Kujo held off as long as he could. He cleaned the dishes, stoked the fire and took Six out to do his business one last time before calling it a night.

No matter how long he stayed away from Molly, he returned, stared down at her sleeping form and spent time talking himself out of taking her up on her offer to share the bed.

But when Molly started thrashing, her arms and legs flailing in the air, he couldn’t ignore her for a moment longer. Whatever dream she was having had to be bad, and it would be really crappy of him to ignore a woman in need, wouldn’t it? And she might worsen her injuries, if she kept it up.

Kujo understood dreams. For the past three years, he’d woken in the middle of the night, sweating and reluctant to go back to sleep. His dreams consisted of the last few minutes before his life had changed and the lives of the two female soldiers had ended.

He could still imagine those women’s faces, the desperation in their eyes, and hear the explosion as it rocked his world forever.

Yeah, he understood dreams.

Six stood beside the bed, staring at Molly, his ears perking with every moan from the woman. He glanced back at Kujo and whined softly.

“It bothers you too, doesn’t it?” Kujo crossed to Six and ran his hand over the dog’s head and down his neck.

Six nuzzled his hand, and then used his nose to nudge Kujo toward Molly.

Kujo sat on the side of the bed and touched Molly’s arm.

She moaned again and reached out to cover his hand with hers, her fingers gripping his like a lifeline.

Now what? He couldn’t disengage and leave her hanging. Too late for second thoughts about touching her, he toed off his boots and slipped onto the mattress. As soon as he did, she rolled up against him.

The bed really was too small for two people. To keep from falling out, he turned on his side, facing her and spooned her body with his.

Molly sighed and turned toward him, resting her hand and her cheek against his chest. Her calf slid over his and hooked him from behind.

Kujo swallowed a groan. This was the reason he hadn’t wanted to share the bed with her. Molly Greenbriar was entirely too pretty and sexy. A man had to be made of stone to ignore a body like hers pressed against him.

Kujo wasn’t made of stone. Although his cock was making a damned good imitation. He lay perfectly still, trying not to rub anything that would make him even harder and more uncomfortable. Being still didn’t make a difference.

Molly’s fingers curled into his shirt, her nails scraping his chest through the fabric. Her hair smelled of peaches, and her breath warmed his neck.

He gave up any pretense of sleep and stared at the woman in the fading light from the potbellied stove.

How had he gone from being a hermit in a Colorado mountain cabin to having a job and a woman in his bed, in such a short time?

His pulse pounded, and his staff stiffened. Perhaps that was the problem. He hadn’t had a woman in over three years. His desire wasn’t just directed at Molly. She could have been any woman, and he’d have reacted the same.

Or would he? Molly had been sassy on the mountain trail. And she’d been very convincing about not calling in the authorities. She was strong and determined.

He could almost bet she’d have found a way off the mountain without his help. Still, he was glad that theory hadn’t been tested.

Kujo closed his eyes, hoping that by not staring at the beautiful woman, he could almost forget how close their bodies were.

Ha! Closing his eyes only made him more aware of the softness of her curves and the peachy scent of her hair.

The night promised to be a long one. As he lay awake, sleep the furthest thing from his mind, he thought through Molly’s responses to his questions. He knew she was lying, but he couldn’t figure out why.

As soon as the sun came up, he’d go after the drone. Perhaps he could see what the camera had recorded to know better what Molly was really up to, and what someone didn’t want her to find.

The longer he lay with Molly curled against him, the sleepier he got and his desire slowly ebbed.

When he opened his eyes again, the gray light of pre-dawn filled the windows. He tried to move his arm, but couldn’t and turned to see why.

Molly lay in the crook of his arm, her cheek resting on his chest. Her auburn hair spread out in wild abandon, the fiery strands tickling his nose.

The blanket had slipped behind her, leaving her legs bare, one silken calf curled over his leg, her knee resting against his crotch.

His usual morning erection sprang to attention.

Sweet Jesus, he had to get up quickly or risk frightening the poor woman with a monster boner.

He edged away, slipping his arm out from under her, in such a hurry, he rolled out of the bed backwards and landed on the ground on top of Six.

The dog yelped and skittered out of the way.

“What the hell?” a groggy voice said from above.

