Keep your hands on the back of her waist if she intends to keep hers on your shoulders. Lean in closely and maybe even give a light kiss on her cheek or neck. Hug her tight and never be the first one to back away. Don't worry about it too much.
Place one arm under her armpit, in the lower half of her ribcage. Put your other hand on the general area of her shoulder blade. As the hug deepens, you can hold her waist or wrap both arms around the small of her back. Alternately, hug her from behind.
You can start lifting with your arms around her middle, but as soon as you feel your partner's arms and legs koala around your neck and waist, move one hand under her thigh. Then, slowly, so she has time to adjust her weight, move your other hand under her other thigh. You should feel your arms working.
Put your arm around her, hold her hand, or let her lay her head on your chest. You can also caress her or give her some gentle kisses. Snuggling is a way to feel closer to the person you're with and to show affection.
In this case you could say, “I'd really love to cuddle with you sometime. If you like that idea, then let's cuddle together and see how that feels to us. As far as anything beyond that goes, I might be open to more, but I'd only want to do what feels good to both of us.
Make sure that you touch her knee gently and then linger, so she doesn't think that you are bumping her leg because you need more room for your legs. Flirting by accidental touch helps build attraction because it creates tension. Small touches here and there leaves her wanting more.
When in doubt, one over one under. One note…do not hug someone from behind unless you have a history of hugging the person already. It can be hugely triggering for some folks, and is the epitome of unsolicited contact as the receiver can't even see you coming to ward you off if they wanted to.
A hug is considered improper when: The person feels uncomfortable. The person doesn't want to hug but is forced into the hug. The hug involves a lot of body touching that is uncomfortable for the one being touched.
Lean in, bending from your waist. The idea here is not full-body contact, which is a much more intimate and personal hug. Wrap one arm around her arm and place your hand in-between her shoulder blades. Wrap your other arm around her and place your hand below your first hand.
You can try: "When we talk and spend time together, I feel like we have a great connection. I've been wanting to ask you if you have feelings for me, because I have feelings for you." You could also try saying something like, "I've liked you for a while now, and I was hoping you had feelings for me too. Do you?"
When in doubt, one over one under. One note…do not hug someone from behind unless you have a history of hugging the person already. It can be hugely triggering for some folks, and is the epitome of unsolicited contact as the receiver can't even see you coming to ward you off if they wanted to.