Snowed In For Christmas: A Fun Feel-Good Holiday Romance Novel - Kimberly Krey Page 0,9

lashes glistened with moisture. The sight pulled at Easton’s heart in ways he didn’t want to think about.

“Yes, I…get that. That makes sense.”

She let out a shaky breath. “Good. So all we need to do is get your interview done. I can shoot this one on my phone, the producer will totally understand, and then I need to get back to the SUV so I can hurry and get to the airport.”

Was she insane? “I hate to be the one to break this to you, especially because it seems pretty freaking obvious, but there is no way you’re making it back in time for your little party. So I suggest you make yourself comfortable, let me get a fire going, and—”

“I’m not staying the night with you,” she blurted.

Easton winced. He deserved that remark after his little warning over the phone last week. “Fine,” he said. “You can stay in your own yurt. Or you can sleep out in the snow with the wolves for all I care.” He pointed toward the road they’d just come from. “What you can’t do is get back in a vehicle and try to drive in that storm.”

She had no idea how close to death they might have been had Easton not known that road with all of its narrow turns and steep cliffs. “Trust me when I say it’s a very good thing you hadn’t gotten any further than you did. You’d have hurled that SUV right off the cliff in the miles ahead.”

Ivy turned away from him, still hugging herself against the chill. Her teeth were chattering, and her body shivered so much it made her breath hitch. Too bad he’d extinguished the fire in the last yurt to inspect the next. But this had been the plan all along. Spend a night in each to ensure they were all up to standard operation. No leaks, drafts, or dangers. A clear shield covered the yurt’s rectangular skylight overhead, sending a uniquely white glow of light to the space.

It must be what made her skin glow as if she were some sort of angel. More like a devil in disguise, he mused. What else could he call a woman who seemed hell bent on putting his life at risk?

“It’s just that…” she sputtered. “My family…it’s not…” She shook her head and let the sentence drift off.

Was it just him or did she seem to be disoriented? His heart skipped out of beat. Perhaps she was nearing stages of hypothermia. “Please,” he said, “take a seat and let me get a fire started. We can talk more once you get warmed up.”

Ivy nodded, jutted a look over her shoulder, and then shuffled her way toward the bench against the wall. At last, she plopped onto the wooden surface.

A massive, and rather inexplicable, wave of relief pooled over him as he watched her settle into place. There. Now he could make sure she was safe.

A sheepskin wrap hung on the hook at her side. A much larger bearskin rug hung beside it. Easton walked toward her, reached for the smaller of the two, figuring the bearskin would be too heavy for her to hold over her shoulders, and quickly wrapped it against his back.

Ivy glanced up at him, curious at first, but then her eyes narrowed into a sharp glare. “How chivalrous,” she spat.

Easton rolled his eyes. “I’m warming it up for you,” he assured her.

Her face softened then, and she shrugged with one shoulder. “Oh. You think you’re so much hotter than me, do you?” She must have realized how that sounded because a laugh snuck up her throat.

Easton couldn’t help but chuckle at the remark as well. “I’m definitely not hotter than you, Ivy,” he assured. “But I am warmer than you.” He wasn’t sure how he’d meant the comment to come off. Was his objective to act like a jerk unnecessary now? She’d made it sound like the interview was due that night. And as much as he could send and receive texts, especially when he got closer to the office, there’d be no possible way for her to send large files from their current location.

Besides, he was used to caring for and protecting his little sister. He’d done it his whole life. No harm in treating his female company with some old fashioned hospitality. With that, Easton tipped his chin down, allowing the top edge of the sheepskin to come in contact with the bare skin along the back of his