This Winter Night

He noticed she spoke with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes, which by contrast were sad. Because he didn’t like her ex-husband he couldn’t imagine a woman not being overcome with joy after being declared free and clear of the buffoon.

He ate his soup in silence as she sipped her hot chocolate.

Although neither of them actually looked at the other, there were a lot of quick secret glances. Lauren had noticed his short, naturally dark brown hair was still damp from the shower and he had strong hands. He ate slowly, savoring each bite, which made her wonder if he did other things in that manner, as well. No rush, just lingering and appreciating, enjoying the moment. His skin was the color of cinnamon, and his eyes were dark gray, like his father’s. His photographs didn’t do him much justice, and the few times she’d seen him at public functions she had not given him much thought because after all she had been a married woman.

Colton could not help inhaling the clean feminine scent of her. Fresh out of a bath, he figured since she had opened the door in her bathrobe. Even half-frozen, he hadn’t missed that. Her silhouette was classically beautiful, the slender neck, that square chin with the dimple in its center, angling up to a full mouth with lips that looked soft and inviting. Damned if a near-death experience didn’t make you more observant, and appreciative, of things you might never have noticed before. When she breathed in and out, he imagined her full breasts heaving with desire, for him.

Once or twice while he was finishing his meal they smiled at one another, but uttered not a word. When he was done with the soup, he looked up at her. “That was wonderful. You saved me.”

Lauren laughed nervously as her eyes met his. “What was I supposed to do, let you freeze to death?”

His gaze went to her mouth. Her tongue flicked out and moistened her lower lip. She rose and reached for his bowl. “Can I get you some more?”

Suddenly, his heart was thudding in his chest, and his manhood, already going commando in his borrowed jeans, began to stir. He knew he had to get out of her presence before he said or did something that would embarrass them both.

“Um, no, thank you. I think I’ll just go to bed. I’m more tired than I thought.”

If he wasn’t mistaken, she looked relieved at his announcement. Was she feeling the same attraction he was feeling?

“Of course,” she said, hurriedly crossing the room to put the bowl in the sink. “You know the way. If you need an extra blanket, they’re on the top shelf in the closet.”

“Good night, then, and thank you,” Colton said hoarsely.

“Good night,” she said softly, chancing a shy glance in his direction. “Hopefully, we’ll have better weather tomorrow.”

Chapter 2

Colton got all the way to the door of the guest room before he realized he hadn’t asked Lauren if the phones were working. He could not with good conscience go to bed without attempting to let his family know he was safe.

Lauren was washing dishes at the sink when he returned to the kitchen. She heard him enter and placed a dish on the draining board before turning to face him. “Is there a problem?”

“My cell phone’s out of juice and I have no way of recharging it. Do you have a working phone I can use?”

She was drying her hands on a dish towel as she walked toward him. “The landline’s down due to the storm, but I have a satellite phone you can use.”

“A satellite phone?” Colton mused. “You have to be outside when you use that, right, underneath open sky?”

“Mmm-hmm,” Lauren confirmed with a smile. “I take it with me when I hike in the woods or the mountains.”

She hung the dish towel on a rack attached to the oven door and walked over to the large window in the kitchen and drew aside the curtains. The wind had died down and it wasn’t snowing any longer. Colton joined her at the window.

“It’s not as bad as it was out there earlier,” he said contemplatively.

“There’s a hooded, insulated jacket in the front hall closet that should fit you. You won’t even feel the cold in that baby,” Lauren told him.

“All right,” Colton agreed, “I’ll go put on my shoes and try on that jacket.”

“And I’ll go get the phone,” Lauren said. He watched her walk away, the gentle sway of her hips a thing of beauty.

They met up again at the front hall closet where she helped him into the jacket, reminding him of his mother bundling him up for the cold when he was a child. Then she explained how to use the phone. “It’s simple, and it works anywhere in the world, so there shouldn’t be a problem reaching your mother.”

“How’d you know I wanted to phone my mother?”

“Your father just passed away and you’re missing, whom else would you want to phone? You’re not married, are you?”

“No, I’ve never been that lucky,” he said, marveling at how easy it was to talk to her.

