She paused at a window. The storm had cut off most of the daylight, giving the scene a bleak appearance. Snow blanketed everything and continued to fall without sign of letup. The strong wind plastered it against the side of the house and whipped it into large drifts across the yard. She shivered as she watched the intensity increase with each passing minute.
Two men leaned into the wind as they made their way across the yard, their image obscured by the blowing snow. One of them turned toward the barn and the other turned toward the house. A moment later she heard someone enter through the front door. She returned her attention to the bookshelves lining the walls.
Jace stomped the snow from his boots and hung his hat and jacket on the rack by the door. He headed straight to the fireplace, grabbed a couple more logs and added them to the fire. Everything possible had been done to prepare for the duration of what looked to be a full-scale blizzard. Now it was a matter of attending to the necessary daily ranch chores and hoping the storm didn’t do damage to any of the buildings.
He checked the kitchen and dining room, but did not see Samantha. He rubbed his hands in front of the fire until the chill was gone, then went looking for her. He spotted her in the den. He leaned against the doorjamb and watched her for a moment. She stood on her toes with her arm stretched above her head in an attempt to reach something. His gaze lingered on the fabric of her slacks and the way it caressed the roundness of her bottom.
He took a couple of steps into the room, then paused. He allowed his gaze to travel up to the soft silk that clung to the curve of her breast. The wrinkled and disheveled condition of her clothes could not hide the enticing sight that made his blood course a little faster. He closed his eyes for a moment. He knew he could not continue to stare at her as if she were a hot meal and he hadn’t eaten in four years—regardless of how much his gaze wanted to linger.
He crossed the den and stood behind her. “Let me help you.”
“Oh!” She glanced over her shoulder and lowered her arm. “You startled me. I didn’t hear you come into the room.”
“What is it you’re trying to reach?”
She turned back toward the books and extended her arm, pointing to the object of her interest. “I was trying to get that book.” A tremor of delight suffused her body when she felt him brush against her back and shoulder.
He reached past her and grabbed the tome from the shelf. He felt her warmth, an almost seductive heat that grabbed hold of him and refused to let go. He took a steadying breath as he tried to regain control. He had difficulty getting out the words. “Is there anything else you wanted?”
“No...nothing else.” She turned to face him and found herself so close that their bodies almost touched. His silver eyes captured her just as surely as if he had wrapped her in his embrace. She felt the very real pull of his magnetic sexuality. It nearly took her breath away. No one had ever made her feel that way before, certainly not her ex-fiancé.
He handed her the book, then quickly took a step backward.
Her words were almost a whisper. “Thank you.”
His gaze fell on her mouth for a moment. Her lips slowly parted. Her lower lip quivered slightly as she ran the tip of her tongue across her upper lip in a nervous manner. He swallowed hard, then took another calming breath in an attempt to find some composure. “I’m sorry to have left you on your own like this, but a storm of this magnitude requires extra work. Snow is not uncommon, but a raging blizzard this time of year is unusual. We don’t usually get hit this hard until after Christmas. We could be in for a few rough days.”
She followed his lead by engaging in idle chitchat in an attempt to impose some control on what was happening. “I understand perfectly. I certainly don’t want to be a bother to you. I know you have lots to do.” She felt a shortness of breath caused by his close proximity. She had such a tenuous hold on her soaring desires, and the totally unfamiliar state left her feeling very uncomfortable.
She clutched the book tightly in her hand. The way he continued to look at her did not help matters at all. “I...uh.” She nervously played with the gold chain around her neck. “I just realized that I never properly thanked you for your timely rescue. Everything happened so quickly. My car skidded into a snowdrift, then your helicopter swooped down out of the sky. The next thing I knew I was standing in your living room. I guess it took me a while to catch up with all of it.”
She awkwardly shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “When I looked out the window a few minutes ago and saw the way the snow was coming down and the wind blowing, I realized just how much trouble I would have been in if you hadn’t come along. And your hospitality—” She could not handle being this close to him. She put some more space between them. “I want to do something to repay your kindness.” She wasn’t sure what else to say. “Maybe I could pay for my room and meals...”
Jace experienced a pang of disappointment at the turn of events, but he was glad that she’d decided to put more distance between them. He had been very tempted to pull her into his arms and kiss that very alluring mouth. It was a temptation that had been growing stronger and stronger despite the fact that he didn’t want it to be so.
He quickly recovered and addressed her last comment, just a hint of irritation creeping into his voice. “You want to pay me for your room and meals? This isn’t a boarding house. I guess things are different in Los Angeles and other real cities. This is ranch country. Neighbors help out neighbors. Quite often we are dependent on each other, especially in emergency situations like now. That same courtesy extends to strangers in need, too.”
The shocked look on her face made him regret the words as soon as they were out of his mouth. It wasn’t like him. He was not an argumentative type of person. There was just something about Samantha Burkett that seemed to make him say things totally out of character. It was almost as if he were trying to build a wall between them for fear it would prove much too tempting if he allowed her to get too close.
In the four years since his wife’s death he’d managed to drag himself up from the depths of despair and get on with his life. The first two years had been very difficult, but the past two years had settled into a normal routine that he was able to live with. He’d pretty much resigned himself to the fact that he would never find another special woman who could be part of his life.
One thing was for certain, he was not ready to expose that fragile place that he’d so carefully hidden away. And even if he did eventually take a chance on exposing those emotions, it would not be with someone as totally unsuited as Samantha Burkett. They were from two different worlds and obviously had nothing in common in spite of the fact that she managed to fan the nearly dead embers of his desires into flames.
Samantha was totally taken aback by his abrupt change in attitude. “I...I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m accustomed to taking care of myself and paying my own way without depending on others. I didn’t want you to think I was a freeloader. Perhaps there’s something I could do to help out.”
“Well...I am a little shorthanded with Helen gone. Maybe you could fill in on some of her chores.” It wasn’t that he actually needed her help, but he thought it might give her something to do to occupy her time until the storm lifted. Then she would be on her way. As abruptly as she’d appeared, she would just as quickly be gone. They’d remain two people totally unsuited for each other, whose paths happened to momentarily cross one stormy day. Nothing more.
“Uh...yes, of course.” She glanced down at the floor, then recaptured his gaze and extended her best professional smile. “I’m not sure how much of a help I’ll be, but I’m certainly willing
