I coughed on the sip of water I'd taken. "Let's get one thing clear. Ransom Cox has never noticed me. I lack the requisite equipment for him to pay appropriate attention. I'm not blonde. My rack isn’t overly endowed. Oh, and all he ever saw in high school was hockey. I was nerdy, and paid zero attention to anything other than great stories."

  "I have it on good authority that you paid attention to more than just your great stories and books. I know for a fact that you used to practice kissing on your hand and pretend it was Ransom."

  I flushed. "Oh, my God. If you ever tell another living soul that, I will kill you. Kill you dead. Forever."

  My sister snorted and laughed even as she scooted out of the way of my swats. "Think of your great story. I'm telling you. The man, the myth—"

  Ella's voice dropped away, and I looked up, wondering what had happened to my sister.

  Oh, God. I gulped in a breath. The man, the myth, the penis legend. The hockey god. All six feet, five inches of ripped muscle, the movie-star face, and badass attitude. Standing in the doorway.

  I jumped up out of my seat. Too bad my foot was corded around the bag that I’d tucked under the desk, and I couldn't get proper placement. And so down I went.

  Ella ran in behind Ransom. "Oh, my God, Lex."

  Faceplant in front of the guy you always had a crush on, check. Total lack of career direction, check. Yes, my humiliation was complete. Next to me, Ransom's deep baritone rumbled. "Are you okay?"

  I pushed myself to a sitting position. "Yeah, the only thing hurt is my pride, and my forehead. Pretty sure I scraped my hand, too."

  Behind Ransom, Ella's jaw hung open. She held her arms about a foot apart, as if to indicate a certain…measurement, then cleared her throat as he picked up my wrist and examined it.

  "I'm okay."

  Ransom studied my hand. "Are you sure? There's no pain when I move it?"

  Behind him, Ella grinned widely, a mischievous gleam in her eye.

  I wanted to die. Matter of fact, if the ground could just open up and swallow me now, that would be awesome. Come on ground. Any moment now. Nothing? Okay, then. "No. It doesn't hurt."

  "Are you sure about that?" His voice was husky. Low. I'd seen him interviewed enough times in recent years to know that that was just his voice. He didn't usually say much. But when he did, he always sounded like that. Like he'd just woken up from a long night of sex. Which was the last thing I needed to think about when dealing with Ransom.

  My sister, traitor that she was, called out. "Well, if you're okay, I'm going to head back to the café. I'm sure the two of you have lots to catch up on. Lex, I’ll send someone over with a sandwich. And that recipe. Though, you might not want to use it for a while. All that garlic. Good to see you, Ransom."

  I groaned. With one faceplant, I'd earned enough humiliation points with my sister for her to hand over that garlic aïoli recipe. Awesome. "See, I told you. I'm fine."

  Ransom's thumb ran over my wrist one more time, and I had to work hard to hide the shiver that wracked my body. I pushed myself into a kneeling, then standing position. Unfortunately, even at full height I only came up to his sternum. Why did I feel so small next to him? "How have you been? It's been a long time." Seriously? That was the best I could do?

  He flushed. Ransom Cox was blushing?

  "Good. Been here since the start of the off-season. Took Mom out for her birthday yesterday."

  "How is your mom? I adore that woman."

  "She's good. You know how she is, she can't ever take a day off. So a whole week just with me is making her crazy. She asked for a laptop, that's why I came by."

  "Oh, yeah, I saw it here somewhere. I moved it. Oh, right. I put it in the drawer." I went around the desk to the one facing mine and pulled open the bottom drawer to tug out a laptop. It was only as I stood and caught my reflection in the window, that I realized I'd just given Ransom Cox a perfect view of my ass. Fantastic. Was this day going to get any worse? I turned around and handed over the laptop. "Here you are."

  "Thanks, Lexa. I didn't expect to see you at home."

  "Yeah, it’s just for a couple of weeks. I guess we both needed some R&R, huh?"

  He nodded and gave me a lopsided smile. "I'll get out of your hair. Take this to Mom's. I want to make sure she has it back before the storm hits tonight."

