Hayden couldn’t believe this was happening. She’d finally stopped shivering long enough for her entire body to go slack. She lay in a stranger’s bed, staring up at the ceiling of his tidy and extremely cozy tractor-trailer, somehow more relaxed than she’d been in her own home for longer than she cared to admit.

Though she hadn’t entirely ruled out the possibility that he could be a serial killer or rapist luring her into a trap, his thoughtfulness in giving her some solitude and sanctuary went a long way toward reassuring her about his good intentions. His willingness to trust her—someone who’d just attempted to rob him—either made him dumb or unbelievably compassionate. The intensity of his stare and his quick wit ruled out stupidity.

Maybe karma was paying her back for putting up with Bobby Joe’s shit entirely too long.

She rubbed her growling stomach, which wasn’t the only part of her hoping her knight in a red truck would return soon. In his space, she already felt safer. That was sad, she knew, seeing as she’d lived with her ex for more than five years and rightfully had been wary of him.

Hayden snuggled into the handsome stranger’s pillow and drew his covers to her chin, pretending she did it for additional heat when really it was all about comfort and security. Her aching bones appreciated the surprisingly lush foam mattress of his bunk. It felt like a cloud compared to the metal floor of the livestock trailer.

When she had another decision to make, she’d consider the next step. For a moment or two, she was content to enjoy the respite from her worries.

She must have faded out for a few minutes or more.

A triple knock on the window startled her. Hayden sat up, clutching a colorful handmade quilt to her chest until she recalled where she was.

“Delivery. One delicious burger and a mountain of fries. I might even have a slice of pie for dessert.”

The truck’s owner!

Whipping the quilt from the bed, Hayden wrapped it around herself just below her collarbones. She adjusted the borrowed leather jacket on top of it as if it were a matching cardigan to her impromptu strapless dress. Then she shuffled to the front of the cab, squeezed between the seats and stared at her unlikely savior through the window.

“Roll it down if you want me to pass this through so you can eat by yourself.” He held up a cardboard box. Steam curled from the sides.

Her mouth actually watered. The pang in her stomach grew to a full on stab in her side. Damn, she needed to eat.

Instead of cracking the window, she impulsively lifted the handle and nudged the door open. It felt absurd to invite him into his own space so she simply stood there instead. Staring at him while he did the same to her.

“You sure?” He hesitated.

She nodded, then retreated to the only spot available. Hayden perched on the edge of his bed.

He boosted himself inside gracefully and handed her the carton before reaching below the passenger seat for a lever that spun the chair around backwards. Sitting, he faced her, giving her as much room as possible in the intimate area. Even still, his legs sprawled dangerously close to hers.

The man was big. Everywhere. He folded his hands in his lap as if to occupy them. She bet he didn’t often keep them to himself when he had a woman in here with him. His cowboy boots dwarfed her bare feet, so she drew them beneath the quilt, sitting cross-legged instead.

“Thank you,” she murmured. “I don’t have any money.”

She looked at the floorboards then, hoping he didn’t expect some other form of payment for his kindness.

“I didn’t expect you to give me cash or anything else.” He blew out a huge breath as if trying not to be offended. She hadn’t meant to insult him or test his seemingly infinite patience. “Just eat. Please. You must be starving.”

Hayden nodded. She didn’t have even a single fuck left to give about him watching her devour the massive helping of food like she ordinarily might. Instead, she dug in and showed him exactly how grateful she was for his generosity by plowing through half the burger and most of the fries before looking up from her dinner.

“Better?” he asked softly when she took a break from stuffing her face.

It felt so good to give the churning acid in her stomach something other than her own flesh to devour. Finally, the pang beneath her ribs relented some. It helped her relax further since she’d been trying not to freak out over the thought that some of her discomfort might stem from cracked bones, or worse, caused by Bobby Joe’s knee.

She nodded, her mouth too full to reply.

“I’m Austin Compton. I own this truck and drive it for my family’s ranch, making deliveries to farms like the one you found me at this morning. Or the slaughterhouse, so people can enjoy fine burgers at roadside diners.”

Fortunately, she didn’t have any regrets about being a carnivore. She wiped her mouth with a napkin he handed her as she swallowed another big bite, silently thanking the animal who had been sacrificed for her nourishment.

“I’m Hayden.” She didn’t supply a last name or anything else for that matter.

He had to realize that was no accident. When he didn’t hound her for more information, a knot in her lower back loosened. Too much more of this and she would melt into the bed. How could he be so understanding?

She wasn’t sure she would be if the situation were reversed.

“Well, Hayden…” He tested her name slowly. It rolled sweetly off his tongue. “How do you feel about lemon meringue pie?”

