The tingling in her extremities slowly faded. The tingling in her core refused to go away.

“How do you like running the shop?” His deep growly voice tickled her ears at the same time he wiggled just enough to scrape his whiskered chin over her shoulder. She hoped the lingering chill in the air would stand as a good enough excuse for the goose bumps that rose in response.

“Stitching Post?” Hope shrugged, then froze as that motion slid their skin together too intimately. “It’s amazing. Although, there are moments, like when I’ve got more work to do than seems humanly possible, I wonder why in the world I thought being a business owner was a good idea.”

Matt chuckled. “The chores can seem unending, can’t they?”

“Like ninety five percent of the time?”

“At least you don’t have to muck shit.”

A laugh escaped her and she manoeuvred carefully to the bottom of the giant tub, slipping between his knees as she dipped her hands in the water one last time. “There is that. You’re right. If we want to play ‘who has the dirtiest tasks’, I’m pretty sure the ranch wins. But mindless? Matt, you need to try restocking the thread bins sometime.”

He sat straighter, his wet shirt clinging to the ridges of the six-pack muscles covering his abdomen. Oh dear. Hope dragged her gaze away.

“Those little white spool things? They got numbers on them, right?”

“Yeah, only they slip out of the rack on a spring-loaded system, which makes it oh-so-fun for the kids who get away from their moms to stand and one after another make them go ping ping ping across the room. One day I swear I reloaded that thing four times before I caught the little vermin and tied them down.”

Matt was laughing as she stood and reached for the towel. The timbre of the sound changed then cut off. She steadily ignored him, stepping onto the bathmat to catch the drips.

Yeah, she had enough body to catch anyone’s attention. She wasn’t unaware of it. Only she wasn’t trying to make this any harder for him than it already was.

The sheer dirtiness of her thought patterns made her want to snort. Poor baby. Hard?

“You warm already?” Matt crossed his hands over his lap casually, pulling his knees up to hide what must be another erection. Although she didn’t think he’d really lost the first one.

“Warm enough to go…”

The power was still out. What in the world was she leaving to go do?

Matt smirked. “I think you need to reconsider your options, friend. You were pretty chilled. The apartment isn’t getting any warmer.”

“So we’re going to sit in the tub all night?”

“Until we’re wrinkled like prunes.”

She shivered, and his expression changed, this time from lighthearted to deep concern.

Not even that was enough to stop her from getting out of temptation’s reach. “Now don’t look like that. I’m okay. Let me get a bunch of layers on, and I’ll be fine. You stay in the tub for a bit then we can talk about what happens next.”

It was the best idea—he couldn’t argue with her logic. When he nodded, she picked up one of the candles and used it to reach her bedroom.

Fifteen minutes later she had a flashlight to illuminate her way. Long johns, two layers of socks, a thick long-sleeve sweater and a quilted hoodie she’d made completed the outfit. She’d also dug up a few things for Matt, although she wasn’t sure how happy he’d be to receive them.

She tapped on the bathroom door. “Knock, knock. Is it safe to enter, your majesty?”

“My kingdom consists of six feet of water, two feet deep. One knock will suffice.”

Hope laughed and opened the door, her amusement dying away as she took him in. Candlelight glowed over Matt’s naked skin—he’d taken off his wet T-shirt, and all those ridges she’d felt under her before were now out in public. It wasn’t clear right off if he’d also removed the boxers. She wasn’t sure she could handle knowing.

Sweet mercy, what evil thing had she done to be tormented like this?

Ignoring him completely—ha!—Hope strode to the sink and plopped down the pile of clothing. She clicked on the spare flashlight and set it on the counter as well.

“I found some things that should fit you. If you’re warm enough, I thought you could get dressed. You could be home pretty quick.” She turned and looked him in the eye. “I have tons of quilts. I won’t freeze. And if you’re worried about the roads, you’re welcome to stay as well.”

Matt returned her gaze steadily. “I’m not worried about the roads, but if we went to my folks’ place, there’s a fireplace…”

“I’m sure the power will be back on soon. You hungry?”

He had to realize she was deliberately changing the topic. She was damn stubborn when she needed to be. She was not leaving her place and that was final.

