Elizabeth slowly perused the choice of snack crackers at the small grocery store, which was minimal. She picked out a couple boxes and placed them in her basket next to the apples, bananas and cheese she'd already selected. Her task had been snack food. Her husband, Ben, was an aisle over looking for vegetables. They met at the end of their respective aisles and walked over to where their friends, Darren and Carrie, were looking at wine.

"Anything good?" asked Ben.

"Ask the expert here," replied Darren, jerking his thumb towards his wife. "I got the beer."

Carrie smiled and pulled a bottle of white off the shelf. "I've heard fantastic things about this one," she said, glancing over at Elizabeth.

"Whatever you want," Elizabeth replied with a wave of her hand and a smile. "You know me, I'll drink whatever."

Carrie grabbed a second bottle, and then a third. "This should do for now."

Darren groaned and mimed a sore arm as Carrie deposited them in his basket. "That's about all I'm good for here," he joked. "A pack mule."

"Oh, whatever! What did you play all that football for, if it wasn't to prepare you to carry groceries for your devastatingly hot wife?" giggled Carrie as she playfully poked him in his firm stomach.

“Besides...” she said, looking over at Elizabeth, giving her a wink. “You've got other skills." Elizabeth blushed and felt her husband put his hand on her back as the two couples walked towards the solitary check-out counter.

"Have we got everything we need?" asked Ben with a glance out the window. Snow had started falling several hours before and according to the weather reports, it wasn't supposed to stop for a while. "We might not get another chance to come back down here for a day or two."

"If we forget anything, we'll just send you and Darren out on the skis," replied Carrie. "Liz and I will just camp out by the fireplace and drink the wine."

"Sounds good to me," said Elizabeth with a laugh.

Elizabeth, being unanimously voted as the most responsible of the group, was in charge of the cash and keeping track of receipts for the weekend getaway so she stepped up to the register. When the young clerk got to the wine, she looked at Elizabeth and said, "I'm going to need to see some I.D."

"I'm flattered," smiled Elizabeth, as she handed it over to the clerk. She heard some chuckles behind her. Elizabeth was still getting carded even though she hadn't been under 21 for about seven years. Elizabeth liked to think it was her youthful looks that convinced clerks and bartenders the world over to continue asking for I.D. but she figured that if she was going to be honest with herself it was most likely just her petite frame and the fact she had pulled her brown hair back into a pony tail for the day's worth of travel.

The clerk handed the license back with an apologetic look, "Sorry...you know...rules and all."

"Oh, I don't mind," she replied.

The transaction complete, the foursome left the quaint country store bracing themselves against the cold wind that hit them as they opened the door. They loaded their groceries into Darren and Carrie's SUV for the drive to the cabin they'd rented for the weekend, which was a couple miles further down the road. Darren and Ben climbed into the front seats, while Carrie and Elizabeth hopped into the back. As Darren eased the car out of the lot, Elizabeth noticed the snow was already a couple inches deep and there were only a few tire marks going down the road in the direction they were headed.

Elizabeth let her mind wander a bit as she watched the woods and snow fly by the window of the car. Renting the cabin had originally been Darren and Carrie's idea. Elizabeth had been surprised they had wanted to include her and Ben, as the other couple had been married less than a year. Surely they'd want to have a romantic vacation alone, Elizabeth had thought at the time. But they'd insisted that Ben and she join them and had invited another couple they all knew as well. Unfortunately, the other friends had to drop out at the last minute due to their flight getting canceled. So it was just the two couples heading up the road to the cabin for three days.

She felt a hand on her arm. "Liz..." said Carrie. Elizabeth swiveled her head. She hadn't been paying attention.

"Yes?"

"You awake back there, Liz?" asked Darren smiling. "I asked whether you need any more heat."

"Oh no, thanks, I'm fine," she answered. "Just looking at the snow."

"Just checking..." replied Darren.

"We don't want you getting chilly," chimed in Ben, looking in the side mirror trying to see his wife's face behind him.

Elizabeth turned to the window again and pursed her lips. Ben always got a little anxious around Darren, particularly when Darren paid special attention to her. Ben and Darren got along well when it was just the guys, but despite numerous instances of Elizabeth assuring Ben she no longer had feelings for Darren, Ben just couldn't seem to relax. Elizabeth's mind went back to college, when she had dated Darren. There had been some fun times, but she couldn't forget the hurt he'd caused her as well. They'd parted as friends, but she never had any desire to be in a relationship with him again. Ben knew all of this, and had known Darren at the time - the three of them had been the same year at college - but didn't seem to be able to let it go completely. Elizabeth had made many efforts to show Ben she was unconditionally devoted to him, but she supposed she could never fully convince him.

She was jolted from her thoughts as she felt the car slip and fishtail a little on the snow covered road.

"Nice one, hot shot," joked Carrie as she playfully hit her husband's shoulder from behind.

“Not while I'm driving, woman!” Darren grinned and he slowed the car down to turn off onto a side road that led to their cabin. There were no tire tracks in the snow here and the road was only wide enough for their SUV. Trees hemmed it in on either side.

"Looks like we've got the place to ourselves," commented Ben.

"Yeah, the girl I talked to on the phone said the other cabin up here hadn't been rented this weekend," replied Darren. "So we're it."

"Lovely," said Carrie. "I'm actually glad it's just us." A couple hundred yards later as they pulled up to where they'd be staying, Elizabeth realized that cabin was really an understatement. It looked more like a comfortable mountain home from the outside. Darren parked the car and they climbed out, and waded through the snow that had accumulated and made their way to the porch. Carrie found the key where the rental agency had told her it was and unlocked the door.