  "Yeah, I saw that on the weather. Although it's hard to believe, since it's pretty sunny right now."

  "You're not staying here all day are you? I know most places in the Square plan to close early."

  "I'll head out soon. I kind of like the solitude. In my office in the city, it's always crazy. A million people running around."

  I was rambling. I had no idea what to say to him. Ella was right. I'd had a huge crush on Ransom since I was fifteen. Over the summer, before he'd stopped being this quiet, gangly, kid, and totally filled out. Made the hockey team, and became a star. And suddenly, he was way the hell out of my league. And not at all the kind of guy you should be dating. Or even thinking about dating.

  After my last couple of relationships, I knew what I wanted. And I knew what I didn't want. What I wanted was stable and dependable. From what I'd heard about Ransom, dependable was the last thing on earth that he was. He was good looking, and screwed six-foot supermodels with blonde hair and bodies to die for. The perfect example of Mr. Wrong.

  Ransom was the prime example of why I was here, in Hope, licking my wounds. If I'd never slept with Axel, thinking we were going to have some torrid love affair, I never would've been heartbroken when I'd found out that he'd proposed to Amanda. Focus.

  "I get it. Sometimes I need the solitude, too. Hard to get with the team, and all."

  I nodded in understanding. "Congratulations by the way. I, along with the rest of Hope, watched you guys. We were cheering you on."

  He nodded and slowly started to back out of the room. "Well, thanks for this, and I'd make sure you don't stick around too long today, that storm is coming quick. Are you staying at your sister's?"

  I shook my head. "Not with the two kids, and the menagerie of pets. I need some space. So I'm renting a house out of town. Near Lubbock."

  He nodded. "That's just past my place. Just be careful tonight."

  "Trust me. I plan to be."

  In more ways than one. Ransom Cox was off-limits. I was not going to do the impetuous thing, and fawn all over him. I'd learned my lesson. A nice, normal, everyday guy was what I needed. Not the hockey star bedroom legend.

  5

  Ransom

  The clouds pelted heavy raindrops against my windshield. I cursed as I tried to peer through the brief points of visibility that my wipers cleared away. Damn, it was coming down bad. After I returned my mother's laptop, I ran a few errands and made sure her place was boarded up tight. I tried to get her to come with me to the cabin, but she was having none of it. She liked her own space, and too much time in my old home brought up too many memories. After making sure she was boarded up, I headed home. Unfortunately, my departure had coincided with the first drops of rain.

  I hoped Lexa made it home okay.

  The errant thought snuck its way into my consciousness, and I cursed. I had no business thinking about Lexa Carlisle. Never mind that vision of her pert, tight, ass basically waving me an invitation. No. Do not go there. You know how this always ends. You care about someone, they walk away, and then they write a tell-all.

  Between my father and Callie, I wasn't sure who was worse. Either way, I felt like I was a walking emotional calamity waiting to happen. Like there was a big sign on me that said, "Come this way if you want torture and unhappiness."

  Yeah, no. I'd just go ahead and leave Lexa the hell alone. Neither one of us needed that kind of shit. I made a left turn at my exit, but just as I rounded into the intersection, I saw red taillights to my right. Oh, shit. Someone was in the ditch. I narrowly avoided a pothole, and pulled my car over. The stupid thing fishtailed. Why the hell had I taken the stupid sports car in the first place? I should have brought the truck today. With this car, I couldn't pull whoever that was out of the ditch. I tugged up my hoodie, even though I knew it would be pretty much ineffectual against the now-sideways-pelting rain.

  When I jogged over to the edge, I saw there was someone inside the car, banging on the door, trying to push it out. Damn. Whoever it was, was stuck.

  I ran back to my car and popped the trunk, grabbing the crowbar out of the back. The hood of my sweatshirt fell back and the rain soaked my head in seconds. Fuck it.

  I ran back to the ditch, careful with my steps as I slid down the embankment, to the front door of the Prius. The windows had steamed up too much for me to tell who was in there, but I worked the crowbar into the door, and put my muscles to good use.

  It took several tries, but with my combined efforts, and whoever was inside, kicking against the door, we were able to get it open with a loud suctioning sound.

