A Thankful Blizzard Pt. 02

"That's awful!" I felt bad for her. She just wanted to be an artist. "So, when did you tell your family you wanted to be an artist?"

"A little after I knew the twins were doing it. I joined my dad down by our watering hole, while he was working and broke the news to him. He wasn't just unhappy, he was furious, calling me ungrateful and unfaithful to the family tradition. He told me if I went to art school, he'd disown me. So I went. And he never said anything. Every holiday, I'd get a card from him, nothing more. Mom wrote the letters, telling me not to worry, that he still loved me, but it hurt not talking to him anymore."

"Harsh." I handed her a refilled drink. I topped mine off and sat to watch her finishing what she said was a quiche, before sliding it into the oven.

"Yeah. But I thought if I was away, the twins would knock it off, knowing I had no intent to carry on the business, going to art school and all. Apparently my dad had been telling them I was at business school, learning how to better manage the ranch. That's when I decided I'd take matters into my own hands, inviting the twins out for a meal to settle things and get them to stop. I had no idea they'd take me like that. I had just gotten out of my car, when tires screeched, and a bag went over my head, my hands getting bound behind my back. It felt like I was yanked off the road, thrown into the back and I felt the vehicle speed off. I tried screaming, but I heard the voice of some guy say he'd cut me if I kept screaming, so I stayed quiet. I tried keeping track of how far we had gone, turns, those kinds of things, but it was so silent in the van."

When she paused, I saw that she had some tears in her eyes, so I stepped over to her and held my hand out. She grasped it and pulled me closer, so I just wrapped my arms around her in a hug. I felt a couple sobs and heard her muffled cries.

"Paul, I had no idea what they were going to do to me, if they were gonna r...r...rape me, or worse." I started rubbing her back gently. "I fell asleep at some point, then woke up when I heard them talking quietly about gas. I felt something press to my throat, and a different voice said 'one scream and your throat will be split wide open, bitch.' He didn't sound as calm as the other, and I truly believed he'd kill me. So I stayed quiet, then we started moving again. Before much longer, hands grabbed me by the arms and lifted me up. I felt cold, bitter cold rush against me, then they shoved me roughly to the ground, with the last words of 'Come back and worse happens next time.' I heard the tires squeal as they sped away. I tried moving and found my hands were bound looser than they had been in the car, or van or truck, whatever it was. I pulled and a hand came free, so I tore the bag off my head, then blinked rapidly while my eyes adjusted to the brightness. That's when I saw the pine trees, the mountains, and snow. I freaked for several minutes, realizing I had nothing with me, and I was so cold. I picked a direction, and just started walking, hoping someone would drive by or I'd see a driveway or house, anything. After what felt like forever, I was about ready to just sit on the road and wait to freeze to death, when I heard a vehicle coming. It sounded a lot like what I had been riding in, so I thought they were probably coming back to do something, but then I heard your voice and I couldn't believe it. I was so shocked, I thought it was a prank or something, but you kept calling out to me." She squeezed me tighter to her, mashing our bodies together. "God, Paul, I owe you my life. Thank you."

"Hey, I'm glad I found you, you know. That I could help you."

She pulled away and looked into my eyes. I wish I knew what she was thinking right then. Her eyes had such intensity in them. I thought I saw something, but I couldn't tell what it was, before she buried her head against my chest and hugged me even tighter.

"...fee...s..ood." I heard her mumble against my chest.

"Uh, what? I didn't hear you."

She nestled her head around, then said louder, "You feel so good, Paul. Will you just hold me for a while?"

I swallowed hard. It was like a dream come true, holding this wonderful woman, offering her any amount of comfort I could. I felt my heart racing, my face felt hot, and frankly, I felt blood rushing to my groin, an erection growing. I began to worry she was going to feel it and think I was a pervert. Instead, while still holding on to me, she leaned back to look at me again.

This moment, I knew, was one I'd hold on to and cherish, regardless of what happened next. It was as if everything else didn't exist. I saw her eyes flicking down to my lips. I saw her tongue wet her lips. I could feel her breath on my own lips, as she parted her lips and leaned toward my lips. This was it. We were about to kiss, I'd be experiencing my first kiss, while holding this incredible redhead in my arms. I closed my own eyes, leaning in toward her lips with my own, anticipating the contact of our...