It opened into what looked like a mud room, with a clothes washer and dryer and a place to hang their coats. Carrie kicked off her boots. "Hey, before we take everything off let's get the car unloaded," Darren said. He looked at Carrie, "Why don't you and Liz stay in here and unpack things while Ben and I bring the stuff in?"

"Sounds good to me," said the women, almost in unison. So while the guys traipsed back outside, Carrie and Elizabeth took off their coats and boots and began to explore. The mud room led to a large room which contained the kitchen, a small dining area and a larger open space with a fireplace and a couple expansive couches and comfy chairs. A hallway led to three bedrooms in the back of the house. Two bedrooms shared a bathroom and the other, larger bedroom had a bathroom all its own.

"This is quite a cabin," said Carrie sarcastically, putting air quotes around the word cabin.

"Totally," said Elizabeth. "Come check out this bathroom," she called from the main bedroom. Carrie joined her and saw a large jacuzzi-style tub against one wall.

"Nice!" she exclaimed. "Who gets this room?"

"Oh, you two can have it...you planned all this," said Elizabeth sweetly. "Just as long as I can use the tub at some point," she added laughing.

"Deal! Let's go help the guys."

***************************

Darkness descended earlier than the couples were used to because of the clouds and higher latitudes, but they'd brought in plenty of firewood from the pile stacked in a shed behind the house. A fire was crackling in the fireplace and the dinner dishes had been cleaned up. "Excellent work you two," said Carrie as she flopped down on the couch beside her husband, her back to his side and her legs up over the arm of the couch. She took a sip of her wine from the glass she held carefully.

"Oh, sure thing," said Ben. "Ya'll are on dinner duty tomorrow night, and we expect excellent things," he chided. After the couples had gotten their bags and food stowed in the house, Ben and Elizabeth had set out exploring what the kitchen had to offer in the way of cooking implements. Like most rentals it was pretty sparse, but they had done what they could with the limited cookware and had prepared some angel hair pasta in a white wine sauce with mushrooms.

"Challenge accepted," said Darren with a grin. "I noticed a pair of snowmobiles in the shed out back when Ben and I were getting firewood. We should get those out tomorrow if the snow lets up."

"Definitely," said Ben. "It's still coming down pretty hard though now." As if to reinforce his words, the wind blew strongly, rattling something outside the window and pushing a cold gust down the chimney, making the flames flicker. Elizabeth snuggled closer to her husband.

"I sure hope it dies down. I want to get outside tomorrow...can't stay cooped up in here all day," said Darren. "I'd go stir-crazy."

Carrie reached up and touched his cheek with her finger tips, "Oh, I don't know honey...I could think of a few things we could do to keep you from going crazy...". She winked at him and then looked over at Ben and Elizabeth.

Darren grinned. "Aw, well, you know I can't say no to you. Guess it wouldn't be all bad, eh Ben?" asked Darren rhetorically.

Elizabeth saw Ben smile awkwardly. He chuckled, but Elizabeth could tell it was forced. He never did well even joking about these sorts of things with other people. She smiled a much more natural smile and played along. "This place definitely has a romantic feel to it...you two shouldn't have invited us in the first place. You could have had it all to yourselves."

"Oh, we'd get bored up here all by ourselves," said Carrie. "Believe it or not, there's only so much of Darren I can take." Darren mimed a hurt look and then chuckled at the double entendre.

Now it was Elizabeth's turn to feel flushed, and she was sure it wasn't from the heat of the fire to her right. Carrie winked at her slyly and got up. "Who needs some more wine?"

All three raised their glasses as Carrie walked back to the sitting area with what remained in the second bottle. "Just enough to top everyone off. We're going to need to go back to the store before the weekend is over."

"What were we thinking only getting three bottles..." said Ben laughing. "Who was responsible for wine anyway?" he asked sarcastically.

"That would be this one," said Darren playfully as he wrapped his arms around his wife as she sat back down. "Don't worry, I'll properly reprimand her later tonight. Just ignore any shouting you might hear."

At that, all four of them laughed, any awkwardness from Carrie's previous comments melting away. Elizabeth rested her head on Ben's shoulder as she sipped. The conversation shifted to updates on jobs, mutual friends and Carrie and Darren's new home they'd purchased a couple months ago. Elizabeth could feel the wine going to her head. She had a nice buzz and was a little fuzzy-headed from the combination of wine, the fire and her desire for Ben, which had been stoked by Carrie's earlier behavior. She reached over and clasped Ben's hand and gave it a squeeze.

"I think we should call it a night," she said as she emptied her glass and smiled at him.

"It is getting late," agreed Carrie as she leaned back and laid her head on Darren's lap, her blonde hair fanning out over his thighs. "Will you take me to bed?" she said playfully looking up at him.

"I don't know, I think I've had too much wine. You might take advantage of me," he joked.

"We'll leave you two to work it out," said Ben as he caught Elizabeth's desire flicker in her eyes and stood. Elizabeth stood with him, wobbling and clutching at him to stabilize herself.

"Good night, you two," said Elizabeth, smiling as Ben led her down the hallway to their bedroom.

"We're right behind you," answered Carrie.

*************************

Elizabeth emerged from the bathroom in a short nightie and panties. Ben was waiting for her. They immediately embraced, their lips touching sweetly but firmly. "I was wondering how long we would have to wait before heading to bed," said Elizabeth between kisses. "While the fire was nice, we could make our own warmth in here." The wine combined with somewhat risque conversation had managed to ignite her passions.

Ben broke away. "Oh, do you think Darren and Carrie tended the fire before going to bed?"

"I don't know. Can it wait? I need you now," pleaded Elizabeth, wondering how he could think of the fire at a time like this.

"I don't want the place to catch fire," said Ben. "It'll just be a sec."