Matt nodded. “A sandwich would be good.”

Then he moved to stand and she fled the room as casually as she could. Because there was no way, even with talk of being friends and all that nonsense, that she could watch his beautiful body any longer without giving in to the desire to drag her fingers over him. To follow her fingers with her tongue.

Yeah, friends. What had seemed like a simply marvelous idea at the time simply sucked.


She’d brought him his own clothes. A pair of sweats. A T-shirt. Thick sweatshirt. The only thing that didn’t belong to him were the socks, and those looked hand-knit.

Matt dragged the towel over his skin harder than needed to dry himself. It was useless though. Scrubbing away the pain of the past was impossible.

Another sign of his fucked-up relationship—he tugged on the sweats. A pair that he’d left at Helen’s one day. The T-shirt? One she’d said was her favourite. He could picture her pulling it on her naked body after they’d made love. Could imagine he still smelt her scent on the fabric, and a knife drove through him hard enough to kill the lingering sexual frustration that had built over the past hour.

Matt sat on the edge of the tub and wrestled with the demons in his soul. Helen hadn’t only left him, she’d cheated on him first. Called him and his choices stupid and shitty. Blaming her words on the alcohol she’d consumed over New Year’s Eve could only excuse so much. Drunk as a skunk, what she’d really been thinking and feeling had exploded out. Even her apology later that week before she left town for good had been no kind of an apology. More of a rationalization on her part, as if he had to agree that the big city had more to offer.

The fact Helen had the guts to beg him to join her—to abandon his family and simply up and leave—the memory of that scene cut off any sympathy he might have had for her.

He pulled on the T-shirt. It was just a chunk of material. The sweatshirt would keep him warm. They had nothing to do with any past memories.

If he kept pretending, maybe that would make it true.

He didn’t bother to look in the mirror, because he knew his expression was dark and angry. Matt blew out the candles one after another, trying to blow away his frustrations at the same time. Because out in the living area was a different woman than the one who had hurt him so badly. Hope wasn’t responsible for her sister’s offenses.

The knit socks cradled his feet on the hardwood floor, like furry caterpillars cocooned around him. He found Hope in the kitchen, the diffuse flashlights making her eyes darker as she handed over a plate and nodded toward the living room. “I’m having a bite then heading to bed. If you want to stay, you’re welcome to.”

Matt accepted the food and followed her into the living room. She plopped on the floor in front of him, dragged a quilt around her shoulders and basically all but vanished from sight. The only things still visible were her hands as she took up her sandwich and brought it under the hanging edge of the quilt draped over her head.

He sat on the couch and tossed the jean quilt behind him over his lap. It was cold in the room, but not cold enough he needed to hide. “You do have enough quilts to outfit all of Rocky.”

Her smile peeked out from under the covering. “I will never freeze. The apartment pipes may burst, but a woman who can sew will never go cold.”

The sandwiches slid down easily. Hope had turned on her iPod, plugging it into a speaker system. Music filled the quiet around them.

“Batteries?”

The pile of fabric nodded. “Lasts a few hours at least. I like being able to take my own music with me wherever I go. I’ve got another speaker set up in the shop, although the play list is more applicable to the average customer’s tastes. This…” she nodded at the player, “…this is my shit.”

It was louder and raunchier than what Matt usually listened to. “That’s not country.”

A laugh burst out. “Damn right it’s not.”

“That’s almost sacrilegious, isn’t it?” Matt finished the final bite of his sandwich and followed it down with the pickle she’d popped on the plate.

“I enjoy country in moderation. Get to listen to it in all the grocery stores and everywhere else in town. So when I’m on my own, I balance it with other flavours.”

She leaned over to hit the forward button, and the quilts fell away, the combination of the long line of her neck and her bright smile warming him inside more than it should.

The music changed, and this time it was his turn to laugh. “Is that an accordion?”

“Yeah, I’ve got eclectic tastes. Keeps things interesting.”

She yawned then rubbed her hands together briskly. “Sorry for abandoning you after you saved my butt and all, but I’m exhausted. You planning on staying or heading home?”