People and their unpredictable emotions terrified him. Until the Stanton family took him in, loved him for who he was, taught him to respect himself, he had no place where he fit in.
Trey suffered through years of name calling from his peers and worse, the man who was supposed to protect him. Useless was one of his father's kinder insults.
"Don't beat yourself up, Olivia. We all make mistakes."
Olivia wiped away her tears with an angry swipe of her hand.
"The second one flake of snow fell from the sky, I should have turned the car around—a borrowed car, by the way." Her breathing came faster. "I was foolish. Worse, I was careless. I knew better, but I was upset with my aunt and decided the best way to deal with her was to keep driving. My first attempt at payback and I fail—miserably."
"You wanted your aunt to worry about you?" Again, Trey understood the emotion. "A human reaction."
"Except I knew she wouldn't worry. Right now, Aunt Gayle is mad because I've inconvenienced her. She has plans, you see. Wants to marry me off to a man who will secure our family's financial future. Tonight, I was supposed to—"
"Sacrifice yourself on the altar of greed?"
Olivia shrugged. Her gaze darted away, telling Trey his guess was close enough. Rage boiled in his gut. What the hell was wrong with her aunt? He was familiar with the money first attitude. To some people, human beings—even family—came in a distant second to the size of their bank accounts.
Olivia chewed her bottom lip, a frown between her brows. When she spoke again, her voice was stronger. But her gaze was fixed on the fireplace as if she couldn't bring herself to look Trey in the eyes as she continued her story.
Trey handed Olivia the still-steaming mug of tea. Absently, she gave him a smile of thanks. She seemed in her own world, as if she needed to talk about her problems but wasn't conscious her private thoughts were shared with a relative stranger.
"Don't get me wrong. On some level, I understand Aunt Gayle's motivation." Olivia sipped from the mug and sighed. "She took me in when my mother passed away. I was seven, my father was never in the picture. A widow, she already had two children to support. All I came with was another mouth to feed and a few dollars from the piddly life insurance paid out by the paper factory my mother worked at from the time she was seventeen."
"Did your mother leave the insurance money to your aunt?"
"Mom didn't have a will."
But Olivia's mother did leave her an inheritance. Money that should have been left in trust until she turned eighteen. Only a shady lawyer would allow the aunt access. Since Olivia didn't seem upset by her loss, Trey didn't push the point.
"We had enough to eat. Aunt Gayle kept us clothed. But some months I know she worried if she would be able to pay all the bills."
"Yet, you did get by."
"Yes." Olivia frowned. "I'm two years older than my twin cousins and I felt responsible."
Though Trey knew nothing about Olivia's situation beyond the brief details she'd shared, he felt a need to defend her. Crazy? Maybe. Irrational? Probably. Yet, he couldn't help the need he felt to defend her—to protect her.
"You were a kid," Trey assured her. "You weren't responsible then or now. What are you? Nineteen? Twenty?"
"Twenty-five."
Trey silently gave a sigh of relief. Twenty was too young. Not that he planned to act on the attraction. But at thirty-two, the revised difference made him feel less like a dirty old man.
"Jim is nice enough," Olivia continued, thankfully unaware of Trey's wayward thoughts.
"Jim?"
"The man my aunt wants me to marry."
"Oh. Jim." Trey hated the guy already. Searching for the neutrality he didn't feel, he asked, "Are you willing to settle for nice?"
"Came close." Covering her mouth with the blanket, Olivia yawned. Her eyes drooped as if she could barely keep them open. "Wanted to make everyone happy."
What about you? Trey wanted to demand. Don't you deserve happiness? When Olivia yawned again, he took the mug from her hand and scooped her into his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder without protest. He needed to school her on the dangers of giving her trust too easily.
As he carried Olivia up the stairs, he rehearsed the lecture in his head but knew with one look into her silver-blue eyes, he'd keep his warning to himself—at least until they said their goodbyes. For now, he liked the way she relaxed in his arms, certain his intentions were honorable.
