Illuminated by Christine Pope

Author:Christine Pope [Pope, Christine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dark Valentine Press

Cam was acting so…normal, like they hadn’t just shared a couple of fairly intense kisses. Then again, what was he supposed to do? Go down on one knee and declare his undying love for her? They barely knew one another.

No, he’d poured a glass of water for each of them, then led her out to the lobby, where they could sit by the fire and watch the snow float down gently, just beginning to cover the deck outside and the landscape beyond. This snow seemed more determined than the flurries she’d experienced so far this season, and she wasn’t quite sure how she should feel about that. On the one hand, there was something very cozy about being here by the massive fireplace with its gleaming copper hood, knowing that you were warm and inside and away from the weather.

And not alone. She’d begun to think she would never see another human being, and then…

…and then along came Cameron. Besides being handsome and smart and resourceful, he really knew how to kiss. Strong, yet tender. Passionate without being overbearing. He smelled good, too, like wood smoke and pine trees and all the things she liked.

Even with all that, she wasn’t sure she liked the idea of the snowfall. Something about it seemed so final, as though they’d lost their last chance to get off this mountain before winter really set in. Sarah had been fairly sure she had enough food to support her through those long, cold months, but with two of them here? She’d have to redo all her calculations, and hope to hell she could make everything stretch.

“Hey,” Cameron said, and she startled, realizing that she’d been staring at the fire and frowning fiercely. “Are you all right?”

“Fine,” she replied, an automatic response. “Just thinking about winter.”

“You’re worried?”

“A little.”

“Don’t be.”

His arm went around her, pulled her close. There was something awfully comforting about having such a strong shoulder to lean her head on. That had been the worst of it — to grieve alone, to have to come to grips with such a change in the world with no one there to talk to, no one to comfort her during the dark, frightening nights, when the entire planet seemed to echo with its emptiness.

Now someone was here…an amazing someone…and yet she was still worrying.

“I don’t have to worry because now you’re here to take care of me?”

“That’s not what I said.” He shifted on the couch so he could look down into her face. His dark eyes were intent, holding hers so fiercely, she didn’t think she could glance away, even if she wanted to. “It’s pretty clear that you’re able to take care of yourself. I just think…well, it’s usually easier if you don’t have to shoulder the load all alone. That’s all.”

How could she argue with a comment like that, when she’d just been thinking basically the same thing a few minutes earlier? “You’re right,” she said. “And it’s still early for the really heavy storms. Most of that seems to wait until after Christmas, even though we’ll get some before then.

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