  A tiny woman fell out, her dark hair spilling over her shoulders as she almost tumbled face first into the mud. "Oh, my God. Thank you so much. I thought I might be stuck in there. But the stupid car's electric. I couldn't get the windows rolled down, and I couldn't open the door and—"

  "Lexa? Is that you?" I bent down to help her up, the mud sliding out of her hands and onto mine. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

  She tried to take a step, but she slipped and slammed right into me, pressing her curves right into my body. Oh, shit.

  "Ransom? Oh, my God. I have never been so happy to see you in my entire life."

  Jesus. She could've been hurt. My gut curled in on itself, as I fought the bile wanting to rise. "You're sure you're okay?"

  She rubbed her forehead. "I bumped my head on the steering wheel when the car fell in. My arm, too. But for the most part, I'm fine. No blood, nothing broken or anything, and I'm not really worried about a concussion."

  I wanted to believe her, but still, I used my minimal medical training to still check her out. I traced gentle fingers over her forehead, and I could see the faint blue of the bruise, even as the rain plastered her hair to her face. She might not know it, but she also had a slight bruise on the side of her mouth. Maybe from when the airbag deployed? I checked her neck, and her arms. She had a fair range of motion, but winced when I raised her arm too high.

  It wasn't like I was an EMT or anything, but playing hockey, my teammates and I were dealt enough injuries and had our fair share of falls, so I knew how to check for some basic things. And I knew what was serious enough that I couldn't play. Lexa would be bruised in the morning. And as soon as the storm let up, I'd insist that she go see a doctor. But for now, a hot bath would probably do her a world of good. "Come on. I'll take you to my place so we can get you warmed up, then we'll call for your car."

  For a moment, she looked like she might argue with me, but then she nodded, even as shivers wracked her body. Oh, hell. She might be in shock. I needed to get her warm. I held her tight and close as I led her up the embankment. The mud was so slippery that at one point, I had to shove her up by her ass. Not that I enjoyed that at all. Liar.

  When she was safely tucked in with her seatbelt on, I went around to the back and tugged another T-shirt out of my overnight bag. I brought it to her, then cranked the car's heat up high. "Put this on, it'll help keep you warm a little bit until we get to my place."

  The next five minutes were harrowing, as I drove at a snail's pace, trying to avoid any hidden potholes, or debris from falling trees. Me and this stupid sports car. We'd hydroplaned twice, and Lexa clutched onto the hand guard as the back end of the car fishtailed. I didn't unclench my jaw until we were pulling into my driveway. Shit.

  Had I ever been so tense? I threw the car into park once I pulled into the covered garage, and then let myself out. When I went around to her side of the car to let her out, she could barely push the door open. Yeah, I needed to get her in a warm bath, and then give her some ibuprofen. We'd call the doctor along with the tow truck, just to be sure.

  She was shaky and weak, and finally I gave up and just picked her up.

  "Hey, put me down." Even her protest sounded feeble.

  "You can barely walk. So for now, I'll carry you."

  "I'm heavy."

  I chuckled. "You realize that I'm a full foot taller than you? And I pretty much lift more than twice your size as a workout?"

  She opened her mouth to say something, then snapped it shut again. Yeah, I thought so. There was a loud crack across the street, and I watched in horror as one of the trees across the street snapped in half and fell into the middle of the roadway.

  Oh, hell. I needed to call a work crew, too. I made a mental checklist of all the people that needed a call. First things first, however: get Lexa warm, get her to eat something. Luckily, Eddie had picked up the cup that morning.

  After I got her to eat, I’d call the tow truck and the road crew. I also needed to check on my mother.

  I shifted her in my arms as I used my thumbprint to unlock my front door. Lexa snuggled closer, and I gritted my teeth. She's not yours. You can't have her. And even if you could, she deserves better than you. Wasn't that the truth?

  Lexa

  I couldn't help a curious look around as Ransom carried me inside. From the outside, Ransom's place looked like a simple log cabin. But inside, it was all modern luxury. Gorgeous hardwood floors, steel appliances, expensive birch fixtures, art on the wall, sleek modern furnishings. It was beautiful. But I didn't get to see much of it, because Ransom took me straight to the back of the house, his long strides moving us quickly through the building. When we reached the bathroom, the light switched on automatically.

