having had the foresight to pack a coat? he wondered acidly.
‘Just get it and put it on,’ he bit out. ‘And then let’s get the hell out of here.’
KEIRA HAD TO work hard to keep up with Matteo as he battled his way through the deep snow because his powerful body moved much faster than hers, despite the fact that he’d insisted on bringing his suitcase with him. Thick, icy flakes were flying into her eyes and mouth and at times she wondered if she was imagining the small lighted building in the distance—like some bizarre, winter version of an oasis.
Despite putting on the big pair of leather gloves he’d insisted she borrow, her fingers felt like sticks of ice and she gave a little cry of relief when at last they reached the little house. Thank heavens she hadn’t imagined it because she didn’t like to think about Matteo Valenti’s reaction if she’d brought him here on a wild goose chase. He might have insisted on her borrowing his gloves, but even that had been done with a terse impatience. She saw his unsmiling look as he kicked a pile of snow away from the wooden gate and pushed it open, and she stumbled after him up the path to stand beneath the flashing red and gold lights of the illuminated sign overhead. She was shivering with cold by the time he’d jammed his finger on the doorbell and they heard some tinkly little tune playing in the distance.
‘Wh-what if...wh-what if nobody’s in?’ she questioned from between teeth which wouldn’t seem to stop chattering.
‘The light’s on,’ he said impatiently. ‘Of course somebody’s in.’
‘They m-might have gone away for Christmas and left the lights on a timer to deter burglars.’
‘You really think burglars are going to be enticed by a place like this?’ he demanded.
But their bad-tempered interchange was brought to a swift halt by the sound of a lumbering movement from within the house and the door was pulled open by a plump, middle-aged woman wearing a flowery apron which was smeared with flour.
‘Well, bless my soul!’ she said, opening the door wider as she peered out into the gloom. ‘You’re not carol singers, are you?’
‘We are not,’ answered Matteo grimly. ‘I’m afraid our car has got snowed in a little way down the road.’
‘Oh, you poor things! What a night to be outside! Come in, come in!’
Keira felt like bursting into tears of gratitude as Matteo’s palm positioned itself in the small of her back and propelled her inside the bright little hallway. During the seemingly endless journey here, she’d been convinced they weren’t going to make it, and that their two frozen figures would be discovered the next day, or the day after that. And hadn’t she been unable to stop herself from wondering whether anyone would have actually cared if she died?
But now they were standing dripping in a small hallway which had boughs of holly and strands of glittery tinsel draped absolutely everywhere. A green plastic tree was decked with flashing rainbow lights and from a central light hung a huge bunch of mistletoe. Keira’s eyes were drawn in fascination to the row of small, fluffy snowmen waddling in a perfectly symmetrical line along a shelf—her attention only distracted by the realisation that puddles of water were growing on the stone tiles beneath their feet. Years of being told to respect property—especially when it wasn’t your own—made Keira concentrate on the mess they were making, rather than the glaringly obvious fact that she and her bad-tempered Italian client were gate-crashing someone else’s Christmas.
‘Oh, my goodness—look at the floor!’ she said, aware of the faint look of incredulity which Matteo Valenti was slanting in her direction. ‘We’re ruining your floor.’
‘Don’t you worry about that, my dear,’ said the woman in her warm West Country accent. ‘We get walkers coming in here all the time—that’ll soon clean up.’
‘We’d like to use your phone if that’s okay,’ said Matteo, and Keira watched as the woman looked at him, her mouth opening and closing comically as if she’d only just realised that she had six feet three inches of brooding masculine gorgeousness in her house, with melting snow sliding down over his black cashmere coat.
‘And why would you want to do that, dear?’ questioned the woman mildly.
Matteo did his best not to flinch at the overfamiliar response, even though he despised endearments from complete strangers. Actually, he despised endearments generally. Didn’t they say that you always mistrusted what you weren’t used to? Suppressing a frustrated flicker of anger at having found himself in this intolerable situation, he decided he needed to own it. Better to calmly spell out their needs, since his driver seemed incapable of doing anything with any degree of competence. ‘Our car has become imbedded in the snow just down the road a little,’ he said, directing an accusing glare at the woman who was currently pulling off her bulky waterproof jacket and shaking her short dark hair. ‘We should never have taken this route, given the weather. However, what’s done is done and we can’t do anything about that now. We just need to get out of here, as quickly as possible, and I’d like to arrange that immediately.’
The woman nodded, her bright smile remaining unfaltering. ‘I don’t think that’s going to be possible, dear. You won’t get a rescue truck to dig you out—not tonight. Why, nothing’s going to get through—not in these conditions!’
It was the confirmation of his worst fears and although Matteo was tempted to vent his rage, he was aware it would serve no useful purpose—as well as insulting the woman who’d been kind enough to open her house to them. And she was right. Who could possibly get to them tonight—in weather like this? He needed to face facts and accept that he was stuck here, in the middle of nowhere—with his incompetent driver in tow. A driver who was staring at him with eyes which suddenly looked very dark in her pale face. He frowned.
Of all the females in the world to be stranded with—it had to be someone like her! Once again his thoughts drifted to the luxurious party he would be missing, but he dismissed them as he drew in a deep breath and forced himself to say the unimaginable. ‘Then it looks as if we’re going to have to stay here. I assume you have rooms for hire?’
The woman’s wide smile slipped. ‘In December? Not likely! All my rooms are fully booked,’ she added proudly. ‘I get repeat trade all through the year, but especially at this time of year. People love a romantic Christmas on Dartmoor!’
‘But we need somewhere to stay,’ butted in Keira suddenly. ‘Just until morning. Hopefully the snow will have stopped by then and we can get on our way in the morning.’
The woman nodded, her gaze running over Keira’s pale cheeks as she took the anorak from her and hung it on a hook. ‘Well, I’m hardly going to turn you out on a night like this, am I? Especially not at this time of the year—I’m sure we can find you room at the inn! I can put you in my daughter’s old bedroom at the back of the house. That’s the only space I have available. But the dining room is completely booked out and so I’m afraid I can’t offer you dinner.’
‘The meal doesn’t matter,’ put in Matteo quickly. ‘Maybe if you could send something to the room when you have a moment?’
Keira felt numb as they were shown up some rickety stairs at the back of the house, and she remained numb as the landlady—who informed them that her name was Mary—opened the door with a flourish.
‘You