"Please hurry!" she said as she gave him a pouty look and then added, "And make sure they're not still out there being naughty or something."

Ben slipped out of the room and made his way down the short hall to the living area. He didn't hear any sounds coming from the couch area. The fire had not been tended, so he made sure to push the few logs and embers that were still burning to the back of the fireplace and tried to cover them with ashes. That should do, he thought. On his way back down the hallway he walked past Darren and Carrie's door and could hear the unmistakable sound of a bed squeaking in a distinct rhythm. Then a moan from Carrie. Then another, even louder. He stopped to listen. It must have been longer than he thought because he heard his own bedroom door open down the hall and saw Elizabeth's head poke out.

"What are you---" she started to ask, but he shushed her with a finger to his lips. He then waved her down the hall to him. She tiptoed up to him as he pointed to their friends' door.

“Fuck me!” Carrie urged Darren on from behind the door before moaning again. Elizabeth's eyes went wide. "Oh my," she mouthed. They heard the bed continue to squeak at regular intervals and Carrie's moans were occasionally interspersed with a few choice expletives along with a grunt from Darren.

"They didn't waste any time," whispered Ben.

"I don't think we should waste any either," she replied, meeting his eyes with hers.

Ben slipped his hands to her waist and kissed her. His hips pressing lightly against hers. Not lightly enough, however, to conceal his arousal to her, which she felt pressing against her. Elizabeth moved her hand down and pressed against Ben's shorts, feeling his hardness beneath the fabric. She was surprised he was this excited. She was even more surprised that she was this excited. They kissed and she rubbed him as they listened to the sounds of sex in the other room.

"Let's go," he urged.

They hurried back to their room and quietly closed the door. They were on each other in a second, kissing passionately, their tongues hungrily pushing their ways into each other's mouths. Gone were the soft sensitive kisses of a moment earlier. These kisses had a purpose, a message. “I want you to fuck me,” these kisses demanded in no uncertain terms.

His hands were on her rear, pressing her body to his. He could see the goosebumps on her shoulders and arms. "Warm me up," she giggled.

As they kissed, Elizabeth moved backwards towards the bed until she felt the back of her thighs touching the comforter. She broke away and lifted her nightie up over her head as Ben pulled his t-shirt off. Elizabeth sat down on the edge of the bed and grasped the waistband of her husband's shorts, eagerly pulling them down his legs. His erect penis sprang out and she grasped it lightly in her fingers. She smiled and took the tip of it in her mouth.

"Mmm, Liz," Ben moaned. He watched his wife slide her lips down over his cock and bob her head, her tongue swirling all around him. “That feels so good baby,” he groaned softly and slid his fingers through her hair, urging her on. She looked up at him while she sucked his firm penis.

Elizabeth was only able to stand this for a couple minutes; she was aching to have him inside her. She withdrew his cock from her mouth and inched back on the bed smiling naughtily. At the same time she pulled her panties down her legs. Her cheeks were flushed and her thighs nearly trembling with desire. Ben got the hint and climbed on top of her, slipping his hand down between her thighs.

"Mmm...so turned on, honey," he noted, feeling her wetness. "Was it me or listening to our friends?" he teased.

"A little bit of both," Elizabeth conceded with a naughty grin. They could still hear an occasional moan from the bedroom across the hallway. She pictured Darren and Carrie in her mind, naked, on their bed. Carrie's earlier play on words about Darren's size came back to her. Darren was certainly large, larger than Ben. And he knew how to use it. She lost herself in the past for a moment and her mind drifted back to those days, until she was brought back to reality and her present lover by Ben's lips on her right breast. Her eyes refocused on him and she gasped with pleasure as he sucked on her nipple.
"It's such a turn on that you're turned on by them," said Ben as he raised his head from her breast, as if he could read her mind.

"I'm so glad, sweetie. I could say the same for you," she said. This sort of urgency from Ben was a rarity and she marveled a bit at how much he seemed to desire her at the moment. The feeling was definitely mutual. “I want you inside me, Ben.”

Her words put a hungry look in Ben's eyes. He grabbed her about the waist and bodily flipped her onto her stomach, positioning her on all fours on the bed so he could stand behind her. She gasped loudly and looked back over her shoulder. In seven years of marriage, Elizabeth could count on one hand the number of times Ben had taken her this way. He placed his hands on her hips and slowly pushed himself into her. The feeling of his cock filling her was familiar yet incendiary. She tossed her hair and her eyes rolled back. “Oooh my God, Ben!” she moaned quite loudly.

"They might hear you," said Ben between breaths.

"Mmmm....” Elizabeth replied. "So what? They know what we're doing." She got a look in her eyes as if to say, "I want them to know." With that she gasped loudly and said without concern for the thin walls. "Fuck me, Ben, yes, yes. Fuck me hard!"

Ben took his cue and thrust hard and fast, his fingers digging into her flesh as he pulled himself into her, their hips making those unmistakable, wet slapping noises as their bodies met time and time again. Elizabeth moaned and whimpered throughout, just hanging on for the ride as her man took her from behind, like an animal. She reached down to find her already swollen clit and pressed to fingers to it, pushing herself towards the edge.

"I'm close, Ben. I'm so close...." she whimpered. A pained grunt from Ben told her he was as well.

"Yesss...." he moaned. She began to pant as her orgasm quickly approached. He drove into her with vigor, their bodies slapping together. She moaned loudly and her legs quivered, sending a shudder through her form. She felt him explode inside her, emptying himself into her spasming body. The heat building inside her finally reached a crescendo and the orgasm took her. Elizabeth arched her back and rode the sweet pleasure to its climax before collapsing onto the bed.

