‘What happened?’ he asked, brow suddenly furrowed in concern.
Kira bristled. ‘What do you mean? Nothing happened. I just needed some … oxygen.’
Bennett watched her, one hand running idly up and down her thigh. ‘Okay.’
‘So are there any other details about this treasure? Like a map or something?’
‘Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m pretty sure this is just a crazy town rumor.’
She frowned. ‘Right. Probably.’
‘Hey, come here.’ He tugged her back down and her body went without her permission. He was so warm and comfortable, she couldn’t help it. Bennett was a bad decision wrapped in a good decision package, but it was too late to fight it now.
He rolled them a bit and tucked her into his side.
I could live here.
She sighed and he misinterpreted her change in mood.
‘I am sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. And I’m sorry I got your hopes up, but the farm is doing great and I’m sure you’ll have a shiny new boiler in no time.’
‘Sure, yeah, probably.’ Maybe if she started selling her organs along with Christmas trees she could fix up the whole house.
He rested his chin on the top of her head and she nuzzled her face in the crook of his neck. This. This spot right here was where she would set up her new home if she could. She was such an idiot.
‘You’re doing great, Kira.’
And she didn’t know if it was his words or his hands stroking her hair or the warm fire or this crazy day, but her feelings threatened to overwhelm her again. It was a rare thing for someone to tell her she was doing a good job and actually mean it.
She sniffled a little and Bennett tried to pull back to see her face, but she clung tight to him like a desperate little barnacle. She wasn’t ready to leave this warm cove of his body yet. Not until she was forced to.
‘I’m fine. Just … just keep doing that to my hair.’
She felt his soft laugh ruffle her hair.
‘At your service, Peaches.’
Chapter Twenty
The next morning dawned bright, blinding, and white outside her windows. She needed to get darker shades for this room if she was going to keep sleeping here. She was about to burrow deeper under the covers, when she realized the body that had kept her warm and cozy all night was missing.
God, last night had been so … perfect. So life-alteringly perfect. She didn’t want to think about it in the light of day, but it was too late. She was already thinking about it. Thinking about how Bennett had held her until she was done with her little emotional breakdown and then how he’d rolled her over and made her come like five more times, and how each time her defenses came down a little more until she was completely exposed, and there was nothing she could do about it.
And the only consolation was that he seemed to be feeling the same way. That he seemed just as undone as she was. That each time he slid into her, he seemed just as awestruck as she was, just as destroyed. And she didn’t know what to do now, except to keep going with this bad idea. Because she was stupid to go down this road, but she wasn’t stupid enough to stop now.
She had Bennett until New Year’s, and she was going to hold onto him with both greedy hands until then.
‘Bennett?’ she called, peeking out into the chilly room. The fire had died down in the night and now it was cold even in the confines of the living room blanket fort.
‘Ben?’
No answer. But when she sat up, she found a travel mug next to her side of the bed. Weird. She took a sip. Piping hot coffee from her own kitchen. He’d put it in a travel mug to keep it hot in this damn house.
Why was he so thoughtful?! Her resolve not to chain him to the radiator and keep him here forever was weakening. Keep it together, Kira.
She took another sip, fortifying herself, and then emerged from the blankets. Where did he go? She padded over to the front window in her fuzzy socks, a necessity for walking across these freezing floors. The world outside was white.
The sun had come out and the snow on the trees sparkled like fairy dust.
It was objectively beautiful, even Kira had to admit it.
And she found an unexpected excitement building up in her belly. She wanted to go play in the snow! A feeling nearly as foreign as wanting to keep the man she’d slept with last night. Quickly donning several more layers, her boots, coat, hat, and gloves—ugh playing in the snow was hard already—Kira stepped out into the brilliant morning before her enthusiasm could wane too much.
Bennett, apparently giving up on fighting his helper instincts, had already shoveled the walk from her door to the driveway. After that, footprints had plowed through the snow and into the tree fields.
Even after all the storm warnings and the high winds of yesterday, the snow wasn’t actually that deep, less than a foot, she would guess. So Kira followed the footprints into the trees. The snow was light and fluffy, a cold, sparkly powder.
She didn’t have to walk far before she found him.
Bennett had cleared the snow away from one of her trees and was kneeling beside it, sawing it down. He had on that vest of his and had rolled up the sleeves of his Henley. Kira watched his arms flex and bunch as he sawed.
‘Aren’t you cold?’ she asked, and he looked up at her in surprise. The smile he gave her warmed her to her toes.
‘Nah, worked up a sweat shoveling.’
‘Thanks for doing that.’
He shrugged. ‘You weren’t supposed to find me.’ He gestured to the tree. ‘It was supposed to be a surprise.’
