This is a work of fiction, using characters from the film, “Mystery, Alaska”.  No insult or invasion of privacy or infringement of copyright is intended. The story is for readers over the age of 18 only, and contains adult language. The writer is not responsible for any "discomfort" caused to the reader by this language and these situations.

Heated Snow

by:  Darrin Lee Hutton

© 01/2003

“FUCK.  Fuck, fuck, fuck!”

Jasmine Indigo turned the key again and was rewarded with the final sputtering of the car’s engine and then 

the dreaded whine indicating a dead battery.  She should have known this would happen.  Her company was paying for this rent-a-car, but with an eye towards saving money, she had gone for bargain basement and now the fucking thing was dead in the water.  This left her stuck in the middle of Nowhere, Alaska.  Well, close enough, she was on the outskirts of Mystery.  She picked up her cell phone.  No signal.  Natch.  She sat and pondered her options.

She was clothed for the area at least.  So option one, walk into town.  It was about a half mile and she figured she could make it if she hustled.  She wasn’t exactly a tough outdoors woman, but she was in shape and since it wasn’t snowing or windy, this option would probably work out.  Option two, wait for someone to come by.  Yeah, that would happen, it was past midnight and she hadn’t seen another car for hours.  Option three, wander around until her cell picked up a signal.  Might as well walk to town for all that.

So she hopped out of her car, and headed into town.  It was slow going.  There were no lights and the snow made it difficult to walk, even in her tough boots.  She kept to the road and hoped like hell the weather would hold.

Which it didn’t.  Just as she saw the lights of the small town ahead of her, the wind picked up and the snow began to fall.  It was too far for her to try to get back to her car, so she stepped up her pace to a jog and tried to race the weather to Mystery.  Almost made it, too.

The blizzard was full-blown when she saw the headlights barely making a dent in the driving snow.  Which meant that the slow-moving SUV was almost on top of her when she noticed it.  Fortunately, the driver was already swerving out of her way and stopping next to her.

The driver’s side window was rolled down and a young man leaned out and shouted over the weather, “Found you!  Get in!”

Jasmine didn’t need to be told twice.  She raced around to the other side of the car and got in hurriedly.

“Thank you!” she said gratefully as she held her gloved hands in front of the blowing heater vents.

The driver turned the SUV around and headed in the direction she’d been jogging.

“How’d you know I’d be out here?” Jasmine asked.

“Got a call from Fairbanks telling me you should have called in by now and did I know where you were?  Figured you must’ve gotten stuck in this weather and came looking for you.”

“And you would be getting this call because?”

“Oh, sorry.  John Biebe, Mystery’s Sheriff.”

“Jasmine Indigo.”

They shook hands.  Jasmine couldn’t help but notice how beautiful his smile was.

“If it’s okay, I’m just gonna take you to my house.  It’s a lot closer than the town and we need to get out of this blizzard.”  He muttered something under his breath that Jasmine couldn’t make out completely, but sounded like “Damn weird weather.”  It was all the same to her.  Alaska had snow year round as far as she knew.

“Well, all right, but I don’t want to put you to any trouble.”

“No trouble.  So what are you doing out here in the middle of the night?”

“Well, I’m on a sort of field trip for my firm.  I wasn’t expecting the going to be so slow, or I wouldn’t have headed out from Fairbanks so late in the afternoon.”

“What kind of a field trip?”

“Oh, I’m a photographer.  We’re putting an album together of the last of ‘untouched’ America .  Someone mentioned this place and I volunteered to come up and get some shots of the mountains and surrounding area.”

“Yeah?  Who mentioned us?”

“Um, Charlie Danner?  He’s a writer for –“

“Sports Illustrated.  Yeah, I know him.”

“Really?  Wow, small world.”

“Well, it’s because this is where he came from.”

“I didn’t know that!  He talks like he’s lived in New York all his life.”

“I know.  He never liked this town.”  There was an awkward silence for a minute, which John broke.  “So, you work for Sports Illustrated, too?”

“Oh, no!  This was a conference call with our affiliates.  Our magazine is called ‘Country’.  It’s a pictorial publication, so I’m constantly on the move.  The life of a photographer.”

“Sounds exciting.”

“Oh, it’s not that exciting.  Especially when I almost freeze to death on the way to an assignment.”

John chuckled.  “How far did you walk in this weather?”

“About a half mile.  It wasn’t bad until just before you arrived.  Say, really, thank you for rescuing me!”

