through the door, the puppies were curled so tightly together that he and June had to check to make sure the little ones were both accounted for. After changing out the potty pad, they watched the critters sleep for a few moments, Ethan checking their breathing before he gently touched June’s elbow, whispered that the pups would be okay with only each other as company for a short while longer and led her out to the front of the clinic.
“I feel like I’m leaving my kids alone at home,” June said, shrugging into her coat, which he held open for her.
“I completely understand, and sadly, I don’t think this is their first time on their own,” Ethan said, wanting to reassure her, “but we won’t be long and I promise they’ll be fine until we return.”
What was he thinking, making a promise like that? Yes, the animals appeared relatively healthy and strong, considering their situation, and yes, he was confident in his ability to usher them back to full health, but he had no history of clairvoyance and therefore no business making guarantees regarding things he couldn’t fully control.
What had gotten into him? Would he say anything to make this woman smile?
Catching the worried crease between her brows as she glanced once more over her shoulder in the direction of the pups, Ethan tucked his hand beneath her elbow. “Trust me, June. They’ll be all right. Their bellies are full, they’ve had fresh water and have done their business, they’re safe inside the pen and they’re not alone.”
The answer was yes, apparently, he would say anything.
At his words, her expression softened, and though he didn’t want to examine why it mattered to him at all, he found himself relieved at the idea of having provided some comfort. “Also, I would not leave them if I believed them to be unsafe, okay?”
She nodded.
“So then, do you trust me?”
She wasn’t quick to answer, a fact that made him like her even more. After all—though he wasn’t entirely sure any longer whether he believed time to be a reliable factor in the decision to invest trust in someone—they’d only known each other for little over an hour.
“Yes,” she finally said. “I do trust you.”
He smiled, more pleased than wisdom should allow.
“Good.” He squeezed her elbow, then let go. “I figure the best thing to do now is grab something to go and come back here. That way, we won’t risk getting stuck at the bakery. Even though it’s only a few yards away, we could end up unable to get back, and I don’t want to leave the puppies alone for a full night.”
“Sounds like a plan,” June agreed.
Ethan pulled on his coat and wrapped a scarf around his neck and face before donning his hat. By the time he’d finished, June had done the same and looked adorable, a description that, despite being worlds apart from characterizing the women he was typically attracted to, seemed somehow more enticing.
June looked like someone he could curl up and have hot chocolate with after a long day at work, someone who would be joyful when a guy walked in the door, happy to spend an evening at home with him just relaxing, doing nothing in particular.
That was just it—the sight of her evoked home to him, something he could never ascribe to the women he’d dated before, women who preferred nights out on the town on the arm of a successful professor. It didn’t escape him that, over the past few years, being a “nerd” had become an asset, one he’d not hesitated to take full advantage of, and there had been plenty of young women, even a few former students, who had been eager to date an up-and-coming scientist who’d begun, much to his dismay, to attract media attention.
But June was part of a different world than the one he’d become accustomed to. For reasons he couldn’t explain, she brought to mind everything he missed about living in a small town, being close to family and so much more. He’d spent a good portion of the last decade thinking only of his career, dedicating all of his time to furthering his research and, if he was honest, to impressing his department at the university.
June made him think of other things. Things he used to want but truly thought he didn’t need any longer—things like home, and family, and someone to share it with. Someone to love.
None of which he would entertain, because that word—love—was no longer part of his vocabulary when it came to women.
Of course he loved his parents, his siblings and his nieces and nephews, but that was the safe kind of love. Loving a woman, which would inevitably lead to a broken heart again—well, that was an experience he’d rather not repeat. Especially not when his heart hadn’t quite healed from the last.
What kind of scientist would he be if he didn’t learn from failed experiments?
“Remind me again why we’re doing this?” June asked as he opened the door and snow crashed through with the force of a speeding train.
He reached for her hand and, when she grabbed it with her own, pulled her close to his body, tucking an arm over her shoulders. He chose to ignore the way she stiffened as their figures came together, not caring to assess whether it was aversion or pleasure at the contact that made her react in such a way.
“Because we’re starving, remember?”
“Oh, right,” she said. “Somehow the idea of having my face frozen off made me forget how hungry I am.”
He started to laugh but stopped when icy air hit his lungs, and set his focus on moving ahead instead. As they made their way in the direction of the bakery, Ethan was careful to keep his free hand against the wall of the building as the wind’s forceful blasts threatened to send them flying into the white abyss that used to be a parking lot. June’s head was down, her chin tucked into the top of her coat as he led the way. Despite the circumstances, Ethan couldn’t help but enjoy the way her tall, slim figure nestled against his own, her body’s warmth seeping through the layers of his clothing, strong enough to set off a flame in his lower abdomen.
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