Snow Angels (11 page)

“No.”

“Did you grab any of the food?”

“No.”

He tried not to put out a lip. She could have grabbed
something
. He was starved. No matter. The ranger would be here soon. Surely
he
had something.

Her lip trembled. “Are you very mad?”

“I’m not mad. I was scared, honey. Scared to death.” Scared to death he’d lose her.

“I was fine. Jax said there was time.”

The tsunami of emotion roiling through him nearly knocked him over. “
Jax
said there was time? You listened to
Jax
?”

“I always listen to Jax.”

“Stop listening to Jax!” Okay, he knew he was being irrational, but Jax was dead and gone, and he was alive and with her.

“But—”

“Stop. Listening. To Jax.” He waved his hand in the air. “Jax, you can go away now. She’s mine.”

Lyssa froze. Stared at him. Her lips worked. “I-I’m yours?”

Oh, crap. Had he really said that out loud? “I…would-would you…like to be?”

Her smile warmed the cockles of his heart. “It bears some exploration.”

He chuckled, relieved at the warmth in her expression, the glint in her eye. “Please don’t say that word.”

“Which word?”

“Bear.” He shuddered. “I don’t want to hear that word ever again.”

“I’ll try to restrain myself.”

“I would like to…explore this, though.”

“As would I.” Her grin flowered, and he couldn’t help but kiss her. She continued grinning all the way through it.

“What?” he asked when he finally raised his head.

“I bet you never imagined it would end up like this when we met.”

He thought back to the first time he saw her, all tiny and elfin and dressed in everything she owned. He’d wanted her even then. “You were pretty cute.”

She smacked him. “You thought I was a stalker. A calendar groupie.”

“Aren’t you?”

“Only for one month,” she said with a wink. She set her palm to his cheek and went up on her toes to kiss him. “My Mr. December,” she murmured against his lips.

“Mmm,” he responded.

But then she went and added, “I don’t suppose you would pose like that for me…in private?” which set off a whole flurry of fantasies in his head.

“Maybe later,” he said. But not now.

Because the roar of a snowcat shook the cabin. The ranger was here.

And posing like that for her required privacy.

Lots of it.

Wade awoke alone in a cold bed, and frowned. Over the past two weeks, he’d come to enjoy Lyssa’s presence at his side…to need it maybe. Without Bo warming his feet, the cold seeped in.

The dog was enjoying himself—spoiled rotten—at the Waystation. They’d decided to keep him as he healed to make sure there were no lingering effects of his close encounter with the bear. He was coming home today.

Home
.

A silly word for a cabin that didn’t belong to him, a cabin he’d be leaving tomorrow.

But Lyssa was here, so it felt like home.

The past fourteen days had been magnificent. Just the two of them, together, exploring a seamless connection. They fit together perfectly. Physically. Intellectually. Spiritually. He felt whole with her. Healed.

Hence his disgruntlement to find her spot in the bed sadly lacking.

He tossed off the covers and padded into the kitchen. His nostrils twitched at the scent of freshly brewed coffee. Biby—hunched over a paper towel on the countertop, wolfing down the bacon Lyssa had made—paused to shoot him an offended glare.
How dare you catch me in the act of eating your bacon
, it said.

Wade snorted a laugh and poured himself a mug of coffee. Biby could snarf down all the bacon she wanted. They could always make more. There was plenty. He wandered into the living room like a waif, almost pouting when there was no sign of Lyssa there either.

Though he was barefoot and dressed in sweats and a T-shirt, he went out onto the porch to see if she was out there. Cupping his coffee, he scanned the clearing. A shaft of sunlight slanted through the denuded branches in the canopy, hitting the banks of snow with a glittering rainbow of color. Dancing diamonds. He stopped and stared, a smile curling his lips. It was beautiful. Everything was beautiful and….

She was beautiful.

His pulse kicked up as he spotted her in the distance, on the edge of the ravine, clutching a red shoebox. Her murmurs wafted toward him on the breeze. He had no idea what she was saying, but he knew what she was doing.

His heart swelled.

For her. For him.

She set down the box and gently untied the strings. Then she lifted it high and flung its contents over the edge, a dark snowfall—a release of grief.

Jax fluttered on the breeze, drifting in a gentle cloud, free.

Wade imagined he could hear his laugh. From what Lyssa had shared about him, Jax would have enjoyed leaping from the precipice.

When all the ashes had drifted down, she collected the shoebox and the string and trudged back toward the cabin, stopping in her tracks when she saw Wade. Their gazes met, clung. He smiled and opened his arms. “Everything okay?” he asked.

She cuddled into his embrace. “Yes. Everything is wonderful.” She went up on her tiptoes to kiss the underside of his chin. “How about you?”

He frowned as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and tugged her into the house. “Your cat ate all the bacon.”

Her laugh was a melody. “There’s more. I was sneaky and left a plate for you in the fridge.”

“I knew there was a reason I love you.”

She flushed and met his gaze.

She didn’t say it. It was far too soon, but he could see it in her eyes.
I love you, too
.

They had one more day together in this paradise, but that would not be the end. Not by a long shot. He’d found his perfect woman, and he was not letting her go.

When they left tomorrow, they would be leaving together.

“Your month is over soon,” she said as they made their way into the kitchen.

Wade tipped his head to the side. “What?”

“Your month of glory, Mr. December.”

He chuckled as he opened the fridge, pulled out his plate of bacon and set it on the table. “Great. I couldn’t be happier.”

“Didn’t you enjoy it?”

“I did, except for….”

She winked. “All the stalkers?”

“I did kinda like one of the stalkers.”

She smacked him on the shoulder. “You’re gonna pay for that, Masters.”

He didn’t bother holding back his grin. “Excellent.” He pulled her into his arms.

“So, do you think you’d do it again? If Leo asked you?”

“I couldn’t.”

“You couldn’t?” She tipped her head to the side.

“Wouldn’t be fair.”

“Wouldn’t be fair?”

He nodded sagely. “To all those women.”

She leaned back and studied him. “Why wouldn’t it be fair to all those women?”

“Because they would all want me….” Why she laughed, he had no clue. “And I’m not available.”

She stilled. “You’re not?”

“My heart is taken.”

When she caught his meaning, her expression warmed. Glowed. “You’re taken.” A whisper.

“I believe I am.”

“Yes,” she said. “You are.”

And when he bent his head to kiss her, to take her soft, sweet lips with his in a long, distracting delight…her cat stole his bacon.

Her Royal Hotness, Sabrina York, writes naked erotic fiction for fans who like it hot, hard and balls-to-the-wall, and erotic romance and fantasy for readers who prefer a slow burn to passion.

An award winning author of hot, humorous stories for smart and sexy readers, her titles range from sweet & sexy erotic romance to BDSM to erotic horror. Connect with her on twitter @sabrina_york, on
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