Chapter 1

Normally in January it was cold and wet, but nothing was quite frozen, at least not once the sun rose. This year was different. There was at least a foot of snow outside, and it was still coming down. The storm had blown in the night before and it looked like it was planning on staying for a while.

All the roads were blocked and almost every store and business was closed. Sarah wasn’t worried about that though. She tended to keep her chest freezer and pantry pretty well stocked. Her oven and fireplace were gas and she had a small generator. Gas for the generator was the only thing she had to go get when the storm was predicted, and the only thing she had to worry about running out of.

The power went out in mid-afternoon on the first day; but gas was still flowing to the fireplace and stove. She never really understood how it didn’t go out with the power, but she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. The generator was powerful enough to keep the fridge running and keep her phone charged.

That evening she switched the fridge off to turn the TV on to catch the news. She figured she could do that twice a day for a little while. She knew the fridge could last a while without power, but wasn’t a big TV person, so why risk it. For light she used candles, flashlights, and the fireplace. Her pipes were insulated and hadn’t frozen, thankfully. She had filled up every empty container with water and put it in the garage just in case. She figured the power would be back on before she was truly desperately in need of a shower. She didn’t need to plug the chest freezer in as it was in the garage, and the garage was below freezing. The case of club soda she had in there had shown that.

That first day went by in quiet peace. Before the power went out she worked as normal. When the storm had been predicted the previous day, management had said that no one had to come into the office if they didn’t feel it safe to do so, but encouraged people to log in remotely. Some people had to go in for various reasons but most people took the company up on the offer. Sarah normally worked remotely on Friday’s so it wasn’t a change for her at all.

Once the power went out the office was completely closed. They sent an email out saything they were closed until further notice. They advised everyone to be safe and check their email starting Monday for any updates. The office had lost power before Sarah had so she saved her task and powered down her laptop.

When the power went out she decided it would be better to block off as much of the house as she could and sleep in the living room in front of the fireplace. So, she pulled all her blankets and pillows to her couch, which just happened to be a sleeper pull out couch. She got an extra flat sheet and tacked it to the ceiling to close off the hallway to the bedrooms.

It was when she had to go back into her room to grab some pajamas that she realized she would need to bring anything she wanted to change into, clean underwear, more socks, and the like, out to the living room as well. The curtain was doing its job; her room was freezing. The bathroom was down that hall too, but she could manage it to pee a few times a day. She put some changes of clothing in a basket and set it in a corner of the living room. Once the sun went down she closed all the curtains to keep out as much of the cold as she could overnight. She would open them back up to get light in during the day.

It was the next morning while making breakfast that there came a knock at the door. Confused, she went over to look out the front window to see if there really was someone out there. To her surprise her neighbor Ian was standing in the now two feet of show holding a large suitcase.

Sarah quickly opened the door to let him in. He stepped down into her entry way, trying not to bring in too much of the snow in with him. They didn’t know each other that well. They were neighbors and had chatted (flirted?) a few times since he moved in a few weeks ago, but had never actually been able to get to know each other. And even if she’d just seen him in passing she wasn’t going to turn him away, not in this storm.

“Hey Ian,” Sarah said, shutting the door.

“Hey Sarah, my power is out and I don’t have a generator or working fireplace. Can I stay with you till I have power? I brought food.” Ian said hold up the suitcase.

“Of Course. I thought your place had gas?”

“Not right now”

She smiled at him. “Well, you can put your suitcase wherever in the living room. I’m making breakfast, do you want some?”

“Sure.” Ian replied, setting his suitcase down and began to take off his outwear layers.

“Eggs, English muffins and tea. I can make something else if you would like.”

“I’ll take whatever as long as it’s hot.” Ian was just glad to not be eating cold bread and peanut butter…again.

She added another egg to the pan and put another muffin in the oven to toast. While she cooked Ian found a spot in the livingroom to put his suitcase. He took out the food that he had brought and put it on the counter in the kitchen. It wasn’t much, but he wanted to contribute what he could. When the food was done they sat at her dining table to eat.