She smiled sweetly as she handed him the phone and said, “Tell her my thoughts and prayers are with her.”

* * *

Lauren had been right, the phone was a cinch to use. He got his mother on the first try. She was sick with worry. “Colton, oh, my God, where are you?”

“I’m in Bryson City, Mom, at the cabin, or rather I’m at your neighbor’s cabin. Our cabin didn’t have power, so Lauren offered me her guest room.”

“That’s hours from here,” Veronica Riley cried. “And I heard there was a snowstorm expected in that area tonight.”

“Blizzard is more like it,” Colton said. He looked up at the sky. Stars were starting to peek through the cloud cover. “But things are clearing up. With luck, I’ll be home tomorrow.”

“Lauren is a sweetheart,” Veronica said. “Have you told her about your father?”

“Yes, and she cried,” he said, his throat getting full again. “She says her thoughts and prayers are with you.”

“Of course they are,” said Veronica fondly. “It’s not that I’m not glad she was there when you needed her, but why in the world is she up there alone in that godforsaken weather?”

“She told me she wanted to get away from well-meaning people sympathizing with her over her divorce.”

“She’s divorced?” Veronica sounded startled. “I didn’t hear anything about it.”

Colton didn’t want to go into the nondisclosure clause that Lauren had earlier told him about over the phone. “It was kept quiet,” was all he said. A moment of silence passed. “Mom, I’m using a satellite phone under the stars. I’d better go. I’ll call you again tomorrow.”

“Okay, baby, I’m glad you were able to let us know where you are and that you are safe. You’re in good hands,” Veronica said confidently.

“Good night, Mom,” said Colton with warmth.

“Good night,” said Veronica softly.

He’d gone a few yards from the cabin to make his call and now he turned and carefully walked back. The snow came halfway up his legs with each step. He took it slowly, not wanting to fall down in the powder. He’d had enough of the cold for one night.

He guessed Lauren had been watching him from a window because as soon as he reached the cabin, she was there in the doorway, wearing a hooded jacket as if she was ready to come to his rescue should he need her. “Hey, did everything go okay?”

“Yeah, no problem,” he assured her.

“Good,” said Lauren, “Then get in here. It’s freezing!”

Colton was more than glad to oblige. Feeling sure of his footing, he jauntily put one foot on the bottom step, slipped, lost his balance, and went flailing backward, arms windmilling in an attempt to regain his equilibrium. He wound up on his back in the snow. He was thankful the snow was all he’d landed on.

He found the whole situation ridiculous and started laughing uproariously.

Lauren, in her rubber-soled boots, was off the porch and by his side in a matter of seconds. Laughing, she helped him to his feet and brushed snow off his coat. “Are you all right?”

As they held each other upright, Colton peered into her beautiful face. “No, I haven’t been all right all day. My father’s gone and I seem to have lost my senses. I drove up here on a whim and ended up unknowingly intruding on your solitude. But now that I’ve met you and put a personality to the image of you I’ve seen over the years, I find that I’m strongly attracted to you. I’m definitely not all right.”

Lauren’s heartbeat accelerated at his admission. “Well, that’s normal,” she said, her voice warm and gentle. “We’re both hurting, needing comfort. And we’re here alone. The situation is rife with potential for sexual attraction. I’ve been checking you out, too.”

They took the steps together and made it to the door without another mishap. Inside, Lauren shut the door and they quickly removed their jackets. She then busied herself hanging the damp jackets on the coat tree, appearing to Colton that she wanted to drop the subject.

But he wasn’t ready to do that just yet. “And what do you think?”

She looked up at him with big brown eyes and said as innocently as she could muster, “About what?”

Colton smiled. “You know what.”

She turned away and began walking toward the back of the cabin. “I think you know you’re hot, Colton Riley. How could anyone not? You look in a mirror every day.”

“Are you saying I’m conceited?”

“No, I’m saying I’m hot, you’re hot, but we should just leave it at that. Any further discussion could lead nowhere good.”

“Oh, I think it might lead to somewhere good and something memorable,” he contradicted her. “And you think you’re hot, too?”