Ben crumpled on top of her, breathing heavily, his softening cock sliding from her, still twitching pussy. "Oh Ben, that was amazing," she worked to catch her breath as they lay together on the bed. She thought their bodies fit together so perfectly in this moment. "So good," she whispered.

"I hope we weren't too loud," said Ben laughing. He smoothed her messy hair behind one ear and kissed her cheek sweetly.

"I hope we were!"

She was only half joking.

************************************

Elizabeth awoke to find light falling across her face. It wasn't the harsh light of sunlight, but it definitely was daylight. She rolled over to find Ben had already arisen. She heard the toilet flush, which told her where he was. A moment later he emerged from the bathroom to see her awake and smiled. "Morning," they said together. He leaned down to kiss her.

"Still snowing?"

"Yep, still pretty hard."

"I'm hungry."

"I'll make some breakfast while you get up."

"Muah," Elizabeth replied, mouthing a thank-you kiss.

As he left, she pulled herself out of bed and dug around in the sheets for her discarded panties. Finding them, she went into the bathroom to pee. As she was brushing her teeth, Elizabeth thought about last night, thinking about how that was some of the hottest sex they'd had in a while. Sex with Ben was good. It was regular and passionate, but nothing about which you'd write to Guinness. But last night had an added flare - the knowledge that their friends were doing the same thing across the hall. It had certainly turned her on. She wondered if this weekend could be used to spice things up a bit, push the envelope, to use another overused metaphor. She giggled to herself.

Elizabeth pondered the idea of asking Carrie for advice. She hadn't known Carrie as long as she'd known Darren and Ben, but that almost made it easier to talk to her about things like sex. Carrie was frank and open about her uninhibited sexuality. She had a lot more experience in many areas. Talking to her was totally different than talking to her long-time friends with which she grew up. Those were friends Elizabeth shared her hopes and dreams with, not her questions about sex. She rinsed her mouth out and went back out to the bedroom. She didn't bother pulling a bra on over her petite breasts; no one would notice with the baggy sweatshirt she'd put on. She slipped on a pair of socks and some comfy, flannel pants and went out to see what Ben had been able to put together.

Elizabeth smelled coffee brewing and eggs frying as she entered the living area. Perfect. Apparently, Darren and Carrie hadn't come out yet. She slipped up behind Ben as he stood at the stove and wrapped her arms around his chest, kissing the back of his neck. As she did so, their friends emerged from their room. Elizabeth broke away from Ben and they all exchanged morning greetings. Elizabeth noticed Darren and Carrie had made more of an effort to get ready for the day than they had; they'd obviously taken showers and Carrie had put on a bit of make-up.

"Sorry I look so rumpled, I definitely have the just-rolled-out-of-bed look," Elizabeth joked as she ran a hand through her matted, tangled hair.

Carrie smiled, "More like the just-been-fucked look!" She and Darren exchanged knowing glances and laughed.

Elizabeth felt her face go red, but she laughed too. "Was it that obvious?" she asked, playing coy.

Ben remained silent, facing the stove to hide his embarrassment. "Don't worry, buddy, what happens in New Hampshire stays in New Hampshire," said Darren giving Ben a friendly chuck on the shoulder as he walked by to get himself a cup of coffee.

"Thin walls," giggled Carrie.

"Soooo...new subject," said Ben with a grin. "Who wants toast?"

After breakfast was done, over coffee the couples decided that because they'd gone through two-thirds of their wine on the first night and that the kitchen was missing a few key items, Ben and Darren would take the snowmobiles to the corner store, assuming it was open, and refresh their supplies. Elizabeth made the assumption that it was more of an excuse for the guys to ride snowmobiles than anything else. They hoped that by the afternoon the snow would have slowed down enough that the four of them could take out the cross-country skis they had brought with them.

Before leaving, Darren checked his cell-phone signal and noted he was able to get at least one bar in case they ran into trouble. The women watched from the window as their husbands trudged through the snow to the shed out back. They saw them pull the machines out into the snow. Darren switched one on and it started right up. The other took a couple tries, but after they were both humming smoothly they took off down the road.

"Oh, they'll have fun," said Carrie, sipping her coffee.

"And I'm more than happy to stay where it's warm," said Elizabeth. Carrie nodded.

"Darren thinks a lot of Ben," said Carrie after a pause. "It might not show, but he speaks highly of him to me. I think there's a lot of respect there."

"Really, that's sweet," replied Elizabeth. "Aw, man-love, so cute," she giggled. "I think Ben enjoys hanging out with him too...," she paused at this, then continued, "but I think he feels a little awkward at times...you know...because of Darren's and my history." She took a sip of coffee and rested her elbows on the counter, leaning closer to Carrie as if to tell her a secret. "Ben teases me about it sometimes, and I tease him back, but I don't go too far...I think he's still a little sensitive. Worried he won't measure up or something. It's not like I ever really compare them. It was so long ago anyway." She then demurred, realizing that it wasn't just her former boyfriend she was talking about, but Carrie's husband.

"Yeah," Carrie responded, "Darren never talks about it." Elizabeth wasn't sure how to take that, but chalked it up to Carrie trying to reassure her that it wasn't an issue to Darren or her. She decided to divert.

"Well, you're certainly a lucky lady," grinned Elizabeth.

"Oh, I am...things are going well so far...since the wedding and all," said Carrie. "How are things with you and Ben?"

"Oh, they're good. Definitely good. After the first year or so, the honeymoon period kind of ends and you realize that real married life has started. You start thinking about actually making good on all the plans you've made. Talking about kids. You know...It's different, but good," Elizabeth said hoping her sincerity would show through to her friend.

"Sex still good?" Carrie asked point-blank.

Elizabeth laughed, "Didn't you hear?"