“That’s my job,” John grinned, “Rescuing damsel photographers in blizzards.  All part of the service.”

Jasmine giggled.  She was really beginning to like this fellow.

“How long will you be in Mystery?” he asked.

“About a week.  I wanted to allow enough time in case of weather.  Guess that was a fair guess, huh?”

John chuckled.  “Just a week, huh?  Too bad.  We could use someone as pretty as you around here for a lot longer.”

He’s flirting with me! Jasmine realized with a start.  And couldn’t help the next question to come out of her mouth.  “So, is there a Mrs Sheriff at this home you’re taking me to?”

John laughed outright.  “No, just me.  Still a bachelor, although that doesn’t stop the older ladies in town trying to fix me up.  Just haven’t met the right one yet, I guess.”  Jasmine saw his eyebrows knit and she thought perhaps he was wondering why he had answered her so thoroughly.  He covered up his consternation but making a show of pulling carefully into his driveway.

Jasmine decided not to pursue the subject.  Don’t want to make him uncomfortable.  He was being so gracious.

They made their way into the house and after removing and then hanging several layers of clothing on hooks by the back door and taking off their boots, John showed her into the kitchen.  She was quite impressed with how tidy everything was.  Especially for a bachelor.

“Would you like something?  Cocoa ?  A san dw ich?”

Jasmine was hungry but felt a bit odd putting him to any kind of trouble on her behalf, so she was about to decline when he made for the refrigerator anyway.

“You look hungry.  Come on, I’ll make us a midnight snack, then you won’t be eating alone and feeling awkward.”

How could he be that intuitive?  She must be doing her “open-book” thing again that her last boyfriend, gone these many months, had accused her of so often.  “There’s no mystery, you’re completely without guile!” he would complain.  Well, at least she was in Mystery, now.  She smiled ruefully, wondering if that would have pleased Dennis.  Not much had.

“You can sit down over here at the counter while I fix us some san dw iches, all right?”

“All – all right,” she stuttered out, completely chagrinned at his relaxed manner.

“So is there a Mr Photographer waiting for you in New York ?” he asked as he got out items for san dw ich and cocoa making.

Jasmine grinned.  She figured he was using her words back at her so she wouldn’t feel he was prying so much as exchanging information he had already over shared himself.  She hadn’t minded his informative answer anymore than she minded giving him hers in return.  Open book, girlie.  That’s what you’ll always be.

“No.  My ex-boyfriend, Dennis and I broke up almost a year ago.  Haven’t had time or inclination to dive back into that scene.”

“Don’t date much myself,” he said, but the look on his face made Jasmine feel that he didn’t date at all.  She wondered fleetingly why.  He’s so damn nice.  And gorgeous.  She imagined what those tasty thighs would look like out of the jeans she could appreciate better now, seeing him standing in the kitchen.  Stop it, she thought, you don’t have time for this.

John put the finishing touches to the san dw iches, poured out the cocoa and picked up the tray, heading back out to the living room.

“So, would I have seen any of your work?” John asked once they had settled into their seats, he across from her and she on the couch.

“Probably not on this side of the country, unless you read ‘Country’.  I’ve had a few exhibitions, but only really got published with this gig.”

“Well, I’d love to see some.  You got a portfolio with you?”

Jasmine smiled.  “In the car.”

“Well, then, I guess we’ll have to make a date for me to have a look-see.”

“That’d be great!  This is really nice of you, by the way.  Thank you for letting me stay.”

“Happy for the company.  How’s the cocoa?  I’ve been known to burn it.”

She took another sip.  “It’s wonderful.  Just the thing.  And the san dw iches are great, too.”  She saw the little smile he gave at her compliment and, again, liked how it looked on him.  He was a sturdy man.  Broad of chest with thick, meaty arms and hands.  His face was extremely handsome and when he smiled, it lit up completely.  She realized, suddenly, that she may have met another “open book”.  Wouldn’t Dennis just have crowed at her about that?

“After you get your car, you be sure and let me know when I can take a look at that portfolio, okay?”

Jasmine was delightedly chagrinned at his pursuit of getting together with her.  How did this go from gracious host to interested party so quickly?  She shook off her speculation.  She was tired and when she got tired she imagined fanciful things.  Like those beautiful biceps wrapped around her in a sweaty embrace…Stop it, you wanton.  Just because it’s been nine months since you got laid, doesn’t mean you get to fantasize about every Tom, Dick and John who walks into your life.

