Chapter Four

Tanner watched her sleep, unwilling to leave her side since he’d arrived at the emergency room with her in his arms. He’d only stepped out long enough for the medical staff to remove her wet clothes and get her into a gown and under some heated blankets, then he pulled up a chair and made himself comfortable to keep watch over her.

At one point, she’d opened her mesmerizing emerald eyes long enough to pierce his soul with their beauty.

“Thank you,” she’d whispered before she slipped into sleep again.

She looks so familiar to me, but I just can’t place where I’ve seen her before, Tanner told himself again as he gazed at her shiny, coal-black hair, creamy skin, and high cheekbones. She’s gorgeous, I know that much.

She sighed, then moaned softly, and Tanner immediately was overwhelmed with visions of her in his bed, making those same sweet sounds as he kissed and caressed and claimed her as his own.

He flushed beet red.

***

Mia found herself in the middle of the strangest dream.

She was being carried by Tanner Greysen of all people, the boy she’d been in love with since she was a child. In the dream he cradled her close to his chest and whispered words of comfort, then laid her down gently on a bed and began to remove her clothing. She reached up to run her hands through his hair and sighed when his lips met hers, tasting, exploring.

But the gentle caresses turned to tiny daggers just under her skin, and she moaned. Tanner’s face retreated into nothingness.

Her eyes fluttered open, and she blinked rapidly, confused.

“Hello, young lady,” a kind, older man said gently, and she turned her head to the right toward him.

“Where am I?”

“St. Claire’s emergency department,” he told her. “You were out in the storm. It’s lucky someone found you, young lady. This is the worst winter storm we’ve had around these parts in a long while.”

She looked down and frowned when she noticed she was on a gurney and wearing a hospital gown. “How did I get here? And where are my clothes?”

“The tow truck driver who found you brought you in. And you were soaked to the bone. We had to get you out of those wet clothes and get you warmed up again. How are you feeling?”

As the feeling in her hands and feet returned, the sensation of a million sharp needles made Mia moan with pain again.

“My hands and feet really hurt,” she admitted with a grimace. “Like someone’s stabbing them.”

“I know it’s painful, but it shouldn’t last long,” he informed her. “You had mild hypothermia. The tingling you’re feeling is normal and it’s actually a good sign. That means we’re doing the right things to get your body temperature back where it should be.”

“I need to call my mom and let her know where I am,” Mia said. “She’s probably worried sick. I …”

Her voice trailed off as she glanced to her left and saw who was sitting there.

“Hey there. You’re looking better,” the man who had starred in every fantasy she’d ever had said gently.

“How… how did you know I was here?”

“I brought you here,” he answered, and looked confused.

Oh, my God. It’s Tanner. Blake’s best friend since the fifth grade.

And he doesn’t recognize me.

Be cool, Mia. Be cool!

She managed to collect herself enough to smile and say, “You don’t recognize me, do you, Tanner?”

“No. Should I? How do you know my name?” Tanner said, tilting his head to one side as he narrowed his eyes and scrutinized her face.

Mia saw the exact moment the light bulb went off for him.

“Oh, dear God. You’re Mia,” he breathed, and flushed deep red. “Blake’s kid sister.”

“Got it in one,” she said.

“You… you look so different,” he stammered.

“Yeah, well, growing up tends to do that,” she teased, and lifted an eyebrow at his expression.

What is he blushing about?

***

You’ve got to be kidding me, Tanner thought to himself. This perfect woman, that I’m overwhelmingly attracted to, turns out to be my best friend’s kid sister. Which means she’s off limits.

Right?

“Tanner? You okay?” she asked, and he shook his head to clear it.

“Yeah, I’m fine, Mia. It’s been a long time, huh?”

She smiled and nodded. “Ten years, to be exact. I haven’t seen you since you and Blake graduated high school and you left town.”

He smiled back even as he thought yeah, back when I was eighteen and you were ten, and all knees and elbows and annoying as hell. When did you get so hot?

“Yeah,” he said again, raking one hand through his dark brown hair. “Went straight into the Marine Corps.”

A silence fell for a moment, and Mia turned her attention back to the doctor.

“When can I get out of here?”

“I don’t see a problem with turning you loose in a couple of hours,” came the reply.

Mia scowled. “I need to get my suitcase out of my car.”

“Is your car the one on the exit ramp?” Tanner asked her.

She shrugged. “Didn’t have a choice of where I parked, Tanner. Gracie up and died on me. I was lucky I even made it to the exit.”

She named her car Gracie? That’s… adorable, some mushy part of his brain chimed in.

He cleared his throat.

“I’ll go get it and tow it to the shop, then come back and get you.”

“Thanks. I need to call my mom and let her know where I am and to come get me.”

Tanner shook his head. “They’ve closed the highway, Mia. Too much ice. Tell you what. I’ll call your parents and let them know where you are, and that you’re staying with me until the roads reopen. In the meantime, I can take a look at your car, see what I can do to fix it. All right?”

“But… but… Blake’s flight is coming in tomorrow,” she protested. “It’s the first Christmas in four years that he actually gets to come home and be with us.”

“Honey,” Tanner said, “they shut down all flights into and out of DFW Airport about an hour ago. I don’t think they’ll be resuming operations before this storm passes on through.”

“And when will that be?”