Drake Givens was headed back up the mountain from town, his truck loaded up on supplies, when the weather started to turn from bad to worse.
Why
he had waited until the last minute to stock up was beyond him, and now he realized he had to be the only driver idiotic enough to be on the roads right now. Thank God he was paying attention to the road and surroundings because he suddenly caught sight of the emergency flashers of a car partially off the road and wrapped around a tree. Stopping his truck, Drake realized he had stumbled across the car by sheer luck as he headed up the mountain to his cabin; even his 4X4 was having a hard time on the ice and snow covered road.
He didn't want to stop and get caught up in the worsening conditions, but his years of training in the military, and his status as a reserve police officer, had him both honor and duty bound to check the car for any passengers. Running on instinct and training, he pulled his truck over to check the car, hoping to find it empty. As he scraped back the snow from the windshield and driver’s door he felt relief flood him that he had stopped, there was a female, unconscious, and clearly needing help. He tried the door, but it was locked, or stuck, banging on the window and willing the door open, he tried to get the attention of the woman he saw, still and pale in the driver’s seat.
The pounding must have startled the woman awake. A scream tore from her throat as her head whipped towards the sound of his voice. Pain covered her face with the movement. She must be in pain. He moved so the lights from his truck lit up his face.
“Ma’am? Are you okay? Ma’am, can you hear me? I’m trying to help you, can you hear me, Ma’am?”
The man’s voice, muffled by the wind and glass, was coming through the window. His hands were already bitterly cold from the frigid wind and the snow he had brushed from the window, but the blowing snow and the dark sky made it difficult to see clearly. Relief coursed through him when he heard the faint
click
of the doors unlocking. Wrenching the door open, he bent down already noticing a good-sized lump on her head, bruising already around it.
“Ma’am, my name is Drake. You’ve been in an accident. I need to see if you’re hurt anywhere before I can move you to safety. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
The very last thing he wanted to do was frighten her; she looked to be in shock when she once again met his gaze, her eyes wide, her skin pale, and her face creased with tension. “Can you tell me your name?”
“Kaylie,”
she answered him quietly. She flinched away from him and, gentling his hold on her a bit, he began talking in a softer tone. One he had used too many times in the field over wounded brothers and sisters.
He was running his hands over her arms and checking her for anything that was in obvious need of medical treatment. “Ma’am, I can see a knot on your head from where you hit it, but can you tell me if you know of any other injuries I need to be aware of? Are you hurt anywhere else?”
The woman struggled to concentrate on the voice of the man who was trying to help her, but once again, she felt the pull of darkness from the pain as the icy fingers of stress dragged her back into unconsciousness.
“Shit,” Drake said, as he watched her eyes lose focus and her head drop to one side. Reaching up and letting out a sigh of relief as he felt a strong pulse. Time was running out to get home safely before a complete whiteout made driving impossible. Drake reached in to lift her out of the car, being careful to avoid hurting her any more than she already was. Settling her into his truck as best as he could with the seatbelt, he made sure she was safe and that her airway was not blocked before going back and grabbing the cases he’d seen in her back seat.
He set back up the mountain, towards his cabin, the only place that allowed him to battle back the memories of missions that were clouded in darkness and shadows that had plagued him since Afghanistan. Knowing he wasn’t focused on the road like he should have been, his attention divided between the road ahead of him, the storm around him, and the passenger beside him. He was concerned about her wounds, but he knew that waiting for rescue would take a long time even under normal circumstance’s, but with the storm that was suddenly slamming the area, who knew how long that would be?
He had to go on his gut instinct and move the woman from her vehicle in order to save her. He was confident that she had not sustained any life threatening injuries, and there were no broken nor dislocated bones when he was checking her over. The head wound would need watching but he knew from his days in the field that he could keep an eye on her from home; if she started to display any serious or concerning signs, he would call in for help.
