Hayden laughed. “They won’t announce until Sunday night at the earliest, but we’re snowed in today. I think we should get dressed and go play.”
“You want me to freeze my ass off in the snow?”
“I like your ass. You’d better not do anything to it.”
“You’re the one who wants me to risk it in the cold.”
Hayden shook his head. “You really don’t do well with cold, do you?”
“Not at all.”
“We’ll layer you up. You can wear some of my ski gear.”
The exuberance on his face at the prospect of playing outside in the snow won her over. She wasn’t a fan, but she was sure it would be better to be out there freezing with him than inside refusing him something he clearly enjoyed.
So Liz threw on layer after layer of clothing, several pairs of socks under her boots, and then Hayden added gloves, a scarf, and an oversize beanie. She felt ridiculous, but she was practically sweating inside, so maybe it would do in the cold.
They walked out the back door and were hit with a bitter wind. Liz shivered despite the layers.
“My nose is cold,” she murmured under her breath.
Hayden heard and just laughed as he stomped out through the snow.
Liz surveyed Hayden’s backyard. It was small, since it was just a college house that dead-ended into a wooded lot. The surrounding houses had fences built around their backyards, so Hayden’s looked partially enclosed. Everything in sight had a layer of soft white snow on it. Hayden’s footprints were the only things that marred the picturesque view.
“Hey,” Hayden called.
When Liz turned toward him, she got a snowball right to her side. She grunted on impact and then gasped. “I can’t believe you. Jerk!”
Another snowball hit her and she glared at him before reaching down to grab a fistful for herself. She chucked it his direction, missing him by a few feet, and he laughed at her.
“Come on. You can do better than that,” he said, throwing another snowball at her.
She lobbed another misguided snowball his way and growled in frustration. “If I had a tennis racket, I would kick your ass,” she yelled, stomping out through the snow toward him.
Liz managed to duck his next throw and scooped up a heap of snow, ran, and tossed all of it into his face. Hayden cried out and feverishly tried to brush the snow off of his skin. Some of it was ducking under his shirt and he hopped up and down as the cold slithered down his chest.
“You’re going to get it for that,” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her in close.
Liz stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cold lips. “I’m already freezing because of you,” she said softly.
“No, you’re not. Forget about it. We still need to make a snowman and snow angels and build an igloo.”
“I am not building an igloo,” she said with a shake of her head. “You’re nuts.” She turned to head back inside. No way could she stand the cold much longer. Her nose was already an ice cube and she hadn’t even been out that long.
Hayden grabbed her arm and stopped her progression. “You can’t leave already. At least help me with the snowman,” he pleaded. His eyes were wide and almost green in the light. His cheeks and nose were flushed pink, and the corners of his mouth tugged up into a smile.
“How do you do that?” she asked.
“Do what?”
“Win.”
“I always win,” he said. “What did I win?”
“Where do we start on the snowman?” she grumbled.
The afternoon disappeared in the blink of an eye. One minute they were building a lopsided snowman with a pickle for a nose and Oreos for eyes, having a snowball fight, and finding enough extra space to create snow angels. The next minute Hayden was helping her peel off her wet outer layers of clothing while she desperately tried to bring feeling back into her fingers and toes.
Snow started to fall again as Liz snuggled up next to Hayden on the couch. The fire was roaring before them and each had a mug of hot chocolate cooling on the coffee table. They popped in a movie and Liz nestled deeper under the mountain of blankets they had dragged from the closet. Hayden stroked her hair softly and Liz fought sleep.
Despite what had happened last night and how awkward the morning had been, she felt content. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been so happy and satisfied. She didn’t need anything else in that moment but Hayden’s arm wrapped around her while she was lying back against his chest.
She felt peaceful, as if all her concerns had momentarily vanished and she was awash with a newfound belief in her own relationship. She fit with Hayden as perfectly as she did in his arms. It all just made sense.
Hayden’s lips found her ear and kissed softly down to her earlobe. He sucked it into his mouth and she breathed out heavily, her body instantly pushing back against his on the couch. His hand trailed lightly down her side as his mouth moved to kiss along the gentle curve of her neck.
Liz’s heart picked up tempo quickly. The sleep she had been fighting to hold back disappeared entirely when his hand skimmed the front of her pants. Her body arched against him, urging him to continue. Taking her invitation, he delved beneath the material and slid his finger against the soft material of her thong. Liz swallowed hard, unable to keep her breathing under control. His finger brushed against her clit and she moaned in the back of her throat.
Ignoring the desperate bucking of her hips to get him to return to that spot, he ran his hand slowly up her right thigh and then the left. Her body arched against him. She was already turned on from his teasing kisses against her neck and the way he was moving his hands just out of reach.
Then he was there, slipping his finger under her thong and swiping it against her already wet lips. Fuck! How was she so turned on? She could feel the beginning of an orgasm already rippling through her body, but with those teasing touches, Hayden could hold her off as long as he kept it up.
He circled her sensitive area with his thumb and she dropped her head back. Her eyes closed of their own accord. All she could think about was how close she was. She wouldn’t even need his tongue at this point. If he just put his fingers up in her, she would find the release she so desperately craved.
“Hayden,” she murmured as he kept up the gentle swirling motion. “Fuck! I’m so close. Finger me.”
He turned his head toward her and they started kissing just as he plunged two fingers deep inside of her. She gasped at the feel of him, and he used the opportunity to stick his tongue inside her mouth. They kissed as he started to move in and out while continuing to press her toward the edge. Her body shuddered from the pressure as a climax hit her and she clenched around his fingers.
“You’re kind of hot when you tell me what to do,” he whispered against her neck.
Liz smiled lazily and adjusted how she was sitting. Her ass rubbed against his dick and her breath caught. Shit! He wasn’t kidding. He was rock-hard through his pants.
She rolled over to face him and started kissing him again. Her hand moved into his pants. She gripped his dick in her hand and he groaned her name. It was seductive—she really fucking liked the way he said Lizzie. She pumped her hand up and down a few times before brushing her thumb against the tip. He responded instantly, bucking against her hand.
Bending down, Liz started pulling his pants off his hips and down his legs. Then her mouth found the tip and she swished her tongue along the sensitive skin. She brought him all the way into her mouth and then started up a rhythm—in then out, swish, in and out. His body responded wonderfully to the way she pulled all the way back and then wrapped her lips around him until they met the base. He must have been really fucking turned on, because his body was already telling her that he was close.
“Lizzie,” he said, stilling her where she sat.
She almost ignored him, but something in his voice made her pull back.