Page 21 (1/2)

"Where did you even coet to the e out here at all Just snow and trees and rocky cliffs

"I’ve been hiking" He walks about fifty feet away and picks up the snowboard he obviously dropped on his rush to rescue me

"With a snowboard?" I ask, incredulously

"It’s kind of a long story"

"Yeah, well, it looks like you’ve got time to tell it to o back to my room so I can clean you up"

"You don’t have to do that" He doesn’t move "I just want to make sure you’re okay"

"I’lance down at his clothes, realize they’re wet and covered in ice in a bunch of places "Hey, what happened to you anyway?"

Those wild sapphire eyes of his ju wet Did you fall?"

The left corner of his"So to freeze to death out here" Even snowboarding pants can’t protect him completely from all that ice

"It’s fine I’m cool"

"No shit you’re cool That’s why your teeth are chattering"

The crooked srin "You think you’re pretty smart, huh, Ophelia?"

I think of Harvey Of thetoo close to Z h I know better "Smart’s not the first adjective that co before you turn into a Popsicle"

When he still makes no move to follow me, I move closer Wrap an ar

"Are you sure you’re okay?" His way-too-cold hands reach up to cup esture After the e left things Friday night, it should pisstouched at the best of times--but somehow it doesn’t The concern I can see in his eyes ood Safe, even, and I haven’t felt like that in more months than I can count

"I’m fine," I tell hiot here before he could do anything but annoy ainst Z’s waist to propel him forward, and this time he actually moves with me "Thanks for the rescue, by the way"

"I wouldn’t exactly call it a rescue"

"Oh, yeah? What would you call it, then?"

"A helping hand You were holding your own pretty damn well Besides, I’m not exactly the type to rescue damsels in distress"

I’m not so sure about that

He stopped for me at the bus stop, then drove all the way up to the e, out of his way, just toat it, when no other guy would have, just because he realized I wasn’t into ere doing

And now this He pulled Harvey off , that I was okay Much as I’d like to agree with his assesss easier, I have to admit he feels a little bit like a hero to one down between us seeet back to the lodge I don’t knohat to say, and I guess Z doesn’t, either Nothing that’s happened in our messed-up relationship so far could have preparedup to stopraped

"Take your pants off," I say as the door tolook "Aren’t you at least going to buy et naked"

I roll my eyes even as I reach for an extra blanket from the cupboard next to uy, as Friday night proved And as char the lines of preventing hypother my wicked ith you"

"So you say, but we both know the truth" He snaps the blanket in the air a couple of times to unfold it "Not that Iyour delicate sensibilities"

He laughs, loud and long As he does, the sensitive, worried guy from earlier fades away, only to be replaced by the cocky bastard that most of the world sees when they look at hiely it doesn’t Not when he smiles at me and says, "I like you"

"I like you, too," I answer brusquely, deter around hied"

"If you insist" He reaches for the tie at the top of his pants and undoes it

"Stop!" I screech, whirling around to face the wall away fro your clothes off in front of people? There’s a bathrooh that door" I point blindly

He chuckles "What’s the big deal? It’s nothing you haven’t seen before Besides, nothing’s showing It’s way too cold for roan and coverto have sex with hi into return the favor he did me