Baby It's Cold Outside

by Heidi Rice

  …

  Why are you so frightened of the dark?

  The question registered in Ryder’s brain and hovered on the tip of his tongue, but as her gaze darted away a second time and the flags of color on her cheeks became radioactive, he stopped himself from asking. Even though the need to know suddenly felt like a lot more than curiosity.

  Maybe it had to do with the way she’d clung to him as if her life depended on it, or maybe it had been the violent tremors racking her body, or even just the desperate humming, but as they’d stood together in the darkness, all his protective instincts had come charging to the fore—her valiant struggle to master her fear touching a place deep inside that no other person had ever touched, except Gully.

  “I should probably head out,” he said, and noticed how the stiff line of her shoulders slumped, he guessed with relief because he hadn’t asked for an explanation.

  “Yes, me too,” she replied, a little awkwardly. “Would you mind waiting a minute while I go and change? My clothes should be dry by now.”

  She said it without inflection, but he noticed the tug of her teeth on her bottom lip and knew she didn’t want to be left alone in case the lights went out again.

  “Do you have to change?” he asked trying to lighten the mood. “I’ve gotten kind of attached to the lap-dancing leprechaun look.”

  She peered at him through her lashes, and her lips twitched. “I told you, it’s not a leprechaun outfit,” she said, the small smile warming her eyes and wiping the pinched expression from her face. “I’m Santa’s lap-dancing elf, remember?”

  He chuckled as she disappeared through the exit marked EMPLOYEES ONLY.

  Chapter Five

  Damp wool clung to Kate’s legs as she concentrated on not looking at Ryder Sinclair and getting down the twelve flights of stairs to the store’s employee exit without breaking an ankle.

  Silly to feel as if they’d shared something important. He might have a more complex personality than she’d given him credit for and be—well, extremely attractive if you liked the rough-and-ready look, but tomorrow she’d see this whole experience as nothing more than a lesson in not making snap judgments about people. She was sure of it.

  He held the fire door open at the bottom of the stairwell, and she walked into the long utility corridor that led to the loading bay and Charles’s security station. The shadows were a little unnerving. She steeled herself to ignore them, but then one of the strip lights flickered as they passed and her breath caught.

  Ryder’s hand folded over hers. “We’re almost there,” he said, as if there was nothing at all untoward about a grown woman flinching at the prospect of the darkness.

  Twin tides of gratitude and embarrassment washed over her as she held on to him.

  Her breathing had evened out when they arrived at the security station, but she couldn’t quite let go of Ryder’s hand, even though she felt foolish.

  Charles signaled them but continued to talk in hushed tones into his phone. Kate noticed that the security monitors above his desk were blank, obviously another casualty of the blackout.

  “Mr. Ryder, Ms. Braithwaite, I’m glad you came down,” Charles said after he disconnected the call.

  “We’re heading out, Charles,” Ryder said. “If you’ll open the security door we can get out of your hair.”

  Charles shook his head, a slightly pitying look crossing his face. “Don’t think you’ll be going anywhere now. Blizzard hit an hour ago. Just been speaking to the local dispatch. They say anyone on the premises should stay here until further notice.”

  Ryder swore softly and let go of Kate’s hand to thrust his fingers through his hair.

  Kate gaped. “But that’s ridiculous,” she said as both men turned to stare at her. “We’re in the middle of Manhattan; I can walk home from here in twenty minutes.”

  “Yeah, right,” Ryder said, as if she were an imbecile.

  Charles levered himself out of his seat and beckoned her forward. “Come have a look at this, Ms. Braithwaite,” he murmured as he headed to the employee door.

  As he inched open the door, freezing air blasted her, chilling her to the bone as it hit her damp clothing. Kate’s vision blurred at the sight of swirling impenetrable snow and drifts already several feet high where there had been nothing but large puddles before. Charles needed Ryder’s help to slam the heavy door shut.

  She wrapped her arms around her waist, her whole body shuddering. “But that’s impossible. How could that much snow have fallen in the space of an hour?”