BBZZZZZZZZ!!! The timer on the oven had gone off, signaling our quiche had been cooked.

To say we both jumped would be like calling the Grand Canyon a small crack. I had jolted so far back that I tripped over one of the chairs at the kitchen table, sprawling backwards across the floor. I heard Kat give a little yelp sound, followed by a gasp.

"Ohmygod, Paul! Are you ok??" She rushed over to my side, kneeling next to me. I felt fine, at least at the moment. I think I was more embarrassed by the situation than anything.

"Uh, I'm fine..." My voice was shaky. "Are you ok?" Her concern seemed to melt away as she started giggling. At first I felt bad, like she was laughing at me, but soon I couldn't help it - I was giggling right along with her. Soon we were both laughing hysterically for what felt like a full minute before she gasped again.

"Shit! The quiche!" She leapt up and dashed over to the oven, grabbing some hot pads and taking out the steaming pie plate. "Whew! We're still good!" She giggled again.

I got back to my feet and went over towards her. Damn that oven timer! I wondered if that moment would come back again, or if I had missed my chance to kiss this beauty. I was pretty sure I couldn't come up with a reason or situation to justify leaning in and kissing her myself.

"Did you want some now, or want to wait for later?" Her question snapped me back to attention, but I wondered if there was some hidden, implied meaning in that statement. Was she hinting at trying to resume where we were? I wished at that moment I had gained more experience with women.

"Uh, would it be better if it set up?" The first question I had come to mind blurted out my lips. Well, better than stuttering or saying something truly stupid and asinine.

"Usually they are. We'll only have to wait like, 10 minutes or so."

We sat at the kitchen table, chatting for a while, before she glanced at the clock and said that we had waited long enough. She cut the quiche and served a piece to each of our plates. I poured us each a glass of wine and nervously blurted out a question.

"I've been serving you alcohol, do I need to card you, Miss?" I hoped it sounded amusing, or funny, at least less stupid then I thought it sounded coming from my own mouth.

She put her hands on her hips and stuck her lip out in an exaggerated pout. "Hey, I turned 21 in July, Mister." She grinned, adding, "Or can I call you Dr. Goodman?"

I grinned right back at her. "Well, you can, but I'm not official until I submit my dissertation and get it accepted."

"Well I like the sound of it. Dr. Goodman. It sounds much better than Mr. Goodman." Her eyes lit up for a moment. "Oh yeah, you can't card me anyway. I didn't get kidnapped with my purse or anything." And then she surprised me by sticking out her tongue.

"Har har, well I believe you. But keep sticking your tongue out and I'll start having my doubts."

She snickered and scooted her chair closer, just to poke me in the ribs before scooting back away. This woman just kept getting more and more interesting. I also felt myself relaxing bit by bit around her. I'm not sure if it was the alcohol, or just Kat herself.

"Thank you for cooking this, uh, what'd you call it? A kish?"

She giggled. "No, a quiche, silly. It's got a funky spelling. I think it's French, but you pronounce it like it rhymes with leash."

I nodded, taking a bite. As I chewed it, it was delicious. It had an amazing texture, a phenomenal taste. "God, Kat, this is amazing!"

I heard her sigh, and realized she must have been waiting for me to take a bite. "I'm glad you like it."

We ate mostly in silence with some small talk in between bites. When we had finished our plates, I collected them and placed them in the sink.

"Oooh, a gentleman! I like that in my men."

As I was rinsing the plates, I felt her arms slide around my torso and her head rest on my back.

"Seriously, Paul. I'm grateful for you. For saving me, of course, but because you're a wonderful guy."

I focused on the dishes, once again blushing. I don't think I had ever blushed this much in my entire life. With the plates clean and set to dry in the rack, I used a towel to dry my hands.

"Would you, uh, want to watch a movie now?"

"Sure, that sounds nice." She pulled away from my body, and I missed the proximity of her already. I wondered if she would have stayed there had I not moved. "I'll go find a blanket."

She set off searching, while I unboxed the portable player and set it up.

"What do you feel like watching?"

"What'd we get?"

"Uh, a Western, a poor-looking action film, and a sappy looking romantic comedy."

