Page 5 of Hollywood Games
‘Good morning, sleepyhead.’
‘What time is it?’ he managed, his voice gravelly.
She made a big show of staring at her watch and puffing out her cheeks. ‘It’s half eleven and you’ve slept for nearly fourteen hours. I did worry you were dead, but luckily the snoring and drooling convinced me otherwise.’ He jerked up and checked the pillow. She giggled. ‘Don’t panic, you were as silent and drool-free as the grave. I got bored waiting for your “five minutes” to end, so I went to sleep. I’ve been awake for the last couple of hours and have already gone up the hill to find signal. My parents and Morag now know we’re okay.’
At her air quoted “five minutes”, Rory fixed her with a look that would have sent anyone else running for cover. If looks could immolate, Zoe had just gone up in flames. He beckoned her back to the bed. ‘Come here,’ he said, his voice deceptively calm.
‘Not right now, thank you. I’m in the middle of a rather exciting spreadsheet and you need to get dressed and have breakfast.’
She pushed back her chair, ran to the door, pulled on her boots and grabbed her coat. ‘I’m just going to go and get some wood,’ she said with a cheeky smirk. He threw back the duvet and stood. She glanced back. He was naked, his own wood rock solid and ready. She opened the door and ran out, slamming it behind her.
He followed her and blinked at the brightness. The storm had passed and the sun was out. The world was blindingly white and beautiful. She was a few steps down the slope away from the cabin and looked at him with her mouth open. He leapt off the porch, bypassing the steps, and ran through the snow towards her. She shrieked and turned, stumbling down the hill towards the loch.
He reached her in a few strides, threw her over his shoulder and stomped back to the cabin as she slapped his bare backside, howling with laughter. Inside, he brushed the snow off his feet, stalked to the bed, and unceremoniously dumped her in the middle of it. He tugged her boots off, threw them across the cabin, then quickly divested her of every stitch of her clothing.
Her eyes were watering, her cheeks rounded and flushed, her arms clasped around her stomach. His heart swelled at the sound of her happiness. She was perfect.
After three orgasmshad taken the edge off her cheekiness, Rory lay with Zoe curled in his arms, utterly content. She drowsily touched the bridge of his nose. ‘I’ve never asked how you broke it. Did it happen in the army?’
‘Yes, during a rugby match. When two couldn’t bring me down, the whole team piled on.’
He had faint scars on his legs, reminders of surviving an IED at the end of the Afghan war. She traced them with her toes. ‘Do you miss it? Being in the army?’
‘Not any more. I miss my friends. I used to miss the order of it all. Knowing where I had to be, what I had to do.’ He kissed her lips. ‘But now I’ve embraced the chaos. Being with you, trying to save the castle, it’s the biggest adventure of my life.’
Zoe wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. ‘You’ve always got me and the cabin.’
He looked down at her and blinked. ‘That’s all I want.’ He kissed her deeply, cradling her head in his hands, running the tip of his tongue along her lower lip. Her heart raced and she pulled away.
‘We’re meant to be at Morag’s for lunch and if we don’t dig the car out, we’ll never get there,’ she said, pushing on his chest.
He fell back with a sigh. ‘And I need to see if the castle’s still standing. We should clear the deck and solar panels and make a path to the road.’ He propped himself up. ‘I tried to bring up a bag of gritting salt yesterday, but the snow got too bad to drive so I had to leave it. As soon as we’ve got your car out, I’ll go get it, along with your truck.’
‘I don’t have any snow shovels though.’
‘You’ve got two. I brought one a few days ago, then another last night strapped to my pack. When I’ve eaten this, we can make a start.’
Zoe kissed the top of his head. ‘You’re amazing.’
‘I’m working on it,’ he replied with a grin.
They got dressed and Rory ate three steaks, his staple diet, for breakfast. Then he washed up and put on a pair of faded work trousers and a T-shirt whilst Zoe layered herself in several jumpers, a coat, hat, scarf and gloves.
‘Is that what you’re wearing?’ she asked incredulously.
‘I could say the same about you. Shovelling snow is hot work.’ He saw her glance down his body. ‘Do you want me to take my T-shirt off?’ he laughed. ‘I’ll shovel snow naked, if it makes you happy.’ He left to clear the decking and the steps, then called Zoe out and passed her a wide shovel. ‘If you can clear a path to the solar panels and brush off the snow, I’ll start on the track.’
He set to work pushing the shovel under the snow, then throwing it off to one side. It looked powdery soft, but it was heavy and there was lots of it. He liked jobs like this; repetitive physical tasks that used his strength. It was meditation for him and soon he was in a rhythm, moving like a machine. After twenty minutes Zoe joined him, her coat already tied around her waist, her hat and scarf off. Her curls were piled on the top of her head, like a flame in the icy landscape.
She looked at his chest. ‘You’re right, it is hot work. How are you doing?’
He saw her swallow. Her desire for him was so transparent and he loved it. He stood the shovel in the snow and slowly lifted his T-shirt off, tucking it in his low-slung trousers. ‘Are you just using me for my body?’
‘Fuck yes.’ Her thoughts condensed between them in the frozen air. She giggled and he shook his head.
‘Well, at least I’m good for something. Are you going to clear any more snow or just continue objectifying me?’
‘Can I do both?’ she replied, picking up her shovel. He grinned and they worked together for the next hour. When they reached the road, they saw the snow plough and gritter lorry had been through. The only issue now was that the snow from the road was covering the car. ‘I just want to take a few photos for Instagram,’ she said as he began digging it from its icy tomb. After a few minutes he stopped and looked at her, snapping away, the phone focused entirely on him.