Olivia's sweetly naïve belief in his goodness was a nice boost to his ego. If for the short time they were together, she wanted to see him as her gallant knight, he would do his best to polish the shine on his armor.
"Where are we going?" she asked in a sleepy voice.
"You're going to bed."
"Okay."
Before Trey turned the knob on the guest bedroom door, Olivia was asleep. The trauma of her ordeal had finally caught up with her. Touching her hand, he decided she had warmed up sufficiently to do without the layers of blankets he wrapped her in when they first arrived at the cabin.
With little fuss, Trey stripped Olivia down to the long underwear and one pair of socks, then tucked her in.
"Join me?" Olivia whispered, her eyes closed.
Trey wondered if she was always so friendly when half out of her head. Or did he bring out a side she normally kept hidden? No way to know, but he liked the idea. A lot.
Either way, he could easily imagine the blush on her cheeks when she remembered the invitation.
"Maybe another time."
"Promise?"
Hell, no. Trey rubbed his neck and chuckled. Now, if Olivia asked when she was fully recovered and knew what she really wanted, his answer to both questions would be different.
"Sleep."
"Okay."
Trey left the door ajar in case Olivia awakened and needed his help. He checked his watch. He was almost positive she didn't have a concussion, but he wasn't willing to take any chances. In an hour, he'd wake her.
In the meantime, Trey decided to start dinner. Even if Olivia wasn't hungry, she had to eat. If he were lucky, over a nice juicy steak, she would fill in the rest of the details as to why she was out in the snow. And if she planned to cave to her aunt's demands.
Marry Jim? Trey didn't like the idea one bit. None of your business, he reminded himself again
Absently, he took two baking potatoes from his immaculately kept pantry and set about the task of preparing dinner. As he salted the steaks and chopped the salad, Trey couldn't get Olivia out of his head. He understood his feelings toward her weren't logical.
Then again, right now, Trey should have been stretched out in front of the fire with only Carmichael for company. Instead, there was Olivia, the woman who, completely ill-prepared, had wandered into the blizzard of the decade, fallen and hit her head, and would have died if not for him and his dog.
Trey challenged anyone to mine an ounce of logic from what in his estimation was a completely illogical situation.
The hell with Olivia's aunt or her maybe fiancé. Crazy or not, Olivia mattered to him. They were snowed in. Two people, alone, who weren't going anywhere anytime soon.
Call it fate, or karma, or plain dumb luck, Trey didn't care. Once upon a time, he worried about the future until he reached a point where he didn't want to go on. Now, he embraced each moment.
Olivia was a gift. A few days early for Christmas, but Trey wasn't about to quibble. She would probably be gone before the twenty-fifth. While she was here, he would think of her company as a welcome, but temporary present to enjoy, then let go.
What would Olivia think if she could read his thoughts? Trey chuckled as he put the potatoes into the oven. Luckily, unless she was a mind reader, he would never have to find out.
CHAPTER THREE
~~~~
OLIVIA QUIETLY MADE her way down the stairs. Pausing halfway, she tugged at the cloth belt around her waist, making certain the
length was tied tight. She found the wonderfully soft robe in the bedroom closet after a quick shower. The heavenly spray of water cleared most of the cobwebs from her brain.
Other than a tender bump on the side of her head and a few minor aches and pains, she felt surprisingly good—better than she deserved, truth be told. The stupidity of what she'd done would haunt her for a long, long time. Just as, for the rest of her life, she would give thanks every day to the good fortune that saved her. Or rather, the good man and his dog.
Olivia's cheeks heated as the memory of the way she acted flooded her brain in big, bold, embarrassing color. The way she spoke to the man, the way she acted. Trey? Yes, he said his name was Trey. She kissed him. A total stranger. Worse, she invited him to join her in bed.
What if Trey hadn't been a gentleman? What if he were the kind of man to take advantage while she wasn't in her right mind? Olivia shuddered to think what might have happened. Her rescuer was a good man. Seemed once more, luck was on her side.