Carrie giggled.

"Well, it certainly sounded good."

"It is, although..." Elizabeth paused, putting her plan in action, "I'm always open to improvement...you know, mixing things up a bit."

"Some extra spice," nodded Carrie leaning forward smiling, clearly interested in the direction Elizabeth had chosen.

"Exactly. I mean, he always makes sure I'm satisfied. I'm not complaining about the frequency or the satisfaction of my orgasms or something," she blushed as she said the O word. Carrie giggled again. "Just that...last night...it was hot! After hearing you two enjoying yourselves, it just got us so passionate...Ben was just a little more...into it."

"You could hear us too?" Carrie asked her with a coy smile. Elizabeth realized she'd just let the cat out of the bag.

"Did I just say that?" she giggled. "Yes, as you know, these rooms aren't exactly soundproof."

"Good, I was hoping you might," said Carrie with a wink. "I could tell you needed some spicing up. Some inspiration."

"Oh my, well it worked! And clearly the honeymoon bliss hasn't worn off for you two yet."

Carrie stayed silent for a second, as if in thought. Then she said, "I think you and Ben need to take this weekend and try a few new things. Kinda like how sex in a new hotel room is always a little hotter then back home in your usual bed. You can always go back to that old bed and enjoy yourself, but step out a little here. Take advantage of all there is on offer here Liz...". Carrie's voice trailed off and she smiled, looking into Elizabeth's eyes.

Elizabeth's felt her face flush a bit again. "That sounds like a good idea."

"And I'll try to help you," said Carrie as she reached out and patted her friend's hand as a sly grin spread across her face.

*******************

By the time the guys returned an hour and a half later, the snow had moved from the morning's storm ferocity to a gentle snowfall. The wind was absent. Elizabeth watched Darren and Ben stow the machines in the shed and make their way to the house with a couple bags of groceries. "How was it?" she asked once they'd gotten their coats and boots off and come into the kitchen area.

"A lot of fun," Ben replied, his face red from the cold. "Windy and cold, but great fun. There's gotta be at least a foot and half out there now."

"Thanks for making the trip out," Elizabeth said sweetly, squeezing Ben's arm.

"What'd ya'll do while we were gone?" asked Darren.

"Oh, just talked," said Carrie. "Girl stuff." She walked past Darren to the sink, swaying her hips in a saucy manner. Elizabeth noticed Ben looking at her. She wasn't put off, but realized she'd never noticed Ben even give Carrie so much as a second look before now.

Darren knew enough not to press Carrie for more information. "We were talking, once we warm up a bit it'd be a good time to take the skis out. The wind has died down. It's not bad." Their wives agreed.

*******************************

After about thirty minutes of cross-country skiing, Elizabeth realized she probably should have brought some sort of snow pants. The snow had gotten so deep in parts that her boots didn't keep her jeans from getting snowy and wet. The rest of the group was having the same problem. They had set out from the house on the snow covered road using the snowmobile tracks as a path. It was pretty easy going once they got the hang of it. But then they had turned off the road onto what must have been a hiking trail and found the fresh powder a little harder going. It required much more effort to move forward, and she was a little more unsteady. Elizabeth had fallen a couple times, as had the others. But they pressed on because of the beautiful scenery. It was so still and quiet. Other than the swishing of their skis, there was no other noise.

A little while on they came to the stop of a steep hill down through the woods. It looked like there was an open field down below. Darren took off, getting up a head of steam to go down the hill. As his speed increased, he tucked his skis under his arms mimicking a downhill skier. "What a goof," Carrie laughed.

Ben took off next, pushing off with his skis and headed down the hill after Darren. Carrie went next and then Elizabeth. It was a relief to Elizabeth to be going downhill. She realized how tired her arms were once they stopped having to work. She glided down the hill, picking up a decent amount of speed. She could see the other three at the bottom of the hill. They'd stopped and were looking out across the field. As she got closer, she realized it wasn't a field, but a frozen pond. That's why they'd stopped. She figured she'd better slow down, and started dragging her poles and trying to turn her skis, but that only caused the tips to angle in. She realized, too late, they were going to be crossed and tangled up. As she neared the group, she needed to lose speed or end up on the ice. The skis crossed and she stumbled. Ben could see what was happening and reached out to grab her. He got one of her arms, but this twisted her around and pulled him down with her. As she spun she hit one of the others and felt herself fall. She felt someone, it must have been Ben, fall on top of her, and then the wind got knocked out of her. Her fall had been cushioned by the snow and by a body underneath her. She opened her eyes to see Darren's face an inch or two from hers. She was on top of him and Ben was struggling to get off of her.

"You okay there, Liz?" Darren asked.

Elizabeth tried to respond, but couldn't get her breath. She nodded. Darren's eyes caught hers for a second or two and her mind drifted back to other times. But then she felt Ben and Carrie trying to help her up. She let them raise her, rather than trying to push up with skis, which would have only made it harder. As she stood, she remained doubled over for a bit, her chest hurt a little. Gradually she regained her wind and smiled at the concerned group.

"I'll be fine," she assured them. "Just lost my breath there. Sorry about that." They reassured her it was fine and took the time to rest, realizing that, not trusting the ice to hold them, there was no other option but to head back up the hill.

By the time the group made it back to the house they were not only exhausted, but their jeans were soaked from the knees down and they all had wet spots on their rears where they had fallen. They deposited their skis and poles on the front porch and hurried into the mud room to warm up. They took off their boots and hung up their coats. "I'm just going to throw my pants and socks in the dryer right now," said Darren as he unbutton his jeans and pushed them down his legs leaving his briefs on. "Avert your eyes, ladies," he joked. He didn't have to add that it was a lot less than either of them had seen before.