  “This is a major weather event, ma’am,” Charles said, wearily. “The emergency services are operating, and we’ll all be fine. But nobody should be out in it unless they need to be. That’s the advice I’ve been given.”

  “But we can’t stay here indefinitely,” Kate said, her throat closing on the pulse of panic.

  She needed to get home, to the security of her apartment, where she had food and a bed, and dry clothes and a hot shower—and several emergency light sources. And there would be no more disturbing thoughts about the man standing next to her.

  “Maybe I could get one of the other security guards to escort me,” she suggested, knowing that Charles supervised a team of three or four burly guys who patrolled the store during the night. “If that’s not too much trouble.”

  “I don’t think so, Miss,” he said. “I sent them home as soon as it hit.”

  “Who gave you the authority to do that?” she said, knowing she was starting to sound a little shrill, but not quite able to stop herself.

  Charles’s eyebrows rose up his forehead, but before she had the chance to apologize for the statement, Ryder butted in. “Don’t worry, Charles, I’ll take care of Miss Braithwaite,” he said, but the steely words sounded more threatening than comforting.

  “You don’t need to take care of me,” she said, annoyed with the proprietary tone. Helping her out upstairs with her minor meltdown didn’t suddenly make him her keeper. “I’m perfectly capable of…” she began, but the admonition trailed off when glacial blue eyes shot her a look that could burn through lead at fifty paces.

  What is he so miffed about?

  “How about you, Charles?” he inquired, pointedly ignoring her. “Have you got food? A place to sleep?”

  “Uh-huh, Alva made me too much lunch as usual, so I’ve got some left for my supper, and there’s a cot in the back.” He paused, jerking a worried look at Kate. “But maybe I should call dispatch and see if I can arrange transport for Ms. Braithwaite?”

  Feeling guilty about snapping at him and so grateful for the lifeline she almost wept, Kate began. “If you could, Charles, that would be…”

  Ryder grasped her hand, his viselike grip making the bones fuse together, and she yelped.

  “That’s not necessary, Charles. We’ll be fine.” With that, he began dragging her backward toward the door that led to the utility corridor.

  “If you’re sure, Mr. Ryder?” Charles sounded doubtful.

  “Now hang on a minute,” Kate said, seeing her lifeline disappearing as she struggled to release her hand from Ryder’s ironclad grip. “I’m not sure…”

  “We’ll see you in the morning, Charles,” Ryder said, effectively drowning out her protest as he slammed through the utility door and hauled her out after him.

  “Let go of my hand,” she demanded, trying to pry his fingers lose as he marched her down the corridor as if she were a rag doll. “I need to go back and talk to…”

  He swept her forward with an almighty tug. “The hell you will.”

  She stumbled into the wall, her mouth slack at his furious glare.

  Okay, that was a little more than miffed.

  “What the bloody hell is the matter with you?” she yelled back—the inexplicable temper tantrum starting to piss her off, too.

  “What’s the matter with me?” He towered over her, his face rigid with a fury she didn’t understand. “I’ll tell you what’s the matter with me, Princess Kat
herine.” He thumped his chest with the flat of his hand in a display worthy of an irate gorilla. “Charles Avenall has worked for this damn store for twenty-five years. He’s putting three kids through college on what amounts to not a whole lot more than minimum wage, so where the hell do you get off threatening him?”

  Shame at the memory of Charles’s face when she’d snapped at him flickered through her. But she ignored it. She hadn’t meant anything by it, and if Ryder had given her a moment to apologize…

  “I did not threaten him,” she hissed, her own temper sparking at being forced on the defensive. “I would never do anything…”

  “Yeah, I’ll bet,” he snarled, once again not letting her finish. “You’ve got how superior you think you are written all over your face.” He pinched her chin between his thumb and forefinger, lifting her face up as if for his inspection.

  She twisted her head out of his grasp, stunned not only by the sudden contact but the shot of awareness that went sprinting up her spine. “Don’t you dare touch me,” she managed through the riot of conflicting sensations.

