One Hot Christmas

“Why?”

He met her gaze and smiled. “I should have known you’d ask that. Which means I shouldn’t have made the remark in the first place. Sorry. I’d rather not get into it right now.”

Although his tone was friendly and he was doing his best to be polite, she felt a brick wall go up. She couldn’t blame him. They’d met a few hours ago. Just because she’d blabbed some of her family information didn’t mean that he’d want to do the same. “That’s fine. Let’s switch topics.”

He polished off the last of his coffee. “To what?”

“The saddle you brought here. Where is it?”

He laughed. “You know, I’ve only been around you for a little while, but somehow I knew you’d ask that question. Now that you know about the saddle, its whereabouts is driving you nuts, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“I guess I can trust you.”

“You can. I wouldn’t ruin this surprise for anything.”

“It’s in the far back corner of the tractor barn under a blanket.”

“Who’s seen it?”

“Jack, Gabe and Nick. That’s it.”

She gave him her most winsome smile, the one even her brothers had never been able to resist. “Please take me out there. I want to see it, too.”

5

BEN SHOULD HAVE seen this coming. Molly was the most inquisitive woman he’d ever run across, and now that she’d learned about the secret present for Sarah, of course she’d want to see it. She’d want to be one of the privileged few who knew what was coming when the saddle was presented tomorrow evening.

And the fact of the matter was, he wanted to show it to her. He was proud of that saddle and after all three Chance brothers had given it a thumbs-up, he felt pretty confident that Molly would like it, too. Still, he needed to think of the logistics.

He considered what they’d have to go through. “It’s damned cold out there. I’m sure the temperature’s dropped considerably since I was out, and it was freezing, then.”

“I know. We’ll bundle up and go fast.”

“It’s snowing.”

“Not very hard. A few flakes. The shoveled paths should still be fine if we go right away. Please?”

That smile of hers was something. It made her eyes light up and put a cute little dimple in her left cheek. He felt like kissing her, but her glasses would be in the way so he didn’t act on the impulse. Besides, she’d asked him to take her out to see his saddle, not kiss her.

“Come on, Ben. It’ll be fun.” She pushed back her chair and picked up her coffee cup and saucer. “We’ll just put these in the dishwasher, pull on our duds, and be off.”

He stood and collected his dishes. “I’ll bet you got your brothers in all kinds of trouble when you were a kid.”

“Yes, but they never regretted it. I had great ideas. Even if we were punished...well, mostly they were punished because they got blamed...they still had fun.”

Ben laughed. “I’d love to hear their side of that someday.”

“You should! You totally should come to Prescott for a visit. It’s a cute little town. You’d like it.”

“We’ll see.” Whoops. He wasn’t sure how it had happened, but suddenly she was inviting him to Prescott so he could meet her brothers.

He wondered how they’d react to a guy who had no intention of starting a family, ever. That wouldn’t work for Miss Molly. Her brothers would probably escort him right out the door. If they thought for one minute he’d misled their baby sister, he might be run out of town on a rail.

But that was a moot point, because he wouldn’t be going to Prescott. If he had any sense, he wouldn’t have told her where the saddle was, but she had a way of making him say things he shouldn’t. Now he had to take her there, because if he didn’t, she’d go by herself. He wasn’t about to let her do that.

They climbed the stairs together and separated at the top to go to their respective rooms and suit up. He wound a wool scarf around his neck before pulling on his sheepskin coat. He left it open so he wouldn’t roast, made sure his fleece-lined leather gloves were in the pockets and settled his Stetson on his head.

What he needed was a lined hat with earflaps, but he hadn’t brought one on this trip. He hadn’t expected to be going outside in subzero weather. But then, he hadn’t counted on a little bit of a thing winding him around her pinky finger, either. At the last minute, he pocketed his phone so he could use its flashlight feature. Jack might not think much of that convenience, but Ben used his all the time.

As he walked out of his room, Molly appeared wearing a puffy, bright-red jacket, a red knit hair band that covered her ears, a red knit cap and rubber boots. She looked adorable.

