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winter? We have some different protocols, but it’s good for the horses.” He went on.
    “Of course,” she said. Then she hesitated.
    She liked the sound of it, riding in the winter. It meant she’d still be here. But a part of her knew this couldn’t really go on forever.
    She couldn’t just keep relying on him like this. She did like working here, but eventually, he’d want her to be better and move on, right? He’d hired her out of pity after all, and the bruises had long healed.
    “What are you thinking over there?” he asked. “You’re being awfully quiet.”
    “Just thinking about the future,” she said. “And how much things have changed since I ran. Even if this can’t last, I’m really liking it.”
    “Why can’t it last?” he asked. “You can stay as long as you like.”
    “Please,” she said. “One day, you’re going to bring a woman out here and marry her. And she won’t like you hanging out almost every day with your pity project.”
    “You aren’t a pity project,” he said. “You’re a damn good employee.”
    “I see,” she said.
    “And a friend,” he said. “I’ve been way less lonely since you’ve been here.”
    She wrinkled her nose. That made her feel like some kind of asexual substitute for the women he knew he should be with.
    “Speaking of which, there’s this fair a few towns over. It’s a bit of a drive, but I’d love to take you there. Do some fall stuff I bet you’ve never done before.”
    “Like what?”
    “Caramel apples. A corn maze, if you want to do one. Maybe a haunted house.”
    “Kid stuff,” she said, wrinkling her nose.
    “Oh, come on. Fall’s the best season of the year!” he said, throwing his hands up. “Unless you’re scared.”
    She shrugged. “Isn’t that the sort of thing you do on a date?” she asked.
    “Sure,” he said. “But we’d just be going as friends. What do you say?”
    She looked over at him warily. How could a man be so hot, so capable, and so incredibly stupid?
    She might have had bad experiences. She might still be wary of people in general. But she wasn’t ice cold. She still was capable of having feelings, however broken they were.
    And she hadn’t forgotten his touch that night on her porch. Or any other of their little accidental touches thereafter.
    Sometimes she felt like the cat in her was waking up, responding to him. But that was silly. She couldn’t have much cat in her. She’d never been able to shift after all.
    “Oh, come on,” he said. “Don’t say no. I’ll have to ask John or something.”
    She laughed at that. “Okay, I’ll go.”
    “Good,” Wyatt said. “Next Friday.”
    “It’s a date,” she said, then snapped her mouth closed, hoping he didn’t take it wrong.
    He just winked at her, gave her a friendly wave, and strode off.
    She looked down at his ass, knowing he’d never suspect her of it.
    What he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him.

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    W yatt pulled on a soft , pine-green fleece jacket that set off his skin well and went with his dark jeans and sneakers.
    He wanted to look good tonight. Not that it would matter to Val, but since he was the one taking her on probably the first “date” of her life, he wanted to be someone she’d be proud to be with.
    He thought he was doing a pretty good job of keeping things professional, even if he did really enjoy spending time with her on their rides.
    She was fun to talk to, a great listener. She also knew when to be quiet, when to just be still and look at a sunset. Those moments made a deep calm and contentment settle in Wyatt.
    Yes, that’s what he felt around her. Contentment.
    He put his keys in his pocket, grabbed his phone and his wallet, and then shut the door to his room and headed down the steps to the ground level of the lodge.
    He hadn’t expected her to be waiting inside the lobby, and his heart thumped unexpectedly when he saw her.
    She looked… different.
    Maybe it was just the lack of bruises on her face.