“I really can’t believe this.” Hayden stared at the money mounded on Austin’s bunk like she was thinking of cannonballing into it as if it were a pile of autumn leaves instead of crumpled ones, fives, tens, and even a smattering of twenties. “You’re sure there’s no mistake?”

It had shocked him too, to be honest. Charlie had insisted, though, that he hadn’t padded Hayden’s take. She’d earned every bit of that cash by keeping the Crispy Biscuit’s customers happy and thirsty longer than usual. “Nope. It’s all yours.”

“Wow.” She plopped beside him, lifted a handful then let the bills flutter back to his bed.

Fresh from the shower, her hair seemed even longer than before. It hung nearly to her waist now that the gentle waves were straightened by the weight of the damp strands. With her face washed clean, she looked younger and more innocent, too.

It made him uncomfortable with the naughty thoughts that kept creeping into his mind, seeing her perched there on his bunk.

“Will you count it for me while I eat? I’ll get out of your hair soon, I promise.”

“No hurry. Don’t rush. I don’t want you to get sick again.” He lowered his voice and looked down at the money as he began to gather and organize it for her. If she was anything like his sister or cousins, she might be offended by what he said next, but he couldn’t help himself. “Maybe you should use some of this to see a doctor about that.”

“Been meaning to.” She nodded. “Too bad I don’t have a big sister like Hope. If I did, she could sneak me into her practice on short notice.”

“I’m sure she would be willing to try if you’d like me to give her a call.” Austin froze, afraid of even breathing wrong. He tried to pretend it was no big deal either way when that’s exactly what he’d been aiming for all along.

“Wyoming is kind of far for an appointment when you don’t own a car.” She smiled as she cracked open her takeout box. She’d opted for a simple grilled chicken breast without seasoning, a scoop of mashed potatoes without any toppings and some steamed vegetables. Bland as shit, he figured.

Come with me. What if she said no? What if she wasn’t ready for whatever attraction he could feel swirling around them in the intimate quarters? Eventually one of them would crack. Was it selfish to admit he grew more curious about what she would taste like every moment they spent together?

Given her situation, he figured it was.

“I guess.” He let it drop, instead focusing his attention on counting out her take while she inhaled her dinner. Performing for hours must have taken a lot out of her. While engrossed in her music, he never would have guessed the stress she’d been under lately. You could only bury that shit for so long before it drained you.

When she tossed her garbage and leaned against the side of the cab with a sigh, he asked, “Better?”

“Much.” Hayden hugged her stomach as her eyelids drooped. Until she realized he’d separated the money into five neat piles. “Hang on. How much is in each one of those?”

“A hundred. Except that last one, it’s a few bucks short.”

“Five hundred dollars?” She grabbed one for a recount. “Are you sure?”

“I’m decent at math. Not as good as my cousin Bryant but, you know. Yeah.” He chuckled when her jaw went slack.

“This is what I used to make in a week.”

“Get used to it. From what I saw tonight, it won’t be hard for you to book this kind of gig more often, if that’s something you’d be passionate about pursuing.”

“Holy shit.” She covered her face with her hands. The fine tremble in her fingers got to him. Austin couldn’t sit there, unmoved, by her smashing through the roadblocks to her happiness. He scooted closer until they sat side by side, then put his arm around her shoulders. “You absolutely killed it tonight. Congratulations. You deserve every bit of this and more.”

Jake’s lessons in patience paid off when Hayden turned to him, buried her face against his chest, and placed one palm on his torso to steady herself. He wondered if she could feel his abs clenching in response to her gentle touch.

“Thank you, so much.”

“I didn’t do it. You did.” He dropped a kiss on her temple. “I just cheered.”

“You’ll never understand how much that means to me,” she said quietly before relaxing into his hold. They sat there together, unmoving, for a while. Until she yawned.

“Getting sleepy?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Her breasts pressed against his side when she sighed. “Can I use your computer now to look for a place to go?”

“You can, but you don’t have to. Why don’t you stay a little longer? It’s late enough you might as well crash here again and leave at first light. It’ll save you a night of hotel fees. Seems silly to waste it since I’m here anyway.”

Hayden beamed at him, and the glory of her genuine bliss nearly broke his no-boner mandate. “I was afraid you wouldn’t ask.”

“Consider it a standing invitation.” He brushed her hair back from her temple and tucked it behind her ear. That’s when he realized they were drawing toward each other as if pulled by unseen forces. Should he squash the urge, put some distance between them before he crossed a line that would send her running for sure?

