A Soft Kiss in Winter

by Lily Graison

  Her voice was barely above a whisper when she said, “He died in the middle of nowhere and I was alone.” She closed her eyes and tucked her head underneath his chin. “We were naive and foolish and it cost Thomas his life and nearly my own.”

  “And the three men I found attacking you?”

  Memories of those three caused a chill to run up her spine. “After I buried Thomas I lingered for a while. I had nowhere to go and no idea which way to go even if I did. When I saw those three on the horizon I thought I was saved but as they drew closer, I began to worry. I was alone and had no way to defend myself. The wagon was under a cluster of tall trees, next to a wide stream and I’d hoped they hadn’t seen me, but they kept getting closer. I realized they were headed for the water. Fear overrode rational thinking so I packed up and headed toward the mountains Thomas told me to keep in sight. The men caught up to me sooner than I thought they would and I realized they were chasing me so I ran the ox as fast as the poor thing could go and saw what looked like a road of some sort and hoped I’d be long gone before they caught up.”

  “Didn’t happen.”

  “No. By the time I realized the trail led up the mountain it was too late. I had nowhere to turn around so I kept going. The wheel Thomas had patched back together didn’t take the rough terrain well. I had been there less than a day when you found me, but it was long enough for me to think I was going to die.”

  I looked at him and hoped he could see the gratitude in my eyes. “I can’t ever thank you enough for showing up when you did. I could give you every possession I owned and it still wouldn’t be enough.”

  “You don’t owe me anything.”

  Yes, she did. She owed him her life whether he believed it or not. She leaned up and kissed him. It was just a soft brush of her mouth against his own but the feeling behind it felt more intimate than any of the others they’d shared. When she pulled away, she laid her head back to his chest and let every worry, doubt, and ounce of fear she’d lived with go. It was time to put it all behind her and start afresh.

  He pulled her shift onto her shoulder where it had slipped down her arm. She was still wearing it, the material twisted up to her waist. A glance down the length of his body and she snorted a laugh.

  “What’s so funny?” That tiny laugh grew as he lifted his head. “What?”

  Her shift was around her waist, her bottom bare for all the world to see while the rest of her was modestly covered and Gideon’s trousers were around his knees, his booted feet hanging off the edge of the bed while his shirt was button nearly to the collar.

  He leaned up on one elbow and forced her to her back. Laughter danced in his eyes as he stared down at her. “Tell me what’s so funny.”

  She grinned. “We should either dress or continue getting undressed.” She flicked a quick look down at them. He did the same and smiled.

  “If I get to choose,” he said. “I say undress.”

  Undressing sounded like a fine plan to him.

  Victoria’s shift was untied, the creamy expanse of her skin bared to his gaze. Gideon pushed the edges of the material away, exposing both her breasts. His hand trembled when he reached for her, tracing a fingertip around the soft pink areola surrounding her nipple. Her skin was soft, her complexion so milky white it looked like porcelain. He’d never seen another woman with skin so flawless or smooth.

  Her nipples hardened as he ran his fingers along her breast. He purposely didn’t touch them but watched instead as the skin drew tighter, harder until the soft peaks were blushed a rosy pink.

  Watching her face he lowered his head, flicking his tongue across the extended nub before sucking it between his lips. Her back arched, her eyes closing as she ran her fingers through his hair and held him to her. As much as he wanted to take her again, he wanted to erase every fear and doubt she had more. Her guilt hung between them and he didn’t want her thinking of her dead husband while she was with him. He wanted her every thought to be here, in this moment, in the pleasure he was giving her.

  There wasn’t much of her skin he didn’t touch or kiss and when she was panting for breath and squirming on the blankets beneath him he sat up and untied his boots, kicking them to the floor. He stood, removed his pants and watched her face as she stared at him.

  Her gaze devoured every inch of him, his cock growing harder under her hungry perusal. He held his hand out and helped her off the bed. A soft brush of his fingers against her shoulders was all it took to slide the chemise down the length of her body and he looked his fill. Her breasts were high and not overly large, her waist small and tapered and the thatch of brown curls between her legs—

  He closed his eyes and kissed her, pulling her flush against his body so he could feel her warmth pressed along his skin. Their touches grew bolder, their breath panted out until he broke away and pulled the blankets back on the bed, then picked her up and laid her down.

  Unlike their first joining, he took his time now, his hands and lips roaming her flesh until she urged him between her open thighs. He hissed a breath as he entered her, her heat near scorching as they rocked together, their limbs locked tight, the movement of their bodies fluid and slick with perspiration.

  He’d never get enough of her. Every small moan and sigh, every quick breath and whispered word she said was burned into his memory. The feel of her naked flesh against his own, her arms holding him tight and her fingers in his hair, was locked away inside his head. He didn’t know how long he’d get to keep her but for now, she was his, and he’d love her until every doubt, fear and regret he ever felt was forgotten. Until nothing remained but Victoria. Until he’d memorized the softness of her skin and the way she looked at him as if there’s not another person in her entire world but him. He’d love her as long as she’d let him and commit to memory every single moment of it, every inhaled breath and every soft whisper of his name as it fell from her lips.