They chatted for a bit longer, but when John and Jasmine both yawned, John suggested they get some sleep.  He offered her his bed, but she refused.

“No.  I will not put you out of your own bed.  I’ve done enough damage here already.  Just let me shut my eyes for a few hours on your couch and I’ll be fine.”

John looked like he wanted to argue, but thought better of it.  Just as well, Jasmine thought.  There was no way the impropriety could escape either of them.  They were strangers.  John brought her out a couple of blankets and a pillow and after making sure she was comfortable and knew where the bathroom was, headed back down the hallway.  Jasmine sighed, wishing societal norms were non-existent.

John woke at seven promptly.  He had an internal clock that kept great time and it always woke him when he expected it to.  Besides, it was Game Day and he was raring to go.  When he rolled over to get out of bed, he remembered that there was a sweet young thing asleep in his living room.  And smiled.  Jasmine.  His cock twitched a bit and he scowled with a wry grin.  It had been awhile, that was certain, but he had no intention of getting mixed up with someone who would be leaving within a week.  He longed for a real relationship.  One that was filled with romance and permanence.  She was part of Charlie Fuckin’ Danner’s world and would have no interest in Mystery, Alaska .  Or him, for that matter.  He sighed and got up to get ready for the day.  Game Day.  He lived for this.

Jasmine appeared in the kitchen once he had the bacon frying.  Nothing like the smell of coffee and bacon to wake someone up, John thought.  She looked wonderful.  Long black hair, sweet face and a lopsided pixie grin that could melt the most stoic of hearts.  She appeared to have freshened up, her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her clothes didn’t look as if they had been slept in.  Wonder how she managed that?  John figured it was yet another of those feminine mysteries he’d never unravel.  But he loved her eyes the most.  Dark brown orbs he’d have liked to have stared into for many hours.

He shook his head.  It was Game Day and he didn’t have time for this kind of reverie.

“I hope you’re hungry.  I’ve made enough for an army.  Then I’ll take you into town and you can get your car situation squared away.”

“Thank you, John.  You’ve been an incredible host.  Please let me repay you.  What can I do?”

“Well, the toast needs buttering,” he said with a smile.

They made quick work of breakfast and an hour later the kitchen was clean and John and Jasmine made their way out to John’s car.  Which wouldn’t start.

John turned to Jasmine with a grin on his face.  “You’re bad luck for cars, aren’t you?” he teased.  “Come on.  We can take the sled in.”

“The sled?”

“I guess you’d call it a snowmobile.  It’s not far into town from here, you won’t get too cold.”

“Sounds like fun.  I’m game.”

They got out and John got the sled started and warmed up as Jasmine got on the back of it behind him.

“You should hold onto me.  Wouldn’t want you falling off.”

Jasmine laughed.  “Hey, I know my way around a snowmobile, but if you insist.”  She wrapped her arms around his waist and tucked herself behind him.

John was pleasantly surprised to feel the heat emanating from her into his backside.  Even through all the layers of clothing they had on.  His brain was determined to keep this platonic, but his cock had different ideas and by the time they reached town, he was feeling constricted.  In a very agreeable way.

He dropped her off at Mystery’s only garage.

They stood awkwardly in silence, John not really sure how to proceed, so he was very happy to hear her say, “Tell me what does the Sheriff of Mystery, Alaska do on a Saturday?”

“Well, there’s this hockey game I play in…” he trailed off, testing to see if she was interested.

“Did you say hockey?!”

“Yes, Charlie didn’t mention?”

“No!  I wish he had, thank you for telling me!  I wouldn’t miss it.  I love hockey!”

John grinned broadly.  “That’s great.  We play at ten.  You’ll be there then?”

Jasmine gave him that lopsided grin he was beginning to want to see more and more.  “Front and center.  Can’t wait to see you in action, Sheriff.”  She bent down and kissed him on the lips.  They were soft and warm and he had to physically restrain himself from doing what he really wanted, which was to grab her, lay her across his lap and give her a very sound response.  “Thank you for taking such great care of me.  I hope while I’m here I’ll be able to repay you somehow.”  There was a twinkle in her eye he was convinced he was misinterpreting, but hoped he wasn’t.

John left her in the capable hands of the Winnetka brothers as he made his way first to his office to catch up on some paperwork and then to the locker room for the Game.  Most of his teammates were already there getting into their gear and checking their equipment.  He was glad he’d spent the time doing the paperwork.  He didn’t want these knuckleheads seeing the hard on Jasmine had induced, it would have resulted in a terminally long razz session.  Skank Marden was enough for that particular type of thing.