"Ooh, do you mind sappy for a while?" She had reappeared with a blanket, this having a similar pattern to the rug. I simply shrugged at her and popped the movie in the player.

"Well, we've got all of a 7" screen. Shall I do the honors of holding it?"

"I'd be delighted, my good sir." We giggled together, and crawled onto the couch. It was actually a lot more comfortable than it had looked at first, seeing as it was made of solid wood. Kat slid up close to me so most of our sides were touching, and pulled the blanket over us. I held the player in one hand, Kat pressed up to my other side. I felt her hand search out and curl around my own. My heart sped up once again. I hit play, and settled in. Kat laid her head on my shoulder. Everything I had ever dreamed a woman might be like paled in comparison to being this close to Katherine. The movie started, and as I predicted, was sappy, full of cheesy lines that made us giggle. But when the lead male character got to the scene where he professed his undying love to the lead girl, I felt Kat grip my hand tighter. From there on out, the movie tanked. It seemed content to have made two characters fall in love then just repeat similar lines and ideas throughout the rest of the film. When the final credits finally rolled, I looked over to Kat to share a look of contempt for such a pitiful excuse of a screenplay. However, I saw she had fallen asleep, nestled against my shoulder, her hand still in mine. I couldn't think of a much better place to be, so I lightly kissed the top of her head, rested my own head against hers, and closed my eyes.

When I next came to, there was white swirling all around me. Each white was a picture, hand drawn and spectacular, but swirled by too fast to really appreciate each one. A light was shining in the distance, and what sounded like an angel's voice hummed a tune I couldn't recognize. A sound similar to scratching started to get louder, and the humming persisted, but the swirling white faded away. I slowly opened my eyes, realizing I had been dreaming. The humming was coming from Kat, sitting at the other table with another blanket draped around her shoulders. She had her sketch pad and was making the light scratching noise I had in my dream with her pencil. She glanced up and saw I was awake and immediately smiled.

"Hey there, Sleepyhead." She set her pencil down and rose to stretch, the blanket falling off her shoulders. The bottom of her shirt pulled up, revealing a toned and tanned stomach, a cute little belly button and lines that disappeared into her skirt. I quickly averted my eyes before she stopped stretching. "I had to pee, but I didn't want to leave your warm side. But, I had to go. When I got back, you looked so cute, smiling, and sleeping so peacefully. I got my sketchpad, because once again, you looked like my own personal angel."

I rose, letting the blanket slide off to the side. I approached her, then looked questioningly at her.

"May I?" I asked, gesturing to her book. She stepped back and waved her hand invitingly toward the picture.

I sat down and looked at a picture that made my breath catch in my throat - here was an amazing sketch of me, sitting on the couch. It was as if I was looking at a photograph of myself. Only Kat had added some things to the picture. She had somehow shaded the image to look like a light was shining from above on my head, and had added feathery looking wings tucked behind my back.

"Holy shit... Pardon my language, but Kat..." I turned to look back at her. She was biting her lip, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "This is... I can't even describe how amazing this is."

Kat let out a breath. "You're not mad I made you into an angel?"

"No, no, of course not. I'm flattered... this is, just... You've left me speechless!" I finally got out. I couldn't take my eyes off the image. She had put so much detail into this paper, with what looked like nothing but a graphite pencil. A cheap one at that. This woman was destined to be remembered as a famous artist someday.

"I could see that, while you were sleeping there, almost as vividly as the sight of you actually on the couch." I felt her hands rest on my shoulders, then started kneading little circles on my muscles.

"Ohhhh..." I couldn't help but moan. Whatever she was doing to my shoulders was incredible. "That's... wonderful... ohhhh... thank... ohhh... you." I got out between grunts and moans every time her fingers dug into the muscles.

"You looked tense, and you must have been, the position you kept on the couch so I could be comfy. It's the least I can do for you."

"Unngh... Well... ahhh... if you wanted... mmmm... me to try and massage... oooh... your shoulders after..." I tried to sound as coherent and understandable as possible, but she was making it rather difficult.

"Sure, but you just hush up and enjoy for now." Her voice was kind, and her fingers were magic. I did as she said, and kept my mouth shut. Occasional grunts and moans escaped my lips, several times making her giggle. She suddenly stopped and appeared at my side. "C'mere. Follow me."