Over breakfast they chatted. She told him about how her parents instilled a ‘be prepared’ mind set in her from a young age and he told her all about the work he wanted to do on his house. He was really looking forward to doing all the renovations. There was a gas line to the house but it needed repairs, and since the range was electric he had disconnected the gas for safety. When they were done with breakfast they went into the living room and sat on the couch she hadn’t bothered to fold up for the day.

“You’re sleeping in your living room?” Ian asked as he took off his shoes and crawled up onto the bed.

“Yeah,” she said. “Once the power went out it seemed better to close off as many rooms as I could and stay in the living room. Using the bathroom is a little bit of an adventure, but it’s doable.”

They spend the rest of the morning on the couch/bed playing various card games. For lunch it was tomato soup and grilled cheese. It turned out Ian had brought premo bread and cheese. It was Sarah who was the one who knew how to use it to the best advantage though. To her surprise Ian watched her, wanting to learn how to make the most of his ingredients. She was starting to become thankful for the storm.

It wasn’t long after lunch that Ian started to seriously yawn. Having tried, and largely failed, to sleep in his heatless house he was pretty tired. Sarah, never one to pass up a nap, suggested he lay down for a little while. Being as tired as he was Ian didn’t put any argument. Sarah got her book while Ian settled down, both of them under the blankets. They were still in their clothes after all.

He was asleep in minutes and it wasn’t long before she put her books aside and snuggled under the covers herself. She didn’t curl up next to him even though she wanted to. She thought he wouldn’t mind, but didn’t want to push it. She was pretty sure he was single and interested in her, but she’d been wrong before. She drifted off hoping she wasn’t wrong this time.

Ian woke up before Sarah. He noticed that he was now holding her. But not just holding her, spooning. He had his arm draped over her chest, one hand gently cupping her breast. He didn’t remembered her snugging into him. Had he actually woken up? He wasn’t actually sure if he had or if it was just one of those spookily realistic dreams. It was a good one if it was. And if it wasn't...? Would she be ok with it? He hoped so.

When Sarah awoke a few minutes later to find his hand holding her breast she was pleased. She didn’t remember snuggling into him. She had a vague recollection of rolling over, of him moving, of worrying she’d woken him up, but hadn’t realized she had pressed her body into his. She stirred and yawned enough to let him know she was awake, and to see if he was. She shifted her hand over his, pressing it ever so gently more to her breast. This made him smile and he leaned in to kiss her neck.

She rolled onto her back to look at him. She smiled and said “hi.”

He just smiled and, propping himself up on one elbow, kissed her on the lips. She kissed him back, loving the feel of his lips, her hand reaching up to rest on his cheek. His hand hadn’t moved from her breast, but neither did he start doing anything else. The kiss was soft but definitely not hesitant.

“I’ve been wanting to do that since I moved in.” Ian said.

“Me too.” Sarah replied. “I guess it’s a good thing you don’t have gas to your house right now.”

“I guess it is.” He lay back down, his arm moving to wrap around her pulling her in.

She rolled over to face him. He had one arm over her, his other she used as a pillow. Her arms were tucked against his chest. It felt warm, snuggled into him like this. She wanted to kiss him though. So she adjusted herself enough so she could put her face in front of him. As they kissed she wrapped her arm around his body. They intertwined their legs and just enjoyed kissing each other, learning how their tongues could play with each other. Exploring how the other tasted. He moved slightly to brush her hair aside and started kissing down her neck. As he kissed back up her neck he stopped to nibble on her ear. She gave a soft moan. She loved having her ears nibbled on.

She could feel the effect her moan had on him grow, pressing against her hip. She slid the hand that was between them down to give a little brush against that wonderful spot. As she did he let out a small moan himself. He put his hand behind her head and kissed her deeply, rolling her to her back so he could lay on top of her.

