figure folded over.
She almost collapsed with relief at the familiar tenor. “Dominic.”
He shifted closer, blocking the headlights and bringing his face into view. A bright red lump was appearing right below the brim of his hat. “What are you trying to do? Kill me?”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was you.” She slumped back against the car. “You shouldn’t have walked up on me like that. You scared the crap out of me.”
Dominic removed his hat, rubbing a hand over his brow and through his hair. The midnight strands fell forward in tousled waves.
“Good,” he growled, settling the Stetson back on his head. “You should be scared. You never stand outside your vehicle like that. You’re just asking for someone to snatch you up.”
Cissy lifted her chin and dragged her attention away from his dark eyes. “Well, seems to me like you wouldn’t have had much success in snatching me up, as you put it.”
Dominic grunted. He retrieved the flashlight from the ground, shoved it into her hand then banded his blunt fingers around her wrist. “What were you gonna do if this thing missed? Kick my kneecaps? You’re too short to reach much else.”
“Actually, I had something higher in mind,” she smirked, spinning the flashlight with her fingers.
Dominic’s luscious mouth twitched. He flattened it and rolled his eyes. “Right.”
Releasing her, he moved his muscular girth past her to survey the flat. A drift of spicy maleness enveloped her. Good Lord, he smelled good.
Fingers trembling, she rolled the flashlight between her palms. The heat from his grip still lingered on the base and she found her fingertips returning to smooth over it.
“You got a spare?”
“You’re looking at it.”
Releasing a heavy sigh, he leaned down and glanced inside the backseat. “They been out long?”
“Since we left the diner. They’ve had a long day.”
He nodded and opened the door. “I’ll get this one, you grab the other one.”
“Wait a minute.” She rushed over to stall him with a hand on his arm. Ignoring the bulk of his biceps under her fingers, she demanded, “What do you think you’re doing?”
“The only thing there is to do. Loading them in my truck and taking them somewhere to sleep.” His tone turned mocking. “Or do you expect me to leave y’all stranded by the side of the road in the middle of the night?”
Cissy frowned. “No. But I don’t really know you. You’re a stranger.”
His black eyebrows rose. She had to agree with him. Her choice of words was lame.
“A stranger?” Dominic’s lip hitched. “I wasn’t so strange earlier when you stole my half-eaten burger outta my hand.” His eyes softened as he ran them over her face. “These boys are too young to sleep in a car by the side of the road. It’s not safe. You have to admit that.”
She opened her mouth but couldn’t manage to issue a sound. The summer heat engulfed her skin, rolling a drop of sweat between her breasts.
Spearing a hand through her hair, she flicked her eyes over the empty darkness surrounding them. What choice did she have? As much as she hated admitting it, he was right. The boys needed to be settled for the night.
Dominic nodded at her silence, then turned back to the car’s interior to unbuckle Jayden’s seat belt.
“Wait.” Cissy shot in front of him and gathered Jayden up in her arms. Maintaining her position, she clutched him to her chest and clenched her jaw.
Dominic’s mouth tightened and he took a step back. If he was offended, he didn’t comment on it. He just watched her for a handful of seconds then shrugged.
“Okay,” he said. “I’ll grab their car seats. They’ll fit in the cab. Once the boys are settled, we’ll toss your bags in the back.”
They did so, with Cissy keeping a close eye on Dominic as he helped settle Jayden in the truck. They made swift work of relocating Kayden and the bags, too, and soon pulled out onto the road again.
“What about my car?” Cissy twisted in the passenger seat to watch it fade into the darkness.
“We’ll see about it in the morning. Get the tire replaced.” He paused as they turned onto a dirt road. “Although, from the looks of it, it needs a lot more than just a tire.”
She shot him a dirty look. Yeah. It did need a lot more than that. But a polite person wouldn’t have pointed it out.
That wasn’t the worst of it, though. She couldn’t afford a new tire. Or anything else, for that matter. Licking her lips, she turned her face away to look out of the window. Better to keep that bit of information to herself for now.
“Y’all were packed tight in there. Where were you headed?”
They bounced around as a pothole jostled them. Cissy glanced over her shoulder to find the boys still sleeping. “Nowhere in particular. I was just looking for the next motel.”
Dominic grunted. “Well, you weren’t gonna find one on that road for a while. Only thing for the next couple hours’ drive would’ve been deer and cemeteries.”
They hit another bump and Cissy reached back to prop Kayden’s dangling hand back in his lap. The action brought her face close to Dominic’s arm and she couldn’t prevent herself from taking a second look at the sinewy length. Even his forearm was defined, the toned tendons accentuated with a sprinkling of black hair.
And his scent was everywhere. That mix of sandalwood and man permeated every inch of the truck’s upholstery and released into the air with each of his movements. She forced herself to refocus on the boys and reached back to move a lock of hair off Jayden’s forehead.
“It’s just y’all?” His sexy rumble warmed her belly.
She met his sharp look for a moment before facing the window again. “Yeah.”
She strained to see beyond the halo of the truck’s headlights. It was too dark to see much other than the billowing of dust from the bottom of the truck and the passing of fence posts.
“Where’s their mama?”
Cissy clutched her hands in her lap and focused ahead on the uneven line of grass that met the dirt path they traveled. “Gone.”
“Their dad?”
She stilled her nervous movements and remained silent.
Her skin prickled at the sweep of his dark gaze on her once more. She bit her lip. He didn’t pursue it. Leaning her head back against the headrest, she welcomed the silence in the cab.
A few minutes later, he slowed the truck as they turned into a gated entrance. The truck’s headlights illuminated a wooden sign etched with the name Raintree Ranch as they proceeded.
“Raintree?” She vaguely recalled that tiny dot on the map she’d used.
“Yep.”
“This is your ranch?”
His mouth twisted. “Partially.”
Cissy drew up at his cynical tone and returned her attention to the windshield. The dirt road dipped and curved past a mammoth barn, dark paddocks and a dimly lit pond before leading them to an almost palatial house. She caught a glimpse of white columns, wide windows and several stories before the truck continued past and halted at the end of a back driveway.
“Let’s get the boys inside,” Dominic directed as he hopped out. Her hesitancy must have shown on her face. He leaned back into the cab to point out, “You can’t carry them both, Cissy.”
At