"Oh my virgin eyes," joked Carrie. "We might as well," she said as she shot Elizabeth a glance of encouragement. "We're all friends here," she added.

Elizabeth wasn't sure, but as Carrie unbuttoned her own jeans and pulled them down her legs, she mustered up some courage and undid her own jeans. She watched as her husband did the same. Elizabeth noted that Carrie didn't seem the least bit self-conscious. After she tossed her jeans in the dryer she took her time pulling her socks off and throwing them in there as well. Elizabeth was worried she might go further and remove her panties too, but thankfully she discovered a bit of modesty and left those on. Elizabeth also noticed that Ben was only making a perfunctory effort to avert his eyes.

Elizabeth made a point of stepping between her husband and Carrie as she put her jeans and socks in the dryer, substituting her own panty-clad bum for Carrie's in Ben's field of vision, playfully blocking his view. Being close quarters, Darren had to squeeze between his wife and Elizabeth. "Excuse me ladies," he said as he turned sideways to slip between them. Elizabeth gasped as she felt something brush up against her butt. Was that Darren's...? she wondered to herself.

Once Darren and Carrie had left the mud room, she and Ben exchanged looks as if to say "that was a little unexpected." She took his jeans and after putting them in the dryer, turned it on. Without further discussion, they walked to their room to get dry, comfy clothes, following Carrie and Darren down the hallway both admiring the underwear-clad rears of the couple in front of them.

*****************************

"How far did Carrie want to take this?" was the question that kept popping into Elizabeth's head as she dried herself off after her shower. Carrie's actions in the mud room had come as a surprise. Elizabeth knew Carrie was a little bolder than her when it came to things sexual in nature, but she wondered where this was going. Elizabeth had assumed Carrie might just make a few comments about sex for Ben's benefit and then Elizabeth would take it from there in private. She hadn't expected Carrie to take her pants off in front of her husband. She was apprehensive, but at the same time, giddy with anticipation. She wrapped her towel around her wet hair and walked into the bedroom to dress. As she pulled her underwear up her legs, she could already tell she was going to be sore from the workout she'd gotten on the skis. Elizabeth put on a pair of casual, yoga-style pants and a sweatshirt and went out into the main room to find Ben kneeling by the hearth getting a fire started and Darren and Carrie preparing dinner.

"Do you all need any help?" she asked them.

"No, no...we've got it taken care of," replied Carrie. "It's easy. Stir-fry. You sit down and relax." She brought over two wine glasses for Ben and Elizabeth and placed them on the coffee table as Elizabeth sat on the couch, throwing her sock-covered feet up over the arm. "Wine?" Carrie offered.

Elizabeth and Ben signaled assent. "Enjoy, dinner will be ready in a minute or two," said Carrie as she leaned over and poured some white wine into their glasses. Elizabeth couldn't be sure, but had Carrie just given Ben a long look at her cleavage? She noticed Carrie was wearing a very loose-fitting shirt with a low v-neck and she had leaned over the glasses facing directly at Ben. If Ben had noticed, he hadn't let on. He clinked glasses with Elizabeth and they smiled at each other over the rims.

***************************

"So tomorrow," said Darren as he helped himself to a second service of stir-fry, "Since the snow's stopped, I'm thinking we try and take the snowmobiles further up the mountain...see if there's some good views up there."

"Depends on whether it's clear," said Ben.

"So what do we do?" asked Liz, a little perturbed.

"I'm sure we can find ways to amuse ourselves," said Carrie smiling at her.

"No, no," replied Darren, "we can fit two people on each machine. Unless you don't want to go."

"I'm going," said Liz emphatically. "I want to try it."

"Definitely," said Ben. "It's a blast."

Liz looked at Carrie. "If you don't want to go though, I could stay back."

"No, it'll be fun," said Carrie. "I didn't realize there was room for two more." Elizabeth felt she looked a little downcast at the idea of going, but didn't say anything. Was she hoping the two girls might have some time to talk more without their husbands present? Elizabeth wondered.

Darren topped off his own wine glass and offered some to his wife as well. "The snowmobiles aren't as hard on your body as the skis. I don't know about you all but I'm sore already."

"Oh totally...my thighs and arms are aching," said Carrie as she speared a piece of broccoli with her fork.

"I could use a massage," said Elizabeth.

"Ben, you've got a duty now!" said Carrie laughing. "Put that on your to-do list for when you get back to your bedroom."

"He gives excellent massages," said Elizabeth, smiling and putting her hand on Ben's shoulder.

"Oh really," said Carrie slyly. "Care to share?"

The women laughed and the guys flashed nervous smiles.

"What do I get out of it?" asked Elizabeth, playing along with the joke.

"More importantly, what do I?" asked Ben laughing.

"Okay, stop right there," said Elizabeth with a big smile on her face waving her hand across her body. "He's all mine this evening," she said as she placed her hand on Ben's thigh, giving it a squeeze under the table. "No more negotiations."

"Aw, come on, hun, we just started them," Ben joked.

Carrie and Darren laughed. "And then I'd have to sleep on the couch," said Darren. "And I'm not doing that."

"He's that good, huh Liz?" asked Carrie, pressing the issue.

"Well, you said you heard last night, didn't you?" replied Elizabeth.

"No silly, I meant his massages," said Carrie with a giggle. "Though I know where your mind was now." Elizabeth blushed, laughed and took a long sip of wine.

"Anyway..." Darren said, to change the subject.

"So seriously, guys," Carrie began, taking a sip of wine and leaning forward ignoring her husband's attempt to switch topics. "How do you keep things interesting?" Ben and Elizabeth both paused and looked at her, not sure of exactly what she meant. "I mean, you've been married for longer than we have and clearly, you know, you are sexually compatible, how do you keep sex interesting?"