Question was, how would she ever face him without sinking into the floor from utter mortification?
Olivia took a deep breath and reminded herself of the resolution she made the day before. After a lifetime of playing the meek little mouse, she was determined to take charge, be strong, and be bold.
Shoulders back, Olivia marched down to the living room, slowing as her new-found attitude began to waver with each step. Perhaps bold was a little too much to hope for. After all, change didn't happen overnight. If she could get through her first fully lucid meeting with Trey without stumbling over her own tongue the way she usually did around a stranger, she would be satisfied.
"Woof."
The bark came from one of the largest dogs Olivia had ever seen—at least in person.
Grinning, she fell to her knees and greeted the gentle giant with a hug. She wasn't great with humans, but where dogs were concerned, she wore her emotions on her sleeve.
"Carmichael, right?" Olivia interpreted the lick he bestowed on her hand as a yes. "Nice to meet you—again."
The dog leaned his considerable weight against Olivia's side, a sign of affection she happily accepted. Scratching her new friend behind the ear, she let her gaze wander around the room.
The style was simple and clean. Wooden beams lined the ceiling. The walls were painted a light moss-green, a color scheme accented throughout the room. The oak floors gleamed in the light of the roaring fire. Everything was clean, neat, and well-maintained.
"Trey takes pride in his home," Olivia observed with pleasure. "Unless he has a housekeeper. Or, a wife?"
She turned to Carmichael as if she expected the dog to set her mind at ease. He simply stared back.
"I know," Olivia laughed. "If I have a question, I should ask Trey."
"Ask me what?"
Olivia gasped in surprise, her gaze darting to the other side of the room to where Trey stood, a quizzical look on his face. Gorgeous, was her first thought. The man literally took her breath away. Way out of her league.
"I didn't— I mean, I wasn't—"
Olivia took a calming breath, cursing herself under her breath. She spent the last year trying to cure herself of the tendency to stammer. For the most part, she succeeded. However, a lifetime habit was hard to break.
Each day before she left the house, she looked in the mirror and told herself she was a strong, independent, self-confident woman. Little by little, she began to believe the hype. If only she could rid herself of the familiar, nagging voice in her head that told her everything about her new self, was a lie.
Trouble was, Olivia couldn't outrun her doubts because the voice of doom slept just down the hall. Aunt Gayle was always there as a reminder.
You aren't smart enough, or clever enough, or pretty enough. Consider yourself lucky Jim Dillard wants to marry you because, with your mousy looks, you aren't likely to find another man who is.
"I'd rather not marry at all than settle for a man I don't love."
Olivia was so familiar with the same old argument, she spoke without thinking. Then, eyes wide with horror, she slapped a hand over her mouth as if she could call the words back. The look of surprise in Trey's eyes told her he heard everything.
Heat spread over Olivia's face as silently she prayed for the floor to open and suck her in.
"Damn straight," Trey nodded. He didn't seem to think anything odd about her extraneous comment. "Love matters. A lot. As does respect and friendship."
"Are you?" Olivia stopped and gathered her thoughts. "Married, I mean."
"No." He shrugged. "Hard to find a woman who wants to bury herself in the wilderness with a park ranger. Not that I've done much looking."
Olivia imagined if Trey let out the word he wanted a wife, women would line up at his door. Whether the relationship would survive a long, lonely winter was another matter. With him to cuddle, she put the odds on the high side in his favor.
"I was about to check on you again." Trey crouched, his gaze steady and searching. "How are you feeling? Headache? Nausea?"
He woke her twice, Olivia remembered. Both times, he asked her name after he checked her eyes. The best part was when he smiled, carefully tucked the covers around her, and told her if she needed anything, he was only a shout away. The idea of Trey close by made her feel safe. Within seconds, she fell back to sleep.
"I feel good."
"Do you have family or friends who are worried you haven't returned? Someone must have called 911 by now."