They met at the top of the stairs once again, and he realized she held mittens in her hand, not gloves. Who wore mittens anymore? She did, apparently.

She waved them at him. “A gift from one of my sisters-in-law,” she said in a low voice. “She’s just learning to knit. This is their first and maybe their only outing, but I wanted to tell her I used them in Wyoming and this trip to the tractor barn won’t require me to do anything complicated with my fingers.”

Her low-pitched comment, probably designed to keep from waking the household, shouldn’t make him think of sex, but it did. He pictured the interesting things she could do with her fingers if they were free to roam over his naked body. Presently they were about as far from naked as they could get without being zipped into a hazmat suit.

Something was different about her, other than all the stuff she’d put on to guard against the cold, but at first he couldn’t figure out what it was. Then he did. He kept his voice down, too. “Where are your glasses?”

“I popped in my contacts. My glasses would just fog up the minute I stepped outside and started breathing.”

“So why don’t you wear contacts all the time? Do they bother you?”

“Not really. I just...like my glasses. I know that sounds silly, but I started wearing them when I was a kid, and they’re me in a way that contacts aren’t. It’s a cliché, but I feel smarter with them on. Now, see, you’re smiling because you think that’s ridiculous.”

“No, I’m smiling because I like you.”

“You do? How do you mean that, exactly?”

He laughed softly. “I keep forgetting that you have to analyze everything.”

“That’s true, but I just realized I’m getting very hot in this coat, so forget about that question for now. We can talk about it after we come back from the tractor barn and take off all these clothes.”

“Depending on how much you plan to take off, we should definitely talk about it.”

She blushed. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Too bad.” Chuckling, he started down the stairs. She was the wrong woman for him. The absolute worst choice he could make. But when she stood there looking so cute and talking about taking off her clothes, he couldn’t seem to remember that.

He paused in front of the door to button his coat and put on his gloves. Then he turned up his collar.

She pulled a knitted red scarf out of her pocket. “My sister-in-law knitted this before she tackled the mittens.” Molly wrapped it around her neck and then around her nose and mouth so only her eyes showed.

When that was all he could see, he became aware of what a beautiful green they were, and how her long lashes framed them. She might love her glasses, and in a way he preferred that look on her, too. But without her glasses, he could more easily picture her stretched out in his bed, gazing up at him. He’d be wise not to dwell on that or he’d really overheat standing in the entryway.

Last, she put on her mittens, which were too big. “Don’t fit very well.” Her voice was muffled by the scarf as she moved her hands and the mittens turned into flippers.

He bit the inside of his cheek so he wouldn’t laugh. Then, moving cautiously, he opened the front door.

She gasped as frigid air engulfed them.

“We don’t have to go.”

She shook her head and stepped out onto the porch.

He followed her out, closed the door and took the action any man in this situation would. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and held her close as they navigated down the steps. Close was a relative term in this case. Holding on to her was like holding onto a blow-up Christmas yard decoration. He kept losing his grip because she was so squashy and slippery.

It might have been the coldest walk he’d ever taken in his life. Without any pavement or large buildings giving off heat, the air bit through his coat as if he’d walked out bare-chested. His nipples tightened in response to the icy temperature until they actually hurt.

But she’d been right about the snowfall. The flakes were lazy and slow. That could change at any time, though, so he planned to make this a very quick trip.

The shoveled path led to the horse barn, then branched off to the tractor barn. It was narrow, but by hugging her against him, he was able to steer them along it without either of them stepping into the crusted drifts on each side.

The horse barn was heated, as he’d discovered this afternoon. He considered making a stop there to warm up and decided she wouldn’t go for that. She didn’t strike him as a woman who took very many detours in life.

Besides, the sooner they got to the tractor barn and looked at the saddle, the sooner they could get back to the cozy ranch house. He thought he’d become used to Wyoming winters, but he’d never been outside in a landscape like this, where security lights and a pale moon reflected off untrampled snow. Beyond the soft glow coming from the house and the barn, the surroundings were completely dark.

