Touch by Touch (Riggins Brothers #4) - Kaylee Ryan Page 0,7
acting just like her. I don’t want the music to be a distraction. I need to stay focused on the road. I also keep my eyes peeled for Aspen’s SUV. I’m not sure what time she was leaving. I hope she missed this or at least caught the tail end of it before arriving at the cabin.
“Maybe I should call her,” I say to myself as I go to reach for my phone. My car spins, and in my haste to put both hands back on the wheel, I drop my phone. Thankfully, I have Bluetooth. I hit the button on my steering wheel, and it pops up on my screen that there’s no phone connected. Damn it. My phone battery has been draining quickly, and I’ve been turning off my Bluetooth to save battery life. I didn’t even realize it wasn’t connected when I started out earlier.
The snow is falling so hard I can hardly see the road, and I’m worried that if I pull off, I won’t be getting back on the interstate. The GPS on the dash says I’m about thirty minutes away from the cabin. I can’t really tell from this whiteout I’m driving through. I just hope Aspen is there and she’s safe.
Thirty minutes turns into an hour, but I’m finally pulling into the driveway of my family’s cabin. Aspen’s silver SUV is parked in the drive. Her window is covered in snow, and there are no tire tracks, which tells me that she’s been here for a while. I feel my shoulders ease from the knowledge and the fact that my drive is over. We are definitely hunkering down for the evening.
Pulling the hood of my sweatshirt up to ward off the cold, I climb out and feel around on the floorboard for my cell phone. I find it wedged up under the seat. Slamming the door, I start to head to the front porch when I remember Mom saying she packed extra snacks. I don’t know how prepared Aspen is, but we’re definitely not going back out in this mess tonight. Retracing my steps, I grab my suitcase, as well as my laptop bag. I’ll have to make a second trip for the cooler. It’s just one suitcase, but this cooler is a full-size cooler, and it’s heavy as hell. It’s hard to tell what Mom has sent with me. One thing’s for sure; I know it’s going to be good, and I’m starving. The small bag of snacks she sent disappeared an hour into the trip.
Arms loaded down, I make my way up the steps of the porch and manage to open the door without setting anything down. My feet haven’t even passed the threshold when a blood-curdling scream pierces my ears. I stand frozen, letting the cold air and snow seep into the heated cabin. My legs are frozen in place, but it has nothing to do with the cold.
It’s her.
Aspen Steele.
She’s standing in the living room in nothing but a small white towel wrapped around her body. Her hair is hanging in wet tendrils down her face, and she’s shivering. That’s what kicks me into gear as I tear my eyes away from her creamy skin.
“Aspen, it’s me. Conrad.”
“C-Co-Con,” she sputters out through her shivers.
“What’s going on?” I drop my bags and slam the door closed. In a few long strides, I’m standing in front of her. The smell of lavender washes over me, and my dick takes notice. He and I are on the same page. How could we not? She’s a goddess, an almost naked, standing in front of me, soaking wet and freezing goddess.
“The heat is out, so I took a hot shower to warm up. I didn’t realize that the hot water would be out too. The water was warm, and then it wasn’t.”
“Shit. Where are your clothes?”
“In my car. I w-was so c-cold I forgot that I hadn’t brought in both of my bags yet. Just my toiletries.”
Reaching around her, I pull the thick blanket from the back of the couch and wrap it around her. She’s still shivering, so I do the only other thing I can think of at the moment to warm her up. I tear off my sweatshirt and T-shirt all in one go, open the blanket, and pull her into my arms.
Chapter 3
Aspen
Conrad wraps his arms around me, and I melt into him. My teeth are still chattering, but I’m still able to release a sigh as the warmth of