I frown. “Won’t you need to turn the engine back on?”
“Yes.”
“And to turn it off again, you’d need to be in the front.”
“Hmm… yes, but the electrics still work for a little while after the engine is turned off.”
I glance up. “How long will the stars stay on?”
“They’ve got their own battery, so hopefully as long as we need. Do you want to share the blanket?”
And his body warmth. However, that’s not what he’s offering. Not out loud, anyway.
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
He turns the engine on, waits about a minute, then turns it off and climbs into the back, where he hits the privacy screen button. It slides up smoothly, with only the faintest whisper of a whir and soft clunk. Next, he raises the footrest to its highest position, which is almost level with the seat. Seconds later, thewelcome blast of heat stops abruptly. I swear it’s colder than before.
Rowan offers me one end of the blanket. I take it, managing to wrap it around myself. He sits sideways, his legs tucked up, his hand under his cheek as he stares at me.
“Better?”
We’re close enough that I can lean across the centre console to kiss him.
“Yes.”
He smiles. “Hopefully, it will warm up. Smaller space, breathing out warm air, body heat, and all that. Insert clever scientific explanation here.”
I laugh.
“Oh, so youcanlaugh.”
“Of course I can. Everyone can -.”
“I know. I’ve just never heard you do it before. You have a nice laugh.”
My breath catches in my throat.
“And apparently, the cold has stolen my brain-to-mouth filter. Sorry.”
“Don’t apologise,” I whisper.
He grins. I want to kiss him even more. Want to keep him warm and take care of him through this ordeal. However, my brain-to-mouth filterisstill working, so I keep all those thoughts firmly locked inside, where they belong.
6
ROWAN
It does get a bit warmer, or maybe my body heat is rising in response to being so close to Damon. Despite the wide armrest between us, there’s an intimacy to being back here with the privacy screen closed. The back of the car has privacy glass in the windows. We can see out, but it’s next to impossible to see in. Not that anyone will be casually wandering past the car in a snowstorm. Hopefully, there aren’t even any sheep out in this storm.
“We should try and sleep,” Damon suggests.
I want to do a lot of things right now, sleeping isn’t one of them. “Nah. Talking is more fun.”
He raises his eyebrows. “To me?”
I giggle. “Yes, to you. There isn’t anyone else in the car. Except maybe my imaginary friend.”
