I sat shivering on the bathroom counter, a thick flannel blanket wrapped around me, my teeth clacking together as I waited for the shower to warm and for Graham to return. 

Honestly, I had expected him to be pissed. Expected a lecture at the very least. Yet there was nothing but concern in his eyes and gentleness in the way he handled me. 

“I’m here, I’m here,” he said, rushing back into the bathroom with an armful of clothes. “You okay?”

“Free-zing.”

Graham tossed the clothes onto the counter beside me and reached into the shower to test the water. “Almost there.” 

He came back over to me and rubbed his hands up and down my arms, trying to warm me up. 

“What about y-you?” 

“I’m alright,” he said with a small shake of his head.

“Graham,” I said, brushing my fingers against his lips. “They’re b-blue.”

He gently closed his fingers around my wrist. He didn’t immediately move my hand. He just held it there for a moment, his eyes fixed on mine. 

“Water should be warm enough now,” he said, lowering my hand. 

Graham lifted the edges of the blanket, his fingertips grazing my shoulders as he eased it away. It slipped from my shoulders and pooled around my hips on the counter. 

A shiver worked its way down my spine, even though the room was warm with steam. 

His hands settled at my waist before lifting me from the counter and setting me down. 

I went to take a step back, but my knees buckled. His arm immediately wound around me, catching me before I could fall. 

“I’m s-sorry,” I rushed out. 

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Bambi.”

He glanced toward the shower, then back at me, a crease forming between his brows. “Do you think you can manage?”

Could I? I felt like a human ice cube. My legs were still numb, my body trembling from the cold, and my blood felt like slush in my veins.  

I was moving before I had a second to process what was happening. Graham stepped into the shower, boots and all, with me still in his arms. 

“Graham!”

I drew in a sharp breath as warm water cascaded over me. 

“I couldn’t stand there any longer watching you freeze and unable to move.”

“Still the one making the decisions,” I said.

He turned us around and walked backward into the stream of water, tilting his head back under the spray. When he looked at me again, there was a seriousness to his expression.

His hold on my waist tightened. “I won’t apologize for doing what I thought was right. Especially when it came to you.”

He turned us again, stepping forward now, until I was fully submerged beneath the water. Goosebumps prickled across my skin as the heat chased the chill from my bones. 

“I admit,” he continued, “I may not have gone about it the right way, but I will always do whatever I have to to make sure you’re safe.”

My breath caught, and I couldn’t tell if it was my own heartbeat pounding or the sound of the water striking the shower walls. His words sounded more like a promise than a statement of fact. They settled deeper than any cold ever could. 

“All I’ve wanted is for you to talk to me. I didn’t realize all it’d take was hypothermia and risking frostbite to make that happen.” I laughed. “I would have thrown myself into the snow a lot sooner if I’d known that.”

“Don’t joke.” He dropped his forehead to mine and blew out a slow breath. “I’ve never been more scared in my life than I was today, Bambi.”

 “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have run off like that.”

“No. But I don’t blame you for running, either. I’ve been—” 

“An ass?”

Graham lifted his head and met my eyes. “‘Difficult’ was the word I was going for. But yeah.”

“Yeah,” I chuckled before adding softly, “thanks for coming after me. 

“Any time. Let’s just not make a habit of it.”

“Oh, trust me. Me and the snow are officially done.”

“Good.” After a short pause, he asked, “How’re you feeling? Is the shower helping?”

“Yeah,” I held up my hands, wriggling my fingers in front of him. “I can finally feel my fingers and toes again.”

“That’s good,” he chuckled softly. “Let’s get you into some dry clothes, then.” 

Graham drew me closer, my shirt squelching against his chest as he reached behind me to shut the water off. He lifted me over the lip of the shower and set me down on the floor, a puddle forming around my feet as water seeped from my clothes.

“Can you stand?” he asked.

“Mhmm, I think so.”

“Okay. Don’t move. I forgot towels.”

Graham moved to the linen closet, his boots squeaking with every step. As he reached inside, my eyes were drawn to the way his shirt clung to him, emphasizing the deep valley running down the center of his back and the broad span of his shoulders. He turned back to me and my eyes drifted across the hard ridges of his abs. 

I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth, warmth curling low in my stomach.

“Bambi?” 

“Huh?” I looked up at him. I hadn’t realized he was holding out a towel for me.

“Sorry,” I said, taking the towel and looking down. “Thanks.”

“You think you can manage from here?” he asked, seemingly oblivious to where my mind had gone. 

“Yep.”

“I’m going to get the fire going,” he said, grabbing the flannel blanket from the floor. “There are clothes on the counter for you. Let me know if you need help.” 

“Mhmm.”

Once Graham had left the bathroom, I closed my eyes and blew out a breath. “Get a grip, Bambi,” I whispered to myself. I’d just nearly frozen to death. The last thing I should be thinking about was Graham’s body.

I shook my head at myself, and undressed, tossing my soaked clothes aside. I tugged on his black hoodie, the hem reaching mid-thigh, then pulled on another pair of his sweatpants.

I left the bathroom and stopped just short of the living room. 

Graham was already waiting there. He was sitting on the floor in front of the fireplace, the flannel blanket wrapped around him, two cups of coffee beside him.

All I could do was stand there and look at him. Three days ago, I couldn’t have imagined seeing him like this. Cozy. I almost giggled at the sight. 

Graham turned toward me, giving me a small smile as I walked into the living room. He held open the left side of the blanket for me, and I lowered myself down beside him and tucked myself into his side, pulling the blanket tight around me. 

The fire crackled steadily in the hearth, the heat wrapping around us like a second blanket. 

Graham was quiet beside me, his eyes fixed on the flames, the firelight catching in the green of his eyes. 

“What are you thinking about over there?” I asked softly, nudging him with my shoulder.

He looked down at me, the corner of his mouth curving upward. “You.”

“Me?”

His eyes held mine and warmth spread through my face and neck. 

“You,” he said again. “I’m just… glad you’re safe.”

There was a part of me that knew there was more to it than what he was saying. Like he was choosing his words carefully because there was still something he was holding back. Another part of me recognized that today had also brought down some of the barriers he’d been holding up.

And I could live with that. 

“Me too,” I said. 

I rested my head on Graham’s shoulder and gazed at the fire. Exhaustion was finally catching up with me, each blink coming slower than the last until my eyes fell shut completely.

Chapter Eight →