  I blinked. "Fancy."

  He set me down gently, and despite myself, I swayed a little. I was just so damn cold. Ransom closed the lid of the toilet, then shifted me back to sit down. "Stay here for a sec."

  He went over to the tub and turned it on, checking the temperature constantly. He stared at a couple of the closed containers next to the bath, and then selected one of them, opening it and then dropping something into the water. Immediately, bubbles foamed on the surface, and the scents of roses and lilacs filled the room.

  Holy hell, Ransom Cox was drawing me a bath. There was no way this was real. This was a fantasy. If I could move my hands right now, I would pinch myself. Because right about now, he was everyone's fantasy.

  This is not real. He's doing this to be nice because you're obviously cold. It doesn't mean he wants to give you a whole truckload of babies.

  And to be fair, I didn't want a truckload of babies, though I did want a family. Maybe not right away, but I wanted to come home and know that people were there waiting for me that loved me unconditionally. I was a total idiot.

  Deep down, I knew my issues were because I lost my parents so young. I knew it was because I missed out on a lot of that family time. But it still didn't stop me from wanting it. "You don't have to do all this. I'm fine. I can draw my own bath."

  He ignored me and continued to check the temperature. And when he was satisfied that the water was warm enough, he went over to a cabinet and pulled out two white, fluffy towels, setting them on the stool next to the tub.

  "I'll run upstairs and see if Mom left any clothes behind last time she was here. Most anything that I have, you'll swim in."

  I could only stare at his back and broad shoulders as he stalked out. Ransom had never said much. Ever. Except for the one time that we'd been locked in Mr. Michelson's science lab after working on a project late.

  Our high school went on automatic lockdown as a rule. And because Mr. Michelson had dangerous chemicals in the science lab, his room was an automatic lock, too. It had taken about four calls to his mother to finally get someone to come and let us out. But the whole time, he’d talked to me. Kept me calm. Even though I was clearly freaked out. However, after that, despite my thought that we were now bonded, he'd gone back to quiet. And reserved. He was always polite. Always nice. But somehow distant.

  When he came back, he shrugged. "I found a pair of yoga pants she left behind. But all I have is one of my T-shirts, if that's okay. Once you've had a bath, I'll toss your stuff into the washing machine, so you'll have it for tomorrow."

  "Oh, my God. That would be incredible." Right about now, the mud had caked into my hair and skin. Every step I took left a trail of dust and dirt behind me. And all I wanted to do was massage out the aches.

  Ransom nodded. "Yeah. So…I guess I'll leave you to it? Just shout if you need me."

  If I needed him? Oh, I needed him, all right, just not for what he thought. You need to stop. Not going to happen. Remember Axel? Remember how that screwed up your entire life? Focus on the task at hand. Get warm. Get dressed. Figure out the car. And then focus on your ultimate goal of figuring out how to save your job. In that order. And nowhere in that list did Ransom Cox factor. I just had to remember that. High school crushes were not things that you could turn into real relationships. I needed to start making some different choices with my life.

  After a long bath, with some tricky maneuvering to wash the mud out of my hair, I found Ransom in the kitchen, putting together dinner. When I padded out, he looked up with a smile that stopped me in my tracks. Holy hell. If he did that more often, he'd have even more women after him. I could only imagine what it was like now, considering the things his ex-wife wrote about him in her book.

  I knew I should never have read that stupid book, but I was curious about him. I understood that some of it was an ex taking digs at him, but a lot of what Callie had said had been inadvertently flattering. She'd pretty much told the world that her husband had a huge dick. And that he was extremely demanding in bed.

  Under usual circumstances, that probably meant that he had women camped out on his doorstep. Where are those hordes now? I forced my brain to focus on the here and now, not where my dirty, lonely-woman fantasies were taking me. "Smells great. What are you making?"

  "I'm just tossing together some quick baked ziti. Mom made some sauce the other day, and of course she packed me some to bring back. She thinks I can't fend for myself."