 And true to form, Skank entered the locker room, the tale of his latest conquest bursting out of him as he came into the room.  Twins this time.  John sighed.  Some guys get more than their share and some don’t get anything.  He guessed it had to do with temperament.  He was a patient man.  He wanted to wait for love before succumbing to lust.  But there were times he was hard-pressed to stay committed to that choice.  The name Jasmine whispered through him and he saw her in his mind’s eye, bending to kiss him, long black lashes dropping to her cheeks, the scent of her perfume faint but present, the way her hair had brushed against his check…Stop it, John, time to get your head into the Game.

“Hey, John!  When are you gonna get yourself someone?” Skank asked loudly, noting the Sheriff’s reverie.

“Don’t know if there’s anyone left to get, thanks to your escapades,” John retorted, amidst laughter.  “Come on, guys, let’s get into it.  We’ve got a Game to play.”

Jasmine found herself in good hands with the Winnetkas, although a bit rushed.  Apparently, they played in the game as well.  They took down her information, noted where her car was and soon she found herself with the third brother who was as yet not part of the team, riding towards where she had left her car the night before.  The younger Winnetka expertly hitched her car onto the tow truck and brought it back into town where he promised it would be fixed and ready to go by Monday.  She retrieved her luggage and headed to the only hotel in town, a quaint little place enchantingly called Angela’s Roost.

After checking in and properly freshening up with a shower, she dressed warmly and made her way to Palmer’s Field.  Apparently the entire town came out for this game and she made her way to an empty seat in the bleachers, surrounded by an eager crowd.

When the crowd began applauding she looked around to see the team and was delighted to see that a trail had been iced over for them to make their way down to the pond.  Pond hockey.  This was promising to be a great game.  She asked her neighbours a lot of questions, about how they chose up sides, what rules they played by, but when the game began she followed the action closely.  She’d been a hockey fan most of her life, but this was the fastest game she’d ever seen played.  These guys could be professionals if they lived in a bigger city.  But from the whole setting she took that perhaps they all enjoyed the sequestered situation.

John played extremely well, he passed expertly and led his team effectively.  He was leading the “brown shirts” this go around and they won, five to two , due in large part to John’s beautiful passing ability.  Jasmine had brought her camera with her and had gotten many great shots of the game.  And of John.  She was fascinated by him and wished he felt the same.  She would only be here a week, though and she sensed he wasn’t the type to fall into something that couldn’t lead anywhere.  Still, she wondered what it would be like to be with him.

After the game, she made her way back to the hotel, determined to map out her itinerary for the week to come.  She would need to rent a snowmobile, sled, she corrected herself with a smile, hearing John’s infectious giggle in her memory, and ask about for some kind of guide to the most pristine spots in the surrounding area.

Her tummy rumbled and she realized it was well past lunch time.  She was just gathering her belongings together to make her way to a local restaurant when a soft knock came on her door.

“Who is it?” she called out of habit.  Having lived alone much of her life, she never answered the door without knowing who was behind it.

Someone cleared his throat, sounding nervous.  “Uh, Jasmine?  It’s me, John.”

She uncharacteristically leapt for the door.  Damn, girl, he’s gonna think you’re a tramp, calm down! she thought fiercely at herself.  She slowed herself down to a walk and opened the door with a smile.

“Come in, Sheriff.  What brings you to my door?”

“Well, I thought maybe,” he seemed so sweetly nervous, Jasmine had to bite her lip to keep from laughing, “maybe you might want some company for lunch.  That is, if you haven’t already eaten.”

“Actually, I was literally headed out the door to do just that!  I’d love some company.  Where  do you recommend we go?”

And now he actually blushed and Jasmine turned her laugh into a cough, somehow knowing he’d never say what he was blushing about if she laughed outright.

“I was, uh, sorta thinking, you could come to the house, you know, something homemade?”  His look of consternation made Jasmine realize that he thought his suggestion would be rejected and she quickly put his fears to rest.

“That sounds perfect.  I would love to have lunch made by you.  Lead on, Sheriff.”

“Uh, if it’s okay with you, I think I’d rather like it if you called me John.”

Jasmine paused for the briefest of seconds as a whirlwind of thoughts raced through her mind.  All of them pleasant.  “I can do that, John,” she said softly.  His smile lit up his face and he led her to the sled waiting for them outside.

