Snowbound Hearts by Benjamin Kelly

her fingers along the front of his boxer briefs. “Yes, it’s very obvious. The signs are more subtle for a woman. You have to observe carefully.”
    Stephen pulled her onto him and lay gazing up into her eyes.
    Audrey cleared her throat as she rolled off him. “Our agreement was to get each other warm, not hot.”
    “I’ve been hot ever since you walked in the door, but I’m not complaining.”
    She jockeyed for position, making him slide over to give her some room. “Are you okay with lying here holding me and not doing anything else?”
    Stephen sighed as his heart sank. “If it makes you happy, Audrey, I’m okay with it.”
    “Thank you, Stephen. I can’t tell you how happy this makes me.”
    He closed his eyes, allowing his mind to drift. The frustration of his arousal was compounded by the knowledge that Audrey wouldn’t give him relief, at least not anytime soon. But simply having her in his arms gave him a sense of satisfaction he hadn’t expected when he woke that morning. All things considered, the day was turning out to be one of the best he could remember. There were still many secrets left to discover about Audrey, but she was beginning to reveal one truth: her relationship with her fiancé was not on solid ground.
    ***
    The increasingly dark layer of gray clouds hung in the sky, blocking out most of the sunlight. Snow continued to fall all day, sometimes heavy, sometimes just a few odd flakes here and there. As afternoon gave way to evening, Stephen built a fire in the fireplace. It didn’t put out much heat compared to the stove, but it worked wonders for atmosphere. Audrey had put on Stephen’s flannel shirt, which fit her like a short dress. She didn’t want to get back into her street clothes, but the cabin wasn’t quite warm enough for only underwear. Stephen fished out a pair of long johns and slipped into them, wondering how Audrey could stand to go bare legged, but enjoying the view none the less. He stoked up the wood-burning stove and put two sirloins on a rack suspended between two cast iron frying pans.
    Audrey strolled out of the kitchen, holding a bottle, and gazed at his contraption. “What do you call that?”
    “It’s not exactly a grill, but this will be better than baking the steaks in the oven or frying them.”
    She held up the bottle. “You didn’t tell me you had wine.”
    “Where did you find that?”
    She dusted the bottle and set it on the table. “It was in the wine rack under the cabinet. Looks like it’s been here a while. There’s no telling if it’s still any good.”
    “Well, I suppose we’ll find out. You don’t happen to have a corkscrew, do you?”
    She held up a chrome-plated corkscrew and set it with the wine.
    When Stephen finished cooking, he lit two oil lamps on the fireplace mantel and a candle on the table, then turned out the electric lights. The soft amber glow of the flames deepened the auburn color of Audrey’s hair. Her smooth, pale skin radiated sensuality. Candlelight flickered in her beautiful brown eyes as she sat across the table, gazing his way. An involuntary tremble on her pouty lips hinted that desire was rising in her heart.
    She took a sip of her wine without turning her attention away from Stephen. “Yesterday, if someone had told me that tonight I’d be snowbound in a cabin in the woods, eating steak off a paper plate with a pocket knife, drinking wine from a coffee cup, and winding down the best day of my life with a handsome stranger, I’d have said they were nuts.” She leaned across the table and kissed his lips. The diamond on her finger sparkled as she moved.
    “Audrey, I’m totally confused. Why won’t you tell me what’s going on with you and whoever gave you that rock?”
    She put her finger to his lips. “Everything is perfect. I don’t want to spoil it by talking about that. Come sit with me. I like being close to you.”
    She grasped his hand, coaxed him to the sofa, and maneuvered him into a sitting