Pan knew who stood next to her bed and she forced herself to breathe. What she wanted to do was roll over on her back and look at him. Have him hold her again; keep the nightmares at bay.

Her mother had died in a car accident. Perci and their brother Phoenix had also almost died in that wreck. Not only could she not forget what had happened to her, but the grief for her mother was incredibly strong at the moment.

Life had been so much easier before they'd lost her mother.

Levi was almost at the door. In that instant, the last thing she wanted him to do was leave.

"Levi? "

He jerked around. "Did I wake you, honey?"

"I don't know, I haven't slept all that great anyway. What are you doing here?"

"Checking on you."

"Oh." She didn't know what to say to a man in her bedroom. It was definitely not something she had ever experienced before. “I’m sore, but I’ll be ok.”

“I know. I just...you scared me today.” He walked back to the bed and just stood there. Pan pulled the blankets closer, then reached out with one hand and flipped on the lamp.

He wore thin gray shorts and the rest of him was completely bare.

Levi took perfect cowboy body to the extremes. She had never noticed a man’s chest quite the same way before. A small thin line of dark hair ran down his abs and the fingers on her uninjured hand actually curled. She wanted to touch him.

She wanted to touch.

Pan didn’t know if it was sore and vulnerable and it was hard to keep on the plan or because it was something about him. Because something in her had changed.

The one thing she really remembered about the accident was opening her eyes and seeing him. He’d been right there, and things hadn’t seemed quite so terrifying.

Or maybe she had only been dreaming that.

“I scared me, too.” What was she supposed to say now? Levi sank down onto the bed next to her, sending her rolling toward his greater weight.

He felt so warm, so real. The fingers of her uninjured hand were on top of the blanket. Levi wrapped his hand around hers. “I’m glad you’re here with me, honey. I’m sorry if I woke you up. In my head I know you’re ok, but as soon as I close my eyes...”

“Yeah. Thank you. For being out there. Whenever I think of Parker out there, being so scared like that. He’s still nervous in a car anyway because of what happened to our mother. This...I should have seen the other car faster.”

“Hey! Not your fault. Parker said the black car was just there out of nowhere. You’re both safe now.” He turned slightly, still holding her fingers. “And I finally got you right where I want you.”

“What?”

He grinned that trademark Levi Masterson grin. “I have you in my lair, honey. Maybe not in my bed exactly, but close enough. I’m going to work on moving you a few yards down the hall—toward my room, though, not Nate’s. Eventually, I’ll get you on my sheets. They’re silk.”

“I know what your sheets are made of—I changed them yesterday morning. I’m not interested in being the latest Levi Masterson conquest.” Levi liked women—everyone in the county knew it. Pan couldn’t be just a passing thing to him. She just…couldn’t.

“Honey, you are not some conquest. You never will be. Like I said before, I haven’t even thought about another woman since that day we almost lost Phoebe and Joel. I haven’t been able to.”

“Why?” That day had been horrible, terrifying. One of the worst ones in her adult life. If he hadn’t been there with her and the boys she would have fractured into millions of pieces. He had just been there.

And she hadn’t been able to shake him since.

“Hell, I don’t know. You certainly aren’t an easy woman. You’re really quite contrary.” He pulled her hand up to his mouth, and kissed her palm lightly. “Most women are a bit more manageable.”

She laughed when he grinned at her. “Levi, you’re an idiot.”

“Over you, yes.” He tucked her hand back under the blanket, then waggled his eyebrows at her. “Love the outfit, honey. That one of Nate’s t-shirts?”

“Yes.” She tried not to blush, but all she had on was his brother’s shirt. Phoebe had snagged it for her from the fresh laundry Pan had left on the counter in the laundry room. Her sisters hadn’t even helped her into fresh underwear. She was practically as naked as she could get.

“Hmmm. No—on second thought, I think it’s mine. Nate has a similar one, but his has blue lettering. My shirt, my lair, my woman. I like that. Symmetrical, and all.” He toyed with the soft cotton sleeve, those long warm fingers of his brushing her skin lightly.

“Go away.” No. Don’t go. Stay. Pan didn’t quite know what she wanted at the moment. “I’m not your woman. It doesn’t work that way.”

“Of course it does. I’m a Masterson. You’re a Tyler. We’re kind of a given. Or don’t you listen to town gossip?”

“That is all your fault. And I still haven’t forgiven you.” He’d told his friends she was off limits once. And they’d all just run with the idea. Some had even teased her about it. At the grocery store, the mechanic—who was a Tyler cousin, the gas station, people everywhere had just acted like she was Levi’s girl. Because he had said she was.

Never mind the fact that she wasn’t interested in dating anyone at the moment—they’d all just believed him when he’d said the two of them had something going.

A woman wanted a choice.

And the idiot had yet to apologize for embarrassing her like that. She strongly suspected Levi never would.

He rolled back on the bed, quickly slipping under the blanket next to her. He rested his head on her pillow--but kept his hands to himself, mostly. One might have strayed, a little. Pan wasn’t totally sure.

“You will eventually. I’m kind of cute. Or so I’ve been told.”

Levi pulled the quilt up around her shoulders, then brushed his fingers through her hair. “One little kiss, and then I’ll leave you alone. For the rest of the night.”

“You’re getting up in an hour to go milk Bessie.”

“So give me a snuggle before I have to go out into the cold.”

“I washed your thermal underwear yesterday. I think you’ll be just fine.” They sounded so stupidly domestic, didn’t they? Pan wanted to fight that idea—but she also just wanted to cuddle up next to him.

“How about at least a hug? Something to help chase the nightmares away?” One hand snuck around her waist and practically scorched her skin. One mostly bare leg slid alongside hers. He scooted closer, and then he was right there, wrapped around her. Pan felt every hard muscle of him pressed against her. She shivered.

He felt so hot against her. She hadn’t expected him to put out so much literal heat. Nor had she expected to want to just curl up like a cat next to him. To just...snuggle.

Pandora Claire Tyler never snuggled up to men. Period. So what made this one so different? So much of a plan-wrecker?

She didn’t have a clue. But Pan couldn’t seem to force herself to make him let her go. Her body relaxed against his and she pressed closer. Or maybe he did. She wasn’t certain, and what did it matter, really? No one but the two of them were ever going to know what happened between them in this bed. Unless she told them. Or he did. Which she somehow doubted he ever would.

His arms were strong around her, warm and safe, and exactly what she needed.

He brushed his lips against her forehead. “Go back to sleep. I’ll just hold you for a while. Just for a while. You can go back to resisting me in the morning.”

“It is morning, Levi.”

“Is it? Then go back to sleep and I’ll take care of everything today.”

Pan did just that, snuggled against his chest. Like it was easy, or something.