“Am I that obvious?”
“Somewhere there’s a man who did you wrong. You’re searching for a life that isn’t planned out, and in the process, you found yourself stranded in a snowstorm.”
“I wasn’t completely stranded,” I said. “I followed the white ribbon.”
Van’s gaze narrowed. “The white ribbon.”
“With all the snow, I couldn’t see the road, so I told myself to follow the white ribbon.”
He nodded. “What did he do?”
Pressing my lips together, I shook my head.
“I don’t say this often, but I’m sorry he hurt you.” Van’s finger traced down my cheek in a display of familiarity that felt surprisingly right. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”
“I’m not sure what I’m looking for. I think it was to get away.”
His smile bloomed. “If that was it, I’d say you got it.”
“I did.” When he started to stand, I again reached for his hand. “I just ended a...relationship, and I’m not looking for a new one.”
“That’s good because I’m not the relationship kind.”
“You’re the good kind, though. You didn’t need to rescue me or take care of me, but you did.”
“Julia, I promise, I’m not good.”
I fought the tears as I held tight to his hand. “I’m tired of pretending to be happy and pretending that everything is the way it should be. I thought maybe I could get away and find myself.” My gaze went to his eyes. Letting go of his hand, I reached up to palm his cheek. “I found you instead.”
“I think, technically, I found you.”
I scooted over to the cold side of the bed. “You can sleep here. Maybe tomorrow the snow will have stopped.”
Van shook his head. “You don’t know what you’re doing.”
“I do.”
“Listen, I’m not against a one-night stand. It’s that you’re not the kind of woman I would want a one-night stand with.”
“Oh,” I said, turning away.
“Shit.” Van reached for my chin and turned it back. “That was a fucking compliment. I’m the damn wolf you heard out there. It’s who I am in my private life and in my career. You are Little Red Riding Hood, and the last thing you should do is invite the wolf into your bed.”
“Weeks before my wedding, I found out my best friend is pregnant and the man I was engaged to is the father.”
“Fuck.”
I nodded. “I’ll sleep over here. I’m not asking you to make love to me. I’m offering half the bed.”
“I don’t work that way,” Van said as he walked away.
My eyes closed as I tried to make sense of anything that had happened over the last forty-eight hours. The stress and cold had worn me down. I opened my eyes to see Van crouched near the fireplace, tending to the fire inside. His words made me wonder about him.
What kind of private life does he have?
What does he do in business that he considers himself a wolf?
I was almost asleep when I heard the wind as the door opened. When I looked up, the kerosene lamp on the table was extinguished and Van was gone.
He probably went to the outhouse, I told myself.
Time passed.
Uncertain of where he could have gone or if he’d leave me alone, I sat up against the hand-carved headboard and pulled the blankets over me. The fire snapped and crackled. The wind outside continued to blow. I reached for my phone to see the time, and then, remembering it was turned off, I set it back on the bedside stand. My eyelids grew heavy, but I refused to lie back.
Finally, to my relief, the door opened. Through the firelight, I watched as Van took off his hat, gloves, coat, and boots. My lip disappeared behind my teeth as he unbuckled his belt, unfastened his blue jeans, and allowed them to fall to his ankles. His silk boxer briefs weren’t those of a mountain man. They showed each bulge and pulled tight over his muscular behind. Reaching over his head, he tugged on the back of his thermal shirt and pulled it over his head, revealing his wide chest with just the right amount of dark hair.
Inconspicuously, I moved lower under the blankets so as to not alert him that I was still awake.
The moving of the blankets and leaning of the mattress caused my eyes to open. “Van?”
“You’ll regret this, Julia.”
Julia
Van slid under the blankets until he radiated warmth beside me. The twisting in my core at watching him disrobe turned painful as he turned to me, our noses nearly touching. His large hand gently came to my cheek as he pulled me closer until our lips met.
His approach firm and strong, there was nothing tentative in it. Van tasted like coffee and nectarines as his tongue teased my lips, and I willingly allowed him entrance. Moans and whimpers echoed throughout the cabin as his touch skirted under the long flannel shirt, freeing my breasts from my bra and taunting my nipples.
His green eyes blazed with the power of a raging forest fire as he stared down at me. “Take off my shirt.”
It wasn’t a request. It wasn’t even disguised as a request. Van’s tone left no room for argument as my fingers hurried with the buttons, one by one until the final one was freed.
Van pulled back the blankets as I freed my arms. With a quick move behind my back, he released the clasp on my bra, and without a word he removed it, sending it somewhere to the floor.
His breathing deepened as he stared. “It took every fucking ounce of restraint to not do that when I undressed you, and now, you’re even more gorgeous than I imagined.” He leaned down, sucking one nipple and then the other. As soon as his warm lips would disappear, the cool air would attack.
Blood rushed to my breasts, making them heavy as his five o’clock shadow abraded my skin.
“Van.” I couldn’t articulate any further.
His finger came to my lips. “You invited me, Julia. The rest is up to me.” Fire crackled in his stare. “That’s my rule. Can you follow rules?”
The answer was that I could, I had all my life, but at this moment, it felt like the opposite, as if I was breaking free.
“Julia.”
I nodded against his finger. Opening my lips, I took it in my mouth and sucked.
“Fuck,” he growled. His head dipped as he kissed lower, down my ribs, my stomach, and to the waistline of my panties.
No longer was I stranded in a blizzard. I was lost in a cloud of wanton lust unlike any I’d experienced before. My mind was incapable of thinking beyond the bed, beyond Van, and beyond the assault on my sensory system. This must be what it was like to be with a man who knew how to please a woman and did so without fanfare. Van’s touch was commanding yet enticing.
I couldn’t keep track of the ministrations of his lips or hands. Like a sculptor, he molded me to his liking, bringing me more pleasure than I knew existed.
Whatever Van was doing, I wanted more.
If I was asked when my panties disappeared, I wouldn’t be able to answer. If I was questioned on when his boxer briefs vanished, I’d be at an equal loss.
My fingernails threatened the cotton sheets as he moved lower, nipping, licking, and lapping my core. My back arched and my knees squeezed as Van brought me to an orgasm unlike any I’d ever experienced.