  “I’ll dare what I damn well please.” He slapped his hand above her head, caging her against the wall in a bullying fashion that only made her more mad. “I’ve got news for you, Princess,” he said, his voice lowering to an ominous threat. “It’s working stiffs like Charles that made Sinclair’s what it is today. Not you and your fancy marketing ideas, or my old man and his boardroom full of fat, useless, stuck-up overpaid directors.”

  She could feel her cheeks flaming, astonished by the furious accusation.

  Yes, Charles was a vital part of what made Sinclair’s tick, but so was she and every other member of the staff. The thing that shocked her the most, though, was the utter contempt in his voice for the man who had fathered him. A man whose tireless work ethic and dedication to business she’d held in the highest possible esteem since moving to Manhattan in July. A six-month period during which she hadn’t seen hide nor hair of his son—who now saw fit to lecture her on the success of a business he knew sod all about.

  “It’s funny you should say that.” Her words dripped with sarcasm, her whole body shaking with a fury that now matched his. “Because the only useless, stuck-up, overpaid director I know of at Sinclair’s,” she continued, wishing she could add fat to the list but not quite able to, given the lean muscular physique only an inch from her nose, “is you!”

  His jaw tightened and something raw and aggressive flickered in his eyes, but just as she braced herself for the explosion and prepared to fire it straight back at him—preferably right between those glaring sapphire eyes—the lights went out.

  And they were plunged into darkness once more.

  Chapter Six

  “Shit!”

  Kate flinched at the hissed expletive—but her rage at Ryder Sinclair was already being consumed in the wave of panic.

  Two big hands settled on her hips, and she bucked in shock. “It’s okay, dammit. I’ve got you.”

  “D-don’t touch me,” she protested, hating his grudging sympathy. She pushed against his chest with trembling hands, desperate to cling to her indignation.

  “Stop fighting me.” He ignored her feeble attempt at bravery and dragged her into his arms. “Let me hold you,” he said, the tone tense. “You’re shaking.”

  He cradled the back of her head, tucked it under his chin.

  “I d-don’t need y-your help,” she said, the horrifying quiver in her voice calling her a liar.

  His hand flattened on her back, rubbing up and down. “Shut up.”

  She stopped struggling, her nails cutting into her palms as she fisted her hands, her teeth biting into her lip, and concentrated all her energy on stopping the silent scream echoing in her head from coming out of her mouth.

  Because she knew if she let that happen—she’d never be able to stop screaming.

  It felt like months, but could only have been a minute, before the electric hum sounded again. And the light returned.

  She released her fisted fingers and licked the metallic taste of blood off her lip, but stayed in his arms as she waited for the hysteria to subside.

  He stroked the slope of her spine to rest his hand on the swell of her bottom. “Why did you put the clothes back on if they’re still wet?”

  She pulled away and blinked up at his handsome face—gratitude now mixed with trepidation. How did you deal with a man who never said or did the expected? “I couldn’t very well walk home in that elf costume.”

  He gave his head a resigned shake, as if she’d said something nonsensical. “Here.” He pressed a gentle thumb to her mouth. “Your lip’s bleeding.”

  She took a tissue out of her pocket, then folded it over in her fingers, and stared down at it. Suddenly close to tears.

  It was all a bit too much. The breakup, spending Christmas alone, his disturbing presence, the blizzard, the pointless argument, the thought of being stuck here all night with the prospect of the lights going out at any second, and all the conflicting emotions she felt about a man she didn’t know, didn’t understand, but had somehow come to rely on.

  He took the tissue, tucked a knuckle under her chin, and lifted her head. Then wiped her mouth with a gentle stroke that had her heart clutching again. “Don’t cry, Katherine,” he said. “It’s a glitch in the generator—it most likely won’t happen again.”

  “I’m not crying,” she said, determined not to, now that he’d mentioned it.

  Hadn’t she been quite pathetic enough?