John and Jasmine put away the last dish and then headed back out to the living room with their coffee cups.  John sat on the couch and felt a butterfly movement in his stomach which moved quickly to his groin as she sat down next to him.  They had had a very pleasant lunch, chatting about themselves, getting to know each other.  She showed him her portfolio, telling him the stories behind the pictures.  Some funny, some sad, but he listened attentively throughout and even engaged her in some very intelligent conversation regarding some of the more intriguing photos.  This led her to share more about being a photographer, the freelance hell she had lived through before being asked to join the staff at “Country”.  He talked about growing up in Mystery and had her laughing fit to be tied at some of the stories about being Sheriff.

But he had felt the mood shift as they sat down on the couch, and was sure that he wasn’t the initiator of the change.  There was something in her eyes.  Those beautiful dark brown orbs he was beginning to go crazy for.  He had wrestled with this between the end of the Game and actually showing up at her door and had finally come to the conclusion that he deserved a little respite from the loneliness, even if it was just for a week.  He had gotten the sense from her that she wasn’t a big city snob like Charlie Danner and when she shared stories of growing up in up-state New York on the farm he knew that he had sensed correctly.

Their silence became palpable and John could only think of one way to break it.  He purposefully set his coffee mug down, took hers from her and set it next to his.  Then he reached for her and placing his hand on the back of her neck, drew her to him, kissing her softly.  She responded immediately, twining her hands into his hair and pulling him closer to her.  The kiss was gentle at first, just meeting and parting lips, soft and warm, then John felt his need rushing through him and he tenderly nudged her lips open with his tongue, smiling as she eagerly allowed him into her mouth.

He pushed her back against the armrest of the couch and resting his hands on either side of her, got onto his knees and deepened the kiss, eliciting a small moan from her.  No longer able to think clearly, he just went with his instinct, gently placing his hand on her breast and kneading it softly.  Jasmine arched into his hand and John felt her nipple harden through the material of her blouse.  They parted for a moment, out of breath.

“John, I –“

He pulled back, sitting down on the couch again, disconcerted with his actions.  “No, you’re right, this is too fast, I’m sorry I –“

Jasmine put her hand on his cheek, tenderly.  With that sweet pixie smile that made his heart pound harder, she said softly, “No, John, I was going to say can we go to your bedroom.”  Her lopsided grin was more than he could stand and he stood up hurriedly, picking her up from the couch and carrying her down the hallway to the bedroom.

Placing Jasmine on his bed, John joined her and continued their kiss.  All the while struggling to get out of the many layers of clothes required for the temperature in this part of the world.  When he unbuttoned his fly he gently took her hand and guided her to his cock, now rock hard and straining to be free.  She grunted at the girth she felt there.  John knew he was larger than most men, and was pleased at her enjoyment of him.  They both became much more ardent, and made short work of getting naked and under the covers, kissing passionately throughout.

“Jasmine, you should know, I don’t normally do this.  I haven’t been with anyone for a very long time,” he said quietly.

“Neither have I, John.  But I am on the pill, so we’ll be safe, ‘kay?”

John pulled her to him and kissed her, but moved swiftly down to her breasts.  Now that they were bare before him, he just wanted to taste and hold them.  Her nipples responded to him immediately; tight, hard little nubs of excitement.  She moaned loudly as he suckled first one and then the other, allowing his hand to trace a southerly pattern down to her belly button and then past it to where her dark silky hairs curled invitingly to his fingers.  He raised his head from her breasts and smiled as he slid further into her folds and felt the abundant wetness there.  Just for him.

“Jasmine,” he breathed, “you’re so ready for me.”  She ran a finger along his jawbone and smiled.  He sighed and spoke again, “Jas, I need you so badly –“

“Then do it, John, I want you, now, inside me.  We have lots of time for other things, but I need you, too, please, ‘kay?”

He didn’t, couldn’t answer.  Just pushed one knee between her legs, opening her to him, nestling down into the heat that radiated from her.  His cock nudged against her slick slit and he pushed in just the head, a soft whimper emitting from her throat as he did so.  He slid in further, allowing her to adjust to him as he glided surely into the very center of her, hilting himself inside her moist sheath.  It felt wonderful.  It felt like home.

The sweet friction of her as he slid in and out, slowly, wanting to make it last, confident in his ability to pleasure her.  Jasmine wrapped her legs around his waist and met him thrust for thrust.  Within moments he heard her breathing increase and felt her hips bucking into his as he rocked gently back and forth, grinding into her, hitting his mark each time and finally hearing her cry out his name.