No way would she be ready for that. Besides, he didn’t want to imply that he expected her to express her gratitude in an inappropriate fashion. He might have been horny, but he wasn’t an opportunistic bastard who preyed on women in unfortunate situations.

Instead, he brushed his cheek over her forehead lightly before turning away so she couldn’t see how desperately he wanted her.

The angle of his face put his neck on full display. He balled his fist in the sheet covering his bunk when her fingertip traced one of the bright lines from the underside of his jaw to where it disappeared beneath the collar of his shirt. “I wish we had time for me to hear all the stories behind these. I wonder what they mean to you.”

Austin was about to promise they could have as long as she would give him.

Until she surprised him by admitting, “I have a tattoo. Just one, though I’d like more someday.”

“Oh yeah, you told me that before.” He snapped his head back in her direction, wondering where she wore her artwork. “What of? Can I see it?”

Hayden peeked from beneath thick lashes, then she nodded shyly. “It’s a reminder to myself to stay positive even when things suck. Otherwise I can get sucked under and drown in negativity. Then it could never get better, which is way worse.”

She walked the hem of her T-shirt up her concave belly. The creamy skin she exposed had him shifting restlessly. When she gathered the fabric just below her fantastic tits and arched away from him so he could see her side, he stiffened.

Partially because her tattoo was gorgeous. Colorful and bold, it molded to her body and made him itch to lick along every curve and line. Also because it was unintentionally shaded by a wicked bruise across her protruding ribs.

She needed to eat more. And get beat up less.

Fuck!

Austin clenched his jaw to keep from roaring. He swallowed his outrage and swore he’d make sure her ex paid for every bit of damage he’d done to Hayden. Mentally and physically. It took every ounce of his control to guarantee not a single fleck of pity showed in his gaze. Hayden braced herself, as if waiting for it.

How could he do that to her when the ink itself explained that she wouldn’t appreciate it?

He read the elaborate cursive that swirled around a Victorian-styled clipper ship. “‘All the water in the ocean can’t sink a ship unless you let it inside.’”

Well, damn. He supposed that was true, though easier said than done.

“I see your flag is still raised on the mast.” He brushed his thumb over the waving banner, careful not to hurt her. “I guess that means you don’t intend to surrender?”

“I can’t believe you got that.” She lifted her hand to his cheek and angled his chin so that he was staring into her face instead of at her tattoo. “I can’t believe you get me.”

When she put it like that, the arguments he’d had with himself over what was proper or wise flew out the truck’s window. Because his gut was telling him that this was the moment.

“Let me know if I’m getting this part wrong…” He dipped his head slowly, giving her plenty of time to evade his advances. Instead, she met him more than halfway.

Hayden stretched up and snaked her hand around the nape of his neck, drawing him closer.

The first moment their lips touched, he felt an overwhelming rightness ground him. This wasn’t a precursor to something more. Usually, for him, making out was the first step in a list of acts that graduated to full-on fucking. Sharing a kiss with Hayden was so much more than a stepping stone. Satisfying in its own right. Intimate as sin.

He cared more about comforting her, celebrating her, than he did about the physical pleasure of the act. Fuck, that wasn’t a bad consolation prize, though.

Apparently, Hayden thought so too. She moaned softly as she ramped up their exchange from a mere brush of their lips to something far more intense. Kissing her was a full-contact sport.

She rose to her knees, then flung one over his thighs so that she straddled him. His hands naturally lifted to steady her. If they landed so his palms cupped her ass, holding her in place as they fused their mouths, it was only for her safety. Tumbling out of his bunk wouldn’t be good for her injuries. Right?

That twisted logic had him slamming on the brakes. Whoa. What was he thinking?

Austin raised his hands to her shoulders and eased her back until their lips and tongues separated with a slick sound that did absolutely nothing to keep his stiff dick in check.

Flushed cheeks and bright eyes looked good on Hayden. So did the lust-dazed stare she gave him as they caught their breath. He’d guessed they shared some intense chemistry, but even he had been unprepared for the explosion they produced when they collided.

Before he did something unwise, he settled Hayden on the far side of his bunk, then rose from the bed and collected his camping gear from the cabinet where he’d stowed it that morning. He took his cowboy hat off the peg on the side of the cabinet and plopped it onto his head.

Hayden reached toward him. “Hey, Austin?”

“Yeah.”

“Why don’t you stay a little longer? Sleep in here tonight. With me.” She’d turned the tables on him, stealing his favorite line.

Austin’s blatant hard-on begged him to misunderstand and assume she meant it as an invitation to fuck. The wiser part of his mind knew otherwise. She was being polite and unknowingly testing his self-control.