A groan slipped from between her cracked lips before she could stop it.

“Would you mind splitting it with me? It was the last piece.”

“You eat it. This is a lot for me.” She had already taken more than she felt comfortable with.

He smiled. “I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy watching you eat it as much as tasting it myself.”

“Is that why you’re doing this? Do you get off on helping people or something?” she wondered honestly, if kind of rudely.

“Not usually.” He shrugged. “Just doing what seems right in the moment. I tend to live that way.”

Since that’s exactly what she’d committed to doing with her one-step-at-a-time plan, she couldn’t argue. When he held the box with the pie out between them and took two forks from his pocket, she was surprised to find that she’d already eaten the last of her main meal.

Dessert sounded better than ever.

Hayden leaned forward and accepted one of the utensils. Neither of them spoke while they alternated digging in and scooping out some of the decadent treat. When she couldn’t jam another morsel down her throat, she cried mercy.

Austin polished off the last of the pie in two sumo-sized bites. Then he sat back with a hum and splayed his hands over his flat abdomen. She tried not to notice how his shirt clung to the solid muscles beneath it. No use.

At least she didn’t have to feel guilty about it since she was, for the first time in forever, single.

For a while, they sat in comfortable silence, each of them content to soak in the post-meal satisfaction. Hayden tried not to think about what it might be like to share calm and quiet with a man on a permanent basis. It had been so long, if ever, since she’d had the luxury of peace with Bobby Joe.

Tranquility washed through her. Something in her chest unclenched. The shift in pressure inside her allowed the food to settle into her stomach fully. Which was good. Until it was bad.

She gasped as a white-hot pain stabbed her in the side. Not now! Not again!

“Breathe.” Austin was there, crouching beside her. His features pinched as he took in the way she clutched her ribs. He laid his hand on her forearm lightly. “Are you okay?”

“Will be.” She grimaced. “Must have eaten too fast. Probably too much grease on an empty stomach. It happens to me sometimes.”

More and more often lately, she added to herself.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to take you to the emergency room or find an urgent care somewhere?” He raked his stare from where she hugged her own chest to the marks on the rest of her body. His face grew grim, losing some of the reassuring composure she’d fed off of more than the food.

Right then she hated Bobby Joe just a little bit more.

“Positive. Probably should have quit before the pie.” She rubbed her sternum with a downward pressure in an attempt to combat the acid reflux beginning to sear her from the inside.

Truthfully, it had been worth the discomfort.

“It’s a hazard of living on the road.” Austin chuckled, then stood to rummage through a storage bin against the side wall of the sleeper cab. After finding what he was looking for, he tossed a bottle to her.

Antacids. Hayden popped the top without second-guessing his endless charity. She chomped down a small handful regardless of how many the directions would have recommended.

“I’ve got a few other first aid supplies in here. Over-the-counter painkillers, too. You’re welcome to take a look or, if you’d prefer, I could clean out a few of those cuts for you.” He held up his hands, palms out, as if afraid of overstepping.

It might have been weak of her, but the thought of someone taking care of her was almost as medicinal as whatever he might have tucked away in his provisions.

Hayden swallowed and closed her eyes for a moment. “Would you, please?”

Besides, the last thing she needed was a nasty infection. Though he’d cleaned the trailer, she’d still had open wounds pressed against surfaces that had recently had cows and their poop all over it. Parts of her were already hot and tight. Throbbing. She might have attributed that effect in part to Austin’s commanding presence if they hadn’t also been painful to the touch.

“Of course,” he answered quietly as he gathered alcohol, some gauze, and what looked like antibiotic cream.

Austin carried them to the bed and piled them beside her. He knelt at her feet as he parted the quilt and worked from her toes upward. The first contact of an alcohol wipe against her cuts had her hissing.

“Sorry,” he murmured, then rubbed soothing ointment over the spot before taping some gauze over it.

“Takes my mind off my stomachache.” She tried to smile, though it probably ended up as more of a grimace when he moved to the next, deeper scrape.

He distracted her from the inadvertent discomfort his tender touches brought her with a constant ramble from then on. His deep, soothing voice lulled her even as he tended to her wounds. “I’m kind of an expert in skinned knees and stuff like this. I have a whole slew of nieces and nephews back home. Well, some of them are really my second cousins, but none of us really make that distinction. I’ve got one sister and three older girl cousins, plus three boy cousins around my own age. The girls have all settled down in cute cabins on our farm and started families of their own. Plus a bunch of the ranch hands bring their children to work. We’ve got our own informal daycare running these days. In a place like that, where kids still play outside—like I did growing up—there are bound to be a few scrapes and bruises.”

