Bedding Down, A Collection of Winter Erotica by Rachel Krame Bussel

Author:Rachel Krame Bussel [Bussel, Rachel Kramer]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

It started as a game between them in a time when they thought

they understood the meaning of the words, “I love you.” Ask of me what you will, they whispered to each other, breathlessly after making love, softly while lying in each other’s arms the

next morning, hoarsely after a fight. “Ask of me what you will,”

Alana says to Gideon, as they walk through the woods behind

their cabin. It is a cold November afternoon. Their breath is

foggy in the chill of the afternoon and they can hear the snow

beneath their hiking boots. Her hands, red and chapped, are

shoved into the pockets of her jeans, and she walks slowly, with stuttered steps, trying to keep up. “Ask of me what you will,”

she says again, but Gideon pretends not to hear. Instead, he listens to a flock of birds flying south, the occasional report of a deer-hunter’s rifle, the sound of the air. He is in love with November. He does not want her to disturb this moment.

The winters are long in North Country. Snow falls as early as

August, and by November, cold has taken hold of the earth and

158

Isabelle Gray

won’t relinquish its grip until late May. It is not the cold or the snow or the mere six hours of daylight that bother her, Alana is fond of saying, but the fact that she doesn’t get to take advantage of her extensive shoe collection often enough during these long winter months. Instead, her feet are trapped in warm, heavy boots sturdy enough to brave the elements, the slippery ground, and more than three hundred inches of snow a year.

It hurts to breathe, but Gideon inhales deeply. He enjoys the

sensation of the cold air bruising the delicate lining of his lungs.

Alana grabs the sleeve of his jacket, pulling him toward her.

“Gideon, do you hear me talking to you?”

He nods, squinting as he stares into the distance. “I hear

you.”

“Ask of me what you will.”

“There is nothing I want to ask of you.” He turns toward her,

brushing her hand from his sleeve. Her blue eyes flash angrily, her chin jutting forth. This is the first time he has asked nothing of her.

Their relationship has always been volatile—hot and cold.

They met in an entirely different place than the one they find

themselves in now. They were seniors at NYU. He was studying

architecture. She was studying musical theater. One drunken

night, after meeting over bingo at a hipster bar in the Williams-burg section of Brooklyn, they stumbled back to her fifth-floor walk-up. She poured them wine in plastic cups and as they drank, Gideon awkwardly kissed her neck and fumbled with her

bra clasp, thankful he had remembered to bring a couple con-

doms before heading out. When they were sufficiently drunk

enough to not be nervous around one another, she sat him on

Northern Exposure

159

the edge of her bed, unbuttoned his jeans, and wrapped her

mouth around his cock, thick and pale, lightly veined. Alana

had no way of knowing at the time, but she was Gideon’s first.

The sensation of her tongue lazily sliding

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.