But he was too proud. And too ambitious. And he was drawn to her. And he didn’t want her hurt, either—at least, no more than she had already been hurt by those damn kidnappers.So he hadn’t spoken up. He hadn't insisted on another team member handling the job. And he hadn't taken a different assignment. And now he had left her to turn to her impetuous friend to find a way to escape him.The town vanished behind him. The dark highway lay ahead, growing darker as clouds crept across the face of the moon and obscured the thick wash of bright stars. He pressed the gas harder, adjusted the Bluetooth device in his ear and kept going. -------------------------------On the radio, a lonely cowboy begged his girl to come over. By then, Kimberly had it turned to full volume.Phoebe turned to her. "Can you cool it a little bit" she said. But she laughed too. Kimberly turned to her

His face remained carved in stone while his eyes burned with dark fury. He glared at her for a slow count of five and she became a little concerned that he would actually touch her, that he would manacle her arm with that big hand of his and drag her bodily from the premises. Sparks chased themselves beneath her skin at the very idea.But he had iron control obviously, because in the end, he only turned sharply on his heel and went where she’d told him to go.------------------------Asher watched her.It was all he was allowed to do, all she had permitted him to do.Watch.As she danced with another cowboy. And another after that. Frustration built. He wanted to grab her and throw her over his shoulder and carry her out of there bodily. But he could never do any such thing. She was his boss daughter and he was there to protect her. And that meant, when it came right down to his wil

“No.” She said. She spoke softly. Without animosity, but with what seemed to him a deep and infinite sadness. “Please. Can we just go to the apartment? I couldn’t bear to go back in there now.”He considered suggesting that they take rooms at the motel behind the roadhouse to wait out the storm. But she was in no condition to spend the night in some cheap motor lodge.He stared at her. “You’re certain you want to risk the highway in this weather?” he asked one more time.She nodded, still staring straight ahead. “Please. Let’s just go.” She said. So off they went.--------------------------The snow came down harder. And the wind blew the thick whiteness horizontally, straight at the windshield. He drove slowly, with care.But it was bad and getting worse. Almost immediately, visibility went from poor to practically nothing. He started thinking about suggestin

He considered. “Fair enough." he said. "Then I will decide. And I think it’s best if I try to get up to the road, at least. I’ll set some flares.” He held them up. “And I’ll see if that brown pickup is anywhere nearby—and if it is, I’ll see if there’s anything I can do for the driver.”She knew he was right in what he planned to do, even though she longed to beg him not to do it. “You won’t go far?” she said, not understanding where this sudden care for him was coming from. “No."he replied." I won't. My main responsibility is you, to keep you safe and well. You’re the priority.”She was so grateful to hear him say that—at the same time as she felt deeply ashamed to have gotten them into this awful situation. She had behaved badly on any number of levels and her evening of adventure had somehow gotten completely out of control. She sent a little prayer to heaven that God would be merciful and protect the

Kimberly dropped the second boot to the floor and wished the man sitting there in the dark beside her could be a bit open minded and that they could get along for once after this. She realized that as annoying as he could be, he was a good man. But she couldn't kid herself for too long. She wondered if he was really being this way because he cared, or because he was doing his job.  Whichever one is was, she was grateful to him. Grateful that he was with her.  “Come here,” Asher said. “You’re shivering again.” With a sigh, Kimberly turned and positioned herself between his hard thighs. They arranged the blankets into a nest to shelter them. She wrapped one of them around her feet and legs as he’d instructed. The others he drew around him and thus around them both, with the thermal tarp on top as he settled back against the door.The tarp was big eno