"Oh God." Chest tight, I barely released a breath as I glanced behind me to find a light pole coming through the trunk.

"And this would be how I die." I laughed hysterically. "Tragic death by murderous lumberjack and a light post." I could see the headlines now.

There was a tap on the window, and I screamed louder. Then laid on the horn, thinking someone would come running. But then again, nobody was home. Kenna was gone, and her brother and sister-in-law and their kids were off skiing for a few days at some resort.

The door wrenched open, and the dark shadow of a man growled. Out of self-preservation, I curled into a ball and screamed.

"Shouldn't have l-listened to my sister. Should've d-done my own thing."

I stopped screaming and sat up, knees colliding with the air bag.

"Collin?"

He lifted his baseball cap off his face. The whiskers on his chin were frosty, his cheeks red.

"Oh my God, what are you doing here?" Unthinking, I jumped from the car and wrapped my arms around his waist. He wore a thin jacket and what felt like a long-sleeved shirt beneath, but most of his body felt like a human Popsicle.

"Y-you've had enough s-space, sweetheart." My eyes widened as I pulled back and took him in from head to toe. He was shaking, stuttering, and his lips were blue.

"Where are your boots?" His feet were bare. "Oh my God, where's your car?" I took off my robe and wrapped it around his shoulders.

"D-don't n-need this." He tried to shove it off, but I pushed his hands away and held it there, urging him back toward the cabin.

"Don't be a stubborn ass. You're frozen and hardly dressed right for this weather."

"S-says the g-girl in a r-robe."

I rolled my eyes. "Least I'm wearing long underwear underneath."

"S-sexy." He smiled, just enough to show me his dimples. I shivered in response.

The dimples: always my weakness.

"Come on, Casanova. Let's get you stripped down by the fire."

"Y-you gonna s-strip too?"

Just inside the door, I turned to glare at him, but before I could think of a smart-ass remark that didn't lead to me doing just what he'd asked, Collin's knees buckled and he fell to the floor.

"Collin!" I fell down beside him, cradling his head in my lap. "I need to call an ambulance."

He scrunched up his nose, shooing me away with a weak hand. I caught it and immediately started blowing hot air on the skin. It was so cold-ice-cube cold.

He winced but still managed a small grin. "L-like you t-taking care of m-me."

Tears burned my eyes again, but I kept blowing on his freezing skin, moving one of my hands to rub the wet hair off his forehead.

"Can you just stop with the sweet talk and tell me what happened?"

He rolled so his face was inches from my waist. If this were any other time, I'd have questioned his tactics, but I knew from how much he was still shaking that this was survival of the fittest.

"Rental car got stuck down the hill. W-walked."

"How the hell did McKenna not see you?"

"T-took a wrong turn. M-made m-my way through the w-woods."

I yanked my robe and jacket off his shoulders, trying to get him to move. But he didn't. "I've got to get you closer to the fire, Collin. There's a bad draft by the door and-"

"No." He sighed, pulling his hands away to press them under the waistline of my shirt. I hissed at the contact, but if this was the only way to get him warm, then I'd deal with it.

"Fine, you stubborn ass." I leaned my head back against the wall next to the door. Nodding once, he stayed silent. And within seconds his breathing evened out and his eyes shut.

Okay then. Guess I'd be sleeping on the floor tonight.

Chapter 40.

Collin If this was a dream, I never wanted to wake up. Addie's scent was all around me, her hands tangled up in my hair. I rubbed my fingers over her soft skin, her curvy waist, her hip.

But then I heard the sound of her moan and felt the vibration against my skin. So I opened my eyes, looked up, and found her holding me in her arms like I'd imagined, face lax in sleep.

"No dream," I whispered, reaching up to rub my finger over her nose, her forehead, her eyebrow and cheek...

Damn, did I miss her.

Her eyes fluttered open and met mine. "Hi."

It was one word, but I felt it everywhere.

"Hey." My voice cracked, but at least I wasn't stuttering. Stupidest thing I'd ever done was take the advice of my sister and McKenna. Women thought they knew romance, but what they didn't know was that their version damn near froze me to death.

"You okay?" She moved to sit up and away from the wall.

"Perfect now."

"You're here." A line between her eyebrows surfaced and I reached up again, running my finger down the middle of it. Hated seeing it there. Meant she was worried.

I'd scared her.

"Wouldn't be anywhere else." Slowly and steadily, I sat up, moving to sit by her side.

Reaching out, she grabbed my hand and pulled it to her lap. "Not that I'm complaining, but why are you here?"

I shut my eyes and leaned closer, pressing my forehead to hers. "Want the long story or short?"

"Short."

Only thing I needed now was to touch her. So I did. And as I told her my story, I trailed my hand along her chin and cheek, writing the words I love you over the surface.

"About lost my shit without you." I pulled back and found her cheeks red, her eyes sparkling too. "Was on my way to the airport the same day I dropped you off." I cleared my throat, wanting to laugh at myself for being so stupid. "Luckily Gav and Max talked me down off my ledge. Lia too."

Addie sighed and looked at the floor, almost like she was disappointed. But that couldn't be right.

