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Too ht, but she wasn’t about to tell him that “Exactly”

He shifted his weight froht him closer to her “Is Teddy my competition?”

His voice was suddenly soft and low It ravel laid over thick velvet She looked up and her pulse leaped Her rescuer atching her through dark-lashed, pale blue eyes His hair was coffee-brown and thick With a little start of surprise, she realized that he was good-looking Very good-looking

The back of her neck tingled and she was trying to decide whether the sensation was pleasant or not when he reached out and touched his finger first to the bear’s button nose and then to hers That was all he did, just brush her nose with the tip of his finger, but terror raced through her She took a step back but there was nowhere to go The car was behind her; he was in front of her He was big and strong, he was crowding her, and suddenly the old panic was clawing for purchase in her throat

“Don’t!”

She thought the word had come out a shout but the look on his face told her it hadn’t, that it had been a pathetic whier had come into her life, she had reason to despise herself

“Hey” He stepped back “I didn’t mean—”

“I know you didn’t,” she said quickly “I just—it’s the heat And this thing with my car My boss will be—”

“Sure”

“—he’ll be wondering if I—”

“Absolutely Coet you to work in no time”

Stupid, she thought as she followed hiht so hard to coh to send her scuttling back into her cave? Giving in to the fear was like giving in to Har hi a hand, and she had long ago decided she’d choose death over that Besides, she kne to handle simple flirtation

“Are you co?”

She looked up, sone around to the driver’s side and settled behind the steering wheel

“Actually,” she said lightly, “you were right” He looked at her questioningly and she felt foolish Obviously he’d already forgotten that teasing line about the bear being his competition “About my bear” God, if only the floor would open and s her “About—about hi…” She took a breath If he didn’t remember what he’d said, she didn’t have to explain it “I love teddy bears,” she said inanely “I always have”