This made her turn to stare at him. “Are you saying I’m not?”

“Hell, no. I think you’re smokin’ hot. I like the fact that you don’t deny it and try, like a lot of women I’ve met, to fish for compliments. You’re confident in your sexuality. I like that.”

“Honey, there is nothing wrong with my sexuality. Just because my ex was a cheating bastard doesn’t mean I wasn’t holding up my end!”

“Touchy subject, huh?” asked Colton. “You don’t have to convince me that your ex is a bastard. I don’t like him, never have.”

“He doesn’t like you, either.”

There was a calculating light in her eyes that made him wonder something. “Did he tell you how he cheated me out of several contracts?”

She harrumphed. “I didn’t know and didn’t want to know anything about his business dealings. And if you think you can get back at him for some dirty deal by sleeping with me, think again. He doesn’t care about me. I’m a starter wife, his first wife, but apparently not his last. He’s already engaged to number two.”

“I don’t even think like that,” Colton vehemently denied. “My wanting to sleep with you has nothing to do with Adam Eckhart. Does your wanting to sleep with me have anything to do with the fact that he hates me and if it got back to him it might piss him off?”

“No!” Lauren cried.

“Then you do want to sleep with me?”

“Yes, but...”

He moved in. Lauren looked him in the eyes. Her stare was penetrating, as though she could see right through him. He found her scrutiny thrilling and invited it. He had nothing to hide. He wanted her to plumb deep and discover that for herself. He didn’t wonder why he was unafraid of being so vulnerable. He just knew she made him grateful to be alive at this moment.

At last, she spoke. “There have to be some ground rules. You don’t have a girlfriend, do you?”

“There is no one special in my life,” he assured her.

She was looking at him suspiciously. “I won’t have a part in another woman getting hurt over infidelity.”

“Scout’s honor,” he said with a straight face.

She seemed to be satisfied with his answer. “Okay, then. What happens here stays here.”

“Done,” he promised.

“You can’t tell anyone.”

“Understood,” he agreed. “That goes for you, too. Not even your girlfriends.”

“Not even your boys,” she countered.

“Not even your priest,” he said.

“Not even God,” she said with a smile.

“I think He already knows,” said Colton as he backed her against the wall and planted a sensual, bone-melting kiss on her sweet mouth.

Bodies pressed closer and warmth ensued shortly afterward. By some silent consensus they agreed that this seduction would be slow and deliberate. When they came up for air from that first kiss, their eyes met and they smiled. It was confirmed. They were a good fit. She unbuttoned his shirt, curious to know whether his chest was hairy or smooth. She was rewarded with a hairy, muscular chest and a washboard stomach.

He was patient as she ran her hands over his pectorals and admired his biceps after she had finished removing the shirt. “I like your guns,” she said.

“Speaking of guns, you don’t keep yours under your pillow, do you? I don’t like those kinds of surprises in bed.”

She laughed sexily. “No, it’s back in the safe. The only thing exploding in my bed tonight will be you.”

After that there wasn’t very much talk. She took him to her bedroom, which was two doors down from his. When he walked in the room, he saw that her bed had been turned down already, and there was a book on it. She had obviously planned to read until she fell asleep.

He watched as she began removing her clothing piece by piece.

First, her jeans, revealing long, shapely legs and a see-through pair of panties. Then her blouse, under which she wore a lacy cream-colored bra that matched her bikini panties. Her body was lush and feminine yet athletic and she had an ass that a man like him would love to hold in a fit of passion.

After she’d gotten down to her underwear, her gaze fell to his lower half. He unbuttoned the jeans he wore but did not pull them past his hips. “I’m not wearing anything underneath,” he warned.

“I’m a grown woman,” she told him. “You haven’t got anything I haven’t seen before.”

She removed her bra to make him feel more comfortable. Her breasts were full and everything he desired, not too big, nor too small, just right for palming in his big hands, and the erect nipples were ripe for licking. His mouth watered.

He pulled the waistband of the jeans down past his hips and heard the audible intake of breath from her. He was well-endowed, but not monstrously so. It was nice to know she liked what she saw.

