AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You work hard, and you’re a good person. So yeah, you deserve a break. Plus, I’m not gonna lie, I’m looking forward to seeing more of you. Given all that, is it okay if I help you get changed?”
Who wasthis man and what had he done with the Lincoln Donall she’d known in Kartoff? He sure looked the same but this guy was thoughtful, attentive, and conscientious. The flirty part and the lopsided grin he gave her were the same. Not that he’d pointed those weapons in her direction back then. He hadn’t had to; she’d crushed on him hard anyhow.
You can enjoy this, a voice whispered inside her head.Just remember he’s too good to be true, and this will never last so don’t get too attached.
Easier said than done. Especially when he hugged her, kissed her forehead, and called her a good girl. But Linc had a point—he said he would help her relax, and being Little would do that. Him helping her get changed would make her feel Little.
“Yes, please,” she told him, and a melty heat bubbled inside her when he smiled and said, “Good girl.”
This time when he reached for the hem of her shirt, she didn’t flinch.
“Arms up, little girl.”
It was a funny feeling, the lightness of buoyancy and the weight of sinking that finding Little space always gave her. Given those opposite forces, you’d think she’d feel weightless, but she didn’t. There was a shift in her mindset that let putting her hands in the air be fun, and she relished the way it felt for Linc to peel her top off. And it sure was flattering the way he seemed to forget himself when she was standing there in her bra.
He must’ve seen a million women naked, but he seemed quite taken by the rise of her breasts in the orchid-colored lace cups. She was near giggling by the time he snapped himself out of it and grabbed the camisole and tugged it over her head. Then he undid her pants and slipped them off, telling her to hang on to him for balance when she stepped out of them. Novalie was only too glad to oblige.
“Matching set, huh?” he asked from where he was squatting. “You planning on someone undressing you today?”
“Oh. Um, no. I just… do that. For myself. I like it when everything matches.”
She gestured to her discarded top that was several shades darker than her undergarments. It was embarrassing to admit how neurotic she was, but Linc wouldn’t be surprised.
“Nice,” he said, almost to himself, and then bunched up one leg of her long underwear before slipping it over her foot.
Linc sure did take his time shimmying the long underwear up her legs and over her hips, and then smoothing the thin fabric. He did the same when he pulled the shirt over her head, coasting his hands down her arms, then doing the same with her back and the sides of her ribs. She was buzzing by the time he was done, and it felt like the sweats he put her in next just held that feeling against her skin; insulated the warm fuzzies that his touching her so gently gave her.
Once she was suited up to his satisfaction in snow pants, a parka, a hat, mittens, a scarf, and boots, and he’d shrugged on his coveralls, the buzz got louder and more intense when they left her apartment and he took up her hand. He didn’t say much as he guided her through the hallways but she didn’t need him to, she was content to just be with him.
When they got outside, she was glad that Linc had taken the time to bundle her up so thoroughly. It was cold!
Despite the chill, it seemed a lot of other people had decided to make snowmen too, and most of the snow out in front of the main building had already been rolled up into snowmen or fashioned into forts.
By the time they’d tromped over to where there was a field of virgin snow, Nova had warmed up a bit. The tip of her nose was still chilly but that was okay.
Linc clapped his mittens together and honestly it was unfair that he managed to look hot in coveralls and a beanie. “What’s your favorite part of building a snowman, shortcake?”
“Why do you call me that?”
“Everyone called you that.”
“Yeah, but…”
Linc calling her shortcake just because everyone else had made her sad. Which wasn’t fair. It was a cute nickname and it had never really bothered her even as a teenager, but—
“But it wasn’t because you’re short. Which you are. A little.” He laughed when she gave him an exaggerated glare. “Sorry. Fun-sized. No, it was because every Halloween from kindergarten to fifth grade, you dressed as Strawberry Shortcake from that cartoon.”
“You remember that?”
“I remember a lot more than that. You still got those green and white striped stockings? Those were real cute.”
Nova laughed. “Um, no. Grew out of those some time ago.”
“Maybe you should get some more. But first things first, we’re out here to build a snowman. What do you like doing the best?”
“Mmm,” Nova said, tapping her mouth with her mitten. “I don’t like starting off the snowballs when they’re tiny. It’s too easy for them to fall apart and it can get really frustrating. It’s way more fun to roll them when they’re big.”
“Got it. How about I’ll start them off, you roll them up until they’re the right size, and then I can stack them up?”