She loved the way his body felt pressed on top of hers. He propped himself up on his elbows and kept kissing her. She wrapped her arms around his chest and began to rub his back. His hips began to slowly grind into hers. They stay like that for a while. Just enjoying the feel of each other.

After a moment, a bit, a while, she pushed up slightly, rolling him to his back so she could lay on top of him. He wrapped his arms around her torso holding her close. She held his face in her hands as she kissed him with a need she could feel building. His was obvious; wonderfully obvious. She pressed up against it, rubbing her thigh up and down slowly.

He began to run his hands under her shirt and up her back. His hands were slightly rough against her skin but it felt good, to both of them. The contrast of textures, soft and rough. They both wanted to undress the other. See what other soft and rough, and hard, parts they had.

Eventually the kisses became slower, and shorter, until she rested her head against his chest. He pulled his hands from under her shirt and held her tight. After a moment she slid off him to lay on her side, her head resting on his chest, her leg still laying across him.

“Did you have a good nap?”

“Very good. I think I liked the waking up bit more though.”

“Mmm, me too.”

The rest of the afternoon they spent chatting, learning more about each other. Sarah was an accountant. She was currently working mostly from home; occasionally going into the office for a meeting or to exchange finished paperwork for unfinished piles. She had bought her place, freshly renovated, a few years ago after aggressively saving and living on the cheap. Now she owned a place and could live a little more.

Ian was currently unemployed, his company having downsized him. Normally he was a general handyman and builder, which was why he was looking forward to doing the renovations on his place. He had gotten the place as inheritance from an Uncle who had died the previous March.

“Ray? I didn’t know he had died.” Sarah remembered a sweet older man she had said hi to on occasion. “I’m so sorry. I never really got to talk to him but he seemed so sweet.”

“He was a good man.” Ian nodded fondly remembering the man who had been more of a father to him then his father had actually been.

“I remember there being some other cars on occasion in his driveway, but I don’t remember seeing who they belonged to”

“I would come visit as often as I could. And towards the end he had a caregiver.” Ian didn’t really want to talk about him, but it seemed too rude to just ignore her questions. “You know, funny thing, he actually mentioned you to me a time or two. It’s part of why I always tried to have a bit of a conversation with you. Though I probably would have done that anyway once I moved in.”

She smiled at him. She could see it was a tender subject for him and she didn’t want to push. “So, tell me about the renovations you want to do?”

He was glad of the topic shift. He told her that originally he had planned to renovate it in his spare time and then move in when he was all finished. But then he lost his job and decided that since his lease was up he would just go ahead and move in. He had money saved up, and it would go that much further if he didn’t have to pay any rent. He wasn’t going to actively start looking for a new job until February. He wanted to get a good jump start on the biggest bits of the renovation; things that would benefit from having several days to devote to.

They talked about their social lives, which hadn’t really existed recently. It wasn’t that they didn’t have friends, it was more that everyone’s life seemed to be shuffling all at the same time. Things were starting to settle out though. Ian had been able to spend a lot of time with friends since being unemployed. It being the winter working into the night wasn’t the most fun idea. Much better to grab a beer with the guys or watch a movie at a friend’s place. Sarah’s job had been kind of hectic lately and she hadn’t been able to do much more than the occasional lunch out or movie night, especially with the holidays taking up everyone’s time.

Talking about friends naturally transition into their dating lives. Both of them were currently out in the dating world, but were between relationships, and hook-ups really. Ian’s last relationship had ended some months ago and Sarah had been single going on a year now.

“So, have you ever been married?” Ian asked

“I have, actually.” Sarah replied.

“Oh, what happened? If you don’t mind sharing.”

“Well, we met in highschool in 9th grade. We started dating in 10th grade. George Robert Luellen.” She smiled, remembering her first true love. “When it came time to look at colleges we promised each other that we would apply to and make a decision on where to go based on what was best for our future and not on each other. We’d figure out the relationship stuff later. I wanted to study business and he was a history guy. Well as it happened we went to the same university. He proposed when we were 20 and were married a year later. We were already living together off campus when we got engaged. It was great. We got along really well. We went to the theater, shopping, tried new restaurants, had dinner parties, but after about two years I could tell the marriage wasn’t working.”