Lauren, suddenly faced with the manifestation of her wanton desire, was having second thoughts. She was pretending to be someone she was not. Adam was the only man she’d ever made love to. She had made it seem to Colton as if she had more experience with men than she actually had. Adam was not nearly as blessed as Colton was when it came to sexual “equipment.” She wasn’t sure if she could accommodate him.

Too much time had passed with Lauren staring at him for Colton’s comfort. “Lauren, is something wrong?”

“No,” she denied.

He walked toward her, totally naked, his muscles flexing enticingly, his manhood semi-erect. She couldn’t help it. Her body reacted to the sensual image he made. The man was sex personified, and she’d been too long without a lover, a good lover. She was beginning to wonder if Adam had ever been a good lover. After all, she had nothing to compare him to.

There was only one way to find out.

She removed her panties, tremblingly. Colton stopped in his tracks and took all of her in. He sighed with satisfaction. She was not one to mow the lawn, so to speak. She was beautifully natural, which was refreshing as far as he was concerned.

There seemed to be nothing separating them now as he pulled her into his arms, and they fell onto the bed. She molded her body against his. He was fully erect now, and their bodies, his skin a darker cinnamon than hers, wrapped themselves around each other. Their kisses were deep. The taste was like a drug, and her body writhing beneath his worked him into a sexual frenzy.

The smell of her, the silkiness of her skin fed his need. When she opened her legs to him, somewhere in the back of his mind, he remembered condoms. He didn’t know if she had any. He hadn’t even thought about them until now. But it wouldn’t do. No matter how much he wanted her he wouldn’t risk getting her pregnant just to satisfy his needs. “Do you have any condoms?” he asked huskily.

“They’re in the nightstand drawer,” she said with a gesture of her head. He got up and looked in the drawer she’d indicated. Once he had the condom in his hands he tore it open and put it on. He looked back at her to see that she was watching him. He supposed he should feel self-conscious. They were strangers in every sense of the word, especially in a physical sense, but this felt natural.

But he was a man who’d been brought up right. He was a gentleman. So when he pulled her into his arms once more, he looked into her eyes and asked, “Are you sure about this?”

“Yes,” she breathed. The expression in her eyes left him no further doubt.

Her willingness pleased him, and his penis grew harder at the thought of penetrating her. But first, her pleasure. He got on his knees and pulled her toward him to the edge of the bed. Her legs were splayed wide, and it was apparent that she was ready for him from the wetness of her sex. He’d been wondering what she tasted like and now he bent his head and devoured her. His tongue moved slowly around her clitoris, inciting a current of electrically charged sensual pleasure throughout her body. She felt it down to her toes. Her moans were low at first and grew louder as her impending orgasm drew nearer.

He left her clitoris and licked the sides of her labia. This made her thighs tremble. She whispered, “Yes, yes, yes...”

Though he was happy she was enjoying his efforts, he wasn’t satisfied with that reaction alone. He wouldn’t be content until she started calling on a deity. He redoubled his efforts. She rose up on her elbows, “Oh, my God, what are you doing to me?”

He merely smiled.

When she climaxed, she not only released pent-up sexual energy, but she also came to the realization that there was a lot she didn’t know about sex, and here was the man who could teach her.

Colton got up and while she was in that malleable state just after an orgasm, when your mind was blown and sensual pleasures were magnified, he entered her. She was just as he imagined she would be—hot, tight and more than capable of handling him.

Never had Lauren had such an enthusiastic, energetic lover, one who seemed to give even more than he got. Her body reveled in it. Felt as if it had been waiting for him all her life. She knew that this feeling was what people were trying to describe when they said that sex was the closest thing to heaven on earth. She’d never felt so alive.

Colton couldn’t believe his luck. This woman was his equal in every way. Not content to lie there and accept his thrusts, she was giving it back to him with as much fervor as he was giving it to her.

When he came it was a monumental moment for him. He didn’t know if it was because his emotions were so intense tonight after the day he’d had, or there was something unique about Lauren. She was smiling up at him. She looked exhausted but supremely happy. He was glad he’d had something to do with that.

Chapter 3

“I’ve done it now,” Lauren said jokingly as they lay in bed wrapped in each other’s arms. They’d gotten up and showered together and climbed back in bed.

