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  “It nearly gave me a heart attack.” I sounded breathless.

  “Good news is we’re one mouse less.”

  I released a burst of laughter, almost a hysterical sound, and pressed my head against Jude’s shoulder. “I love nature and the outdoors, but this is just a bit too close to the wild for me.”

  He pried the pitchfork from my hand.

  “I’m not usually this jumpy,” I said. “I’m a little embarrassed that I’m not being more brave.”

  “You’re being very brave.”

  Kind words, but definitely not true. Together we sat on my sled. He put his arm around me and drew me close. I nestled my head into the nook of his shoulder.

  “It’s going to be a long night,” I said, my voice low.

  Jude pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “So if you could be anywhere right now, where would you be?”

  I knew he was trying to distract me—just as I’d been trying to do with the earlier unimportant questions.

  “Disney World maybe. All the scares there are fabricated. Nothing truly dangerous. How about you?”

  “Quite honestly, as insane as it sounds, I can’t think of anywhere I’d rather be than right here.”

  He slipped his finger beneath my chin, tilted my face up, and kissed me.

  Nothing was melting in this Vermont winter except my heart.

  Chapter 14

  Some time later, Jude found some dusty horse blankets that he shook out and piled on the dirt floor, giving us a little cushion to lie on. We both acknowledged that we weren’t going to sleep, but made a pact to keep the other awake anyway, even if the conversation turned silly.

  We were in the process of lying down when we heard a noise at the door. We both froze. A fox stuck its head inside, took a look around, and then retreated.

  I let out the breath I’d been holding.

  “I can’t believe that only a few hours ago, I thought showing you a moose was going to be the high point of our animal sightings.”

  Chuckling, he stretched out and drew me in against his side, with me nearer to the fire. I welcomed the heat on my back. We unzipped our jackets and snuggled closer, absorbing each other’s warmth.

  “I bet this scenario never crossed your mind when you thought about traveling to Vermont,” I said jokingly.

  “What? Holding you close? I thought about it the first time I ever saw a photo of you.”

  I was trying to process that, unable to come up with a coherent response. The silence must have bothered him, because he said, “Why do you think I came to Vermont? I’m a sand and surf kinda guy. I’m used to feeling my toes at all times.”

  I shot up to my elbow and looked down on him. “I’m the reason you came to Vermont?”

  “Yeah. I mean, at the time I didn’t realize Rick was your boyfriend. I just thought you were friends, nothing more. You could have knocked me down with a snowflake the day you asked if I knew you were his girlfriend. I thought, ‘Well, I’ve stepped in it now, haven’t I?’ Then you said you’d broken up and I had to fight not to grin like a fool with that news.”

  I remembered how stunned he’d looked. “Why would you want to meet me?”

  “I liked your smile. In the photos Rick sent. Believe me, I know I sound bonkers.”

  “Do you do this often?”

  “I’ve never done it before.”

  I didn’t know how to respond. I was flattered and overwhelmed and maybe just a little terrified of what I was feeling for Jude. I’d never felt such intense emotions where a guy was concerned. He fascinated and charmed me.

  I lowered myself back to his shoulder.

  “Have you ever thought about moving to the States?” I asked, then cringed because I was trying to make this into something permanent. Why did I always have to think of a guy I was with as being the one?

  “Yeah, I have, actually. Thought about getting a student visa, maybe working permanently over here. Have you ever thought about going to Australia?”

  I laughed lightly. “Actually, I haven’t thought about going anywhere. I mean, I’ve traveled in the States, with my parents in their trailer. As I got older, it became miserable. But other than that, I haven’t been anywhere. I don’t even have a passport.”

  “You don’t have a passport? That’s nuts!”

  Sadly, I shook my head. “No passport.”

  “Oh, you’ve got to have a passport. What if you wake up one day and decide you just want to go somewhere? It takes weeks to get a passport processed. By then, the opportunity may have passed. You always want your passport ready to go.”

  “You’re probably right.”

  “We’ll go get you one as soon as we’re rescued.”

  “What? No.” I laughed. “I have to think about it. Have to get all the documentation together. And besides I’m not even sure I can fly.”

  Beneath my cheek, he went very still. “What do you mean you’re not sure you can fly?”

  “I’ve never been on a plane.”

  “Never?”

  “Never.”

  “That’s mental.”

  “No, we just never went anywhere that we couldn’t drive to.”

  “You’ve got so much of the world to see.”

  I could hear in his voice that he was clearly baffled by my lack of adventure.

  “I always thought I’d travel later, after college when I had a job and some money.”

  “Traveling doesn’t take as much money as you’d think. You ought to get that passport. I might invite you to visit me in Oz, and then what?”

  I felt my heart kick up at the thought. “Would you really invite me to visit you?”

  “Yeah. I like you, Lys. I like you a lot.”

  “I like you too,” I said very quietly. “Very much.”

  Silence settled between us—as though I’d made a grave confession. I listened to him breathing. Listened to my heart thrumming.

  The wind picked up, shrieking through the cracks. The boards rattled. Somewhere something crashed. I cringed. Maybe the building would come down on top of us. The shadows danced in rhythm to the flames in our fire. The wolf’s lonesome howl filled the night.

  “Are you scared?” Jude asked.

  “Yeah, actually, I am. I don’t want to be. I want to believe that everything is going to be okay, I want—”

  I felt him shift, his fingers touched my cheek. “I meant are you scared about us.”

  I nodded.

  “I’m scared too.”

  Then he gave me a lingering kiss. The wonder of it chased away all the fears, not only those we were facing tonight but the ones that I’d face when it came time for him to leave.

  Jude drew back, tucked me into the nook of his shoulder, and pressed his large hand to the back of my head as though he was determined to keep me there. I could hear his heart pounding in rhythm to mine, heard him swallow.

  The fears began to creep back in.

  More than I wanted to be rescued, I wanted him to kiss me again.

  “Lys? You awake?”

  I couldn’t believe it. I’d gone to sleep. In spite of my worries and all the creatures—

  The creatures? Were they about to attack?

  “What is it?” I asked, disgusted with the panic in my voice.

  “Nothing. Listen.”

  I listened. I heard the owl hoot, but I didn’t think that’s what he was talking about. It wasn’t what I could hear…it was what I couldn’t.

  “The wind is gone.”

  “Yeah.” I heard the marvel in his voice. “I think the storm is over. I can see some stars through the hole in the roof. Come on.”

  He sat up.

  “Come on? Come where? It’s still night.”

  “I know.” He picked up the flashlight. “Let’s go look at the stars.”

  He pulled me to my feet before I could object. Not that I had any arguments for not going.

  I reached down and picked up the pitchfork.

  He laughed. “What are you g