No sound greeted him, either, not even the hoot of an owl. He knew this was wolf country, but they were silent, too. The frozen world was completely still, without even a breeze. For that he was grateful. They didn’t need a wind-chill factor right now.

The tractor barn was secured by the same method as the horse barn—a wooden bar that slid across when a person wanted to open the double doors, and slid back when they wanted to keep them closed. Ben had to let go of Molly while he pushed the bar aside, and he could swear he heard her teeth chattering, even with the scarf covering her mouth.

He hoped, after braving the cold, she’d like his saddle and feel good about having seen it. Tramping out here tonight was a lot of trouble, particularly if the saddle turned out to be anticlimactic.

The tractor barn wasn’t wired for electricity, which meant no heat and no lights. Once they were inside and he’d pulled the doors shut, the air was marginally warmer, but not by much. He reached into his pocket, but before he could turn on his flashlight app, she’d pulled off one mitten and activated hers.

She tugged her scarf down from her nose and mouth. “That was intense.” Her words came out in little puffs of condensed vapor.

“And we have to do it all over again when we go back.” More clouds fogged the air between them.

“I didn’t say I didn’t like it. Challenges are fun for me.” Mist from their conversation hung between them.

“Me, too, actually.” He’d felt a sense of kinship when she’d said that. Not everyone welcomed challenges in their life. He thought it was the only way a person could grow. “Shine your light along the floor so we don’t trip over anything as we walk back there.”

“Thank you for bringing me.” She held the light steady as they walked to the back of the tractor barn.

In warm weather the place probably smelled of gas and oil, but freezing temperatures cancelled out most of the odor. Ben caught faint whiffs of the metallic scent of machinery, but it was subtle. Light from the phone allowed him to see the hulking forms of tractors. In the dark the barn was a little spooky.

He couldn’t imagine sending her out here by herself, even if she would have been perfectly safe. Maybe her size made him feel protective, but he thought it was more than that. He loved her enthusiasm for new experiences, but having someone around as backup wasn’t a bad idea. He’d never want to suggest she wasn’t capable of anything she put her mind to, but if he could provide a safety net, that would be okay, too.

And what a ridiculous idea that was! He didn’t expect to see her after she left the state on Monday. She had a lifetime of adventures ahead of her and he wouldn’t be a part of any of them. So he could stop fantasizing about his role in her life, because he had none.

“To the right,” he said as they neared the back of the barn. “Over in the corner. Lift the light a little. See that thing over there with the blanket covering it? That’s the saddle. Hold the light steady.”

She did as he asked and he noted that she was excellent at following directions when the situation required it. Stepping into the glow of her phone light, he grabbed two corners of the blanket and pulled. He considered making it even more dramatic by whipping it aside like a magician revealing his completed trick. But that would be showing off, and he wasn’t into showing off.

“Oh, Ben.”

The awe in her voice thrilled him. “Glad you like it.” He turned toward her.

She was in shadow with her flashlight trained on the saddle. “I don’t just like it. I love it.” She moved forward and angled the light as she examined the saddle more closely. “Rosie Padgett was right. You’re an artist.”

“I don’t know about that.” Good thing he was in shadow, too, so she wouldn’t see him blush. Later, when he was alone, he’d savor those words, but at the moment they made him uncomfortable.

“Then you underestimate yourself.”

“I think of an artist as being somebody like Leonardo da Vinci, not Ben Radcliffe, saddlemaker.”

“Then maybe your definition is a little too narrow.” She traced the tooling on the saddle’s fender. “Did you copy this design from somewhere? Is that why you don’t feel like an artist?”

“No, I made it up.”

“There you go. This is original art. It happens to be on a working saddle instead of on the wall of a museum, but personally, I like the idea of art in everyday life. Useful art. You took something that serves a function and made it beautiful. Like Grecian urns. They were made to be used, but that didn’t keep the potters from decorating them with amazing pictures and turning them into works of art we study today.”

“I guess.”

“Listen to a history professor. If Sarah takes good care of it and passes it down, it could someday end up in a museum as an example of Western art.”

