“Only because Fitz warned you, the traitor.”
Fitz wagged his tail in response.
“Good boy,” she cooed, patting the top of his head.
“We’ll discuss this later,” Jack told the dog with mock sternness.
“You’re out of ammunition. What are you going to do now?” she asked, her hand poised, ready to fire.
An impish smile curled his lips and his eyes narrowed like a scope zeroing in on its target. “It’s time for guerrilla warfare.”
Kat shrieked gleefully as he ran toward her with a look that said he had every intention of tackling her into a snowdrift. She sprinted for the open field, laughter trailing behind her.
Fitz joined in the fun by nipping at Jack’s heels, his excited bark echoing through the trees.
Still several yards from the cabin, Kat quickly planned her attack as Jack’s long strides spanned the distance between them. In a matter of seconds, he’d reach her.
Gently tossing the snowball nearby, Kat waited for Jack to close the gap, and in a deft, fluid movement that befit her years of training, she flipped him onto his back in a dense mound of snow.
He stared up at her, wide-eyed and winded.
Plucking the snowball from its resting place, she knelt over him, armed and ready. “Do you surrender?”
His gaze fell to her mouth, stealing the smirk from her lips.
Something about the way he looked at her—both soft and intense—left her momentarily breathless. Was he about to kiss her?
Before she knew what was happening, he’d rolled over, pinning her on her back.
“Doyou?” he asked, his face mere centimeters from her own.
Overcome with the sudden urge to press her lips against his, Kat did the only thing she could—she kneed him in the side and wriggled to safety.
“Oof!” Jack clutched his stomach as he toppled over.
Scrambling to her feet, Kat blurted, “I’m so sorry!” as her pulse pounded in her ears.
“Don’t tell me,” he moaned. “Your instincts kicked in?”
She offered a sheepish smile as she helped him to his feet. “After a decade of training, it’s a hard habit to break.” She decided not to mention the part about her unsettling attraction. Or her desperate need to escape before she did something impulsive and possibly regrettable.
“I might need some hot chocolate to soothe the pain.”
“I think I can manage that.”
What shecouldn’tmanage were her growing feelings for Jack.
Or how deeply her heart would break when it came time to say goodbye.
* * *
As Jack watched Kat prepare the hot chocolate with such delicate, graceful movements, he marveled at how only moments ago she’d dropped him in a snowdrift like a sack of potatoes.
If he were honest, he found it impressive and incredibly attractive.
“You’re quite the expert at—what did you call it?”
“Krav Maga?”
