Page 11 of The Christmas Accomplice

“Do you need help pushing it?” Welton asked.

“Nope. I’ll make the base. You roll the middle portion.”

Welton scooped up handfuls of snow, packed it into a loose ball, then started rolling it around. His breath plumed in front of him as he worked. Bending nearly in half put pressure on his internal organs, especially his lungs, and soon he was gasping. The altitude probably wasn’t helping much, either. He wasn’t used to being up this high, but he kept at it and found a rhythm with his breathing as he rolled the snowball around the field, amazed at how quickly it grew. It had gotten quite large and hard to push when he finally stopped and, panting for breath, turned to look around for Reece.

He found him standing by a snowball half the size of his own, eyes wide as he looked at what Welton had created.

“Wow. You really want that free appetizer.”

“I’m a sucker for artichoke dip,” Welton said. He gestured to Reece’s snowball. “Is that small snowball supposed to be the head?”

Reece crossed his arms and tried to look annoyed, but that half-smile betrayed him. “No. It was supposed to be the base. But we’ll use yours instead, since you’re such an overachiever.”

“I don’t know if I’d say that.”

Welton leaned his butt on his snowball and watched Reece roll his toward him. Curls of Reece’s dark hair stuck out from beneath his ski hat, and snowflakes dotted his beard. His expression of pure joy about building a snowman was like a balm for Welton’s tired and lonely heart.

Reece rolled his snowball up and stood. “I hope you’ve done some stretches.”

“Oh?” Welton felt nervous. “Why’s that?”

“We’re going to have to stack our balls.”

Heat started in the tips of his fingers and toes and the top of his skull then surged through Welton’s entire body. It coursed through every limb and down his neck, coming together into a tight knot of want at the base of his cock. His mouth felt dry even as it filled with saliva. He swallowed hard and said the first thing that came to mind as carnal images of him and Reece danced behind his eyes.

“Like my apartment’s washer and dryer?”

Reece’s smile was lopsided, similar to how Welton’s brain felt at that moment.

“Right,” Reece said. “But hopefully without a spin cycle.”

Welton’s nervous laugh morphed into a snort and he turned away, going through a few stretches with his back to Reece to hide his blush. How could he be such a total idiot? He was better than this. He was thirty-one years old, for God’s sake. When he felt he had contained his blush, Welton faced Reece. “I’m ready.”

“Sure you don’t want to do some squats?”

“My legs are fine.”

“Yeah? Hard to tell through those snow pants.”

Dammit, Welton had been so flustered after Dean’s arrival and the ensuing argument, he’d yanked on the snow pants without really giving them much thought.

“Well, you’ll just have to see me out of them.”

Welton couldn’t believe he’d said it. But the full tilt smile it triggered for Reece made him a little giddy and nervous. Had his dick taken control of his brain?

“Maybe after that free appetizer we’re going to win,” Reece said. He dropped smoothly into a squat across the snow boulder from him. “Ready?”

Welton squatted, not quite as smoothly as Reece had, and slid his hands under the snowball. He met Reece’s eyes across the rounded surface that sparkled like a micro-planet made of diamonds.

“I’m ready.”

“On three,” Reece said. “One, two, three.”

It was the heaviest thing Welton had lifted in longer than he could remember, and every muscle tightened up. He flashed back to Dean laughing at his claim of a brisk walk constituting a workout, and doubt crept into his mind. He wasn’t going to be able to hold his side for very long. He was a complete weakling and should have ignored Edward and continued to the resort’s main building as he’d intended instead of getting sucked into this ridiculous activity. He was going to fail in front of Reece and he’d never be able to look at him again.

He staggered to the right a few steps as he widened his eyes and locked his gaze with Reece.

“Easy,” Reece said.