Colton smiled. “What have you done?”

“I’ve become the Gaines girl who’s not only divorced but who, after the divorce, jumped right in bed with the first available man. I left Raleigh to get away from it all and a hunk shows up on my doorstep.”

“Life isn’t fair,” Colton said sympathetically.

Lauren laughed softly. “Darn right, it’s not. I was determined to give up men.”

He reached out and brushed a tendril of hair behind her left ear. “How long would that have lasted? You’re a vital, passionate woman, Lauren. I can tell that much from the little time we’ve spent together. Don’t let Eckhart turn you off men.”

“Please don’t say that name,” said Lauren.

“All right, I’ll just say ‘the asshole’ from now on,” Colton said.

“Don’t even refer to him at all. I came here to forget he exists.”

“Then why’d you come to a place you shared?”

“He was rarely here,” Lauren explained. “He bought the place and came a couple of times, met your parents who, as you can imagine, gave him a cool reception. Then after a while, he stopped coming at all. I didn’t care. What he didn’t know was that I had an ulterior motive when he announced he was buying the property.”

“Which was?”

“My granddaddy Beck, my mother’s dad, lives up here near the Cherokee reservation. He owns a lodge. I go to see him whenever I come up here. Grandma died about five years ago and he doesn’t have any family in the area. My sisters and I make sure one of us goes to see him at least once a month. I was delighted when my ex bought this place. And, thanks to you, I got it in the divorce settlement.”

“Thanks to me, how?” Colton wondered.

“Because he got no reaction out of you when we moved across the pond from your place, he lost interest and gave it to me without a fight.”

Colton understood. “So when you come up here, it’s like going home.”

“Exactly,” she answered with a contented sigh.

“The only place I’m able to feel that way is my parents’ home,” Colton told her. “I own a home but it’s just a house. A very nice house, mind you, but it has no sentimental value.”

“Maybe you haven’t been in it long enough,” she suggested.

“I bought it six years ago,” he replied. He smiled at her. “You’re an architect. Maybe you can come take a look at it and tell me what’s missing about its design that’s preventing me from caring about it.”

“That implies that we’re going to take this further than this nonreality bubble we’re presently in,” Lauren warned him.

“Is that what you think is happening here?” Colton asked, the humor gone out of his tone and his eyes. Up until now they had been talking good-naturedly. True, her insistence about keeping this a secret had indicated that she believed this was to be a one-night stand, but after making love he no longer wanted it to be just that. He envisioned seeing her again, slowly getting to know her. He had assumed she felt the same way.

“Wasn’t that what we agreed on earlier? That this remains our little secret?”

“Yes, Lauren, but I thought you were thinking of your reputation. I didn’t believe that you were really going to kick me to the curb afterward. Not if we both enjoyed ourselves. And I know you enjoyed yourself.”

“I did enjoy myself,” she confirmed as she freed her arms from his and sat up in bed. “I simply didn’t want to set myself up for disappointment. I wanted you to know that there were no strings.”

“Just pleasure,” he said as he sat up while maintaining eye contact with her. “I understand not wanting to be hurt, Lauren. Believe it or not, I’ve been hurt before, too. On the other hand, I don’t want you to sell yourself short. Of course I want more than a tryst in the mountains.”

“You say that now after sex, but you may feel differently when we get back to Raleigh and to our everyday lives. Plus there’s the trauma you are under due to your father’s death. People do strange things when they’re grieving.”

“And you’re worried that you might have slept with me just to get your ex out of your system, is that it?” he wanted to know.

Lauren shook her head, but her eyes told a different story. She was undecided. “I’m an emotional wreck right now,” she admitted. “I don’t know up from down. I only know that I enjoyed being with you tonight.”

“That’s an honest answer,” he said softly as he pulled her back into his arms.

Lauren smiled again as she got comfortable in his embrace. “Let’s talk about anything except what might happen after we get back to Raleigh. For instance, how old are you?”

“I’ll be thirty-five in October,” he easily replied. “And you?”

“I’ll be thirty next month.”

“How do you feel about that?”