Chapter forty-four: 50 words for snow

Who knew they got the occasional snowstorm in England? This was not Russia!

Kate kicks the door to the cottage closed. The wind is still howling outside. She looks at the dusty phone and exhales deeply. It had been disconnected, so, she couldn't call the house. She hopes that no one had gotten up a search party for them. It had been a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. They'd made it to the waterfall and all was fine.

However, by the time they made it to the cottage, the sky had darkened and the wind had started to whip up, sending snow spiraling around them. Even though the house wasn't far, Kate didn't feel safe walking when she couldn't see the ground clearly in front of her. If something happened to her, then her unborn child would be at risk and ruby and Charlie would have to go for help.

Kate tucks a few more blankets around the children, making sure they were warm enough on the couch. Her bedroom was fully furnished, but she didn't want them to catch a cold because it was drafty in there. Luckily, for them, all of her stuff had been left here and there were a few canned products here for them to eat. True, beans and semi-stale crackers weren't a perfect meal, but neither complained. She did find a tin of cocoa, which really cheered them up. Kate was hungry, but her stomach didn't want any of those foods.

She threw a few more logs of wood into the fire. It wasn't too bad in here. Tomorrow, hopefully the storm would die down and it would be a wonderful Christmas. However, as far as her birthday normally went, today was a more eventful one than she'd had in years, but this was not how she planned to spend tonight.

. Kate sighed as she knelt before the fire, hoping the heat will dry out her soaked woolen skirt. So much for telling Thomas not to be late! Damn, that man was stubborn. She thought for sure the sight of her in a towel with her wet hair would have broken him, but he resisted. Men, her mother said were weak, but he had the strongest willpower of any man she'd ever met. After all, she was his wife! Right there for him to take, if he dared to break his silly idea of waiting six more days! Come January first, she wasn't sure who was going to make the first move. She was practically ready to jump him. Maybe she should have just dropped the damn towel yesterday. Nope, she wasn't that bold, still, he'd have been surprised.

It was in that moment the door blew open with a bang! The children screamed and she jumped up just a snow covered figure entered the room, causing the children to scream more. However, she knew that figure anywhere. It was Thomas.

"Shh, it's alright!" She assured them as she hurried towards him.

"You alright?" he asked as he locked and bolted the door behind him.

"Yes. Thomas Michael Shelby," she tried to sound stern, but she was so happy to see him that he wasn't going to be fooled. "what are you doing in this storm without a decent winter coat? You must be freezing!"

He hesitated, but returned the embrace she enfolded him in. "Knew you had to be here."

He kissed her deeply. In spite of the ice on him, his kiss warmed and chilled her at the same time. She pulled away as Charlie and Ruby ran towards their father. "I'm sorry, the storm came out of nowhere and I didn't want to risk getting caught in this blizzard."

"You made the right choice."

"How did you get here?"

"I rode." He removed his hat. "I tied the horse up on the far side of the porch so he's out of the wind."

"The horse?" She chuckles as Charlie and ruby latch onto his legs in a hug. "You have to name him at some point Thomas."

"When he deserves a name." he looks around. "Do I need to get firewood or anything?"

"I just brought some in." She tugs on his arm. "Come on, let's get you warmed up."

"Daddy's all wet." Ruby says as he removes his coat and kneels beside the fire.

"It's pretty cold out there." he rubs his hands together. "Did you two eat?"

"Yes. Mommy didn't." Charlie reports.

Thomas exhales. "I brought you some cheese Kate. It's wrapped up in my coat pocket."

That gets her stomach growling. "Oh, thank you God for blessing me with such an intelligent husband!"

He chuckles as she pulls out the tightly wrapped wedge. "The doctor said you needed to eat some."

Kate smiles as she takes a bite of the Lancashire cheese. Just what she needs at this moment. "Is that blood?" at Charlie's voice, Kate stills and looks towards Thomas, who's looking at his arm.

"Ah, caught it on a branch. It's nothing to worry about."

"Charlie, can you get the first aid kit under my sink please?"

"Yes mom!"

"Kate, it's just a scratch."

"I'll be the judge of that." she states as she unbuttons his shirt and eases the shirt off his shoulders. She peers close. "That's a deep gash Thomas. Ruby, can you get me a glass of water please?"

"Yes!"

"I've had worse." His voice near her ear causes her to smile.

"And, I've seen much worse." She states as she looks up, to find they're so close that his hair is touching her nose. She inhales and whispers out. "So, I'm just going to clean and bandage it. You can handle that, can't you?"

He shrugs. "We'll see."

Kate chuckles as she tears a strip of her petticoat off, dips it in the water and wipes the blood away. The children sit and watch her, completely fascinated by how she's tending his arm. Thomas sits calmly there, his hand on her knee making circular motions. It's his eyes that are slightly unnerving to her, the chill way they just watch every move she makes.

She secures the bandage. "There you are. As good as new."

"Right." He turns to the children. "Both of you, back to bed. It's almost midnight now."

"So, what time of night did you get back home, Thomas Shelby?"

He shoots her and arched brow. "Snow storm kept me out until 11:00."

"And it took you an hour to find us. It must be whipping out there."

"Not really, I didn't' bother to get a lantern so, I couldn't' see where I was going." He heads into the room and stops. "It's cold in her Kate."

"Well, now that you're here," she heads over and pulls off the comforter. "you can help me pull the mattress in here."

Five minutes later, the mattress is on the floor beside the couch. Both the children are snoring, causing her to smile. Those two always managed to fall asleep so fast, no matter what the circumstance.

Thomas shrugs out of his wet trousers and hangs them over the rocking chair to dry off. Kate tucks the covers around the grunting children with a smile. "In bed Kate." Thomas orders. "You're going to get cold."

"Just need to take a few things off." she states as she sits down on the coffee table to remove her shoes and stockings. Her wool skirt is semi-dry, but still heavy to sleep in. Kate can feel Thomas's eyes on her as she unbuttons her blouse. She glances at him to see that he's blatantly staring at her, without even blinking.

She holds his gaze as she slowly eases her blouse down around her shoulders. He inhaled sharply and laid flat on his back, looking up at the ceiling. She chuckles to herself, enjoying his discomfort as she undoes the few buttons on her skirt, allowing it to fall to the ground before picking it up and hanging it over the armrest of the rocking chair. He's still looking up at the ceiling, but she can feel his anxiety from here. She smiles as she approaches the mattress, observing his hands tightly fisted by his side.

He holds back the covers for her, revealing that he wore only his undershirt and pants. She bit her lip as she carefully got under the covers and he covers her up as she puts the blanket on top of them.

Her feet brushed his, causing him to inhale sharply. "Sorry."

"You're feet are freezing. Come here." Without waiting for a response, he pulled her close to him and she exhaled. He rests his chin rested atop her head. "Happy birthday Kate."

She smiles. "Thank you."

He kisses her gently, causing her to moan. He breaks the kiss and rubs her arms. "Sleep. Storm should be over in the morning." Kate nods as she closes her eyes, snuggling against her husband's side. He lets out a deep sigh and tucks his arm under her head. Kate doesn't know why he often tucks his arm under her head when he sleeps, but she likes it. That small gesture of his leaves her feeling safe and cherished. And that's the best gift that anyone could ask for.

Idcam: You mentioned the Christmas present, which gave me an idea. I took out 3 chapters, but the end result is so much better than my original idea.