“Why?”
“That’s the ‘oh shit’ handle,” I tell her. “I’m going to be driving much faster now.”
Seri laughs but still grips the handle as I speed up, bouncing over the ice and snow as fast as I dare to go. The cabin looms in the distance, and I press down on the gas a little harder, plowing through a snowbank as Seri laughs and bounces in the passenger seat.
I slam on the brakes, and we skid slightly before coming to a stop. I switch the Jeep off and jump out, running around to the other side. I yank open Seri’s door and grab her by the hand.
“Let’s go!”
We both laugh as we run through the snow and into the cabin. As soon as we’re inside, we start dropping clothes everywhere. Solo goes flying across the floor and dives into the bathroom to hide when my shirt falls on top of him, making Seri laugh even harder until I pick her up and throw her onto the bed.
I crawl in after her, and the energy changes abruptly.
Seri’s laughter quiets though she is still smiling. She pulls me close to her, and we kiss softly as first, then harder. She runs her hands up my sides and over my arms, slowly tracing the edge of every muscle she comes across, making me shiver.
“Are you cold?” she asks.
“No,” I tell her, “just a little ticklish.”
Seri grins and bites her lip. I look into her sparkling eyes
as her hands continue to explore every part of me as if she’s never seen me naked before. As she touches me, I reach for her, stroking her arms, hips, and breasts. We kiss again, and when she breaks away, I continue to leave kisses over her chin and down her neck. I move on top of her, wrap one arm around her leg to hold it out of the way, and slowly enter her.
We both gasp, gazing at each other with wide eyes. Silently, I begin to move, and it feels nothing like the times we’ve been together before. It doesn’t feel like Seri. It doesn’t feel like Iris. It feels like…it feels like…
“My Serenity.”
I hear her take a sharp breath, and her muscles tighten around me. I keep moving, slowly and rhythmically. I caress her softly from her shoulder to her chest and down to her stomach. I move my hand around her hip and grip it gently as I slowly stroke in and out, watching her the whole time.
Seri looks up at me with wide eyes, her mouth slightly open as she begins to breathe rapidly. She holds my forearms, wrapping her fingers around them tightly as she moves with me.
My skin warms, and I feel the pressure coming. Even though I’m moving slowly, there is something in her eyes holding me captivated that makes me feel like I’m slamming into her as fast as I can. I lean forward, wrapping my arms under her shoulders and pressing myself against her as I continue to look at her face.
She gasps again, wraps her legs around me, and holds me inside of her. Her hands tremble as she reaches up to touch my face, running her fingertips over my jaw. I lean my cheek against her palm, and she lets out a low, hushed moan. The sound ripples through my skin, takes root in my stomach, and grows. The sensation is overwhelming as I stare into her eyes and come deep inside of her.
I can’t move for a full minute. I just hold myself there above her, staring at her. She blinks twice, and a tear falls out of the corner of her eye. I reach to brush it away, and she smiles. In the firelight, her eyes look like they’re dancing.
“You’re so beautiful,” I say.
Seri blushes, finally breaking our unwavering stare.
We roll to our sides, looking back into each other’s eyes as we settle against the pillow. We just lie there silently for the longest time. Even though I’m at rest, my heart is still beating loudly. Seri places her hand on my chest and smiles. She opens her mouth to say something just as Solo jumps up onto the bed and wedges himself between us.
“Silly kitty,” Seri says softly as she strokes his fur. “You just want to be warm, don’t you?”
Solo meows and roughly presses the side of his head against her hand. He places his little paw on her arm and howls at her.
“He better not be muscling in on my girl.” I glare at him, and Seri snickers.
“He wouldn’t dare!”
I smile at her, but my thoughts turn inward. I can’t remember smiling like this during any of my previous winters in the cabin. Even though Margot has a good sense of humor, I don’t recall ever laughing with her like I do with Seri. I try to remember what it is like to lie here in this same bed all through the winter with nothing to do other than to remember the horrible things that happened in my past.
Seri changed all of that.
“I do love you,” I say softly as I run my hand over her cheek. “I never thought of myself as lonely before, but now that I have you here”—I stop for a moment and swallow hard—“well, I just don’t want to be alone like that anymore.”
Seri leans close and presses her lips lightly against mine.