“Why not? Sounds like you two were great together.”

“Well, as it turned out, she actually wanted to be with a man.” She paused to watch his response.

It took him a moment. “She?”

“Yep.” She loved watching people's responses when she told them that part of the story. “George was raised in a pretty strict religious family. We met when his family moved to the area because of his dad’s job. Not sure of the details. So it was when he got away from them that he was able to be who she really was. Our marriage, our whole relationship really, was him trying to make his family happy. But because I treated him as a person who wasn’t evil for, like, the things he did, she became comfortable being who she was. It was really hard on the relationship with his parents. They ended up disowning her when she told them why we were getting divorced.”

“Because she was trans.”

“Actually, initially he came out as gay. It took a further two years to realize she was trans.”

“Do you two still talk?”

“Oh yeah. I loved him and I love her, she’s my best friend. I helped her through it all. I was there when she woke up from her surgeries. It was hard losing a husband I loved, but I am so lucky to have Kathy as a friend.”

“That’s amazing.” Ian truly was amazed at her story, and loved how she had dealt with the situation.

She pointed to two photos on a shelf on the wall. Both were taken on a vacation of some sort, based on how Sarah looked in each photo. One was clearly taken more than a few years ago and the other seemed to be more recent. One was with a guy, the other with a woman.

“George and Kathy?” he asked point at one photo then the other.

Sarah nodded. “Yep. High School senior trip and a vacation two years ago.”:

“She’s hot. You and her ever…?”

“No. Not my thing. And not her thing either. As a woman she isn’t into licking pussy. She would rather suck cock. Come to think of it, I think he only went down on me a few times in the 6 years we were sleeping together.”

Up to the point of hearing this story he had thought of her life as being fairly normal. Not that she was boring, but this made him look at her in a new light. He had never met someone with a heart as big as hers. He wondered if his heart could ever be that open.

“Well, that kind of puts my life into perspective.” He said.

“Well, that was definitely a very unusual situation, to say the least.”

“No kidding.”

She noticed he smiled at her with something other than lust. She smiled back. “So, I take it from your response you’re an ally?

“Yeah.” He paused. “I don’t know how I would respond if my son, or daughter for that matter, told me they were gay or trans. I’d like to think I’d hug and accept them, but I know I wouldn't disown them.” He took a breath. “Ray told me just before he died, he was gay. Had to hide it his whole life.”

He hadn’t told anyone this. His family wasn’t homophobic or anything, but he understood why his uncle had never come out. She seemed like the kind of person he could tell. Someone with a heart that big would be there, would listen, and not push.

She could tell it was a weight on him. So she sat there, letting him continue or not. They had been lounging on the couch, facing each other rather than cuddling. She reached out and put her hand on top of his. He gave it a little squeeze. Time to change the conversation.

“So,” she asked. “I take it you want kids?”

“Yeah, I mean I’m pretty sure I do. What about you?”

“I’m undecided.” She answered. He gave her a slightly questioning look. “I mean, I think it will depend more on who I end up with and our life together than any maternal instinct.”

“I get that.”

They talked about lighter things until it was time to make dinner. She made a box of mac and cheese, but added a few extra things, like goat’s cheese and herbs. Sometimes it doesn’t take much to take a simple thing to the next level. This was the kind of cooking he wanted to learn how to do. Ian wasn’t a bad cook, but he wouldn't have had any idea about how to make a box of mac and cheese this good. Sarah, it turned out, loved to cook and was only too happy to show him some tips and tricks. Apparently one of the secrets to making things just a little better was a bit of garlic powder and butter. He couldn’t disagree with that.

