Free Snowbound Hearts by Benjamin Kelly

sleeping on the sofa in front of the stove. I’ll come throw on another log and stoke it up for you.”
    She took a step forward. “Would you mind if I got into bed with you?”
    Stephen groaned loudly, unable to contain the animal passion she stirred within him. “What planet are you from, Audrey? I mean, seriously? Guys lie in bed at night and dream about a woman asking them something like that. God, you’re so beautiful and sexy and sweet. I’d love nothing better than for you to get into bed with me. You want sex, right?”
    She stepped over to the side of the bed. “We can’t, Stephen.”
    He huffed and rolled over, facing away from her. “Fine, I’m too tired anyway. Wake me up if you change your mind.”
    Audrey slid under the covers, snuggled up against his back, and put her arm around him. “Is this okay?”
    He shivered as her ice-cold body touched his. “I’m awake now. God Almighty, Audrey, how did you get so cold?” Stephen rolled over to face her, pulled the blanket tight around her back, and wrapped his arms around her. “Have you been out in the snow?”
    “No, I woke up like this.”
    “How could it be so cold in the next room? Was your window open?”
    “I don’t know. Something happened, Stephen. You’ll think I’m nuts if I tell you, but when I woke up, something was on top of me.”
    “Something? Somebody? An animal?”
    “No, something dark and cold, like a thick black blanket made from ice. It held me down so I couldn’t move at all for a while. Then it just dissolved away. I was terrified, but I couldn’t scream. It’s like I was paralyzed.”
    Stephen sighed heavily. “The way the wind is howling is enough to spook anyone. I’m having a little trouble sleeping myself. Don’t you think it was just a nightmare?”
    “Maybe it was, but there’s another explanation, and I think it’s probably the right one. I’m still in my car, covered with snow, probably dying. That would explain so many things, like why it’s been so cold in here ever since I arrived.”
    “Audrey, you’re not in your car. I thought we had settled that.” Stephen grunted as she worked herself tightly up against him. “It was cold before you got here. That little stove is too small to heat the whole cabin. If you want, I could have you sweating in five minutes.”
    She repositioned her cold hands to another spot and drained away more of his heat. “That’s a subtle way of suggesting that we have sex, but only if I want, right?”
    “Of course.” Stephen rubbed her arms and back, hoping the friction would warm her frigid skin.
    “If I’m unconscious, living in a dream, it would also explain you.”
    “What’s so unbelievable about me? I’m just a regular guy who happened to rent a cabin the same week as you. There’s nothing mysterious about that.”
    She kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear, “You have no idea what you just said.”
    “Are you sure you didn’t hit your head when you crashed? Some of the stuff you say makes no sense at all. Maybe you’re in shock.”
    Audrey wiggled her voluptuous body against him. He slipped his hand down her side to her slim waist, over the mound of her hip, and around onto the back her freezing thigh.
    “I’m definitely in shock, but not from the crash.”
    He slid his hand up onto her rear and squeezed.
    “Are you massaging my butt to get me warm?”
    “No, I’m doing it because I like it. Audrey, do you feel that lump where you’re pressing your crotch against me? We’ve got about a millimeter of cloth between us. What’s the difference in that and my hand?”
    “I didn’t say it wasn’t okay. I was just thinking maybe you should use both hands. That way one side won’t get more attention than the other. You know what’s okay and what’s not. Besides it’s only a dream.”
    Since she had asked, he took her rear firmly into both hands and indulged himself. “Audrey, if this was a dream, we would have already had sex. Sex on the