There was a slight sound from outside, and she breathed a sigh of relief. He had most probably gone to answer the call of nature. Which, now she thought about it, sounded like a practical idea.
The blanket wasn’t all it could be for warmth, and she dreaded the cold snowy ground beneath her bare feet, but for two minutes and the rest of the night in comfort, it was worth it.
So she moved quietly to the door and opened it.
He stood outside, bare naked, staring up at the moon. She took a moment to appreciate the sheer beauty of his body, gleaming in the blue white light.
“Hullo. Are you worshipping the Goddess of the Night?”
He turned and she caught the flash of white teeth as he smiled. “I thought I’d already done that.”
She laughed. “I’m no Goddess. Just a woman with a desperate need for a convenient bush.”
He nodded. “I completely understand. Milady’s bush is over there.” He pointed to a large shrub.
“My thanks.” With a few muttered exclamations as warm feet met cold ground, Prudence hurried to the bush and emerged shortly thereafter much refreshed.
“Isn’t it lovely?” Reid was still outside. “There’ll be snow within the hour…” He nodded at a large cloud bank gathering nearby. “But for this moment, right now, it’s just perfect.”
She tiptoed to him. “If a little cold on the exposed bits. How can you stand it?” She eyed him curiously.
“I’ve always loved the winter. There’s something cleansing about snow, and I used to go running in it whenever I could. When Mama found I liked to take my clothes off when I did, she explained that it wasn’t good for my body to chill it so quickly. So I took my clothes off little by little. One winter she followed my trail of garments for close on a quarter of a mile before she caught me frolicking naked in a big pile of snow.” He grinned.
“You are a strange man, Mr. Chillendale.”
“And you, Lady Prudence, need to experience a good frolic.”
“I thought I’d already done that.” She threw his words back to him as quick as a wink.
“You’re shivering. Come here.”
“I’m thinking the fire would be nice...”
“Coward.”
To her surprise, he picked her up, holding her like a child. There was more strength than she’d realized in those muscled arms of his.
Then he tossed her blanket aside.
“Reid…for heaven’s sake. I’ll freeze to death.”
His chest rumbled with his laughter. “I won’t let that happen, love. Never fear. But ‘t’is as I said. You need a frolic.”
With those words, he put her down, grabbed a handful of snow and slapped her buttocks with it.
“Oooh…”
Surprised, chilled and aroused all at once, she grabbed her own handful of snow and threw it at him.
He danced easily aside, avoiding her attack.
And that was all it took to rouse the competitive instinct in Prudence. For the next few minutes they engaged in an intense and serious snowball fight, dancing back and forth, ducking, leaping and generally behaving in a quite childish manner, all the while as naked as the day they were born.
When at last the moonlight dimmed and flakes of snow began to drift silently down on them, Prudence called a halt.
“Enough.” She raised a hand in the classic fencer’s gesture of defeat. “I surrender. I am now completely made of ice. Take me inside and thaw me out, lest I turn to a statue before dawn and melt in the sun.”
He nodded and grabbed her blanket, enfolding them both in it as they made their way back to the welcome heat of the little shelter.
