Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
Aubrey
Kiss him. What’s stopping you?
A drunken, sloppy kiss wasn’t how I wanted him to remember me by. But at this point, did it even matter? Would he even care?
Yet I cared.
I shouldn’t kiss my neighbor.
What if things didn’t work out? Imagine the awkwardness…
Fuck, my damn head didn’t shut up. Even with wine.
I bit my bottom lip and shoved my hands beneath my thighs. The courage rushed out of me like a balloon deflating all its air. It was time to go.
As I got to my feet, Nash’s shoulders fell and a worried look stretched across his handsome features. “I’m sorry. Did I say something wrong?” He stood, running a hand through his hair and down over his beard.
“No, of course not. You’ve been great. I’m just tired, full, and a bit drunk. I think I should say goodnight.”
“Okay. Let me get your coat.” Nash offered me a smile before fetching my coat from the hook near his doorway.
I glanced out the bay window, the snow falling hard and fast, and wished I wore something other than high heels.
I didn’t prepare, though I knew the blizzard was coming.
Damn sexy mountain men and their distracting ways.
Nash helped me into my coat and walked me to the doorway.
“Thank you for dinner. It was delicious.”
“You’re welcome. Thank you for coming. I apologize once more for the early delivery. It won’t happen again.”
I chuckled. “It’s okay. Your amazing cooking skills made up for it.”
“Can I walk you home?”
“No, that’s okay. I’m just across the street.”
“Please, Aubrey. I insist.”
“Okay.” I stood back and waited as he changed into boots and put on his jacket and hat. He offered me his arm, which I gladly took, and as soon as he opened the door, the wind blew snow in our face.
“Ahh!” I yelped while laughing at the same time, the cold ice leaving a frost on my face and a chill down my spine.
Nash laughed too as he wiped his face. We hurried across the road, snow blowing at us in every direction and didn’t stop until we were on my covered porch, away from the blowing ice water.
“It’s blowing fast!” I said over the wind in front of my door, Nash blocking me in, his back to his cabin. “Glad I work from home.”
“Me too. Driving in this shit on the mountain roads isn’t for the weak.”
“Tell me about it. It’s freezing, so have a good night. Thanks for walking me home.”
“You’re welcome.” Nash’s eyes fell to my lips and his hands landed on my hips.
What is happening…
No wait…
Yes please…
And then, with the falling snow behind us, the cold forgotten, our breath keeping us warm, we kissed, there under the moonlight.
Down…
Down…
Down…I fell.
I couldn’t fall asleep.
I sat on my couch, in my pajamas, a blanket wrapped around me, as I watched the snow fall. My Christmas tree twinkled in the background, the only light in the room, the only sound from the swish, swish of the snow hitting the ground and the occasional howl of the wind.
My hands wrapped around a cup of lukewarm coffee, wanting to chase off any hangover I might have in the morning.
The kiss replayed in my mind.
Over and over.
The feel of his lips against mine. The way his tongue dove inside. The way his fingers gripped my waist, begging and pleading for more.
I almost did it. I almost opened the door and beckoned him inside. But I stopped myself.
Giving a guy sex right away always led me down the wrong path. With Nash, I wanted it to be different. He was different. He felt different.
But now, crashing down from the wine, and replaying the events in my head, left me lost.
After texting Pip, she told me to take it slow. See where it led. Have a thousand steak dinners before deciding anything.
And she was right.
Any guy worth my time would wait. Which made me believe Nash would, too.
So why couldn’t I stop obsessing over the night, over our kiss?
Why couldn’t I settle my mind down and go to sleep?
The clock next to my TV read eleven o’clock. With a deep breath, I forced myself to push my blanket aside and stand up. I shuffled my way to the kitchen, dropped my mug in the sink, and made my way upstairs.
When my foot landed on the top step, a knock sounded on my door and I froze, terror running through me like an icicle down my back.
It’s the wind. It has to be. No one knocks on your door after eleven at night…
But the sound came again. I clutched my phone in my pj pants pocket with one hand while tugging my sweater closed tighter with my other.
I turned around on the stairs and slowly climbed back down them.
I moved towards my front door when knock!
the sound came again. I jumped and almost let out a scream.
Peering through the peephole, a snow-covered Nash stood there, his hat halfway off the side of his head. I yanked the door open, and he hurried inside, a blast of chilly air following him along with a gust of snowy wind. I quickly closed it and turned to face him.
“Nash? What the hell are you doing here?”
“Aubrey, I’m sorry. I know this looks crazy, but I can’t stop thinking about you. About our kiss.”
“So, you show up at my door at this late hour in the middle of a blizzard?”
“Yes.” Nash stepped closer. “Because I couldn’t wait to do this again.”
His hands were on my waist again, his strong arms tugging me closer, pressing my body to his. Cold and wetness seeped from his jacket, his hands, his face like ice, yet it didn’t bother me, the heat from him, from us, enough to keep any cold out.
And then his lips were on mine, and all rational thought flew out the window.
His kisses stole the words from my mouth, the breath from my lungs, and left me in debt to him, wanting him, needing him, begging for him.
For such a tough exterior, he was nothing but tender and careful with his touches, his fingers leaving behind a burn only he could ease, a need only he could fulfill.
My fingers fumbled with the buttons of my sweater, slowly undoing each one painstakingly slow, until the wool fell down my bare shoulders.
Nash groaned when his eyes landed on my creamy skin, my lacy pj tank top leaving little to the imagination.
“You’re so fucking gorgeous, Aubs. I want to worship you every moment of every day.”