“John, oh fuck, John, I’m coming, yes, oh God, yes!”

And keeping his pace even as she slowed beneath him, her spasms leisurely releasing his cock from her tightened walls.

“Good?”

“Fuck, yes.”

Now increasing his pace, bringing them both to it this time, he felt his blood rushing through his body, heard her panting in his ear as he kissed her, thrusting into her harder, needing his release as much as wanting to give her more.  Shoving spasmodically as he felt his seed spurting out of him, filling her, rocking his hips into her as she cried out again and he grunted harshly as he came with her.

John collapsed on top of her in a heap, breathing heavily.  She held him close, repeating his name softly.  Finally he felt his breath return to him normally and he rolled off her pulling her to him, cuddling her as they both drifted off into a post-coital nap.

Before sleep fully claimed him, John kissed her ear and whispered, “Can you stay longer than a week?”

Her reply made him smile happily.  “I can try.”

~*~

“Goddammit, mother-fucking, son-of-a-bitch!”

“Jas, you swear too much.”

“Shyte.”

“Still a swear word, don’t care how far away from England we are.”

Jasmine, now reduced to growling her annoyance, flipped John the bird.

He laughed at her gently.  “That still counts.”

She bent down, giving John a full view of her rump and purposefully made a snowball.  Eying him evilly.  Hefting the snowball to make sure it weighed just the right amount.

John held up his hands in surrender.  “I give!  Swear all ya want!”

“Just so,” she assented and looked up at the sky, the source of her annoyance.  “Fucking weather,” she spat out.

“Honey, you’re in Alaska .  It snows here.  Remember?”

“But why on my photo shoot? I was almost done.”

John pulled her into his arms and kissed her.  “Maybe the weather’s conspiring to keep us together.”

Jasmine’s face melted from consternation to happiness in two seconds flat.  “Well, then the weather’s my new best friend,” she giggled, rubbing her nose against his.

“Did you talk to your editor?”

“Yeah, this morning.  It’s just too bad, but with how awful the weather is, well, I’m just gonna have to stay until it clears.”

“Aw, really?  That is too bad.”  John pulled her down into a snow bank with him and snuggled.  “You know, I could get used to this.”  John covered her mouth with his, kissing her deeply.

Jasmine returned his kiss.  It had been two weeks since she’d arrived in Mystery and the weather really did feel like it was plotting to keep them together.  Snow storms had raged throughout her first week and now snow flurries would fall whenever she’d get started.  She had been told by the residents that it was highly unusual for this time of year.  All Jasmine knew was that her time with John was the sweetest she had ever spent and she was even beginning to feel the sparkling of something deeper, something she wasn’t sure she should acknowledge.  If she spent much more time with him, there wouldn’t be any denial, she’d have to concede to the fact that she was falling in love.

Falling in love.

She hadn’t actually ever had this happen to her before.  Dennis had been an ass, but she had gone out with him for a year before she finally discovered just how much of an ass he was.  She had finally had enough of the put downs, him always the consummate New Yorker and she would never be anything more in his eyes than the little farm girl, playing at being a grown-up.  And he had been her longest relationship.

During these two weeks with John she found she was discovering a whole length and breadth of emotion she had never really believed she could feel.  All those silly clichés she had found so annoying were coming true.  She found herself smiling more.  Her heart beat faster when she knew she was about to see him.  And the sex.  Holy Hanna, she had never had sex like this before.  John wanted her continuously and she couldn’t get enough of him.

After waking from that nap, she had felt him growing hard against her backside and with a little giggle, she had dived under the covers and had her mouth around him, leaving him to gasp above her.  She couldn’t help herself.  His cock had delighted her and she wanted to give him something in return.  He was so big; she’d never had a man the size of John before.  Her limited experience had made her think with a small laugh, these things come in different sizes?!  John had finally found his voice through his moans and said, “Hey, no laughing down there,” which had made her giggle more.  They had collapsed in a fit of laughter which brought an unfortunate end to her pleasuring him, but John didn’t seem to mind as he had then pulled her up to him, kissing her and pulling at her hips so she knew he wanted inside her.

She had moved her hips deftly and he slid home through her wetness.

“God, Jas,” she loved how he had shortened her name, “so wet for me.  I love how wet you are.  Just for me.”