  He’d love her until every shattered piece of his heart was mended and beat only for her.

  Chapter 14

  Waking up naked in someone’s arms was the closest to heaven she’d ever been, especially when the arms holding her tight were Gideon’s.

  The sun was peeking over the mountain and spilling light through the bedroom window. The day before replayed inside her head as she lay there thinking. So much had happened between them since the kiss the day before. Every inch of her body had been explored and if she concentrated hard enough, she’d swear parts of her still tingled.

  Gideon stirred and pulled her to him, tucking her head underneath his chin while his fingers dug into her hair. His skin was warm and soft and the heat felt clean to her toes. The hair on his chest and stomach was more temptation than she could resist and she ran the pads of her fingers across his skin. The lower she touched on his stomach, the more rapid his heart beat. She listened to it, the steady rhythm increasing as she lightly scraped a fingernail beneath his navel, her fingers following the trail of hair down to his groin. He sucked in a breath, his body stiffening as she slipped her hand under the blankets and touched him.

  Numerous blankets covered them and even though it wasn’t overly warm in the room, she pushed them away wanting to see him. She exposed him to the knees and looked her fill when he was bared to her gaze. She ran one finger down the growing length of him, tracing the small veins while a warm heat filled her belly when it jumped at her light touch.

  She wrapped her hand around him, stroking his flesh from root to tip, his quick intake of breath and the grip he had on her hair emboldening her. Her grip tightened ever so much, the moan she drew from the back of his throat causing her own body to ache.

  Kisses were pressed against his chest and across his stomach and he sucked in a breath when she kept kissing lower. She didn’t have much experience with coupling but Thomas had been demanding in bed and she’d done everything he’d asked of her and he never once complained.

  Gideon had tasted her several times during the night and it had felt amazing. Now,
she wanted him writhing beneath her, his breath panted out while her name fell from his lips as pleasure rode every inch of his body. She wanted the taste of him in her mouth.

  Her lips trailed lower, her tongue darting out to taste Gideon’s skin and when she slid down the bed and kissed the tip of him, his body stiffened as he gasped.

  “Victoria…”

  She licked the end of him and looked up. He was staring at her. When their eyes locked, she took him inside her mouth and let the noises he made guide her to what he liked and didn’t. He was too large to fit all of him inside her mouth but she took as much as she could, wrapping her fist around the base and sucking while working her way up and down his length.

  His hips came off the bed, his fingers digging into her hair again and a strangled noise filled the room as he pushed himself inside her mouth and pulled out again, repeating the action long minutes before sitting up, dragging her up the length of his body.

  The kiss he gave her was ravenous, the near desperate feel of it sending tingles racing along her limbs as he pulled her against his chest.

  “Straddle my hips.”

  His husky command was followed by him tugging her forward. She draped her leg across his and slid closer, the length of him nestled against the center of her. He lifted her enough she could feel him slide between her legs, the tip of him nudging her damp curls. She reached between them, took him in hand and guided him inside.

  A low groan crawled up her throat as he filled her, her hips moving in an effort to take more of him in. When she was flush in his lap, she pushed on his chest until he laid back down. He stared up at her, the lust so heavy in his eyes, every part of her skin heated. She rounded her hips, one hand on his chest, the other braced behind her on his leg and she never took her eyes off of him as she rode him.

  Her nipples hardened under his intense gaze, tingles making them ache when he reached up to cup both her breasts in his hands, his forefinger and thumb pinching the small buds and causing shards of pleasure to race straight to her core.

  She rode the pleasure with him, closing her eyes and just feeling him inside her, beneath her, his hand caressing her flesh and felt close to coming undone when he shifted, raising his hips off the bed to join the frantic motion of her hips. He made a sound deep in his throat and surged up into her. The push and pull of their hips left her feeling desperate, her limbs alive and tingling, her heart pounding as her stomach felt as if it caved in and a burst of pleasure tore its way through her body, radiating from where they were joined and shooting outward. The scream crawling up her throat was released before she could stop it as she threw her head back, lost in the sensation as Gideon’s hips rose and fell beneath her, a deep growl spilling from his lips moments before he stiffened, held her against him and jerked several times before going still.

  They were both panting for breath, the chill in the room cooling her heated skin and when she could think clearly, she looked down at his face. His eyes were closed, his mouth open and curved at the ends just a fraction, and the look of pure bliss on his face caused her to smile. He looked up at her and tugged her forward until she was flush against his chest. Their breathing evened out, but tiny zaps still fired in her nerves. Her fingers curled into her palm before she tucked it under her chin.

  The entire time they’d been on the mountain, Victoria’s only thought was getting to town, contacting her parents, and going home but now—

  She kissed his chest and slid off of him to lay at his side, pulling the blankets up around them once again. She stroked his skin as the question, what did all this mean? ran through her head. Were they still going down the mountain? Was this just an interlude or was it the beginning of something more? Sleeping skin to skin and waking every morning to his kisses and the feel of his body next to hers was something she could certainly get used to but did he want the same?

