Snowbound Read Free Page A

her room. At least she left
a cushion between them. Damn, didn’t the girl have any common
sense? She was alone with a man she didn’t know, and he could take
advantage of her without her consent, if he was a different sort.
Hell, didn’t her daddy have any common sense? Who sent their
teenage daughter to a strange man’s home alone? Without thought, he
voiced his opinion. “What kind of stupid is your father that he
just lets you travel alone and sends you wherever without a proper
escort?”
    She cocked her head, looking both amused and
angry. “He didn’t let me travel anywhere. I’m an adult, and I
booked my ticket. I’d planned to stay in Fairbanks and just meet up
with him for a few days in Edgeline.”
    “Endline,” he interrupted.
    She waved a hand. “Yeah, whatever. Except I
didn’t realize the distance, or the difficulty with traveling. I
thought I’d surprise him, but it ended up being an inconvenience.”
Beth shrugged. “Same as always, I guess.”
    “Still, his solution was to send his little
girl on ahead to stay alone with a strange man?” He shook his head.
“Ain’t no way in hell my daughter would do such a foolish thing. I
could be all kinds of pervert, girl.”
    She did grin then. “Really? What kinds are
you?”
    That wasn’t the response he’d expected, and
he was disconcerted to have his cheeks warming. “That’s not the
point. I’m just surprised by how lax y’all are with safety.”
    Beth’s lips twitched. “I guess Daddy figured
you’d be a professional, since you have a bazillion good references
from previous guests.” She shrugged. “Or maybe he didn’t think at
all. I’m not high on his list of priorities.”
    His frown deepened. “Then he needs to reorder
his priorities.” At her careless shrug, his irritation softened,
and he warred with the urge to pick up her hand and offer comfort.
Only the knowledge that innocent comfort could lead to carnal
actions kept his hand firmly on his own leg. “What about you? Don’t
you have more regard for your safety?”
    “I can take care of myself.”
    She spoke with such conviction that he
couldn’t help scoffing, though it probably insulted her. “Look,
girl—”
    “Beth,” she put in.
    “Beth,” he repeated with gritted teeth. “You
couldn’t take on a wet kitten and win.”
    She cocked a brow. “Challenge accepted.”
    “Huh?” He frowned. “I don’t actually have a
wet kitten, you know,” he said drily after a moment.
    Beth’s obstinate expression hardened further.
“Get up.”
    “What?”
    She got to her feet, moving lightly. “Come
on. Get off your ass and come at me, Mr. All Kinds of Perv.”
    Feeling amused, and a tad indulgent, he stood
up. He wasn’t going to hurt her none, but a little lesson wouldn’t
be a bad idea. Ms. Wyndam needed to know she wasn’t as tough as she
thought, before she was actually in a situation that led her to act
with foolish overconfidence. “All right, little girl. I’m gonna
school you.”
    She didn’t reply, just poising on the balls
of her feet as she waited for him to make a move. Something about
her stance annoyed him, and he found himself taking it more
seriously than he’d intended. His first plan had been a direct
assault, but he found himself drawing on the training he’d learned
in the Army. He came at her to the right, before switching to the
left at the last minute.
    He’d expected to end up with her struggling
in his arms, so the knee she rammed into his stomach was a shock.
Reed let out a harsh breath and dropped to his knees from a
combination of pain and surprise. In two seconds, that little
hellcat kicked his shoulder, sending him reeling backward. She
landed on his chest with enough force to make him exhale loudly,
and her fingers hesitated within millimeters of his eyes. “Now,
this is the point where I’d blind you, or rip your balls off…” She
patted his thigh just an inch below his package. “If you were
really trying to hurt