She lowered her chin until it was cushioned on her collarbone. The snow clinging to her hair was starting to melt; drops of it trickled down her cheeks, and a few snuck beneath her collar to shimmy coldly down her neck and back. “What a mess.”
“Uh-huh.”
“What do we do now?”
“Wait.”
As far as Murphy was concerned, Garrett sounded entirely too apathetic. Didn't he realize they were stuck in the middle of a blizzard, in a car that had no heat? How long would it take them to freeze to death, she wondered, then just as swiftly decided she didn't want to know.
Murphy glanced at Garrett sharply. “Wait for what?”
“Help.”
"Are you kidding?"
“Do I look like I am?”
Her gaze raked him, and she realized that he was indeed serious. He was staring at the snow-covered windshield, his blue eyes narrow and intent. The muscle in his jaw ticked; it was the only outward sign that maybe he wasn't as calm as he was letting on.
She sighed, shivered. Her cheeks stung from the wind, and her feet squished coldly in her sneakers. The snow that had snuck into her Reeboks had already melted; she felt like she was wearing two blocks of wet ice on her feet. While the car shielded them from the wind gusting and howling outside, the cramped interior was far from warm. The temperature inside the car had to be a dozen degrees below freezing.
“Do you have a better idea?” he asked when she said nothing.
Murphy opened her mouth to inform him curtly that she sure did…until she realized she didn't. Really, what else could they do? Except wait and hope that the help she'd phoned for over three hours ago would finally arrive.
If it arrived at all.
That was an awfully big ‘if'.
Garrett must have assumed she was undecided, because he added grumpily, “If you think for one second I'm going to let you get out of this car to walk back to the house alone…”
Murphy bristled and prepared herself to deliver the tongue lashing this man so justly deserved. Then she saw his expression, the glint of emotion in his eyes. Equal parts stubbornness and concern swam in the striking blue gaze ensnaring hers.
“Murphy, please,” Garrett said, and his tone cracked, as though it was important to him that she understand what he was trying to say. “I feel bad enough about screwing up your day. I don't want to have you getting lost in these woods, and maybe dying of frostbite, on my conscience as well.”
There was more to it. While Murphy sensed it, she was reluctant to make him verbalize it.
Garrett was worried about her safety. That's why he didn't want her out in this storm. Murphy appreciated his concern. It made her feel warm, protected. That was an odd sensation—she was so used to being on her own, taking care of herself, answering to no one—yet, oddly enough, she found she liked it. It was, she realized, a sensation she could easily get used to, with the right persuasion. No, her mind corrected, with Garrett Thayer's persuasion. The difference was bigger than she cared to admit, even if only to herself.
She sighed and nodded. Any anger she'd felt drained away. Moonshine squirmed on her lap when she shuddered. Her teeth chattered. The only spot on her body that was the tiniest bit warm was where the cat had curled up on top of her thighs and hands.
“Cold?”
Murphy's chuckle was short and sarcastic. “Whatever gave you that idea?”
“Your shivers are shaking the car.”
She frowned when she realized he was right. Her trembling was so violent the Rabbit was literally shaking. Pity she couldn't have stopped if someone had put a pistol to her temple and demanded it. She'd never been this cold in her life.
“I'm fine,” she lied through clicking teeth, even as she curled into herself for warmth—well, as far as the seat, the steering wheel, and the cat would allow. It wasn't enough. The cold felt like it started from someplace deep inside her bones, emanating outward in frigid waves. Her temples throbbed from the way she gritted her teeth, trying to keep them from rattling together.
“Murphy, come here.”
She shook her head. “I said I'm fine.”
“And I say you're lying through your chattering little teeth. Now get over here.” When she stubbornly refused to move, Garrett swore under his breath. “Sweetheart, I'm not going to hurt you, I just want to share my heat with you.”
“I never thought you would,” she said…around said chattering little teeth. “Hurt me, that is.”