He was curious about her, he admitted to himself. Why was she out on this road, and in this storm, alone? Was she headed to meet someone? Was she running from something? He hadn’t taken the time to search her car for anything other than her purse and the two cases he saw in the back seat when he scooped her out of the car. He knew that his plan to work through his demons alone, were scrapped, for now. He wound his way the last few miles up the mountain toward his home with this stranger who would be staying with him for the time being.
Chapter 2
With the severe weather, it took them nearly an hour to navigate roads that normally took Drake 15 minutes. Drake was finally making his way down the long, dirt drive through the field in front of his house. Kaylie had been awake, but quiet, for the duration of the ride to his home, for which he was grateful, while he concentrated on staying on the road. He’d let her have her silence for the time being, knowing they would have more than enough time to talk, especially if this God-awful weather held up.
“Drake Givens,”
he said, introducing himself and turning to her after he put his truck in park. “I realize you're probably more than a little concerned about a few things right now, but I promise, you are okay with me. I do, however, have some questions for you, but I know for damn sure I’d rather talk in the house and out of this fucking cold. I grabbed your cases, hoping I got everything, from your car before we left it behind.”
Turning the engine off and pulling his keys free from the ignition, he handed her the house key, “If you don't mind going up and unlocking the door, I’ll be right behind you, I’ll check out your injuries better inside?”
“Kaylie Peterson, I mean Blake. Kaylie Blake,”
she replied as she tentatively reached out and took the keys from him with her opposite hand, keeping her left arm snug against herself. “Thank you.”
She knew she confused him when she’d changed her name but she had to remember she was no longer Kaylie Peterson.
“There’s no real need to hurry. I know I’m not hurt too badly; I can wait, if it’s all the same to you.“ She carefully got out of the truck, taking stock of where the aches and stiffness were located.
Kaylie looked around at her new surroundings. The stone and log cabin, bordered on three sides by woods, looked like it had always been a part of the mountainside. The logs that made up the exterior were a beautiful honey color, with smooth river stones at the corners and the front. The steep pitched roof had a long stone chimney rising up out of it. She slowly climbed the couple of stairs to his door, unlocking the heavy wood door and holding it open for him as he came in carrying her bags, setting them inside.
Kaylie stood, motionless, while she took in the section of the main room of the cabin that she could see. The walls were covered in the same smooth, honey colored wood as the outside, the wood floors a darker shade that had area rugs scattered around. There were floor to ceiling windows lining one wall that looked deep into the woods behind the house.
He had a sitting area with two leather chairs and an extra-long sofa, all the color of dark chocolate. The centerpiece though was a beautiful large stone fireplace, with an entertainment-center built around it. His small kitchen, divided from the den by a small kitchen island, was just off to the side. It kept the rustic feel of the rest of the house with its light colored wood cabinets, dark granite countertops, but modern appliances. A small table and four chairs were placed between the windows and the kitchen. As her eyes continued to roam, she noticed three doorways leading off a short hallway, probably the bedrooms, she thought.
She turned her attention back to Drake as he finished carrying in the bags of groceries and supplies. He finally paused just outside the doorway, stomping the snow off on his boots and shouldering the door closed behind him. Taking off his coat he helped Kaylie with hers.
“So, Kaylie Blake, why don’t we get you settled while I put this stuff away, then I’ll take that look at your injuries?”
He guided her into the kitchen to a seat at his table before putting away the groceries.
After he had everything put away, he turned his attention back to Kaylie, taking the seat next to her so he could check her head wound. Kaylie hissed out a breath and flinched when he grazed it with his fingers. He noticed that she kept glancing around, as if waiting for something, or someone, to do something, a sensation he was all too familiar with himself. “I’m not going to do anything to hurt you, I’ve told you, you’re safe here. It’s okay to relax.” Walking to the freezer, he pulled out a bag of frozen peas. “Here, put this on that lump.”
“I-I know you have questions, and I’ll answer them, but please, not right now, if you don’t mind. My head still hurts and I would really like a chance to freshen up and rest for a bit, if I may?”
