Cold Secrets
-M. Lauren
Chapter Fifteen
A/N: It's a short one... have it early as a gift from me to you.
Warmth surged across her skin. From the tips of her toes to the crown of her head, everything enveloped in heat. It was comforting. There was a peacefulness to the sensation for which Elsa had not experienced in a long time.
As she dozed, everything in that moment was perfect. Well, nearly perfect. Something prodded the side of her ribs, she noticed. Elsa tried to shift away, but she was stopped by the edge of the bed.
Her eyes reopened at once. The room before her was dim. The nightlight on the far wall was the only bit of illumination the room had to offer. Elsa rubbed her eyes and turned to find what had woken her. When she did, she was forced to stifle a laugh.
Tiny bare toes had wedged into her side. Ryder lay at the center of the bed, splayed out like a starfish as he slept. His curls matted with sweat. Drool dripped down from the curl of his lips, but he looked content in whatever dream state he'd found himself in.
But how had he gotten there?
Eyes suddenly wide, Elsa looked across from her. Honeymaren was there and very much awake. She was propped up on an elbow watching her bedmates doze. A slow, uncertain smile crept over her cheeks. Her brown eyes found Elsa's and they quickly looked away before coming back to find her once more.
"I'm sorry…" she whispered. A steady blush drew up from Honeymaren's chest. "I meant to say something last night… I- Ryder usually wakes up early and then goes back to sleep with me for a few hours."
It certainly wasn't the strangest way to have woken up. Anna had always been one for morning dramatics. However, there was a child asleep beside Elsa; a child who wasn't her niece. Should she feel uncomfortable or out of place, perhaps? Honeymaren wasn't looking at her, but Elsa felt her hesitating had more to do with their conversation from the night prior; than it did her son for being snuggled between them.
Covering her mouth, Elsa yawned. She rolled onto her side, mindful of Ryder's toes. "It's fine. At least he doesn't snore…"
"Ah… but he does." Honeymaren sang. "-like a train, or a forty year old man."
Elsa giggled. "He sleeps like a man, too… just like my younger sister."
Honeymaren smiled and sat up. "Yeah, sorry… he's a bit of a bed hog, that child of mine." She watched Elsa shrug before stretching her legs. "Coffee?" Honeymaren asked, her brows arching high.
"Please," she nodded, and slid to the edge of the bed.
On bare feet, she followed Honeymaren out of the bedroom. She shut the door quietly behind them and led her into the kitchen. While Honeymaren prepared the coffee pot, Elsa sat herself at the counter. She watched Honeymaren fidget as she drew mugs down from the cabinets. Her thoughts were elsewhere, and Elsa wished she knew how to pull them back.
Hot coffee began to trickle down through the filter. Honeymaren sighed, knowing all that was left to do was wait. She turned back to Elsa. Her cautious gaze met the blue eyes following her. With her fingers laced against her stomach, Honeymaren's attention fell to her feet, and she slowly approached Elsa.
As Elsa's bare toes came into view, she looked back up. Honeymaren offered her an uncomfortable smile and her shoulders tucked into her ears.
"Look… I have to say- I am so sorry about last night…" Elsa's mouth tipped to respond, but Honeymaren charged on. "I meant for it to be a fun 'not date' date, and it ended up a disaster! I really couldn't have planned for Ricco to show up here… He's so unpredictable these days, and I'm sorry it ruined everything, and that I got emotional or... whatever… None of that was fair to you."
Elsa's brows lifted coyly. "I don't know about all that… I still had fun." she smiled. "I mean, of course there were a few blips, perhaps, but I still enjoyed myself… I had a nice dinner. I watched a terrible movie with my girlfriend, and I got to know her better… I don't think anything was ruined, so why do you?"
Gently, Elsa's fingers pinched at the hem of her shirt. Seeing them there forced Honeymaren to meet her eyes. "I- I'm worried I'm causing you too much stress… Everytime you spend time with me it's like a trip to the circus!"
Honeymaren dryly laughed. She looked away and stepped back from Elsa's hands.
"What I said last night, I meant it." Elsa's voice lifted in retort. "I'm not overwhelmed, nor am I bothered by the things you shared with me. I'm proud of you, and I think that's reason enough to see where this goes."
Groaning, Honeymaren allowed her head to tip backwards. "Please, don't make me cry again! I hate it! I was never a crier before I had Ryder…"
Elsa giggled softly. "Fine, I won't say anything else… but I do have a request."
"What's that?" she slightly frowned.
"Kiss me…" Elsa beckoned her closer. "-and then finish making my coffee."
Honeymaren couldn't fight her grin, nor the not-so-subtle roll of her eyes. As she stepped between Elsa's knees, her hands splayed against the trim waist before her. Honeymaren lowered to Elsa, slowly. She touched their lips together before drawing back a hair to do it again. Elsa seemed to have followed her forward. Pale fingers threaded through Honeymaren's hair, holding her still. The third time their lips met, both women arched into it with all their weight. Honeymaren's hands tighten in their hold, and Elsa sighed happily against her.
"That was two requests, by the way." Honeymaren smirked as they parted.
