It was the darnpleasethat did it. “Fine.” Keeping her body covered and trying not to move against his hard body, she tugged her other hand from the warmth of the bag. Her body felt like gravity pulled at her from every direction. She wriggled her fingers, and he leaned to the side, his chin brushing her bare shoulder.
“Your fingers look okay.”
Good. She slid her arm back into the bag, acutely aware of her bare butt on his groin. “Why did you get to keep your underwear?”
“My snow pants were waterproof.” His breath brushed the nape of her neck.
Spirals of warmth circled in her abdomen. “So, you could’ve kept on your long johns?”
“Yep. But skin to skin is warmer.” He palmed her biceps. “You’re not gonna like this, but I need you to turn around so I can check your nose and ears.”
Skin to skin and turn around? A sense of challenge and adventure rustled through her. “All right.” She scooted toward the fire, rested on her knees, and then turned to face him, straddling his thighs but not pressing against him. A whole new kind of shiver wandered through her.
He held the top of the sleeping bags, keeping them up around their necks. His eyes gleamed a predatory green in the darkness. “Now wiggle your nose.”
Here she was, naked and wrapped in a sleeping bag with the hot sheriff, and he wanted her to wiggle her nose? “Are you crazy?”
“No. Frostbite attacks fingers, toes, noses, and ears,” he said, lifting his hand to rub a knuckle across her nose. “Hurt?”
Her breath caught in her throat, and she shook her head. Her body felt languid, and the warmth surrounding her was intoxicating. A tattoo covered his left pec above his heart,extending over his shoulder. A deadly Osprey with a sharp beak, wide wings, and wicked talons. Keeping his gaze, she tapped each finger against his chest, finding a knife scar to the left of his heart and free of the bird of prey. A deep one, blade in. “That had to hurt.”
“Yeah.”
“Wiggle your nose,” she murmured. “How are your fingers, toes, and the rest?”
“Fine. I wasn’t under the surface as long as you. Not even close.” He ran his finger along the shell of her ear. “We got you out quickly, but the freezing cold ride to the hut took too much time, so we have to keep an eye on your health. Understand?”
She nodded, unable to do anything else. The moment felt too intimate.
“All right. We need to stay wrapped for a little while so I can’t look at your feet. I’m going to reach around you and press against your toes.” He checked out the shell of her other ear, and she shivered. He paused. “You okay?”
She gulped. “Yeah.” Her voice was throaty, but she’d swallowed water, so that must explain it.
He reached around her, gently gripping the toes that were pressed against her butt. “Tingles or pain?”
“A little, but not too much.” The wind whistled eerily outside as darkness dropped hard and fast. She shivered. “What time do you think it is?”
“Probably around three in the afternoon.” He tucked the sleeping bag closer around her neck. As much heat came from him as from the fire behind her, and she didn’t want to turn back around. He’d kept from looking inside the bag, anyway. Her thighs brushed his, and other parts of her warmed. There had to be mere centimeters between her breasts and his chest.
He winced and straightened out his left leg.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah. Took a bullet in combat but sometimes the leg still aches a bit. No worries.”
Snow scattered against the door.
She licked her chapped lips. The fire cracked, and she jumped. “Is my cell phone still in my pants?”
“No. Both your gun and phone fell in the river.”
Just fantastic. She looked around the small hut. “What if the person who shot at us comes here?”
“My gun is right behind me, but we won’t need it. The storm is bad enough that nobody can walk up to the hut, and I’ll hear any snowmobile or four-wheeler long before it pulls up.” He brushed hair away from her eyes. “You’re safe. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Her hand now flattened on his chest, and his heart beat steadily beneath her warm palm. “I think that’s my line. FBI and all.”
His grin was a quick flash of teeth that mesmerized her. “Didn’t we agree that soldier tops agent?”