Hayden could hardly imagine somewhere like he described. “It sounds so nice. Like something out of a black-and-white movie.”

He grinned as he skipped from the hem of her shirt to the parts of her arms exposed beneath her sleeves without nudging the fabric upward in either area. “Kind of, yeah. My parents live in a house there too. It’s definitely where I belong.”

The joy etched into his face transformed him, making the strong lines of his face better match the man who’d been nothing short of incredible to her. It immediately became her goal to make him smile more. Even if it made her a little vulnerable to be honest. He deserved to know how much his decency had impacted her.

“Can I apologize in advance for this?” she asked.

“Uh…sure.” He tipped his head, peering up at her from beneath the brim of his hat before taping the last bandage in place.

“You’re a lot nicer than you look.”

Thankfully, he chuckled. The rich sound bounced around the cab, making it even homier. “Don’t let word get out, you’ll ruin my reputation.”

“Seriously, when I saw you at that first rest area this morning I was terrified of what you’d do if you found me.” She shivered remembering how it had paralyzed her into staying in the trailer all day.

“Well, shit. I’ve never regretted all these tattoos before.”

“It’s not that. I have one myself. Love them, actually.” She hesitated. “It was all of you. Your size, power, and the determination in how you carry yourself. It all screams that you’re not someone to fuck with.”

“I’m not,” he said, deadpan. “I also reserve my ass-kicking abilities for those who deserve them. Like anyone who would dare to threaten or hurt a woman.”

She swallowed hard. With him, she’d be safe even if Bobby Joe somehow caught up to her. Too bad she couldn’t continue to impose on him.

Just as she prepared herself to thank him profusely then take her leave, he spoke up. “You’d better get some sleep.”

Austin threw away the wrappers from the gauze. He tucked the tape and alcohol into their assigned places. Then he shook out a few aspirin before handing them to her along with an unopened bottle of water. Next thing she knew, he was climbing out of the truck.

“Where are you going?”

“Out back. My camping gear is stowed in the locker under the cab. I’ll be a lot more comfortable in the trailer than you were last night. You can use my bed.” He snapped his teeth together as if he’d like to add some smartass comment, but refrained for her benefit.

She sort of wished he hadn’t. It was crazy to think a man like him might find her even a tiny bit desirable, especially given her current state and the situation, but it would have been kind of sweet to hear him let the innuendo fly instead of resorting to his politeness.

“I couldn’t…” She shifted, scooting toward the edge of the mattress with some difficulty. When had she gotten so snug in his bed? “You have to drive again tomorrow. Do your job. It wasn’t so bad last night. Honestly, I hardly remember it. It would be more than I could have wished for if you’d lend me your sleeping bag—”

“No way. I wasn’t raised like that.” He took another step down, his boot heel thunking on the pavement.

“Your parents must be amazing.” Because of them, she could survive another eight hours on her own. Otherwise, she’d probably have gone crawling home by now. Or frozen or starved to death in the woods. Every minute longer she made it gave her hope she could last a few more.

“They are. All three of them.”

Hayden blinked. Huh? The stress of the day and her relief at how things had turned out were making her crash. Hard. “Three parents? Stepmom or stepdad?”

“Neither. It’s a long story. Stick around and maybe I’ll tell you about it over breakfast.” He hesitated. “Better yet, ride with me back to Compass Ranch and I’ll introduce you to them.”

She snickered at that. Yeah, right. Like he would cart her off to his beloved home. It was a fun thought, though. Something to take her mind off what would really happen when they parted ways in the morning and she was, once again, on her own with nothing.

Austin didn’t take his joke any further. Instead, he tipped his hat. “Goodnight, Hayden. Tomorrow’s going to be better, I promise.”

“You’re right. Things are already looking up. Besides, it couldn’t be much worse.” She acted without thinking, standing and crossing the few steps until she came face to face with him. Though he was at least a foot taller than her, she had the advantage while she was in the cab. He stood perfectly still, allowing her to bend down to him, making no move to close the gap between them or to increase it either.

Hayden leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you for everything. Seriously. You have no idea what this means to me. You’ve restored my faith in men.”

“Not every guy is a shithead like your ex.”

She nodded, her eyes stinging.

“Now get to bed. If you need to use the facilities in the truck stop during the night or anything else, wake me up. I’ll go with you. Unless you prefer the rest of the hay, of course.”

Hayden clapped her hand over her mouth to contain her unladylike snort.

“Night.”

“Sweet dreams,” she whispered.

Just before she shut and locked the door, she thought she heard him whisper, “That’s not going to be a problem, honey.”

Hayden grinned as she tucked herself into Austin’s bunk and snuggled down for the night.