“There’s not exactly a lot of room in here. But the passenger seat probably is more comfortable than the trailer. Hell, the floor would be a step up. At least it’s got carpet.” He paused. “You’re sure?”

She shook her head. “No.”

Austin understood. He headed toward the door instead.

Hayden rocked onto her knees and one hand. With the other, she reached out and grabbed a fistful of his shirt. “I mean you’re not sleeping on the damn floor of your own rig. We’re adults. Give me your sleeping bag and I’ll stay on top of the covers. We can even face opposite directions if it’s too weird for you after I pretty much just attacked you.”

“Weird? I’m trying to be fucking chivalrous here.” He took his hat off and raked his hand through his hair.

At first, he thought the huffs of air escaping from her were sobs, and he felt awful for cursing at her or making her feel like her passion was unreciprocated. Until he realized she was laughing through the hand clapped over her open mouth. Silently at first, and then in loud barks that culminated with an adorable snort before she wiped moisture from the corner of her eyes. “Well, I think you got halfway there. Other than your filthy mouth, your mom would be proud of you.”

That last bit sounded mostly serious.

Of course she didn’t know his mind had fixated on filthy and was thinking of the many, many ways he could prove her right about that.

The night would be a blend of heaven and hell. Sure, why not?

Austin dropped his gear in the passenger seat then vaulted onto the bunk. “Fine then, I’m staying. But there’s no need for you to use my sleeping bag. I’m pretty sure you don’t have cooties, and I’m man enough to keep my dick in my pants while holding you. If that’s what you want.”

She practically melted in front of his eyes, diving beneath his covers and burrowing into his pillow. He wondered how long the sheets would smell like her and the strawberry scent of the shampoo he’d picked out. “Is it pathetic to admit I think I need it? After everything that’s happened, another night by myself sounds like torture when I could spend it with you instead.”

“If it is then we’re both losers, because the thought of deserting you in here or dropping you off at a hotel was tearing me up.” Austin flipped off the lights then climbed in beside her. Like a pet cat, she curled up beside him, fitting herself into the curves and angles of his body. “This is much better.”

“Mmm,” she practically purred. “Much.”

Neither of them spoke for a while after that. He tried to process how events had led to this and what it would take to keep them pointed in the right direction. He could get used to a traveling partner like Hayden. Especially if he didn’t have to worry about every moment being the last one he might get to enjoy with her.

“Hayden?” he murmured before he could think better of it.

“Hmm?” She had nearly fallen asleep already. Exhaustion, the chaos of the day, a full belly, and their combined body heat were probably reasons enough for that. Some small part of him prayed it might also be because she instinctively trusted him to keep her safe.

Given where she’d come from, he knew that was a weighty responsibility for him and extremely brave of her. So he repaid her faith in kind. He put himself out there. “You don’t have to answer me tonight. Just sleep on this…”

His deep inhalation whistled through his teeth as she blinked up at him in the glow from the streetlamps that filtered through his curtains.

Then he said, “Come with me to Compass Ranch in the morning. Stay, just a little bit longer, until you find your dad. You’re going to have to live someplace until then. Why not with me? You’ll be safe there. Your ex will never find you. And it won’t cost you anything, like a hotel or a short-term apartment would. If you’re not comfortable with that arrangement I guarantee you Hope or one of my cousins would love for you to be their guest instead. There’s probably even work for you there to help build up your kitty some more.”

“That’s tempting. God, it is.” She hid her face against his chest when she mumbled, “But then your perfect, zany, storybook family will wonder why you dragged home someone as messed up as me.”

“I promise, they’ll love you as much as I…” He cleared his throat. “You know what I mean. In a generic sense, not in a creepy way. There’s nothing wrong with you, Hayden, and everything wrong with the fucker who made you doubt that. I know my family. Every single one of them would be with me on that.”

She patted his chest, dismissing the graceless way he’d stuffed his boot in his mouth at such a critical moment. Worse, she didn’t agree outright. “We’ll see.”

Then again, she didn’t say no either. He’d take it.

“Fair enough.” He stole one tiny kiss. A simple press of his lips to hers. No tongue. No groping. And it was still enough to set him on fire. “Sleep tight, okay?”

“I have a feeling that’s not going to be a problem.” She yawned again, her voice already fading as the bedding absorbed their combined heat and reflected it back.

At least one of them should get some rest. Austin would be awake the entire night, memorizing the feel of her pressed against him in case it was the last time he got to experience it. Though they weren’t as close as he would have liked, she fit perfectly in his arms.

She trusted him to protect her.

For now, that was enough.

Tomorrow was different story.