, throwing his words back at him.
He laughed, staring hard at her. “That hit a sore spot did it?”
“You bet it did, mister, you bet it did. Well, get this, Zachariah, I won’t be having sex with you, not ever again.”
“Wait to be asked, Holly. However, what I was about to say before you so rudely interrupted was, I will help you, and in return you will obey every order without argument whether you agree with it or not. Do we have a deal?”
A helpless feeling of embarrassment washed over her and her cheeks suffused with heat. Wanting desperately to tell him to get stuffed, she bit back the offensive words. It wouldn’t do to alienate him at this stage. So, swallowing what was left of her pride she nodded albeit reluctantly. “Deal.”
Chapter Eleven
Anxious to try and make up for lost time, they were moving relatively swiftly. Back in the trees they would soon be climbing up out of the river bottom. It was a deep ravine and Holly wasn’t looking forward to it. Zachariah had strapped her shoulder up as best he could whilst still leaving her with some movement, but it ached like an abscessed tooth. Luckily her dogs were not reliant on her physical handling of a sled, control over both sleigh and dogs were done with voice commands and voice commands alone. Visibility was still difficult and she peered through her goggles in an attempt to ascertain just exactly where they were. The snow was finally easing off, but dangerously, the fine fall covered deep ice, making the ground unusually treacherous.
The climb was slow and if Holly had cared to look, the view spectacular. A clean, pure sweep of ice-white snow covered the ground, whilst trees rose majestically out of the ravine to tower high as if reaching for the sky. It was picture perfect and had a Christmas card appeal, but in reality the mesmerizing scene had a hypnotic pull which she mentally fought against. Beauty mixed with danger was an irresistible combination.
Finally, upon reaching the small plateau after the climb from the river, Holly breathed a sigh of relief. They were now in a well-wooded area and here the trail became slightly easier. She flexed her arm and grimaced, her shoulder felt on fire, it had stiffened up from her holding onto the handlebar with a death-like grip.
Picking up speed, Holly urged her dogs onward. Trees flashed past as the team headed toward one
of the first of a couple of small drops into an open valley curving into the river. Blinking as glare from the ice momentarily obscured her vision she slowed her dogs and stomped hard on the brake. The trail from here was for the next ten miles reasonably easy and she relaxed slightly. Visibility had improved somewhat and she could see Zachariah just ahead of her. Time passed quickly and they seemed to fly across the ice, and taking only a couple of small stops to feed the dogs snacks, they continued to move.
Crossing the Post River glacier later in the day, Holly’s nerves were in shreds. It was pure hell, freshly fallen snow made hidden ice perilous, and even the sure-footed dogs found the trail difficult to negotiate. She could feel the sled slipping and sliding and the dogs continually seemed to be fighting for foothold. She felt fear. A fear that seemed to surround and encompass her, drying her mouth and moistening her palms. She was frightened not only for herself but for her dogs. Zachariah however, seemed to be speeding along with little effort, although, as a seasoned musher, he was more experienced in travelling under extreme conditions. With her heart in her mouth, her nerves in tatters and butterflies in her stomach, Holly finally and thankfully reached the end of the stretch. More terrible terrain followed, but none as bad as what had passed previously, and if she was a doubter before, now she certainly believed in God.
* * * *
It was some time later before they came upon open flat land where Zachariah indicated that they were going to stop.
“Whoa!” Holly shouted, applying pressure to the brake.
Stepping off the runner she plonked heavily down onto the sled’s slats and drew a shaky breath. Now that they had stopped the jitters had settled in and her hands shook. Her arm throbbing in protest, her lips chapped and her legs shaking so badly they were unable to sustain her weight, she wanted nothing more than to be at home. Suppressing her sobs took an effort, but, she could do nothing about the tears that welled in her eyes and began to trickle into her goggles.
Sleigh Ride to Love Page 6