She was lying beneath him, a light layer of snow hiding her beautiful face. She was so completely still that dread began seeping into Kai. Maybe she’d hit her head. Or maybe she’d broken something, and she was in shock. Jesus, was she seriously hurt?
Worried, he yanked his gloves off and cupped her face. The chill of the snow pricked his warm fingers but he ignored the pain as he gently pulled off Jessie’s goggles and brushed the powder from her cheeks and mouth. “Jessie?”
Lying perfectly still, she made no response. Kai wasn’t sure much he should move her if she did have a head injury. He tried to gently disengage from her body, but they were tangled so badly, he couldn’t tell where he ended and she began.
Fear leeched into his voice. “Jessie, talk to me.” He leaned into her, trying to feel the warmth of her breath on his cheek. He couldn’t feel it; he couldn’t feel anything. Starting to panic, his hands brushed over her face and hair. “Jessie…please talk to me. Baby?”
Her eyes snapped open, and she looked up at him with eyes full of wonder. Kai engulfed her in a hug. “Oh, thank God.” Pulling back, he anxiously examined her face. “Are you hurt?” After searching her, he searched the snow around her; everything was still fluffy and white—no red, no blood.
Jessie’s lips curved into a huge smile as she started to chuckle. Kai paused in his search for injuries. “Were you fucking with me?” he asked, dumbfounded.
She laughed even more at his language. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist.”
Kai twisted his lips into a scowl and did the only reasonable thing he could think of to retaliate. One hand drifted down to the edge of her jacket and lifted it up, while the other grabbed a fistful of pure, icy snow and plopped it onto her stomach. Her eyes went wide, and she sputtered for a second before letting out a blood curdling scream. Kai started laughing as she squirmed beneath him; they were still so entangled she couldn’t get away.
Laughing so hard her eyes were watering, Jessie begged him to let her get up. His frozen hand, cold from handling the snow, slid up her shirt. Jessie screamed again, then begged for mercy as she laughed. Kai laughed with her. “You promise to never do that again?” he asked between chuckles.
She tried to push his hands away, but he was so much stronger she actually lost ground and his fingers slid even further up her clothes. “Yes, yes, I promise,” she giggled, her words coming out between screams.
Kai leaned over her, stilling her frantic movements. Grinning down on her, still breathing heavy from the exertion and the fear, he said, “Good, because you scared the crap out me.”
Her laughter trailed off along with her screams as she locked gazes with him. It was only then that Kai was aware of just where his hand was. His fingers had drifted to the place he’d jealously watched the raindrop traverse earlier, only he was much more intimately connected to her than that drop trailing down her padded jacket had ever been. Cupping her breast, he swept his thumb back and forth over the lacy fabric of her bra. His hand suddenly burned with a tingling fire as it switched from icy cold to red hot.
Kai’s gaze dropped to her lips as they lightly breathed on each other, just inches apart now. Jessie licked her lips, and Kai could feel her chest under his fingertips rising and falling in a deeper rhythm, almost heaving. Knowing he should yank his hand away and apologize, he slipped a finger into the cup. He closed his eyes as he felt his skin pass over a perfect peak. His growing erection told him he was skirting dangerous waters and needed to retreat, but the light moan escaping Jessie’s mouth spurred him on; he wanted to hear more.
Kai could easily imagine the sounds she would make if his lips closed over her nipple. God, it had been so long since his tongue had rolled around it. He pictured the swells of her snow white skin, the soft pink flesh, and he thoroughly hardened as his finger traced a never-ending circle over her quivering flesh.
“There you are. What are you guys doing?”
Kai immediately yanked his hand back and opened his eyes. Jerking his head up, he saw Harmony standing over their prone bodies with an expression on her face that was both worried and amused. Every single part of Kai heated in embarrassment, and his arousal faded to oblivion. God, why couldn’t he stop those thoughts when it mattered? And, Jesus, had Harmony noticed any of that? He studied the red-head’s face, but he couldn’t see any signs of disgust. She hadn’t noticed just what she’d interrupted.