Elizabeth noticed Ben lift his glass to take a sip of wine, perhaps as a way to avoid being the one to speak first. She figured since it was Carrie who asked it was her role to respond anyway. "I don't know...it just works for us," she began, not sure what Carrie was really fishing for. "We try to have fun, not focus on making it perfect, but on making sure we satisfy each other. And, you know, fun sex begins outside the bedroom."

"You mean you do it in other rooms?" asked Carrie smiling.

"No, no...I mean good sex begins in how we treat each other outside the bedroom, then it's easy and fun once we get there," said Elizabeth. "If I don't feel loved outside the bedroom, I'm not going to be into it in bed." She paused, very unsure whether she'd just taken the conversation in a far too serious direction.

Ben spoke up. "But to answer your question, Carrie, yes, we do do it in other rooms." All four of them laughed this time. Elizabeth rubbed her hand along Ben's thigh under the table, privately thanking him for lightening the mood.

"What's your favorite, non-bedroom place?" asked Carrie with a mischievous grin.

"Now this is getting interesting," said Darren with a look to his wife.

Elizabeth blushed. "You told them, hunny," said said with a giggle and a look at Ben. "You answer this one."

"Hmmmm," said Ben..."I'd have to go with kitchen table."

"You mean the one we ate dinner on a couple weeks ago?" asked Darren.

"I swear, we do wipe things down on occasion," said Elizabeth as they all laughed again. Elizabeth could feel the wine getting to her. She was giddy and fuzzy-headed. Laughing was coming very easily.

"What about you all?" asked Ben.

"Definitely, the bath for me," said Carrie.

"Ooooh," said Elizabeth. "Nice, ours isn't big enough for us to fool around too much in," she added, warming to the conversation. A brief image of a naked Darren and Carrie, embracing in the bathtub, with looks of ecstasy on their faces, passed though her mind. She felt a stirring inside herself and suppressed it for the moment.

"I prefer the attic," said Darren sarcastically. "You know, no climate control, plywood floors, bugs...it just does it for me."

They all burst out laughing, and Carrie hit her husband on the arm. "You're ridiculous!" she giggled.

The conversation paused for a second, the only sounds in the room came from the crackling fire. "Why don't we move over to the couches," suggested Carrie. The couples got up, taking their wine glasses with them and made their way over to the sitting area.

"I'm going to use the bathroom," said Ben. "Be right back."

"I should too," said Elizabeth, as she followed him down the hall to their bedroom. She caught up with him as soon as they entered their room. She grabbed his hand from behind, saying "Come here...".

Ben turned to her and planted a kiss on her lips before she could speak. They kissed deeply, letting their tongues play. "You knew exactly what I wanted," Elizabeth mumbled between kisses.

"You're enjoying that sexy talk?" teased Ben. "I'm looking forward to getting to bed tonight." Elizabeth just kissed him again. They broke the kiss. "You can use the bathroom first...don't take too long or they'll think we're up to something."

After Elizabeth finished up and Ben went into the bathroom, she padded back down the hall to the main room. As she turned the corner she gasped and put her hand to her mouth. Carrie and Darren were on one of the couches making out, Darren's hand was clearly up her shirt fondling one of her breasts. "Oh my, so sorry," said Elizabeth.

Carrie and Darren didn't seem startled at all, but broke off their kiss and smiled. "Sorry about that, we didn't hear you coming back," said Carrie.

"I didn't mean to break anything up," said Elizabeth as she took a couple steps closer to the other couch.

"No, not a problem, Liz," said Darren as he slowly extracted his hand from underneath his wife's shirt. There was a look on his face that Elizabeth hadn't seen in many years. It flooded her with memories, pleasurable ones. She reached down to pick up her wine glass, hoping the movement would conceal the look on her own face. She sat down on the other couch, which was catty-corner to the one her friends were on.

The light from the fire flickered in Carrie's eyes as she made eye contact with Elizabeth. "We just got a little excited by the conversation earlier."

"Seriously, not a problem," said Elizabeth confidently.

"Good, then let's take things up a notch," said Carrie. "We've discussed it and we're both in," she said with a nod to Darren. "I told him a bit about our discussion earlier today."

Elizabeth didn't say anything at first. She wondered which bit of the discussion Carrie had shared. Before she could respond Carrie said, "How about you, Liz, are you in?" Elizabeth just nodded, unsure about what she was "in" on but not wanting to foreclose on anything exciting. "Great, just play along when Ben gets back," replied Carrie, and she turned back towards her husband and kissed him lightly on the lips playfully a few times as Elizabeth sat nervously knowing Ben was about to return.

What was she supposed to do, she wondered. She didn't have to wait long long. It wasn't more than ten second before she heard Ben's feet on the floor coming down the hallway. He gave a start when he saw Carrie and Darren in an embrace, kissing. They barely acknowledged his presence, just a glance of their eyes, and Ben started to speak as he looked to his wife. Liz just put her finger to her lips and motioned him to join her on the couch.

As he sat, Liz gave him his glass of wine. They both took large gulps and Liz, after setting hers down on the table, leaned over to Ben, placed her hand on his thigh, and said, "Kiss me, baby."

Ben leaned into her kiss as he put his glass down, their lips melting together, their tongues immediately finding each other. Out of the corner of her eye, Liz caught Carrie looking over at them. Liz felt Ben's hands on her midriff as they kissed softly, but with intensity. They twisted slightly so that Ben was more angled towards the back of the couch and her more towards the couple on the other couch. She could see that Carrie had shifted so that she was now sitting on Darren's lap, straddling him, with his back to the back of the couch, her back to Liz and Ben. Darren's hands were clearly on Carrie's breasts, even though Liz couldn't see them.