“I think that’s going a little far.” Even though the barn was very cold, he was growing warmer by the minute. No one had ever said such things to him. He didn’t believe a word of it, but that didn’t mean he didn’t like hearing it. “I’ve never studied art, really. I took an art class in high school because it was an easy A, but that doesn’t mean—”

“Be quiet, Ben.” She caressed the saddle one last time and turned back to him, the light moving with her. “Where are you? Oh, I see you.” She walked over to him until she was standing inches away. “What was that you said when we were inside? That you liked me?”

“I said, that, yeah.”

“And I asked you to elaborate. Would you care to do that now?” She kept the light trained on the floor.

That meant she was still mostly in shadow, and she was still bundled up like someone about to ski the Alps. But he sensed something in the air, a yearning that matched his own. “Instead of trying to explain it,” he said, “maybe I should show you.”

“Show me how?”

“Like this.” Tossing his hat onto the saddle horn, he gathered her into his arms. She squeaked in surprise, but when he located her mouth, her squeak turned into a sigh. Oh, yeah. She wanted this as much as he did.

6

AT FIRST BEN’S lips were cold, but Molly’s weren’t. She’d had them covered with a scarf. Warming his lips took no time at all. After the first shock of discovering he was going to kiss her, she threw herself into the experience with abandon.

Rising to her toes, she wound her arms around his neck and gave it all she had. So did he, and oh, my goodness. A harmonica player knew what it was all about. She’d never kissed one before, but she hoped to be doing a lot more of this with Ben.

Although she’d never thought of a kiss as being creative, this one was. He caressed her lips so well and so thoroughly that she forgot the cold and the late hour. She forgot they were standing in a cavernous tractor barn surrounded by heavy equipment.

She even forgot that she wasn’t in the habit of kissing men she’d known for mere hours. Come to think of it, she’d never done that. But everything about this kiss, from his coffee-and-dessert-flavored taste to his talented tongue, felt perfect.

As far as she was concerned, the kiss could go on forever. Well, maybe not. The longer they kissed, the heavier they breathed. His hot mouth was making her light-headed in more ways than one.

That was her excuse for dropping her phone on the concrete floor. It hit with a sickening crack, but in her current aroused state, she didn’t really care.

Ben pulled back, though, and gulped for air. “I think that was your phone.”

“I think so, too.” She dragged in a couple of quick breaths. “Kiss me some more.”

With a soft groan, he lowered his head and settled his mouth over hers. This time he took the kiss deeper and invested it with a meaning she understood quite well. Intellectually she was shocked, but physically she was completely on board. The stroke of his tongue delivered a message, one she received with a rush of moisture that dampened her panties.

This time when he eased away from her, she was trembling. Like a swimmer breaking the surface, she gasped. Then she clutched his head and urged him back down. She wanted him to kiss her until the voice of caution stopped yelling at her that it was too soon to feel like this about him. “More.”

He resisted, but he was panting and obviously as hot as she was. “This is crazy. I think we broke your phone. The light’s out.”

“We don’t need light.”

“That’s not the point.”

“Yes, it is. Come back here and do what you were doing some more. I really like it.”

His chuckle was a little strained. “Me, too.” Apparently he had both a strong will and a strong neck, because he held himself away from her. “But I can do a better job of it in a warm house, plus then we can check out your phone.”

“I don’t care about the damned phone.” She sighed. “Which is a measure of how you affect me if I’m unconcerned about my techie toy.”

“I’m flattered.”

“I hope you’re also turned on.”

“That, too.” He sounded amused.

“You realize the minute we step out into that Arctic air we’ll lose momentum.” And she’d begin to question the wisdom of sleeping with him. She just knew it.

His gloved hand brushed her cheek. “Speak for yourself. The way I’m feeling right now, I could make love to you on an ice floe.”

She shivered, and it had nothing to do with the cold and everything to do with picturing them naked and going for it on any available flat surface. Oh, boy. She was actually considering having sex with a guy she’d just met.