When they were done with dinner he helped her clean up. Well, he actually did most of it since she had cooked. She tried to help but he said that since she had cooked he would clean. Sarah never liked dishes, I mean who does, so it didn’t take any convincing. She tidied up the kitchen while he washed the pots.

When everything was clean and put away they cuddled up on the couch under the blankets. Since she had been able to keep her phone charged they decided to set it up on her tripod and watch a movie or something. They ended up putting on music and just laying back. They talked a little, but it wasn’t long before they started kissing.

The couch had remained in its bed configuration so it was easy to simply slide down so they were laying on their sides, bodies pressed together. It didn’t take as long this time for his hands to work their way up her shirt to rub her smooth back. She didn’t hesitate to reach her hand between them to rub him. He was getting hard, but as she rubbed she could feel it grow.

“I do hope that’s not all you wanted to do.” He said, even though he was pretty sure it wasn’t.

In response she leaned in and kissed him. This kiss had more passion in it. Their tongues playing, tasting each other, made the lips between her thighs begin to pulse.

As he began to kiss down her neck she ran her fingers through his hair, holding his head. He was using one arm to prop himself up while the other moved from her back around to her belly and then up to hear breasts. He ran his hand over her hardening nipples before pulling her bra aside to give them a little tweak.

She gasped with pure please, grasping him harder, running her hands down his back. She began to draw his shirt up with both of her hands, pulling it over his head. He sat up on his knees and began to gently, but not slowly, pull her top over her head and reach around to unhook her bra. He bent over again to kiss her.

She let her hands explore his now bare chest. He had broad shoulders and just the right amount of chest hair. He wasn’t bulging with muscles, but she could tell he was strong. He had the body of a man who had muscles from physical activity rather than going to the gym. He had a layer of softness that made him so comfortable to snuggle up against. He wasn’t pale but neither was he bronzed. His skin had the look of someone who spent time outside in the summer. His jeans rode just low enough for her to see the hint of his pelvic bone. His chest hair trailed down his stomach and under his waistband. She wanted to run her hands over it and follow it all the way down.

He sat back again and his hands down over her breasts, enjoying her smooth skin and wonderful curves. “Your breasts are amazing.”

Her body was definitely curvy, but all her curves were smooth. Her breasts were full, she dipped in nicely at the waist, and flared seductively out to her hips. Her skin was the same medium tone as his, but it looked as if it had never seen the sun, free of any sun spots or tan lines. He squeezed her breasts once more before he ran his hands down her belly to her belt line. He quickly and efficiently removed her sweat pants, lacy panties, and fluffy socks. Her legs were smooth and her pubes trimmed. She had full thighs that taped down to shapely calves and ankles. She had painted her toenails a deep blue. He liked it.

After he had finished undressing her he started working his way up her body. He kissed her ankles and rubbed her feet. He worked his way up her calves to her inner thighs, his hands massaging around her hips and ass. He hadn't yet seen it, but from the feel of it her ass matched the rest of her body. He kissed up over her hips and circled his tongue around her belly button making her giggle. He licked around the edge of her nipples and lightly blew on them. When he got to her lips he held her head with one hand and kissed her.

She stroked his hair, his shoulders, his firm biceps, and his strong chest and back. She broke the kiss and smiled up at him.

“You have a damn sexy body.”

“Well now It’s my turn to see if the rest of you is as pleasing as what I’ve seen so far.” And with that she stroked her hands down to his waist band. “Lay down.”

He gladly obliged. She pulled his pants, boxers, and socks all the way off and appraised him as she crawled her way back up to him. On her way she gave a happy grin at his medium large, uncircumcised and rock hard cock. To her, large was too big. With this he could go all the way in her, getting them hip to hip, going just a smidge deeper than bottom. She ran her hands up his chest, letting her body glide up his. When she got to his mouth she kissed him.

“Well, what do you think?” Ian asked, grinning.

“It’ll do.” She replied, deadpan at first then giving him the kind of smile that told him all he needed to know. “You clean?”