Aunt Gayle wasn't a worrier—not where her niece was concerned. To be fair, until today, Olivia was too predictable to warrant concern.
In a million years, no one who knew Olivia would imagine a scenario where she drove into a snowstorm, crashed the rental car into a ditch, and wandered into the blizzard.
"My aunt will assume I was smart enough to find a safe place to ride out the storm. And she'd be right." With an ironic twist of her lips, she looked around the room. "I was lucky. Which is more than I deserve."
"What do you think you deserve?" Trey asked with a puzzled frown.
"Some reminder of my stupidity."
Olivia could have added that, after her reckless behavior, she sure as heck shouldn't be in a warm, dry home in the care of a kind, handsome man.
"Don't beat yourself up." Trey's eyes twinkled with good humor as he gently touched the lump on the side of her head. "The rock you fell on gave you enough of a whack—in case you need a reminder."
The urge to lean into Trey's gentle touch caught Olivia off guard. If she were bold and sure—the kind of woman she longed to be—she would act on the impulse and let him decide the next move. Instead, she pulled away and for the sake of her ego, imagined she saw a flare of regret in the depths of his warm, dark gaze.
As his hand fell away, Trey's fingers brushed against her still damp hair.
"You took a shower."
"Sorry." Olivia frowned. "I should have asked first."
"You can shower every hour on the hour if you like," he assured her as he moved to toss another log on the fire. "And you don't have to ask. You're my guest. Treat my home as you would your own."
The house Olivia lived in since she was nine years old had never been a home. Not really. Her gratitude plus her aunt's sense of obligation didn't add up to the family she always longed for. However, if she tried to explain, she was afraid she would sound spiteful. Or worse, pitiful.
Olivia shook off her dark thoughts. If she allowed herself to set aside the less than stellar circumstances of her arrival, she could focus her attention on her host. Never, never, had she found herself alone with a man as handsome as Trey. Even better, he was nice. She was certain the combination happened all time. But in her experience, the two rarely went together.
Determined not to waste the opportunity, Olivia pushed aside her shyness and let her inquisitive mind take over
"A shower every hour? Won't you run out of water?"
"We're sa
fe. I have a system set up out back that catches and converts rain. Lasts most of the summer until fall rain when the process starts again. And," he added, "the property sits on an underground spring."
Olivia's first instinct was to ask if she could study the water conservation unit. Unfortunately, the heavy snow meant her curiosity would go unsatisfied. Disappointed, but not deterred, she asked her next question.
"What if the power goes out?"
"With all the snow, most people are probably in the dark already. Luckily for us, the cabin has been off the grid for years. Solar panels on the roof gather and store all the energy necessary. In a pinch, I have a generator."
"You'd be a great spokesperson for alternative energy."
"Think so?" Trey didn't seem convinced.
"Absolutely. Your looks alone would make every woman in the country clamor to convert to solar power."
Trey grinned, and Olivia blushed—damn fair skin. Normally, she was better at censoring her thoughts. She could blame the bump on her head, but she knew better. Something about him had her senses on high alert. Unfamiliar with the rampant release of so many hormones all at once, she needed to watch what she said before she embarrassed herself even more.
"Are you hungry?"
Sweet man, she thought. Trey let her comment go unanswered. She could have kissed him. The image of her doing exactly that popped into her head and her blush deepened from a light pink to a deep crimson.
"I am so sorry," she stammered.
"Because…?"
The confused look on Trey's face gave Olivia the perfect out. She could have made something up. Or let the subject drop, no harm, no foul. Trouble was, she knew herself. The need to confess wouldn't go away simply because she kept her sin to herself.
"I kissed you. And said some really inappropriate things."
"Ah."
Trey rubbed his chin, his hand covering his mouth as he tried—with little success—to hide his amusement. Olivia didn't know whether to be relieved or ticked off.
"I forced my attention on you, begged you to come to bed with me. Am I really so pathetic you want to laugh at me?"
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