This had seemed an innocent comment, but now that she thought about it, she realized the statement had been tinged with a deeper meaning.  But at the time, she had been so in need of him, she had ridden him through their oblivion, coming hard around him and loving every heated jet of his own liquid into her.  He had taken her into his arms after they had both managed to regain their breath and had held her gently, kissing her hair and nuzzling her neck.  That was the icing:  he loved to cuddle.

And now these two weeks had passed, taking pictures, spending time with him, becoming the talk of the town, if he was to be believed, which of course, she did, and sex everytime they walked in his door.  Only one thing felt like it was missing from this perfection.

They had both carefully avoided saying the “L” word, as Jasmine had come to think of it.  Everytime he made love to her she had to choke back from saying it.  Being as insatiable as they were, it seemed they spent more time in his bedroom than anywhere else.  He really did want her constantly and she adored having him envelope her, overwhelm her, inside her.

But she ached with the time issue.  She couldn’t allow herself to need him so.  Damn, she had a life in New York , apartment, friends, good job.  He had a life here, the entire town was his life and hockey, he would be lost not being able to play.  To hear him talk about hockey made her feel as exhilarated as he was and she knew if she really did love him, as she felt she just might, she would never ask him to give that up.  Her life in New York had begun to feel almost inconsequential to his life here.  She loved New York , but really, she was a small town girl from her parents farm and felt so at home in Mystery, it was almost scary.

So one thought kept repeating itself in her head.  If I am falling for him, I would give up everything for him.  He’s a sweet man who deserves nothing less.

How to know if that were true?  And, more importantly, how to know if he felt the same?  Because to be his would be heaven, but it would have to be forever.

The snow was becoming thicker and John pulled Jasmine up onto her feet so they could head back into town.  They barely made it back to the Sheriff’s station before it really hit hard.  John spent the next few hours answering calls while Jasmine stowed her equipment in his office and grabbed a book she had brought for just such downtime.

She didn’t notice that it had gotten dark and quiet in the building.  She was snuggled under a blanket in John’s office, a reading lamp giving her enough illumination and she was fully engrossed in the Stephen King novel she had brought.  So when John’s hand snaked down in front of the page she was reading, she screamed.

“Fuck me!”

“If you insist,” John said, with a laugh.

“You scared me,” Jasmine panted, her heart pounding a mile a minute.

“Sorry, Jas.  You just looked so absorbed, I couldn’t resist.  You wanna try going back to my place?  I’m about ready to wrap up the day here.”

“Do you think we can make it in this weather?” she asked, looking out the window at the snowstorm that had really dug in its heels while she had been reading.

“Sure.  I’ll take care of you.  Don’t worry.”

“I’m never worried when I’m with you, John.”  She spoke without thinking, still looking out the window.

John blinked.  It was the closest she had come to declaring her feelings for him.  He had been painfully aware of the delicate dance they were both participating in, skirting an issue that would have been plainspoken by now under normal circumstances.  But he had known she was leaving from the second he had met her and had avoided hurting both her as well as himself by allowing it to become anything more than a pleasant diversion.  But he was kidding himself if he thought it hadn’t moved ahead on its own.

His bachelor life, he loved it.  Except for the unrelenting loneliness.  Why else would he have allowed himself to make love to her that first time?  And all the times after that?  Unbidden, yet welcome all the same, he saw unfolding before him the scene when he had first tasted her.  They had just eaten dinner that next night and were doing the dishes.  He had made some smart-ass comment about her domesticity, actually the lack thereof, and she had snapped the towel at his ass.  He had splashed her with the dish water.  She had squealed and run from him and he, of course, had given chase.  They had ended up in front of the fire in the living room, wrestling on the carpet, giggling like children, until he had kissed her.  Kissed her hard and thoroughly.  They’d both been breathless when they had finally parted.  He loved kissing her.  Her mouth was warm and sweet, and her tongue engaged his enticingly.  But he had wanted to taste more of her because he hadn’t.  Yet.

He’d slowly kissed her neck as he unbuttoned her blouse, then kissed the exposed skin, leaving a wet trail down to her breasts, where he sucked her nipples into hard little peaks, gently squeezing the fleshy mounds as she arched up into his hands.  Her fingers were twining into his hair, but he was so focused on her skin, he barely felt it.  But he had heard her moans and smiled against her.  Then her abdomen, dipping his tongue into her belly button, feeling her writhing mound against his chest, he had then unbuttoned her jeans and pushed them down and then off her, exposing her long legs to his questing mouth.  He’d run his hands all over her, still grinning at her because she was writhing heatedly under his gentle touch.  He’d pushed her legs open and kissed each inner thigh tenderly, heading inexorably towards his prize.

