Page 36 of Natalie's Nighthawk

“Oh, ha ha. Are you done teasing me?”

“Hmm,” he mused. “Not sure. Can I let you know later?”

Natalie shoved a shovel at him. “Get to work, slave.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he saluted, then started in on the snow. Together they made short work of the two driveways and sidewalk. With the shovels back in the garage, Graham locked the door, and Natalie hit him dead in the chest with a snowball.

“Oh, it’s like that, is it?” Graham threatened while he bent down to make his own weapon. But before he could launch it, he was hit in the face, snow sliding down inside his coat. He glared at her a moment as the snow dripped off his face. One gloved hand flew to her mouth, and her eyes widened with shock.

“I … I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for it to hit you in the face.” She felt horrible, knowing how bad snowballs in the face could feel.

He grabbed up more snow, pressing it into a ball as he stomped toward her. “I’ll get you for that,” he promised with a gleam in his eye.

Natalie shrieked and turned to run away. Due to her short legs, she didn’t get far before he’d grabbed her from behind and lifted her out of the snow while the one hand dumped snow on the top of her head. She squealed as the snow slid under her shirt and down her chest.Cold! God,that’scold.She shivered even while laughing. Somehow, she managed to wriggle free of his hold, and with two hands, she scooped up as much snow as she could launching it at him before dashing away again, laughing.

Graham covered in snow was the funniest thing she’d seen in a while. From a safe distance, she doubled over with laughter. His hair was white with snow, and it stuck to his unshaven face. Even his eyelashes had snow dotting them. He attempted to shake off the worst of it while she laughed. Then he was chasing her again but when she slipped and would have landed flat on her butt, Graham caught her. He snatched her up and threw her over his shoulder as she flailed and kicked, trying to free herself, laughing uncontrollably.

Face down over his shoulder, she couldn’t see where he was headed and was soon flying through the air as Graham threw her into the largest snow pile. Snow covered her as she landed in the heap. He helped the snow along by pushing more of it on her legs and stomach, burying her in the white mass. He stood back to examine his work; taking his phone out of his pocket, he took several pictures of her efforts to free herself. He was the one who was laughing this time as he watched her struggle to get to her feet. She must have looked like a turtle stuck on its back, arms and legs flailing, trying desperately to gain traction.

“All right. All right. You’ve had your fun. Now can you help me get up?” She shivered as more snow slipped under her clothes. The back of her coat had ridden up leaving her bare back against the snow, some of which was starting to creep down inside her pants. It was cold and unpleasant, but she still had a wide smile on her face.

“Do you give up?” he asked.

“Does it look like I can continue the fight?” He hesitated a moment before he reached out a hand to help her up. Natalie grabbed the proffered hand and pulled hard instead bringing him down into the pile beside her.

“You did that on purpose,” he accused as she giggled hysterically.

“No, no … I would never,” she managed between giggles.

“Why you …” he threatened as he rolled over on top of her. The giggles died instantly, replaced with need. She may have had snow in some very uncomfortable places, but that did nothing to suppress the sudden fire that burned through her as his lips claimed hers. She wrapped her arms around him as their tongues wrestled. Damn, they had on too many layers of clothing.

“Hey!” Natalie vaguely heard her sister call out. “You guys done wrestling in the snow yet? I’ve got hot chocolate!” Graham broke their kiss and grinned down at her. She smiled back; sure he could see the desire burning in her eyes.

“Come on, Yeti,” he said, tweaking her nose. “Let’s get warmed up.” He stood with just a little bit of difficulty as the pile of snow they were on shifted. He easily pulled her to her feet before she could tumble off the mound of snow into the driveway. Once upright, she attempted to straighten her clothes, managing to get more of the cold, wet snow down her shirt and pants. She heard him stifle a laugh.

She glared up at him. “What?”

“You really do look like a Yeti,” he teased as he reached out to her hair. There were big clumps of snow stuck to the strands since she’d lost her hat somewhere. She shook her head in an attempt at dislodging the worst of it. Graham helped her with the rest and as wetness trickled down her back, she met his gaze and shivered. Whether from the cold or the intimate look in his eyes, she couldn’t say.

He grabbed her hand and turned to walk toward the house, calling, “Did I hear something about hot chocolate?”

“Absolutely,” Maddie called back. She had managed to clear the deck and turn on the gas fire pit table. They stamped off the snow as they joined Maddie for the promised hot chocolate. “You two looked like you were having fun,” Maddie remarked with a wink as they sat down to enjoy their drinks. Taking a sip, Natalie tried to hide her blush behind her mug.

She nearly choked as the liquid burned a path down to her stomach. “Jeez Louise, Maddie. What did you put in this?”

Maddie smiled a serene smile that could charm even Sheriff Dodd, “Just a little something extra to heat your blood.”

“A little. Tastes like you poured the whole bottle in.”

“Well, I had put in the proper amount, but there was only a tiny bit left in the bottle. Figured I might as well finish off the bottle.”

“Define ‘a tiny bit,’” Natalie insisted. Maddie held her hand up, thumb and finger about two inches apart. “You call that a tiny bit. Some people would say that was enough for three more drinks.”

Maddie shrugged and sipped her potent hot chocolate. “To each their own.”

Graham snorted. “Don’t encourage her,” Natalie told him. “She’ll be spiking all your drinks.”

“Thanks for the warning. I’ll have my food tester taste every drink she makes for me from now on.”

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