"Realized what a paranoid dick I'd been the week before Christmas. So I figured the least I could do was give you what you'd asked for."

"And what was that?" She met my eyes again, testing me.

"You needed space."

"And you gave it to me." She squeezed my fingers tight.

"I did. Damn hard too, because it's not what I do. Second you got on that plane, I was at the desk, begging some poor girl who looked no older than a kid to make the plane stop. Had security called on me and everything."

"Oh, Collin."

"Told you I can't help myself when it comes to you. But now?" I sucked in a breath. "I'm damn scared to love you the way I wanna love you, mostly 'cause I'm afraid I'll wind up pushing you away."

"I called you." She cupped my cheek, changing the subject. "The second I got to this bungalow, I picked up my phone and dialed your number. You didn't answer, so I thought maybe it was the service or something. But then you texted me right back a minute later saying you were too busy to talk."

"Addison rehab. I was going through it."

She snorted. "I didn't know there was such a thing."

I leaned back and held my hand against the side of her throat. I watched as she melted into my touch, and the way her head tilted to get closer to me was everything I needed right now. "Gav told me I needed to take things down a notch when it came to you and me."

"You? Take things down a notch?" she scoffed and wrapped her arm around my waist. My hand went around hers in turn, and she laid her head on my chest, right where it belonged. "I didn't fall in a love with a man who takes things lightly, Collin. I fell in love with you. Broody, gloomy, overbearing Number Six."

She poked my stomach and I grunted. Didn't bother to push her away-liked any kind of touch she offered. But I did grab her wrist, pulling her hand to my mouth when she was done. I kissed her palm and asked, "What's with the Number Six thing?"

One half of her mouth moved up into a slow, sexy grin. "That night we met, your jersey said number six. I watched you in the middle of the dance floor."

My eyebrows rose. "Did you?"

"Yeah, I couldn't see your face. But I could see your hands wrapped around that girl's thighs." She sighed. "All I could think about was how big they were. Massive even."

"My hands?"

She nodded, touching my chest. "Yep. Then you held me against that table and, well...you know what happened next."

I kissed her forehead and shut my eyes, remembering what I'd thought when I first saw her sitting alone. Quiet, approachable, someone to practice talking to, someone to just...be with, if only for a few minutes while I waited for Gavin to go to the bathroom. Didn't expect her to be beautiful though. And I sure as hell didn't expect her to be the other half of my heart.

"Hate to break it to you, but six isn't my normal number."

She gasped and lifted her head. "I feel like I've been living a lie."

It was my turn to laugh. "Not sure things would've ended the same had you seen what my real jersey looked like that day."

"Oh?"

I shrugged. "Pink and green are not nearly as hot. Max messed up the laundry that morning."

As she laid her head back down on my chest, the silence grabbed the air between us again. My eyes were heavy, but my heart was happy.

"I'm sorry, Addie," I finally said.

She tightened her hand around the bottom of my shirt, staying quiet, listening.

"I'm sorry for not being smarter. For being a jackass. For making a scene at that restaurant. For not calling you back." I ran my fingers through her hair. "And I'm also sorry for not believing you when you said you wouldn't leave us."

"Don't be sorry." She propped her chin on my shoulder and rubbed her knuckles over my cheek.

The smell of wine and vanilla meshed in the air, making my stomach go tight with need. Every delicious inch of this woman was mine, and I'd never mess that up. Ever.

"And don't you dare stop being you either. Whether you realize it or not, I love your crazy need to be in control. I love your grumpy moods sometimes too. What I really, really love is being the one to test your control and pull you out of those moods." She moved her leg over both of mine until she was straddling my waist. Chest to chest, she looked down at me in a way I'd never get tired of.

Like she wanted me.

Like she needed me as much as I needed her.

Other than grabbing her hips, I held still as she kissed my chin, then my cheek, finishing up with the tip of my nose.

"But...could you possibly fill me in on why you had to come all the way to Maine to tell me this when you could've told me before I left or even waited until I got home?" She bit down on her bottom lip, her hair shadowing our faces. "Not that I'm complaining or anything, because I am very happy you're here."

I scowled. "Lia made me do it."

Her eyebrows shot up, and a laugh popped out of her mouth. "For real?"

"Yep. But I'm not sure if losing my shoes in a snowdrift was part of the plan."

A hiss pushed through Addie's lips. "I'm sure she had good intentions if she told you to do what she did. My guess is she had no idea what you were getting yourself into. Plus, had I known you were coming, I would've come and gotten you at the airport."

"And ruin the romance?" I faked a gasp. "Never."

"The box!" Addie shot up onto her feet, almost like she could read my thoughts. She dug through the robe on the floor beside us, her smile shy as she straddled my thighs again.

My hands went straight to her ass, pulling her closer, which earned me a scowl-a sexy-as-hell scowl, but a scowl all the same. There were some things I'd never stop doing, and one of them was making her know she was mine.

"Want me to open it now?" she asked, messing with the red ribbon I'd wrapped around the box.

I nodded and sat up straighter, bringing her with me.