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is the only option right now.”
    â€œYour car…”
    â€œIs in a ditch up the road.” He experimented with another smile. “Lucky for you.”
    She returned the smile, then her face went serious. “Thank you.”
    â€œYou’re welcome. Right place at the right time. What are you doing on the mountain, anyway?”
    She looked uncertain. “Vacationing.”
    Luke nodded, though suspicion hit him like a fist. “Take the gun and level it at the doorway.”
    Dana pulled the baby more tightly against her chest. “I can’t.”
    Luke looked down at the infant’s face. He’d fallen asleep, oblivious to the danger around him, the bottle nipple now slack against his lips.
    â€œYes, you can.” Luke nodded toward the baby. “Besides, I left my four-legged partner out in the cold. I need to check on him, at least.”
    Dana crooned softly as she eased the bottle from the baby’s mouth. Her expression was hopeful when she looked up. “A police dog?”
    â€œNo, an ornery old Lab. But he’s as big as a pony and barks like he means business. Besides, he likes kids and beautiful women.”
    Where had that comment come from? He’d intended to lighten the mood, to see her relax, but he’d caught himself off guard instead. The wary expression on Dana’s face told him he wasn’t the only one who wished he’d kept the comment to himself.
    Luke retrieved the coiled hose from the supply room floor and molded it into an oval shape. “Here. Use my jacket and lay him inside.”
    Dana pulled the supple leather jacket from her knees and folded the baby inside. He barely stirred when she laid him inside the makeshift cradle, only nuzzled contentedly against the lining of Luke’s jacket.
    Dana lifted the gun but looked at it as if it were a snake. “I don’t think I can do this.”
    â€œYou have to.” He took her by the upper arm and turned her toward the baby. “Unless you want to freeze to death and leave this little guy alone.”
    Anger and determination flashed on her face as she pulled her arm free. “Okay.”
    Just the reaction he’d been hoping for. “I’ll leave the flashlight with you. I have a lighter.” Luke stood when shenodded. “Keep the gun focused on the door. I’ll try and alert you when I—”
    â€œJust say my name.” She interrupted. “I’ll know your voice.”
    Luke nodded and disappeared through the doorway, leaving Dana alone. What she’d said was true. She could pick that deep, captivating voice out of a crowded room. Maybe it was the tense circumstances, but that voice had the power to soothe her, to irritate her and, if she were honest with herself, make her want to crawl into the shelter of his arms.
    Power. The word stuck in her brain as she rested her wrist on her knee and, with a trembling hand, pointed the gun toward the empty door frame. Hadn’t she learned a thing or two in the last year and a half about giving up her power? But this was hardly the same as her marriage to Robert. Luke had just given her the power of his weapon and, with barely a word of instruction, trusted her not to blast him to kingdom come with it.
    Time passed. Five minutes. Ten?
    â€œDana…”
    The sound of Luke’s voice made her jump. She hadn’t heard him enter the cabin. “Yes,” she responded, lowering the gun.
    â€œIt’s us.”
    Us? This time she heard a shuffle, heard the gentle sound of the cabin’s door closing and the unmistakable click-click of canine paws against the wooden floor. Big brown eyes suddenly peered around the doorway, framed by a golden muzzle and inquisitive eyebrows. Dana laid the gun on the floor and fought the overwhelming urge to cry. There was something so entirely welcoming about the presence of the dog. Something so normal that she wanted to fling her arms around his big