Kujo pushed to his feet. “Sorry, I was trying not to wake you.”

“I’m not awake,” she assured him. She blinked her eyes and pushed the hair out of her face. “Are you okay?”

Hell, no. He was hard and had no way to relieve the need. No, he wasn’t okay. “Yeah. I have some beef jerky, if you’re hungry, and a can of beans.”

“I’ll pass.” Molly stretched and winced. “I found some more sore spots. I don’t suppose you have another one of those pain pills.”

“I do. But you should eat something before you take it.”

“Jerky, then. And water.” She licked her lips.

The movement made his stomach flip crazily. Kujo turned away before his arousal became evident. He reached into his duffel bag for the snack, tore the package open and handed a strip of dried beef to Molly.

She accepted his offering, ripped off a piece with her teeth and chewed with her eyes closed. “I feel like I was put through a meat grinder.”

“You took a pretty serious tumble.” He handed her a bottle of water he’d had in his bag.

She leaned up on her elbow and drank deeply. When she’d slaked her thirst, she capped the bottle and sat it on the nightstand. “I need to find the drone.” Molly swung her legs over the edge of the bed and winced again.

“You need to stay put,” Kujo said. “You aren’t up to dodging bullets, just yet.”

“I’m not going to be ready to dodge anything by lying around being waited on.”

“Seriously, I saw your drone go down. I’ll find what’s left of it and bring it back. Besides, there’s only one four-wheeler, and the handlebars are bent.”

Molly bit her lip. “I wonder what that’s going to cost me when I turn it into the rental place. She shook her head. “If you were able to steer it and carry me back, I should be able to manage it.” She sat up and pressed a hand to her ribs. “Did you see the mule that kicked me?”

A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. The woman was far too independent for her own good. “You’re not going anywhere. It wasn’t easy getting you here on that four-wheeler. I don’t relish doing it again should something happen out there.”

“I can take care of myself.” She gave him a sheepish grin. “For the most part. But thank you for taking care of me.” When she tried to get out of the bed, Six stood in front of her.

“See? Even the dog doesn’t want you to leave.”

“Look, I can’t leave that drone out there. It’s an expensive piece of equipment.”

He held out one of the pills he’d given her the night before. “Take this. It’ll help with the aches and pains.”

“I’m not changing my mind.” Molly bent forward, determined to get up. As soon as she leaned toward him, her face creased in a grimace, and she eased back. “Seriously, did you get that mule’s number?”

“Will you stop acting tough and take the damned pill?” He took her hand and placed the medication on her palm.

“What is it, anyway?” she asked and then placed it on her tongue and washed it down with the water.

“It’s one of the painkillers my doctor gave me.”

“Strong stuff.”

His jaw tightened. “Needed to be.”

“Do you still take it?” Her gaze slipped down his body to his legs.

Kujo didn’t want pity. He could get around almost as well as before the injury. Yes, it was more painful, but he didn’t let that stop him, and he didn’t rely on the drugs. Too many of the wounded warriors lost their lives to drugs, alcohol and suicide. He wasn’t going to be one of them. “Not often. I didn’t want to get hooked.”

Molly nodded. “Well, thanks. But I have a feeling you gave me that pill to keep me here. The last one knocked me out.” She bit into another piece of the jerky and chewed.

“You almost died. Give yourself time to recuperate.” He turned and opened the door for Six.

While the animal was outside, Kujo slipped on his boots and stoked the fire to chase away the chill of the morning air.

“Joe?” Molly called out.

“Yes?” He looked over his shoulder at her, sitting with her back to the wall, the blanket covering her sexy legs. He wanted to crawl back into the bed with her. In the light of day, he was almost positive she would put up a fight.

“I had a dream last night.” Her cheeks reddened.

His heartbeat sputtered and sped up. “Yeah?”

“I dreamed I was falling down that hill again.”

“I’m sure you did.” He closed the door on the stove. “Something like that is hard to get over.”

“Joe?”

He had nothing else to fiddle with and was forced to face the woman lying in his bed, her wild hair and makeup-less face not at all detracting from her appearance. In fact, she looked like a woman who’d just had sex.