"Was it?" Elsa hummed. "Anyway, we both know you wouldn't deny me my coffee…"
Honeymaren kissed her once more before returning to tend to their mugs. "You're right about that, Snowflake… I would never dare."
"-and she bought me my favorite coffee- which she hates, and doesn't even drink!"
Elsa's legs were crossed as she sat on Anna's couch. She hadn't made it home that Sunday yet. Still dressed in Honeymaren's sweatshirt and her jeans from the day before; Elsa took a detour to her sister's house instead. Her mind reeled with everything she'd been through that evening- both exciting and frightening in recall.
And Anna, all too eager, was across from her and absolutely ready to hear more.
"Stop it! I am loving this! Aren't you loving this?" her head snapped to Kristoff who sat with Millie on the floor.
"I'm loving it... " he tried, but lacked the same enthusiasm.
"Ignore him!" Anna huffed. "So, keep going! Was it perfect? I bet it was perfect!"
"Everything was… nearly perfect…" Elsa cringed. "There was an… unexpected visitor."
Eyes widening, Anna leaned forward. "Oh! Do tell!"
As Elsa began her retelling, she noticed Kristoff turning away. His face grew pensive, almost stern. The seriousness of his expression only thickened when she brought up Honeymaren's Ex's name.
"Do you remember, Ricco?" Elsa asked. Her head tilted curiously to the side.
"Of course… everyone knew Ricco."
"Uhoh!" Anna's face scrunched. "Why do I get the feeling like you don't like this guy?"
Ignoring his wife, Kristoff shifted. He leaned against his raised knee. "-like him or not… that still doesn't explain- Maren and Rico were married?"
Elsa shook her head. "If you're referring to the Ryder situation... no. It sounds like he was an accident- a happy one; but unplanned all the same."
His frown deepened. "I never understood how Maren dated him for as long as she did. Ricco was a talented hockey player, but a dick nonetheless."
"He looked like one…" Elsa noted. "-acted like one, too. He's petitioning for full-custody after not having had any interest in Ryder for months. I guess he's got a bad track record going when caring for him, too; even now that he is involved."
"Yeah, if he's acting the same as he did after high school… I wouldn't trust Millie within ten feet." Kristoff scoffed.
"Yikes! Sounds like you have a personal vendetta against this Ricco guy…" Anna's eyes lowered.
Kristoff shrugged and looked to the floor. "Like I said… everyone knew Ricco… everyone had issues with him, too. While I was away at school he and his friends broke into my parent's house. They stole some stuff and tried pawning it off for drug money."
"Honeymaren did make it sound like he might still be on them…" Elsa added.
"Poor Maren…" Anna pouted, her lip touching her chin. "She should use that against him in court!"
"I'm sure she knows too," Elsa's shoulders pulled into her ears. "-but we didn't talk much about the court situation. Sharing the rest of it with me made her… pretty emotional."
"I bet!" Sighing, Anna leaned back into the couch. "I mean, think about it… Maren's got this whole hot, single mom, 'I can take on the world' facade going for her. I would have never known she was dealing with all this!"
"And it should stay that way!" Elsa raised a pointed finger at her sister. "We haven't been dating all that long. I don't want her to think she can't trust me because you have a big mouth!"
"I resent that." Anna deadpanned, and then cracked a grin. "I won't say anything! I promise! Your secrets are safe with me."
Both Elsa and Kristoff's eyes lowered to her.
"What?" Anna fought, but they turned to look away.
"Okay! Let's forget about this Ricco guy for a minute… let's go back to the 'new relationship' bit… So, you're dating now- like really dating?" Anna's lips continued to stretch.
"Yes…" Elsa blushed. "It's officially official."
Anna squealed and kicked her legs in the air. "Ah! This is so great! Tell me, when are you going to see her again?"
Laughing, Elsa rolled her eyes. "Tomorrow at work would be my guess."
"No! Not like that! When are you guys going to go on another date? Are you going to have sex- wait! Did you already have sex? Oh my god, how was it?"
"Anna, Anna! Please!" she batted her hands and her face clouded with embarrassment. "We haven't planned anything else yet, and no… with everything that happened, we didn't, um, get to that…"
Quickly jumping up from the couch, Anna squeezed Elsa tight between her arms. "This is so exciting! I need to get my calendar! We have to start planning our first double date!"
She ran from the room faster than anyone could blink. Both Elsa and Kristoff laughed to themselves. He gave a playful roll of his eyes before scooting closer to his sister-in-law.
"So Elsa…" he sang awkwardly.
"So Kristoff…"
He cleared his throat, stretching his neck. "I just wanted to say, I am happy for you and Maren. You both deserve a shot at something good, and I think this could really workout… but," Kristoff frowned.
Elsa's eyes lowered. "Tell me..."
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I just want to ask… for your own sake… stay away from Ricco if you can help it, alright? You don't need to be involved with a guy like him. It's not safe, and especially after everything else you've already been through..."
Her mouth opened to respond as Anna ran back into the room.
"What did I miss?" she beamed.
"Not much." Kristoff smiled at her. "I was just telling Elsa I'm happy she and Maren got together."
"I agree!" Anna sat beside her sister. She nudged her softly, but the smile Elsa returned felt weak at best.
Cheers,
-M.