As the power of his kisses faded a little, her conscience resumed its tedious lecture about her wanton behavior. She tried not to listen, but it was no use. “Maybe we should lose momentum.” She said it with regret, but her conscience applauded. “How long have we known each other?”

He was silent for a moment. “Yeah, you’re right. For the record, I don’t ordinarily move this fast.”

“I never move this fast. I go through the normal steps—coffee date, lunch date, dinner date.” More smug applause from her conscience.

“So we skipped a couple of steps.”

“It’s not just the steps.” Her conscience was in full control, now. “It’s the time between the steps, when you talk on the phone with someone, when you have moments to contemplate them when they’re not around, when you begin to miss them if you don’t see them for a couple of days.”

He took a shaky breath. “I know you’re right, but we don’t have that kind of time. You’ll be gone in a few days.”

She noticed he still hadn’t let go of her. She could wiggle out of his arms, but she didn’t want to do that. “You make a valid point.” Take that, conscience! “I’ve never met anyone special when I was on vacation. My dating steps work great in Prescott, but this isn’t quite that situation.”

“Same here. I’ve never been bowled over by somebody who’s about to leave town. Guess I don’t know how to handle—”

“Bowled over? Really?” Her conscience was speechless at that.

“Yeah.” There was a smile in his voice. “Really. That little pirouette you did for me after I took the dental floss out of your hair knocked me out.”

“Wow. No one’s ever told me I bowled them over.” And if she needed justification for ignoring her dating steps, this might do the trick.

“Surprised the hell out of me, too. You’re not my type at all.”

“Oh? In what way?”

“Uh...the women I date are usually more...full-figured.”

With an internal sigh, she decided this cozy embrace was over and pushed against his broad chest. “Then maybe you’re hot for me because, even though I’m not your type, I’m handy and you’re in the mood.”

“Hey, hey, I didn’t mean it like that.” His arms tightened around her.

“Let me go, Ben. I get the picture. Chances are you’d be disappointed once our clothes are off, which they won’t be, because I’d sooner strip in front of a grizzly than you.”

“Let me say my piece, okay? Then if you want to stay away from me for the rest of your visit, I won’t bother you.”

Curiosity had always been both a blessing and a curse in her life. “Go ahead.”

“You’re right about what I’ve always considered my type of woman.” He rubbed the small of her back while he talked.

“Centerfold worthy.” She tried not to be affected by his touch. Logically she shouldn’t feel it much through her bulky coat, but when it came to Ben, she was extra sensitive. “I’m not built to those specs.”

“You don’t have to be. You have something more important.”

“Here it comes. You even said it already. You like that I have brains, but trust me, women don’t want to be adored just for their brains, even if they think they do. They want to be worshipped for their bodies, even skinny ladies like me.”

His voice grew husky. “You have no idea how much I want to do that, Molly.”

“Because you’ve been through a long dry spell?”

“No, I haven’t. I broke up with somebody a couple of months ago.”

“For some guys, two months is a long time. You could be one of those guys.”

“I could, but I’m not. It wasn’t a very intense relationship, anyway.” He kept rubbing her back with slow, sure strokes. “But you—you would be intense. I thought so before I kissed you, and now I know it for sure. You’re so full of energy. That’s very sexy.”

“It is?” She was feeling a little better about being in his arms. A lot better, actually.

“Oh, yeah. You glow, Molly, and I’m so drawn to that. I want...” He swallowed. “I want to touch you all over and see if you’ll glow even brighter. I bet you will.” His voice roughened. “I want to see the excitement in your eyes when you’re about to come. I want to see you go up in flames.”

She gulped. And quivered. And decided that maybe her dating steps weren’t all they were cracked up to be.

“That’s all I have to say. If you want me to let you go and keep my distance while I’m here, I understand. We just met. I’m not a sexual opportunist, but you don’t know me well enough to be convinced of that.”

“Yes, I do.” Her words were barely more than a whisper.

“You do?”

She cleared her throat. “Yes.” She was smiling, but he wouldn’t be able to see that. “A sexual opportunist wouldn’t have announced I’m not his type.”

He blew out a breath. “That was so lame of me. I’m sorry.”