Ablaze: Erotic Romance Read Free Page A

now, okay?” I shook his shoulder and he lifted his
head slightly.
    “ Good, no more falling
asleep on me,” I said as I checked on the tea on the stove. It
would still be a couple of minutes before it would be hot enough to
warm him up. I turned back to examine him again and I realized that
his boots were soaking wet from the snow. I bent down on the floor
and began untying them as his eyes fluttered open.
    “ What are you doing?” he
asked groggily.
    “ Taking your boots off.
Luke, you’re in trouble. We’ve got to get you warmed
up.”
    I removed both of his shoes just as the
teakettle started to whistle. Grabbing a mug, I filled it, putting
a black tea bag inside. I allowed it a moment to cool down and
steep while looking over my shoulder and assessing Luke. He was my
responsibility now and in this storm it was just the two of us.
However, as I watched him carefully over my shoulder for a moment
it crossed my mind that if I was going to be stuck here, Luke was
the person I wanted to be stuck with.
    Luke drank the tea slowly, regaining full
consciousness as he did so. He shook his head as he watched me
sitting in the chair next to him, anxiously awaiting his
recovery.
    “ I’m not usually this dumb.
This certainly isn’t my first rodeo. I don’t know what I was
thinking. Thank you, for everything.”
    “ What are you talking
about?” I squinted my eyes at him, trying to decide if he was back
with me or if he was still in a daze.
    He bit his lower lip before meeting my eyes,
I could see something was plaguing his mind. “I got lost in woods
once before. Actually, I was hiking and I wasn’t lost until a
mountain lion dragged me back to her den. When I woke up I had no
idea where I was.”
    “ You were attacked by a
mountain lion? Oh my God! How did you survive?” I had read about
people in the newspapers dying from lion attacks. We were
encroaching on their territory and there had been a number of
attacks in the past few years.
    He shrugged. “I’d like to say I knew my
stuff, but really it was just dumb luck. The mountain lion got
scared off by something before she decided to make me dinner. I
crawled out of the den and ran the best I could to safety. That’s
actually how I ended up on your ranch. Fred found me, and Linda
took care of me. Then they offered me a job. Getting attacked by
that lion was the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” He took
another slow sip of tea.
     
    “ Wow, I had no
idea.”
    “ Well you wouldn’t, would
you? You don’t really ask many questions of the staff.” He eyed me
carefully, trying to determine my reaction. “I mean … not that you
should, it’s not like we’re friends or anything.”
    “ That’s not true, I do care
about my staff. But you’re right, I’ve been raised to not ask
questions. I just assumed you were hired for your skills. As all
the other ranch hands are.”
    He raised his chin up. “I do have skills.
I’m an expert rider, your father is going to even let me train some
of the yearlings this spring. I’m not totally useless.”
    “ I never said that you
were. Someone of your stature couldn’t be useless.” I blushed as I
realized what I had said. I tried to backtrack, “And the calluses
on your hands, they show hard labor.”
    “ You’ve been looking at my
hands?” He grinned slyly.
    Dammit. Totally caught.
    “ Whatever,” I said, rising
from my chair. “Clearly you’re feeling better. Maybe you should
take a shower and totally warm up. The bathroom’s just through
there.” I pointed at the back of the cabin.
    He nodded and stood up,
slowly crossing the room. I noticed as he entered the bathroom he
forgot to completely close the door. But
could I dare to sneak a peek? No. Even
though Collin was being a complete asshole, he was still who I
wanted to be with. I wouldn’t risk that for a weekend fling with
one of my ranch hands. Totally not worth it.
    However, as I passed by the open door to sit
on the sofa it was hard not