He rose before her in the morning, silently sliding out of bed so as not to wake her. On his way to the bathroom, he grabbed his jeans and a clean shirt, and dressed in the bathroom after a quick shower. By the time he left the bathroom, the smell of coffee wafted down to him from the kitchen. As he stood in the doorway of the kitchen, still combing out his damp hair, she turned to him and smiled.
She took a deep breath, facing him. "I'm sorry if that was awkward for you last night. I really just couldn't bear to be alone, and needed to hear someone else breathing beside me." She said it in a rush, as if she'd rehearsed what to say to him.
He smiled, then took the coffee she offered him. "Perfectly fine," he said, taking a sip of his coffee. "I just hope I didn't snore," he added with a laugh, "or at least not too loudly."
It broke the slight tension, and she grinned at him. "No, you didn't," she said, then touched his arm. "Thank you, Ress."
As she headed to the bathroom he started making their breakfast, and by the time she appeared 15 minutes later he had bacon, eggs and toast ready for them.
"I'm starving!" she said, and this time ate all of her meal as they sat at the dining table. "So what's the plan today?" she asked over her coffee cup.
"Feel up to taking a walk? It's not quite as cold today," he said, having already checked a weather app on his phone. "We don't need to go far, but I'd like to show you around the place," he added.
"I'd like that too," she said and once breakfast was done, they tidied up. As Ressler maneuvered around her in the kitchen, it conjured up an image of his parents doing the same thing. A simple dance and in tune with the other as they deftly washed and dried plates, never bumping into the other. He looked at Liz under lowered eyelashes and thought of her beside him last night. And once again, his heart lurched at that memory.
###
They'd been walking about 20 minutes when Ressler spotted the deer. He slowed, put his hand on Liz's arm and motioned her down into a crouch. Unsure what he had seen, she followed his pointing finger, and saw the deer standing magnificent in the trees, his antlers tall and proud.
"Oh!" she whispered, then was quiet, afraid the deer would bolt. He was joined by a smaller doe, and together they watched silently as the pair nibbled at the tree foliage and slowly slipped away into the trees again.
As the deer disappeared from view, Ressler and Liz stood up together. "They were beautiful!" Liz said, her voice still hushed.
"Yeah, there used to be a whole lot more of them around in my youth, but not as many now, it seems," he told her as they resumed their walk. They walked along the creek bed as it tumbled over small rocks. It was narrow enough to jump over in parts, but he found a spot that had a large flat rock in the middle. "Pete and I put this stepping stone here eons ago," he said, "and the darn thing is still here."
He held her hand as she stepped onto the rock and he pulled her to the other side of the creek after he'd crossed it. On the other side of the creek they followed it for a little while and then they came across a cleared area of trees.
"I'm not sure why the trees don't grow here, but my mother always told us it's a fairy ring," he said, then shrugged. "Pete and I said it was where an ogre had been killed and his black blood poisoned the ground." He glanced at her and smiled awkwardly. "Hey, we were little boys with vivid imaginations, okay?"
Liz laughed as they walked on the grass under the trees, and looked up at the pine trees surrounding them in a circle. "I'm going with your mother's theory," she said and then in her heavy coat, boots and gloves, she twirled in a circle in the small clearing. "I can just see the Fairy King here," she said. "I was a little girl once, you know," she grinned and then suddenly her smile dropped.
He knew why as the thought of her own little girl came to her. "Hey, come on," he said and held her arm as she stopped twirling. "Let me show you the waterfall."
She met his eyes at that, and gave him a small smile. "Waterfall?"
"Oh, yeah, it's huge," he deadpanned and led her from the small clearing. And a few minutes later they stood at the said waterfall and Liz grinned. It was barely 3 feet high and just a small drop in the creek where the water bubbled a little faster before resuming it's lazy pace.
"See? Huge. Rivals Niagara Falls," he said and her eyes lit up at his teasing, as she dissolved into laughter against him.
He'd made her laugh, and for that he was grateful as they turned around and headed back toward the cabin.
###
"It's going to snow tonight," Ressler said, coming back inside after getting more firewood that evening.
"So we might have a white Christmas?" Liz asked, smiling.
"Maybe," he replied, adding the new wood to the small pile of logs by the fire, "but more likely a white Christmas Eve Eve," he added with a smile.