“
I need to know if there are any other injuries that need to be treated, Kayli
e
…” he cut off as she laughed in a self-mocking tone.
“You can trust me when I say that I have had worse. Other than just sore, and I bet pretty bruised under my shirts, I can assure you I’m okay.”
Drake studied her face for a moment, noticing that what little color that she had held in her face was beginning to leech away again, and her eyes looked tired and weary. Walking over to a cabinet, he pulled out a glass and filled it. “I’m sorry I can’t give you anything for the pain yet. I need to keep an eye on you, make sure your head, and what I’m betting is a mild concussion, doesn’t worsen. The bathroom is the first door to your right, and the bedroom is right across the hall from it. I’ll be in to check on you periodically, given that knot on your head. My room is the one next to yours. If you wake and need anything, I’ll hear you. Do you want to try and eat something before laying down?”
“No. Thank you, and thank you for stopping and helping me.”
She got up carefully, still cradling her left arm; she was turning for one of her cases when Drake reached around her startling a panicked cry from her lips.
“Hey, it’s just me. I’ll get these to your room for you, you don’t need to try and lift them just yet.”
Taking the cases and making sure he walked in front of her so she would be able to see him at all times, Drake placed the cases on the floor, quickly stepping back out, keeping his hands visible to her. His gut clenched as he began to speculate about the reason she left today, and alone, and why she was so skittish. “I’ll just be out here for now, if you need anything.”
He walked back into the main room into the kitchen and left her to settle.
Not knowing what to do with herself, Kaylie paced around the room, looked at her bags and tried to figure out what she was going to do now. She didn’t know this man, Drake, but he had stopped and rescued her when he didn’t have to. Most people, given the weather circumstances, would have had tunnel vision and moved on ahead without stopping. That had to speak for something, right?
And look where trust has landed you
, she thought bitterly to herself. Divorced, alone, and now stranded with a stranger, who-knows-where? Why was it, that last thought didn’t bother her perhaps as much as it should?
She gingerly began to take off several of the layers of clothing she had on, stifling her groans when she moved her arm a certain way. She knew from past experience that it was not seriously hurt; just achy from the jarring it took during the crash. She wanted to know how bad her face was, but decided to put that revelation off until after she had rested. Finally lying down, she closed her eyes.
Her mind wandered back to Drake in the other room, the man who stopped to help her when she needed it most. He was a striking man with his rugged good looks and raspy baritone voice that she imagined would send shivers through the right woman. Definitely not a pretty boy, he was well over six feet with broad shoulders and strong arms. His face was shadowed by a day’s growth, which drew the eye to a mouth that had lips that looked both firm and soft at the same time. His brown eyes didn’t miss much, it seemed. She wondered how old he was, remembering the slight crinkling at the corner of those eyes, and his short hair was a beautiful dark brown or black that was starting to show signs of gray through it, which only made him look sexily distinguished. It was his face she was thinking of as sleep finally claimed her.
Drake could hear her moving around in her room, and he couldn’t blame her for the nerves she had to be experiencing. She had to know, however, that she would be safe with him, as long as he could keep a tight lid on his own memories. As he settled into the couch in front of the fire with his beer, he realized her room had fallen silent. He couldn’t help but think about her, she was pretty, but not in the conventional way. She was tall, a bonus in his mind, and he was a man who would rather have a woman he could see almost eye to eye with, in the very literal sense.
She had to be close to six feet tall
he mulled to himself, l
ong legs and not too thin
,
but with great curves in the right places.
Her hair was such a deep, rich brown, and it was cut into a short style that seemed to accentuate her eyes to perfection.
She had looked at him with eyes that seemed like they could not decide whether they wanted to be blue, green, or some mixture of the two. Her full eyebrows and long lashes were the perfect framework for her eyes, and her lips? God, they were so full and soft looking, the type of lips that could bring a man to his knees.