She clears her throat and nods. “Yeah, Gray, I’m here. I’ve never been happier to hear your voice.”
“I bet,” he says.
“You two are just two rays of sunshine tonight, aren’t you?” I ask, earning the first hint of a smile from Audrey. It’s not much, just the corner of her mouth tugging a smidge, but I’ll take it.
Gray chuckles. “That asshole in front of you is Brooks Dempsey. He’s been my best friend since we were kids. I didn’t know he was going to be there, and he didn’t know you were going to be there. Not that I’m sure that would’ve stopped him. But this is a series of unfortunate events.”
Audrey nibbles on her bottom lip, but the relief settling across her features is undeniable.
“I’m sorry about this, Auddie,” Gray says.
“It’s no problem.” She dips her chin, hiding a grin. “I’m sorry for the trouble.”
“We’ll blame it on Brooks. No worries.”
Of course, we’ll blame it on Brooks. I roll my eyes, clicking the speaker button and bringing the phone to my ear. “Are we good?”
“I’m going to trust you to do the right thing,” Gray warns.
“As you should.”
“Brooks—”
“Gotta go.” I end the call and toss my phone on the bed.Thanks to Gray, that’s probably the only action that bed’s gonna get tonight.“So much for you being here to tie me up and torture me.”
Her mouth twitches despite herself. It takes a full five seconds before she gives in—apparently deciding I’m not a threat—and allows her lips to arch toward the ceiling. Just like that, the tension between us splinters, and a warmth pours into the crevice left in its wake.
“You need to work on your survival skills,” I say, adjusting my towel. “How did you not hear me in the bathroom?”
“I don’t know,” she says, her voice soft. “The storm was loud. Or maybe I was just too focused on not getting hypothermia and blocked out the noise.” Her eyes light up. “But if I had hypothermia, my survival instincts were excellent. Just maybe in the wrong order.”
Damn, she’s adorable—and lucky it was me who found her in such a compromised position.
“Well, the order is important,” I say. “What if I hadn’t been a great-looking guy with a fairly strong moral compass? What would your survival skills have told you to do then?”
She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and blushes. “I suppose if you were a stranger with a lack of a moral compass, I would’ve tried to have a rational conversation with you.”
“Yeah. I totally got that rational conversation vibe from your screams of bloody murder. Nailed it.”
“Humans are born with the capacity to be empathetic, and I like to believe that everyone is good at their core,” she says sweetly.
“That’s how people die.”
I duck back into the en suite and hurriedly dress in the extra set of clothes I carry in my truck. It’s a habit I picked back up when I returned to Sugar Creek last spring. Hanging outat a ranch always includes dirt, mud, and shit—lessons that I learned hanging out with Gray and Hartley over the years. My emergency grocery bag of clothing has saved my ass on many occasions.
“Here’s a tip,” I say, tossing my towel into the hamper. “The next time you come face-to-face with a guy you don’t know in the dark, start throwing shit while you call nine-one-one. You can test your good human theory while you create distance. Okay?”
“Or I could use my taser.”
I poke my head around the corner. “Do you really have one?”
A slow grin slips across her cheeks. I’ve never seen something so fucking pretty. “Yes, but it’s in the foyer.”
“And what good is it doing there?”
“You sound like Gianna,” she says, giggling.
I stuff my filthy clothes in the grocery bag and reenter the bedroom. “I’ve met Gianna, and I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or if I should be offended.” I grab my phone from the bed and slide it into my pocket. “So what brought you to Blackbird Ranch? Doesn’t seem like a good night to take a road trip.”
