Hunter cringed as she, Austin, Will and Amber trudged their way into the garage from the side door. And the award for the most awkward afternoon goes to: Austin and Hunter! They were all damp, with rosy cheeks, runny noses and snow on their lashes, having been accosted by a brief storm and dump of the white stuff on their way back from snowshoeing. It’d been Amber’s idea. She said she was feeling restless and fat. Eating food all day long, drinking booze all night but not exercising nearly as much as she was used to. The woman apparently went to kickboxing five nights a week. Hunter had giggled at the image of the tiny redheaded sprite be-bopping around swinging punches and trying to kick guys twice her size in the head. Tiny person, big personality.

After digging around in the garage for nearly half an hour, Amber and Hunter had uncovered four sets of snowshoes, which all seemed to be in working order. Juney and Rowan were elbow-deep in preparing dinner and had declined to venture out into the wilderness with “tennis rackets” on their feet, which meant unless Austin and Hunter wanted to sit around the cabin all afternoon watching the two lovebirds cuddle and giggle in the kitchen, flaunting their lust, they needed to get out.

Only it’d been like a goddamn double-edged sword. Because Will and Amber were equally disgustingly affectionate, holding hands, laughing, pushing each other playfully. It was enough to make Hunter sick . . . with envy.

“All right, you two little lost lambs,” Will said with a chuckle as they had made their way through the snow. The trail was eerily quiet. Nothing but the sounds of their feet in the snow and their breath making warm fog in the air. The clouds hung low and gray too, threatening more snow. “We’re going to go, uh, walk ahead over here for a bit. Check out this part of the trail. You two . . . ” He grunted. “You two stay put.”

Hunter rolled her eyes as Will grabbed Amber’s hand and pulled her down a side trail. They disappeared around a bend. The heavy snow-laden branches of the evergreen trees quickly hid their bright ski jackets.

“They’re not going to . . . ?” Austin asked from behind her.

Hunter spun around to face him. “Yes, I believe they are.”

“B-but . . . ”

“I hope his dick gets frostbite,” she said heatedly.

“If they’re having sex, that’s unlikely. The friction alone should generate enough heat to ward off any frostbite. And then there’s the fact that he would be inside Amber, and the human body, even when outside in the cold, is ninety-eight point six degrees, give or take.”

Hunter’s mouth hung open.

Austin noted the look on her face, and his eyes quickly fell to his feet. “You were kidding.”

“Yes.”

He kicked at a clump of snow. “I wonder if Juney and Rowan are engaged in the exact same thing. Though hopefully not on the counter where they’re making our dinner. I know it’s not a restaurant, but that’s a huge health-code violation.”

“Do you think about what comes out of your mouth before you say it?” she asked. There wasn’t exactly accusation in her tone, but Hunter was finding herself a little irritated with Austin. He was so awkward around her, and yet she hadn’t given him any reason to be.

He swallowed. “Sometimes.”

“Hmm.”

“But not all the time.”

“Hmm.”

“I’m sorry.”

She shook her head and let out a defeated sigh. She needed this guy to see her as normal. See her as the girl next door, not some untouchable millionaire bombshell. She rested her gloved hand on his arm. “Don’t be. It’s who you are. And I happen to think who you are is charming. A little dorky, but charming. Honesty can be refreshing.”

Austin’s gaze flew back up to hers. Even through all the layers, Hunter knew her nipples were tight, and the heat that generated low in her belly made her chest break out into a sudden sweat. Without even trying, the man could give her the most scorching looks. Stripping and penetrating.

“So . . . ” He cleared his throat. “Like Juney’s real name is Juniper, but she goes by Juney, do you have a nickname? Do people call you Hunny?”

She exhaled a laugh through her nose. “Nope. You’re the first.”

“Oh.”

Tired and not wanting to stand any longer, Hunter plopped herself down into the snow. It sucked that things with Austin were so uncomfortable. That first day when they were all sitting around the kitchen and living room getting to know one another had been the best. He’d clammed up later that evening when they were alone, then there was that awkward bit in the hallway after Sam had left. And he rarely smiled, at least not at Hunter. But when he did, he took her breath away.

Austin sat down in the snow across from her, and the silence between them grew to a deafening shriek. Should she say something to him? Ask him more questions about his life, his work? Ask him about his family?

“So, um, any siblings?”

He nodded. “A sister. She’s twelve years younger.”

And . . . ? Come on, dude, give me something. Add to the conversation.

“And are you close?”

He shook his head. “No. Age gap is too big. I left home when she was four.”

“Oh.”

Nothing.

“Which car company are you working for? You mentioned earlier you and Reginald Carruthers were working on a project for a big car company. Or is it top secret?”

“It’s top secret.”

Warm breath wafted out and up into the ether as she let out a big huff through her nose. The guy was killing her.

Come on, dude, talk to me.

“But if you’re good at rhyming . . . ”

Hunter sat up straight. If her butt wasn’t slowly starting to freeze, she might say she was on pins and needles. She loved puzzles and poems, riddles and mysteries.

His lip turned up at the corner into a naughty little smirk. Like a high school girl or devoted church parishioner getting ready to dish the dirty deets. “It might . . . I’m not saying it does, but it might rhyme with Howdy.”

Her mouth twitched and then finally the smile broke free. “Howdy, hey?”

He nodded, his green-gold eyes glowing even though the rest of his face remained stoic and innocent. “But I’m not saying that it is for sure. Only that it might be. It could also rhyme with Ward, or Moyota, or Wee Nem Bubble Screw.”

Hunter burst out laughing. “Wee Nem Bubble Screw?”