“Yeah. You?”

“Yep.” She then quickly slid herself back down to between his legs, put her lips around his throbbing cock and began to softly suck.

She kissed her way down his shaft, gave his balls a little lick, then kissed her way back up. She kept one hand on his balls, slowly working them. She licked the tip of him before slowly starting to take him in. She stroked him as she slowly took more and more of him in. Bobbing up and down, then a little further down, and a little further. Eventually she got almost all of him in and began to work him.

It wasn’t long before he held her head, building her speed, holding himself deep in her mouth before she came up and ran the tongue around the rim and under the foreskin, licking up every drop of pre cum. He sat up a little to get his hands on her breasts.

With a firm grip he pulled her upwards. She licked her lips and he kissed her. He then put her on her back by putting his hands around her waist and lifting her. He set her down with a little force. He gave her one hard kiss as his fingers went between her legs, rubbing her already wet pussy and brushing his thumb over her clit.

He didn’t waste any time getting his mouth down onto her swollen wet lips. He started with his tongue, licking everything. As his lips began to suckle her clit his finger went inside her, going in and out slowly. She moaned every time his tongue and lips touched her clit. When his fingers were in her, rubbing her g-spot she grabbed his head, more to have something to hang on to than anything else. She didn’t need to set his pace for him. When she came she cried out one hand grabbing his hair tightly, the other above her head with the pillow held tightly.

He licked up every drop. He licked her inner lips, her outer lips, and down her inner thighs.

He looked up at her and asked “Got a few more in you?”

“Oh yeah.” She said with excitement of what was coming.

He didn’t waste any time. He knelt between her legs, leaning down to kiss her. “I’m so glad you don’t mind kissing after oral.”

“I’m glad you don’t either. I love it.” And she kissed him again.

“Birth Control?”

“Yep.”

She reached down and took him in her hand and guided him into her still very wet pussy. He started slow, moving in and out, going a little deeper each time. Once he had gotten all the way in he pulled almost all the way out before pounding all the way back down.

“Oh fuck yes!”

He began to pound her slowly, going all the way in. He propped himself up on his hands and went a bit faster. With each thrust she let out a loud moan and gasp. Her hands grabbed onto his shoulders, her nails ready to dig in. She let him set the pace. So far she loves the way he did everything. The only things she did was to direct his hand to her breast. He had laid down a bit more by then and had begun to kiss her and he pumped in and out. He sped up a little, pinched her nipple and she came again, arching her back and crying out.

He then pulled out to sit back against the couch and almost lifted her up to face him. With her hand helping she sat down onto him. They faced each other now as she rode him. Now it was her turn to set the pace. He held her hips as she rocked back and forth. She held his shoulders, wrapped her arms around his neck, rubbed her hands along his biceps and back.

His hands rubbed her soft ass while his lips suckled her breasts. He held her to him as he nibbled her neck. His hands played over her breasts as she continued to ride him. She leaned in to him and slowed her pace after nearly screaming out in pleasure from another orgasm.

As he kissed her neck and began to nibble at her ear he asked “Can I bite? Can I leave marks?” Most women like to be nibbled on, but he had learned the hard way that most women didn’t like biting or having any evidence left the next day.

“Oh yeah, both” she moaned back, sounding like she had been waiting for him to leave evidence of what had happened; something she could look at later and smile from the memory.

With that he clamped his teeth and lips to the side of her breast. She cried out with pleasure as he did more than nibble his way to her nipple.

“I hope you know this means you’ll have marks too.” She said between gasps. He simply nodded, murmuring something that she assumed meant yes. Fair was fair after all.

It wasn’t long till he put his hands on her hips to hold her as they sped up, his hips going faster. She seemed to almost take it as a challenge. She rode him harder and faster; gripping his hard cock with her soft pussy. He held her hips tight. Her nails dug into his shoulders and she threw her head back and screamed with a final orgasm. He kept going, but her cries of pleasure were enough to send him over the edge too. He grunted and groaned as loudly as he could with his mouth clamped onto that spot between her neck and shoulder and shot his hot load deep into her pussy.