"Oh, details," she said with a laugh, looking up from his movie collection. "Wow, you weren't lying," she said, running her finger along the titles. Most of them were family movies, but a few stood out. "These must have been your mom's, right?" she said holding up Ghost, Titanic, and Pretty Woman. "Definitely chick flicks."
Ressler groaned, remembering have to endure them as a teen. His mother loved them. "Oh, please don't tell me you want to watch those?"
"Oh, come on! These are great! I haven't seen them in years. Chick flick marathon?"
He was cornered. But then he didn't mind, not at the light in her eyes. "And I think we have some 19 year old popcorn I can make in the air popper," he said, grinning.
"Perfect! Same age as the movies," Liz said, inserting Pretty Woman in the player, getting it ready.
And popcorn made, drinks procured, they sat together on the couch, Liz with her blanket around her, the lights off and only the light of the fireplace as they watched Pretty Woman, and then Ghost. Shortly after the movie started, the first flakes of snow began to fall outside.
Yes, they were chick flicks, but Ressler was only half watching the movies anyway. Lit in the soft glow from the fireplace and the Christmas tree, Liz was beautiful. And a master at sliding glances across to her while appearing to look elsewhere, he couldn't keep his eyes off her.
###
He woke at the sound, and knew what it was. Or who it was. Just as last night, Liz came to his bedroom silently, padding across the floor in her t-shirt and shorts. Ressler watched her, not saying a word. As he turned to the empty side of the bed, she stood there, as if waiting for his permission.
And he gave it, moving the blanket down for her. Silently, she crawled into the bed, bringing the blankets up over her small frame. He lay facing her, knowing this was different. She wasn't upset and hadn't been crying, like last night.
She looked across at him in the moonlight, brighter with the white blanket of snow outside. He met her eyes, and still neither of them spoke. His breathing quickened. She was the first to move, sliding closer to him, her fingers tentatively finding his bare chest. At her touch he suppressed the gasp as his heart lurched. She inched closer to him, her hand moving gently on his chest.
His hand came up and held hers, stopping its movement across his sternum. Was she sure about this? Was he sure about this? Opening his mouth to ask, he never uttered a word as her lips met his, silencing him with her warm mouth. And that was all he needed. His hand left hers and circled her back, finding the soft skin under her t-shirt as he pulled her toward him.
As her mouth opened beneath his tongue, his hand dropped lower, slipping over the silky fabric of her shorts to cup her butt. He felt the shudder go through her, and then it was his turn to gasp as her hand did the same down his back. Hands pulling each other closer, their hips ground together, leaving no room for imagination. He was ready, hardening against her, probing at her hidden places with his length.
Mouths still tasting each other, they paused, each leaning back a little, even as their lower bodies had a mind of their own.
"Are you sure?" he whispered, hoping like hell she wouldn't stop now. Because he wasn't sure he could.
"Hell, yes," she whispered, hungry for him, pulling him closer to her as his hand moved, slipping under her shorts to cup the naked skin of her butt. Gasping, her hand slid between them, fondling him through his own shorts.
Needing to be naked, they pulled each others clothing off in a rush, leaving both of them exposed.
"Now," she hissed, pulling him even closer. Within moments he rolled her to her back. Above her, he entered her, finding her wet and ready as she gasped, her legs circling his waist. They moved as one, gasping, their mouths never leaving each other. It was fast, frantic and breathy, hands clutching each other close as they became one flesh.
###
Afterward, he lay panting on top of her, eyes closed, his forehead touching hers as she rubbed his back.
Reluctantly, not wanting to end their connection so soon, he rolled off her, his breathing almost under control. He lay lay beside her, his arm still over her, looking into her eyes.
"What was that?" he asked, knowing full well what it was.
"You know what it was," she whispered, echoing his thoughts. Her finger found his lips. "Don't over think it," she said, then turned into him, rubbing his chest.
He nodded and kissed her forehead. "Oh, you know me," he replied.
She chuckled against him. "Yes. I certainly do now," she said, then looked up at him, smiling in the dark. He caught her eyes in the moonlight.
"You okay with this?" she asked, so close to him he felt her breath on his chest.
In reply, he drew her closer, kissing the top of her hair. He was more than okay with it. He hadn't felt this good, this complete, in a very long time.
And holding each other, they drifted off to sleep.