Holy shit. Where had that thought come from? He sure as hell didn’t need to think down those lines. He’d just gotten his hard-on under control. Further, she’d be out of his cabin and out of his life as soon as they figured out who shot at her and her drone.

The red in her cheeks deepened, and she looked down at where her fingers were pulling at the fabric of the blanket. “When I was falling…in my dream…someone caught me.”

Kujo’s gut clenched. “And?”

Molly glanced up at him. “It was you, wasn’t it?”

His groin tightened, recalling how she’d felt snuggled up against him throughout the night. He forced a casual shrug. “I don’t know. I wasn’t in your dream. I don’t read minds.”

“No, but you held me in the night, didn’t you?” Her brows pulled together. “You were my dream catcher, weren’t you?”

He couldn’t lie. “You were having a bad dream and moaning. All I did was hold you until it was over.” Okay, that last part might have been stretching the truth. He’d held her all night, until he fell out of the bed.

Molly nodded. “I thought I was still dreaming. Not the nightmare, but a good dream. And you were warm when I was cold.” She smiled. “Thank you.”

He turned away and opened the door for Six to come in. “No problem. And don’t worry, I didn’t do anything to violate you.” Oh, he’d wanted to, but he wouldn’t have. Not without her consent.

Her warm chuckle filled the interior of the little cabin. “It’s nice to know chivalry is alive and well in the Crazy Mountains.”

“I prefer my women conscious,” he said.

She arched an eyebrow. “And I’d like to think I’d remember it if you’d tried something. But last night was a little foggy to me.” Molly ran a hand through her hair, pushing it back from her face.

The movement drew Kujo’s attention to the T-shirt as it stretched across her breasts. He could see the black lace through the white fabric and wanted to unclip the back again and do more than rub ointment into her wounds.

Molly stared at Kujo, noting the way his nostrils flared whenever she moved. The man was a complete stranger. He could have done anything to her during the night, and no one would have been the wiser.

But he hadn’t.

She was at once delighted to know she could trust him, while disappointed he hadn’t even tried to squeeze one of her breasts or cup her sex.

Her core tightened, and an ache grew between her legs. She pulled the blanket up a little higher to cover her from the waist down.

The man couldn’t help he was hot and sexy. She found it hard to believe he’d been in the bed with her and she hadn’t been awake enough to do anything about it. She wanted to ask for a do-over so she might snuggle even closer and maybe taste his skin and touch him in some of his naughty places.

Heat filled her cheeks and rushed all the way out to the tips of her ears. She had to pull her mind out of the gutter, and quickly. The man was a loner, and she was invading his space. As soon she felt up to leaving, she would.

She yawned, covering her mouth with her hand. “Damned pills knock me out.”

“Then sleep. I’ll be back in a little while.

“I want to…” she yawned again, “come with you.”

“You’ll fall off the four-wheeler if you do.”

She tilted her chin. “Not if you hold onto me.”

He shook his head. “No. It’s too dangerous—even when you’re not drugged.”

She yawned again and tipped over onto the pillow. “If you insist. But don’t let anyone shoot at you. I kinda like having you around.” Molly closed her eyes. “I’ll only be asleep for a little while. When I wake up, I can help...”

“Rest.” His warm, rich voice coated her like chocolate syrup. “I’m leaving Six with you.”

“That’s nice,” she muttered and patted the side of the bed. “Come here, boy.”

Molly registered the sound of the dog’s toenails clicking across the floor. Six nudged her hand, pushing his head beneath it.

Molly scratched him behind his ears, and then patted the mattress beside her.

The dog eased up into the bed and stretched out, resting his furry body against hers.

“Traitor,” Kujo said.

Molly peeked from beneath her heavy eyelids. “He likes me.”

“You’re going to be hell on my retraining efforts.”

“Dogs were meant to be loved,” she said, wrinkling her nose and slipping her arm around Six’s neck.

“I’ll be back as soon as possible. Don’t go anywhere.”

“Oh, I’m not. And when I wake up, I’ll be as good as new,” Molly promised.

The door creaked open, sending a cool blast of mountain air into the warm cabin. As quickly as it opened, it closed again, leaving Molly and Six in silence.

“I hope he’ll be all right,” Molly said and snuggled against Six, falling into a deep sleep.