Then he had tasted her.  Sweet.  She was sweet like honey.  Dripping moisture onto his beard as he found her hard little nub waiting for him in her folds.  Licking up her slit to suckle at her clit, he had held her hips to him as she bucked against his mouth, coming and coming again.

When she had cried out that she couldn’t take anymore he had let his cock taste her again, thrusting in hard, sliding so smoothly, he felt the tip hit the entrance of her womb, that beautiful cocoon sensation she gave him, clutching at him with her moisture soaked walls.  He had driven into her steadily until his need for her overtook him and he had come with such force, he could feel each drop spurting out of him, almost painfully.  He felt complete when he came inside her.

She was a surprise to him.  John knew that it was too fast to be feeling so strongly about her.  But that didn’t change the fact that he had begun falling for her within days of knowing her.  But he wouldn’t acknowledge it, to himself or to her.  She was leaving and he couldn’t go with her.  Mystery was his home and no matter how much it hurt, he would have to say goodbye to Jasmine when the time came.  He wondered if he told her how she made him feel, if she would want him just as much?  But what if the answer was no?  He couldn’t take that.  So he managed to keep it to himself.

But the longer she stayed, the harder it became.  And with the weather behaving so oddly, it looked like she’d be here even longer.  Every passing day brought them closer to a decision he didn’t want to have to make.  How could he allow himself to love her when she had a life in New York and he had his on the other side of the continent?

The weather really was conspiring to bring them together.  But was it for a happy beginning or a bitter ending?  He resolved that if she ended up having to stay much longer he would have to raise the issue.  He didn’t want to be hurt anymore than it was already going to.

John maneuvered the sled through the small town to his home as the snow drove down in thick drifts.  Jasmine clutching him was making him ache for her as always.  When they entered his home, he had to have her again.  Shucking their clothes quickly at the door, it wasn’t long before he was kissing her as they kept moving through the house to his bedroom, shedding more clothing as they went.  This had happened everytime they had arrived at his place.  The morning ritual of picking up the trail of clothing left behind from the night before’s race to the bedroom had become a source of amusement for John.  He had not realized he’d ever meet a woman who was so ready everytime he was that they would lose all sense of decorum.

Falling to the bed, finally able to roam his hands over her satiny soft skin, wordlessly loving her, wanting to say it, aching to say those three tender words; he kissed her to keep his mouth busy, ignoring what his mind wanted.  Her hands snaking into his hair, pulling him deeper into the kiss, tongues roaming, intertwining with the silent words.  He was determined to follow his plan, to wait until it couldn’t wait any longer.

Best laid plans of mice and men…

John drove his cock into Jasmine in a frenzied need for her.  She responded as urgently.  Together they set a rhythm that bespoke of a desire for something more, something they both knew but wouldn’t admit to, each terrified of what it would mean for the other.  He plunged into Jasmine, holding her close, feeling her legs wrap around him, completing the cocoon his body relished whenever he was inside her, crushing the head of his cock against the entrance to her womb repeatedly, thrust after thrust.  Wanting, needing…

“Oh, fuck, Jas, I love you!”

Coming and coming into her as she contracted violently around him.

“Yes, John!  Oh, Christ, fuck, I love you!”

Releasing into her, heart pounding, more so from their cries and what it suddenly meant to them than from climax he had achieved with her.  Collapsing onto her, breath slowing,  gradual realization that Jasmine’s heart was still beating furiously against his.  They had both said it.  And now, they had to recognize it.

John rolled over onto his side and pulled Jasmine to him, scared of how to begin.

“You…you love me?”

Jasmine smiled.  “You said it first.”

“Did you –“

“No.  Absolutely not.  I said it because I feel the same way, John.”

“What do we do now?”

“I have no idea.”

“I can’t ask you to stay.  But I need to.”

“John, I –“

“No, forget it.  I can’t hear what you’re going to say.  Don’t hurt me that way, Jas.  Please.”

“I was going to say, I want to stay.  If you’ll have me.”

John’s slow grin warmed Jasmine’s heart to bursting.  “I want you.  Oh, I definitely want you.”

Jasmine leaned into John and they shared a heated kiss.  When she pulled back from him, she searched his eyes for the love that was so abundant, she had no trouble relaxing into arms, confident she had made the right choice.

“You’re gonna have to love me forever, you know.”

John kissed her again.  “That will be the easy part.”

“Thank God for bad weather, huh?”

THE END