I accepted her offered hand and she was guiding me into the bedroom. My heart leapt in my throat and I thought I might faint. Was she wanting...?

"Lie down on your stomach, that way I can get more of you." Oh. I felt silly jumping to conclusions, then almost disappointed. But the prospect of her rubbing my back some more was too enticing to speculate on more, so I gladly climbed onto the bed. For what felt like both an eternity and nearly no time at all, she had covered my entire back, my legs, and even my feet. I felt she more than deserved her turn, so I sat up and rolled my head around. God, that massage felt amazing! I felt like a new person.

"Wow, Kat, I feel great! I hope I can do that massage justice." She grinned at me then climbed onto the bed. Having a chance to look at her without her seeing me, I scanned her body head to toe, appreciating every curve, every swell and part of her body. I saw those amazing legs disappearing into the skirt and wondered just how her butt must look.

"Paul, are you checking out my ass? Or my legs?" Damn, my face flushed immediately, then I heard her giggling. She knew! She was teasing me now. Well, I decided, two can play that game. I was going to try and give her the most amazing massage she had ever experienced. I thought I'd start at her feet, so I moved to the end of the bed and started on one. Her moans told me I was doing something right, so I continued for several minutes before switching to the other foot.

"Ahhh, that feels so great, Paul." Her words of encouragement kept me going at the pace I was at, so I started into her calf, squeezing the muscle and kneading it gently with my hands. She continued sighing and whispering how it felt good. I alternated legs and slowly worked my way up to where these glorious legs disappeared into the skirt. Just as my fingers neared where the skirt covered her, I'd move away to the other leg. I heard her breath catch in her throat, then exhale, almost as if she sounded disappointed, ever time I did that. After about the fifth time of doing this, she finally said something.

"Ah, Paul, if you're going to keep teasing me like that, at least tell me you're going to rub my ass now?" Wow. I did not expect that. Instead of saying anything, seeing as I didn't really trust my voice anyway, I just moved my hands to her skirt and started kneading her upper thighs. A relieved sound escaped her lips, replaced by what sounded like a whimper. As I inched higher, I could feel the incredible softness of her butt, even through the skirt. I found myself getting hard instantly, tenting my pants. I hoped she kept her head turned inward, because I doubted this was subsiding anytime soon. "Ahhh, keep going, please, that feels great."

I soon was working her lower back and upward. I kept finding my hands would return to the slope of her hips, just below her ribs. Everytime I pressed on that spot, she would sigh - a sound I soon found intoxicating. After a few more minutes she suddenly started to sit up.

"Kat? Everything ok?" Did I do something wrong?" I feared I just ruined it. Why was she sitting up?

"No, nothing's wrong. Actually, I feel really good right now, thanks to you, Paul." She had sat up, turned towards me. I quickly sat down next to her, hoping to hide my bulging erection. "You want to cuddle?" Such an innocent sounding question, but it made my heart soar. I nodded. She motioned with her finger to come closer, then patted the bed up higher near the headboard. I took up position, my back against the headboard. She started to wiggle onto my lap, then straddled my lap completely, her thighs on either side of mine, her skirt draping over me. My breathing hitched. I felt like, this entire time I'd been with her, I'd been running a marathon, what with how rapidly my heart had been beating. Now was no exception. She leaned forward until she was resting mostly on my body, her head pressed to my upper chest, her fingers of her hand on my body.

"Paul, you really are an amazing man," she whispered close to my ear, her fingers tracing small circles through my shirt. "You don't have to be so nervous. I think you are actually a pretty confident guy."

I jerked my head toward her at this. Did she not feel me trembling? Or hear my racing heart? I was scared out of my mind. What if I messed everything up? If I was a terrible kisser, would she stop? Would she stop talking to me? What if I couldn't even give anything back to her?

"Paul. Look at me." She calmly traced my chin, twisting my face forward. Her hands braced my face on each side. I could feel such warmth from those soft hands, but again, those emerald eyes captured me. I could lose myself staring into them. "You are confident. And I know this because look at what you've accomplished, first of all. That alone takes a lot of confidence." With this she brought her lips to my forehead. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed that brush of her lips. If I died right now, I imagined I would be happy just being this close to such an amazing woman, feeling her hands, her lips on my forehead.