Ben pushed his tongue deeply into Liz's mouth, which brought her attention back to her lover, and she responded in kind by moaning a bit and tightly clenching his thigh. Her mind was fuzzy, both from the alcohol and the intense arousal she felt. She couldn't believe she was making out with her husband in front of her friends, and they were doing the same. Her eyes closed, she felt Ben's lips move down her chin to her neck. She arched it back a little to give him access to her fare skin, as she felt one of his hands affectionately touch her cheek and then run through her hair.

One of the large logs on the fire burnt through and fell into the coals, making a crashing sound and sending up a shower of sparks. Liz opened her eyes, and she and Ben both looked over at it. It was then that she saw that Carrie was no longer kissing Darren, but that she'd slid down and was kneeling on the floor, her head bent over his waistline. Liz's eyes went wide. Carrie had clearly unzipped Darren's jeans and had her mouth on his cock. Darren's full attention was on his wife and as she lowered her head onto his shaft, he let out a soft moan.

Liz's face clearly showed her amazement because Ben immediately swiveled his head around to look at the other couple. "Oh wow," he said quietly.

"I think they like an audience," said Liz, her face flushed. Ben could see the lust in her eyes.

At her comment, Darren looked up at them, a look of pleasure on his face. "Wow, she's good," he gasped as Carrie went down on him again. He moaned loudly.

Liz felt Ben's hand return to her upper thigh as they sat watching the other couple on the couch opposite theirs. She responded to his touch by placing her hand on his crotch, feeling his hard cock clearly defined beneath his pants. She pressed her hand against it, and Ben responded by pressing his hips up against her hand, encouraging her. She slowly began to stroke him as they watched.

At this point, Carrie paused and looked over at Liz and Ben, giving them a slight smile. "Should I stop?" she asked smiling. Liz and Ben looked at each other awkwardly, but Liz didn't remove her hand from Ben's crotch, but kept rubbing slowly.

"I don't think they want you to, sweetie," said Darren.

"Don't stop on our account," said Ben said raspily. Carrie smiled, and then winked at Liz and returned her attention to her husband, this time with a purpose beyond just pleasuring him. Darren gasped with pleasure each time Carrie moved her mouth up and down on the length of his hard cock. Ben and Liz watched with pure amazement never realizing they could get so much enjoyment out of being voyeurs. Liz felt Ben's hand slowly move up her thigh until it was just pressing against her mound through her tight pants. Even that slight bit of pressure made her desire a cock badly. Her eyes made brief contact with Darren's, but his quickly returned to his wife going down on him.

Liz looked over at Ben. He was clearly enthralled by what he was witnessing, and she pressed her hand firmly against his hardness, watching his mouth open with pleasure. He looked over at her, their eyes meeting. "I can't believe this," he said.

"You like..." she said more as a statement than as a question. He nodded.

It wasn't long before Darren's moans increased and it was clear he was going to come. Ben and Liz watched as he gripped his wife's head, his hips bucked and his back arched. Carrie swallowed over and over again as Darren came into her mouth. Finally, she lifted her head off his large cock, tucked him back into his pants, and wiped her mouth her with the back of her hand. She nestled her head in Darren's lap as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head sweetly. She rose, with her back still to Ben and Liz, and curled up on Darren's lap, her face in his neck, kissing him there. Darren whispered in her ear something neither Ben or Liz could hear.

After a minute or two of cuddling, only then did she turn her head towards Ben and Liz, smiling at them, licking her lips.

"That was amazing," was all Liz could think to say.

"Thank you," Carrie replied, her face still flushed and her voice a little hoarse."

"And I know Ben liked it too," said Liz, with a gentle rub of his crotch.

"Wow...yeah, that was..." mumbled Ben, rolling his eyes and smiling.

Carrie giggled, and Darren squeezed her tightly in his strong arms. "There might be an encore, but that's going to be a private party," said Darren smiling, looking down at his wife.

"I'm sure you two would like some privacy as well," said Carrie, nodding at Ben and Liz with a knowing smile. Before either of them could respond, Darren led Carrie by the hand past the fire. "Good night," she said sweetly and winked at them as she and Darren disappeared down the hall and into their bedroom.

After their door shut, Ben turned to Liz. "Oh my God, I can't believe they did that," he said in a hushed voice. "Did you know..?"

Liz smiled, her eyes bright with her little secret. "Not exactly...I mean, I didn't know she was going to go down on him. But I knew they had something planned for us. I didn't say anything because I wanted to see how it went, and what your reaction was."

"That was totally hot," replied Ben.

"What if I had done the same for you?" asked Liz, nodding in the direction of his crotch.

"You mean in front of them?" he asked? She nodded. "I probably would have gone along with anything at that point."

"Hmmmm...anything?" Liz mused, a glint in her eye. "Well, for now I just want you to take me to bed. And don't take your time." She giggled.

Back in the bedroom, for the second night in row, there was little foreplay. Clothes were off near the door. Kisses were hard and wanton. Ben's stiff cock easily slipped into his wife's waiting pussy as he lay on top of her on the bed. They were both moaning in ecstasy within minutes, the thin walls surely not keeping the sounds of pleasure contained.

As they lay there recovering, their moans were echoed by the couple in the other room. Liz and Ben giggled. "Looks like she's being rewarded for her earlier performance," giggled Liz. She glanced down to see Ben's cock stiffen. She slipped her hand around it. "Mmmmm...she turns you on, doesn't she?" said Liz.

"She is certainly hot," said Ben candidly.

"Do me again," said Liz smiling as she climbed on top of him and lowered herself down on on his now hard cock.