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car parked right outside.” He was so close Caroline had to tip her head back to meet his eyes. “It’s hell out there, so we’ll have to hurry. Are you warm enough in that coat?”
    That was rich, coming from someone wearing a denim jacket. “Yes, I’ll be fine.” She shifted her heavy briefcase from one hand to another, surprised when he simply took it from her. He was already carrying his own duffel bag and a suitcase. “That’s okay,” she protested. “I can carry that.”
    He didn’t even answer. “Do you need to engage the security system before we go out?”
    Security system. Right. Uh-huh. As if she had $3,000 to spare for a security system to stave off wild-eyed thieves just slavering to rob her complete collection of Jane Austens and all her Nora Robertses.
    “No. I—uh, I just lock the door.” She held up the Yale key. “It’s got a dead bolt, though.”
    He just looked at her, dark eyes fathomless, then nodded as he took the key. “Okay. I’ll lock up. If you’ve got gloves, put them on. I left the engine running, so the car is warm. Let’s make it quick.”
    He seemed to have just…assumed command. The Army and that colonel father had really imprinted him.
    Still, the idea of having someone else in the car with her in this weather was such a relief. Bad weather terrified her, and this weather was off the charts. Her Fiat was temperamental and ornery and used to the temperate climate of Italy. It intensely disliked being taken out in the cold. Breaking down in the middle of a snowstorm was just the kind of thing her car enjoyed doing.
    At least she’d have her new boarder with her if the worst happened. Jack Prescott looked strong enough to get the car to Greenbriars by looping his belt around the front fender and pulling, if it broke down on the way.
    He had his hand on the door handle, watching her. “Okay?” he asked quietly. Caroline nodded, and he opened the door for her. “Let’s go.”
    It was exactly like being punched in the face and stomach by a giant, frozen fist. A step outside the door, and Caroline couldn’t see more than a few inches in front of her face. The snow was falling thickly, wildly, in great sweeping sheets, punctuated by needles of sleet blown sideways. She couldn’t hear anything above the howling of the wind, and the cold penetrated so absolutely, she froze on the spot. Her muscles simply wouldn’t obey her.
    Something hard across her back propelled her forward. Her feet scrambled to keep up, slipping a little on the ice coating the sidewalk. She couldn’t even see the car, though she knew the road was only a few feet away.
    A savage gust of wind whipped sleet into her eyes, andshe lost her footing. She stumbled and would have fallen if Jack hadn’t caught her. He simply picked her up one-armed, opened the door of the car, settled her into the driver’s seat and closed the door. A few seconds later, the passenger door opened, and he slid in.
    Caroline tried to catch her breath, pulling in the heated air of the car to warm her lungs.
    Thank God it was warm in the car. Those few seconds outside had been enough to frighten her to death. She could hardly move except to shiver for long moments. Even through her gloves, her hands were so frozen she could barely feel the wheel.
    Caroline clutched the steering wheel, shaken. “My God,” she whispered. “I’ve never seen anything like this before.” She looked across at the big man quietly watching her. He seemed to fill more than half her small car. “Thank you for getting me here. I don’t know if I could have managed on my own. They would have found my dead, frozen body outside the shop door.”
    “No problem.” He ratcheted the car seat as far back as it would go to accommodate his long legs and buckled up. “But we’d better get going. It’s not getting any better.”
    No kidding. “Okay.”
    It occurred to Caroline that the instant she’d crossed the threshold, all thoughts had fled her