An Endless Kind of Love (Kinds of Love 3)

“Thanks.” Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she quickly looked back to the car. “I just need to find my toiletry kit.”

She turned and dug through the luggage in her trunk. There were several bags and suitcases, all neatly stacked and arranged in the back. He tried not to stare as she bent over, giving him the perfect view of her ass. He averted his eyes and instead checked out the car.

It was an old brown station wagon that had certainly seen better days. The cloth interior was faded and smelled of air freshener. He wondered just how many miles the thing had on it because it certainly looked ancient.

It was not a good car to be driving through the mountains. He was surprised she’d managed to drive it off the lot, let alone up the highway, given what he could see. The temp tags on her bumper told him she’d just purchased it recently, and he suspected that she had no idea she’d gotten a lemon.

She was trying to escape her old life and had bought a used car to make her escape. Whoever had sold her this car must have known she was desperate and realized they could get this piece of junk off their lot.

The idea that someone had taken advantage of her made his jaw tighten. His hand curled around the strap of the duffel bag. He looked out into the darkness and away from the car to calm himself down. There wasn’t anything he could do about it now. He was just going to have to make sure he fixed it up so she wouldn’t get stuck on the side of a mountain ever again. Even if it meant building her a new engine.

“Found it,” she said, pulling out a small black toiletry bag and holding it up triumphantly. “It was hiding under the blanket.”

“If you needed a toothbrush, I know Mia keeps a bunch on hand. Our campers are always loosing or forgetting theirs,” he said.

“I already feel like I’m taking advantage,” she replied, motioning for her bag. He handed it to her, and she slid the toiletry kit inside. “Thank you for holding that. And the umbrella. You didn’t have to come out here in the rain, and I appreciate it.”

“I wasn’t about to let you walk around out here in the dark,” he told her, the protective urge rising in his chest again. “There are bears and mountain lions out here.”

“They like to go out in the rain?” she teased, looking out at the steady downpour.

“Sure,” he said with a shrug. “That’s where the expression ‘it’s raining like cats and bears’ comes from.”

She laughed. The sound was sweet as a bell and made his whole body feel lighter. That laugh alone made coming out in the rain worth it.

She closed the trunk behind her, and he held the umbrella up over the two of them as they walked back to the truck. She stayed close to him, trying to keep dry, and he could feel her body heat reaching for him. He was careful not to touch her, despite the intense desire to wrap his arm around her shoulder and keep her warm.

She was running from an abusive ex, after all.

He’d left the truck running so the heat would be on when they got back inside, so the cab was toasty and comfortable as they climbed in. She smiled at him as he put the truck into drive and headed back down the road.

“Is there a way onto the ranch from this road?” she asked. “I was actually curious why we went the long way.”

“There’s a gate about a mile up from your car that lets onto the property,” Dylan explained. “It’s a pain to use, so we keep it permanently locked. There’s no reason for cars to be coming up the back way and we’d like to keep it to only one entrance for the kids.”

“That makes sense,” she agreed. “I guess I’m glad I broke down where I did, or I would never have found you.”

He glanced over to see her bite her lip.

“I mean, you guys. The ranch,” she amended. “Not you personally. That would be way too forward.”

He smiled to himself. She liked him. “If you give me your keys, I’ll have your car towed up to the ranch garage tomorrow morning. I can take a look at it and see what needs to be fixed.”

“That would be great. Thank you.” She reached into her pocket and carefully pulled out a set of keys and removed a giant silver key. The car was so old it didn’t have the electronic fobs. She only hesitated a split second before setting it on the center console.

She cleared her throat.

“So, are you from around here?” she asked, her tone light.

“Not really.” He turned off the dirt road and onto the highway that would lead them back to the ranch road. “I grew up in Kansas but worked in California for the past few years. I recently quit my job and was looking for something better to do than just waste money. I know Mia and Carter, and they said they could use some help around the ranch, so I came here.”

“Mia must collect stray people,” she commented.

Dylan chuckled. “You could say that. She has a knack for finding people that need her though. She’s certainly good at it.”

“Do you like it here?” she asked, turning to look at him in her seat. He could feel her dark eyes examining him as he drove.

“I do,” he told her. “At first, I wasn’t sure it was what I needed, but the longer I’ve stayed, the more I’ve found that this place is magic.”