  He frowned slightly, and she had the strangest feeling he could read her mind. “You’ve got a phobia, it’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

  “It’s not a phobia.” Damn, he could read her mind.

  One dark eyebrow arched.

  “It’s not,” she protested. “It used to be a phobia when I was a child. But I’ve had some therapy since, and it’s been downgraded. It’s only a paranoid fear.”

  “Only?” he said, still looking skeptical. “What’s the difference?”

  “I used to get so upset I couldn’t stop screaming. I don’t do that anymore.”

  He curled his fingers around her elbow, pressed his thumb into the inside. The prickle of sensation migrated up her arm and across her chest.

  “Do you know what started it?” he asked softly.

  It was the question she’d been dreading, but somehow, with his hand cupping her elbow, and his expression puzzled rather than judgmental, answering it didn’t seem so terrible.

  “Yes.” She hesitated. She’d never told anyone but the therapist before, because she knew how weak and stupid the reason sounded. But he didn’t prompt, didn’t question, simply waited, his thumb lazily stroking, and in the end, the words just spilled out.

  “My mother used to leave me alone at night to go out—she was quite young when she had me. I was an accident and…” She paused, realizing she was probably giving him way too much information, but she didn’t want him to think her mother was a bad person. She’d simply been young and irresponsible. “She missed her social life after I was born. I was usually a good sleeper, but sometimes I’d wake up and get scared.” She shrugged. “Silly really. I don’t know how I ended up blowing it so far out of proportion.” She glanced at him, but his expression had become oddly unreadable. “But I suppose that’s the thing about phobias…paranoid fears,” she corrected herself. “They’re not rational. All you can do is learn to live with them.”

  He didn’t say anything for the longest time, but his forehead furrowed as if he were thinking hard about what she’d said. And he didn’t look too pleased about the information.

  She felt the tangle of nerves tie up in her stomach. He probably thought even less of her now than he had before. She should never have told him the truth. Why hadn’t she simply refused to answer the question? Why had she willfully exposed her most embarrassing secret to a virtual stranger? He’d accused her of being a princess, vain and selfish and superior, and he had even more ammunition no
w to support that theory.

  But just as her anxiety reached breaking point, he slung an arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick squeeze.

  “Okay, look,” he said, the tone a little stiff but not remotely contemptuous. “We should head up to the electrical department first for a couple of flashlights. So we’re all set if the generator goes again.” He led her toward the stairwell. “Then we need to find you some dry clothes.” He glanced down at her attire. “Unless of course you want to wear the lap-dancing elf outfit again. I certainly wouldn’t object.”

  “I’m not putting that on again,” she said, so relieved at the change of topic she felt almost giddy. “I looked ridiculous.”

  Giddy relief turned to giddy shock when his arm tightened and he murmured, “Katherine, you did not look ridiculous. You looked seriously hot.”

  The blush shot up her neck and set fire to her ears.

  “But if you’re dead-set against giving me any more cheap thrills,” he added, apparently oblivious to her embarrassment, “which I personally think is a little small of you, then I suggest we check out the lingerie department and find a compromise we can both live with as a fallback position.”

  “Um…” She stammered, her wits having completely deserted her. Was he flirting with her? And if he was, why was it making the giddy shock turn into a giddy thrill? “I’m not sure that’s appropriate…” She continued trying to find her indignation. Or at least a tiny iota of her usually very reliable common sense.

  “Katherine, we’re stranded in the middle of a major weather event here. Forget appropriate. The only benefit to a situation like this is that appropriate no longer applies.”

  It didn’t? “But I don’t…” she began.

  “So,” he cut off her scattered thoughts, “once we’ve got you suitably attired to both our satisfactions, then we should hit the grocery section and, after that, we need to find somewhere to bed down.”

  He steered her through the door to the stairwell, as her mind snagged on the prospect of finding somewhere “to bed down” with Ryder Sinclair—and the completely inappropriate shot of adrenaline that accompanied the thought.