  They laid in the stillness of the breaking dawn until her belly growled. Gideon kissed her long and thoroughly, then crawled from bed, slipped on his trousers and told her to stay put. When he walked back into the bedroom half an hour later, he held a large platter in his hands that held two bowls and two cups. The scent of coffee and something sweet filled the air.

  She pulled the sheet over her breasts as she sat up and leaned back against the headboard. “What’s all this?” she asked as he crawled onto the bed and set the platter down.

  “This,” he said, handing her a mug, “is breakfast in bed.”

  She grinned. “I’ve not had breakfast in bed in years.”

  “Well, I’ve never made anyone breakfast in bed so you’ll have to let me know what I did wrong.”

  Victoria took a sip of the coffee and smiled. He’d added sugar. She wouldn’t have ever thought she’d get used to the taste of coffee after so many years of drinking tea but as the days wore on, it was becoming the perfect pick-me-up every morning.

  The coffee warmed her clean to the bone and she spent several minutes sipping it before setting it down and picking up one of the bowls on the platter. She’d never been a fan of oats but these looked different than the way the cook back home made them. A small sniff told her this was where the sweet scent in the air was coming from. “The only thing I see wrong is this bowl doesn’t have bacon and eggs in it.”

  He smiled. “I can run to town and pick you up some but it’ll be a long wait.”

  She dug her spoon in and tasted what he’d fixed and closed her eyes when the flavor burst in her mouth. It was sweet. “What did you put in this?”

  “A bit of honey and cinnamon.”

  She didn’t say another word, but ate and drank her sweetened coffee and every glance of Gideon she stole caused her heart to flutter as she found him staring back at her. She wasn’t sure what it was between them now but there was no denying what she’d started to suspect earlier. She was falling for him hard and fast. Question was—did he feel the same?

  Finding those men attacking Victoria and realizing he was going to have to take her to town had stressed him like nothing had in years, but as Gideon sat on his bed and watched her, he would do it all over again, ten-fold.

  He wasn’t sure if his interest in her was because he’d lived alone and isolated from others for so long, or if it was because of her. There was no denying she was beautiful, especially now with her hair sleep-tousled and draped around her bare shoulders. She was the loveliest thing he’d ever seen and he couldn’t stop staring at her. Every time their eyes met, she’d give him a shy smile and blush the prettiest pink before looking away and he wanted to snatch their breakfast bowls away and tumble her back to the sheets and brand every inch of her skin with kisses. He didn’t think she’d have any objections but how long would it take before she did?

  “I’m tired of stew,” he said. “I thought I’d try to do a bit of hunting today. What to come with me?”

  She met his gaze, then looked at the still healing wounds on his chest. “Are you well enough to go hunting?”

  He chuckled. “If I’m well enough for all the activity we’ve engaged in over the last ten hours, I think walking through the woods will be a breeze.” She blushed again before looking away. “Don’t you?”

  Her face was bright red before she grinned and looked his way. “I suppose you’re right.”

  He laughed and didn’t say another word as they finished eating. When they were done, he carried everything back into the kitchen, ran water over the bowls and left them to soak before heading back to the bedroom to dress. Walking in on Victoria in nothing but her thin shift, her breasts and the brown curls between her legs visible to his gaze, he debated on tossing her back onto the bed.

  She paused in tying her shift closed and looked at him. Something heated moved in her eyes as she stared at him and although he’d had her countless times the night before and once already this morning, he wanted her again. From that look he saw in her eyes, she wanted him as well.

  Instead of dressing, he unhooked his trousers and let them fall to the floor. “
Hunting can wait,” he said as he crossed the room and kissed her.

  Chapter 15

  For untold countless days in a row, Victoria woke sore in all the right places. She buried her face into the pillow and smiled. Gideon was flush against her back, his arm tight around her waist, knees bent and tucked in behind her own. After a week of waking just like this every morning, she’d given up all thoughts of climbing the rest of the way down the mountain. She was happy for the first time in months and she never wanted any of this to end.

  The sun had barely peeked over the mountain, deep shadows still lingering outside the window. Light snow flurries hit the glass and frosted but she was warm, nestled beneath the blankets with a strong, incredibly caring, handsome man and she never wanted it to end. She sighed.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Grabbing his hand, she pulled it up to rest under her chin. “Nothing’s wrong.”

  “Hmmm.” He mumbled something against her hair and hugged her closer.

  They lay in the stillness of the early morning light for well over an hour before they began to stir, Gideon brushing her hair away to lay soft kisses on her neck until she felt him harden against her backside.

  She wiggled against him until he groaned. “Surely you can’t possibly—“

  “Yes, I can.” He flipped her to her back, nibbled the skin of her throat and made his way down her body with soft kisses and flicks of his tongue in places that made her burn.