When he finished and the thrusting had slowed to a stop he fell back against the cushions and she fell against him; both of them gasping. They lay like that for a moment, both feeling like limp noodles. Eventually she rolled off him and they slid down until they lay on their sides, facing each other, and pulled the covers up.

They lay there, breathing. Sometimes their eyes were closed, sometimes they looked at one another. Their bodies weren’t pressed together, but they were entwined.

“You don’t happen to have hot water do you?” Ian asked.

“Sorry, no.” Sarah responded. “I didn’t figure I’d need to shower before the power came back on.”

“Sponge bath?”

“That could work. Oh” She said before he could stand up. “I’ve got these moistened washcloth things, for like when you’re camping or bed bound.”

She got up, dashed to the bathroom, and dashed to the bath. She had also brought a few towels. They each wiped the other down. They made it quick though as even in front of the fire they grew cold quickly. He dug a pair of boxers and a long sleeve shirt out of his suitcase and she pulled her long fluffy night shirt over her head and fuzzy socks on her feet.

They snuggled down under the covers together. Both of them wanted to lay naked together, and even though they had just fucked their brains out, it didn’t seem quite right to sleep naked together just yet. Also Sarah wasn’t sure if it would be warm enough. She had noticed that he ran slightly hot, temperature wise anyway; he was way more than slightly hot physically. Maybe with him in the bed they would be warm enough.

“So, what do you usually wear to bed?” Ian asked. “I like the fluffy bunny pattern on your nightgown by the way.”

“Thanks” she giggled. “I love rabbits. In the winter I usually wear something fluffy and warm like this. I tend to run a little cold. In the summer I wear, like, a t-shirt or a silky slip nightgown. Depends on my mood.”

“Silky? Anything lacy?”

“Sometimes. I have a few items for special occasions.”

“Why just special occasions?”

“Because otherwise there would be nothing to treat you with.” It was one of the reasons she didn’t get all done up with a full face make-up every day. It was more stunning if she only did it on occasion. “What about you? What do you like to wear to bed?”

“In the winter this basically.” He gestured to his long sleeve t-shirt and boxers. “In the summer either just boxers or nothing.”

“What, nothing lacy or slinky?” She said in a mock exasperated tone.

“No. Not for me.” He laughed. “It’s a little weird how men tend to look better with more clothing on and women look better with less.”

She looked a little confused.

“Like with men, 3 piece suits and tuxedos make them all sexy, but with women it’s all about low cut necklines and high cut slits.”

“I get that. You do look pretty good shirtless with those jeans riding low though.”

“Good to know.”

“I know what you mean about the suits though. It’s kind of funny too since guys tend to run warmer than women, and they get to be the ones with all the layers to look all sexy. We get to stand there and shiver. I mean it does give the opportunity for that whole chivalry of giving the girl your jacket, but it’s still kind of annoying.”

“Yeah, always have to make men be the big protector to the little meek women.” He said with a bit of sarcasm in his voice.

She gave him a bemused look.

“What, just cuse I’m a guy I can’t see the sexism and be enlightened about it?”

“Fair enough.” She kissed him.

They talked for a little while longer about fashion, what they liked and disliked, and a little about the inherent sexism woven into it. They seemed to agree on many things. She did prefer tuxedos with tails and ball gowns while he preferred 3 piece suits and slinky gowns, but those were details.

After a while they kissed good night and snuggled in to fall asleep. It wasn’t long before Sarah woke up to take her fuzzy socks off and Ian had shed his shirt. They slept soundly the rest of the night, snuggled into each other.

​

**Thanks for reading. Would love all comments of all kinds. This is part of a much longer story. Available on AO3 but I will also continue to post here. Mostly the spicy scenes rather then the in between romantic stuff. More the BDSM is in the next part.