Page 13 of The Cowbears of Curvy Bear Ranch

He shook his head. No way would he let a lone woman walk through a snowstorm alone. Whatever issues they had could be set aside long enough to get her to the hotelsafely.

He said, “Come on. I’ll let you drive my truck to the hotel. We can just leave it there and I’ll walk back tothebar.”

As she stepped toward the truck, her foot slid enough to throw her off balance. He lunged forward and caught her in his arms. A rush of almond-scented soap filled the air. He’d never forget her signature scent. It wasn’t even perfume. Apparently, she still liked those girly oatmeal almond soap bars she’d always used. During the time they’d been apart, he hadn’t been able to smell almonds without thinkingofher.

As she righted herself, she pushed away from his chest. Frigid air swirled between them to whisk away any trace of heat. But he still felt it all the way to the soles of his feet. God, he wanted her. Even after all this time, he couldn’t close his eyes without seeing her face. To have her standing in front of him with such a look of vulnerability broke something inside of him. A dam of emotion rushed up to drown him in desire. She stood less than a foot from him, close enough to kiss, close enough to pull her into his arms and neverletgo.

As he moved closer to her, she took a step back. “We should getgoing.”

He sighed and looked away. “Yeah,let’sgo.”

Before he could do something he’d end up regretting, he turned and walked toward the passenger side. Wind whipped away the crunch of her small footsteps as she moved toward the driver’s side. Although he wasn’t exactly sober, he’d do whatever he could to protect her and get her homesafely.

Clearly, the beer had messed up his usual ability to control his emotions. His inner bear roared in turmoil. He wanted the soft, beautiful woman spread out and ready for a night of passionate sex. But that’s all it would be. And what would be the point? He could have meaningless sex with a bevy of willing women, so why open up a can of worms by going after the only woman who’d everrejectedhim?

“Thanks,”shesaid.

“Just be careful. She’sbrandnew.”

“Yourtruck?”

“Yeah, the ranch did pretty welllastyear.”

“That’s good. I’m glad things are going well for you,” she saidsoftly.

He glanced at her. A faint beam of light slanted through the window to reflect the delicate features on her face. Her plump pink lips mashed together as she twisted the ignition key. The truck roaredtolife.

The trek from her car to the truck had taken less than five minutes, but by the time they’d arrived, he was already half-frozen. He couldn’t imagine how cold she was, but he had a pretty good idea. As her body shivered, her teeth chattered. Distressed by her disheveled state, he quickly turned on the heater. A blast of warm air swirled through her hair. He swallowed the growing lump in his throat andlookedaway.

A couple of minutes later, they pulled into the Econo Lodge parking lot. He wanted to make sure she made it to her room safely, so he jumped out of the truck. It was a terrible move which left him listing to one side. Damn beer. Now he remembered why he always hateddrinking.

Rachel met him at the rear of the truck. She held out the keys. “I’ll give these to you, but only if you swear you won’t use them until the bar closes. Go back, order some food and drink a bunch of water so yousoberup.”

“Yes, Mom,” hejoked.

A tiny smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Okay. Well, thank you. I guess…. I guess I’ll talk to youlater.”

He wasn’t ready to let her go. He put his palm on the small of her back and guided her into the hotel’s lobby. “Does your room have afireplace?”

She laughed. “I can’t afford such luxury. I can’t even afford this place. I offered to spend the night on the floor in my mom’s studio, but she refused and said I needed a proper bed. She paid for thisplace.”

“That was niceofher.”

“She’s the best. Always looking out for me.” Rachel punched a button to call the elevator. “Thanks for walkingmein.”

“How long are you planning on stayingintown?”

A flash of sadness passed across her face so quickly that he almost missed it. “I’m not sure. I think I made a mistakecominghere.”

Before his mind could fully process her last statement, the elevator doors opened. When she stepped in, he followed her. She turned and jumped, startled to find him directly behind her. “Oh, I can make it the rest of the waymyself.”

“I’d feel more comfortable knowing that you made it all the way toyourroom.”

“Okay.”

He cocked his head to one side. “What did you mean when you said you made a mistakecominghere?”

She bit the edge of her lip. Hesitation, or maybe trepidation, furrowed her brows. “I… I just thought… I thought maybe I could reclaim somethingI’dlost.”

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