“Yeah, you’ve heard of it?”

“Perhaps. Is that who your project is for?”

Austin’s smile made the butterflies in her belly wake up. “Maybe. Or it might be Howdy.”

“Hmm. Well, I drive a Howdy. I traded in my Wee Nem Bubble Screw earlier this year, loved it.”

“I’ve always wanted an M5.”

“Oh, does Wee Nem Bubble Screw label their cars the same way as BMW?” she teased.

Another big smile.

Why couldn’t he be this charismatic and fun all the time? They were chatting, laughing, teasing. Was it all in Hunter’s head that they had chemistry? Was she deluding herself?

Suddenly, Austin’s smile faded, replaced with immediate panic, and he lunged at her. “Look out!” He leaped across the trail in the snow and tackled Hunter to the ground, falling on top of her. Less than a second later the whizz and rumble of a snowmobile going Mach-1 filled her ears as she fought to breathe beneath the big hunk of a man on top of her. The frigid rush of air from the speed of the vehicle brushed across her face, and a rampant chill coursed through her body. She’d nearly been hit. Austin had saved her.

“Y-you okay?” he asked, pushing himself up on his hands and gazing down at her.

She took a couple of huge breaths; he’d knocked the wind right out of her, and now she was struggling to get enough air in again. His eyes squinted, and then horror streaked across his face.

“Hunter! Are you okay?”

All she could do was nod and blink.

Using his gloved hand, he gently wiped snow from her face, his own face still in full-on panic mode. She gazed up at him, allowing him to take care of her, and despite the circumstances, his weight on top of her felt good. Really good.

When he finished clearing off the flurries, his eyes fell back on hers. “You’re all right?”

She nodded again and blinked a few times. “I think so. Thank you.”

“All right, you two,” Will’s voice behind them boomed. “Well, that’s a start. Though it’d be nice if you were only partially dressed.”

Austin helped Hunter sit up. She was still panting, and her heart was threatening to pump itself clear out of her body. Will stalked toward them on the side trail. He pushed a big branch out of his way and held it up so Amber could duck under. Color infused her cheekbones, and her hazel eyes were bright.

“And here I’d hoped we’d come back and find you two tangled up half-naked in a snow bank. Melting the flurries with your fiery passion. We can give you more time if you need it,” Will teased.

Hunter shot him a look that said, “fucking drop it.” “I was almost run over by a snowmobile,” she said. “Austin pushed me out of the way in the nick of time.”

Amber’s mouth dropped open. “Holy crap. You okay?”

She nodded. “Yeah, a little rattled, but otherwise, I’m okay.”

Flurries fluttered down around them. The flakes were huge and thick. Will looked up into the sky, the white flakes stark against his dark skin. “I think we should head back. It’s getting dark, and if it starts to cover our tracks, we could be in trouble.”

Everyone nodded, and Hunter pushed herself to her feet and fell in line behind Amber. She turned around to face Austin. “Thank you. I could have been a frozen pancake.”

He smiled, his lip lopsided and kind of sad. Then he quickly averted his gaze and looked down at the back of Hunter’s boots. “You’re welcome.”

The butterflies in Hunter’s belly, the ones that had been laughing and dancing when they’d been joking earlier about car companies, suddenly all dropped into a frozen heap, their wings covered in frost while their little jaws chattered and trembled as they kept asking, “Why?”

“Well, that was fun!” Amber said with a contented sigh as she shrugged out of her ski jacket and hung it up over the heater Will turned on once they all got back to the cabin. “I didn’t think I’d like snowshoeing, but . . . ” Will flashed her a big grin. “I think it might be one of my new favorite sports.”

Will growled, then reached over and cupped her face. “Mine too, Little Red.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Hunter grumbled, ditching her boots, snow pants and finally her coat, hanging them up on the rack. She stomped toward the garage door and opened it, her good mood from earlier having flown the coop. She’d been having a great time with Austin. They’d laughed and chatted. Granted, the conversation had been rather one-sided, with her asking most of the questions, but at least he’d answered them. It was a step in the right direction. Then she’d nearly died, and he’d saved her. Another plus (well, kind of). And then all of a sudden, as soon as Amber and Will returned from their frozen backwoods tryst, Austin had zipped his lip and hadn’t said a peep to her since.

Merry fucking Christmas.

Amber was tight on her heels as Hunter exited the garage, followed by Will.

Shaking her head and muttering the word “wine” under her breath, Hunter headed toward the kitchen, only to stop short at the sight before her.

“Oh, shit! Fuck! Oh, sorry!”

Rowan’s bare ass and one of Juney’s nipples were visible between his teeth as he pushed her up against the fridge, hammering hard and fast. Juney’s eyes were closed and her head thrown back as she bit her lip and pulled on the ends of Rowan’s blond hair.

Amber bumped into Hunter’s back. “What? Oh!”

“What?” Will asked. “Damn.”

“What is it?” Austin asked.

“Nothing for you to see, little man,” Will said, turning around and ushering Austin down the hallway toward the bedrooms.

But the lovers’ trance was broken.

“Oh crap!” Juney’s voice, hoarse and sexy and full of remorse—and pleasure—chased them all down the hallway. “Sorry, guys.”

“It’s okay,” Amber called back. “Finish what you were doing.”

“You heard them,” Rowan said with a throaty chuckle.

“Oh, be quiet.” Juney laughed.

But Hunter didn’t hear anything else. Amber and Will retreated to Amber’s room, Austin to his, and with one last look of longing at Austin’s closed bedroom door, Hunter ducked inside her own room and shut the door.