"Thanks for the ride," Samantha said, as she approached the car. "It'll be much more fun than doing the drive on my own." She handed her bag to Sergei and he tucked it in the back of his car.
"I'm happy for the company," he replied.
"Did you bring a warm jacket?" he asked. "The weather is supposed to be just this rain for now, but you never know what to expect on the mountain pass at this time of the year," he said. "I always carry a sleeping bag and some road safety gear when I drive that highway in unpredictable weather," he continued.
"Better safe than sorry. It may be pretty much summer here and where we're headed, but with the major changes in elevation on the way, it could still be winter up there. It's even more convenient to have the sleeping bag this time, with the camp coming right after the tournament."
"Yep. In my bag, along with my sleeping bag, too," she said.
Sam knew the pass through the mountains could be sketchy, so she'd packed a snowboard jacket in with her other gear. She'd dressed comfortably for the drive, in leggings and an oversized white Oxford shirt with her running shoes.
They were headed to a karate tournament for the weekend and Sam was looking forward to testing the skills she had worked so hard to gain.
"My tonfa are in my bag; just let me get my bo and we'll be ready to go," she said.
Grabbing the staff from the front door, she locked up and returned to the car. Sergei stashed the weapon in the back with the rest of their gear and they hopped in the car.
For the next few hours, the two chatted and planned training for the weekend, while the sky darkened and the low clouds thickened and grew more threatening. The highway was getting very dark ahead of them when the rain quickly changed to snow. Fat, wet flakes started landing on the windshield, and it felt noticeably cooler in the car.
"Looks like the snow the weatherman said we wouldn't get," Sergei commented, shooting Sam a wry smile. "Hope it stays light. The roads can get bad up here in the snow. I'm not looking forward to sliding all over the road for the rest of the drive."
"At least you have a good vehicle for this trip," she commented, noting that the small SUV had good traction in addition to the ample cargo space. That cargo space was currently almost completely filled with an assortment of luggage, sparring gear and weapons.
"Yes, but I think it's not going to matter much," he said, braking slightly and carefully. Still, the car slid noticeably and the tension in his face was obvious.
"The snow is getting really bad and I don't like how the road feels," Sergei said.
He eased off on the accelerator and glanced at her. "I think we should find a safe place to pull over for a bit and wait for it to improve. I'd rather get there late, than not at all."
"I'm all for that plan," Sam agreed. "All we'll lose is time and that's better than pushing ahead when it's too dangerous."
She could feel the change in Sergei's body next to her as the stress mounted. The road must be even more treacherous than he was letting on. They needed to stop as soon as possible.
Up ahead, there was a wider curve to the shoulder and plenty of room to safely pull off the road. Sergei steered carefully off the road and came to a sliding stop. He turned off the car and let out a deep breath, not aware he'd been holding it. With the car stopped, he could relax.
He looked at Sam and smiled his first genuine smile since the snow started. "Success!" he cheered. It made Sam laugh and she clapped in amused approval.
"How are we doing for gas?" Sam asked. "If we're going to be here a while, we might be getting a bit chilly."
"We're ok for gas, but I don't really want to be running the car unless it's absolutely necessary, with all this snow coming down. Too easy to end up with a blocked tailpipe and then you're really in trouble with the exhaust."
"Good point," she replied. "That's ok. We do have extra clothes if we need them. Oh! I even brought a deck of cards. Want to play?"
"Great idea," Sergei said. "Do you play gin rummy?"
"Play? I
destroy
at gin rummy! Prepare to be thrashed!" Sam laughed and unbuckled her seatbelt.
She turned around to kneel on her seat and leaned into the back, stretching to reach her bag to grab the cards. She was oblivious to the appreciative look Sergei was giving her ass as her shirt rode up.
"Nice," he said, not referring to the card game.
He quickly composed his face as Sam settled back into her seat, cards in hand. She shuffled expertly and dealt the hands.
An hour later, Sergei threw up his hands and cried, "Enough already! I give up!"
He laughed at the score and shook his head. "You weren't kidding. That was total destruction. I think I'm scarred for life."
"Yep," Sam grinned. "I love this game. Don't worry, you can take your revenge tomorrow in sparring practice."
"Oh, you can count on it."
Sam laughed and realised, when it caused a cloud in front of her face, that it had gotten downright cold in the car over the last hour. She was shivering slightly and her nipples were hard and clearly visible under her shirt, a fact Sergei had already noticed some time ago. Embarrassed, she crossed her arms over her chest and started rubbing her arms to warm herself. She glanced at Sergei and shivered.
"I just noticed how cold it's gotten. Aren't you freezing?" she asked. He was wearing a simple black t-shirt with his light camouflage pants.
"I'm a lot bigger than you are. I don't feel the cold as much as you do. Plus, I'm a very tough Russian." he joked.
Sam had to admit that point. At over six feet tall, Sergei was an imposing sight. Hard and muscled, he was every inch the tough-looking Russian. The accent only reinforced the impression. But Sam knew that Sergei was also quick with a smile or a really bad joke.
He was quite the package.
A shudder shook her body and Sam wasn't sure if it was the cold or Sergei that caused it. Her body often acted in unexpected ways when she was around him. But then she accepted that, right now, she was most definitely cold.
"I'm going to get my jacket," she said. "I hope it doesn't get much colder, or I'll have to start putting on the clothes I packed." She turned to assess her bag and realised she couldn't get to where her jacket was stowed from the front seat.
"I'll hop out and grab it through the back door. You want yours while I'm at it? It's going to get a lot colder when I open the door."
"No, I'm really not cold," Sergei said.
