A Soldier for Keeps Read Online Free Page A

leaned closer, the perfect image of intense male honor. “Give me your keys. I’ll warm up your car and bring it up to the curb. I’ll drive you home, and Hawk can tail us. And don’t worry, no strings attached.”
    “But that means you’ll miss your chance to ski.”
    “Maybe we’ll come back for night skiing. It’s no biggie.” He rose, towering over her, his jaw set, his eyes determined and a grin flirting at the corners of his mouth. “It’s not like I’m a complete stranger since you know my sister, so I’m not taking no for an answer. Get used to it.”
    Why that made her want to laugh, she couldn’t say. “I don’t like domineering guys.”
    “See? That’s your insurance I have no ulterior motive. It’s not like I can charm you.” He flashed her a hint of a smile and while it was only for a moment, it was long enough for her to see the goodness in him. His smile was calm and steady and kind.
    She sighed all the way to her soul. She had a weakness for kind, big strong men. Any moment now her untrustworthy guy-meter was going to go off like a smoke alarm, but there was no ding! ding! like a warning bell. No instinctive urge to escape the man. No looming sense of impending doom.
    “What’s your vehicle and where are you parked?” he asked, shoulders braced, as if ready for his mission.
    Yep, she definitely had to keep her defenses up with this one.
     
    Snow hammered his face as he swept Lexie into his arms. Hawk took her crutches and disappeared through the storm. White-out conditions, a heady wind and thesnow was deep powder beneath his boots. Perfect skiing conditions. Some folks would pack it in and head home, but everything in him ached to catch a ride on the chair lift and hit the slope as hard and as fast as he could go.
    Maybe next time. He feared by the time he’d gotten Lexie back to her dorm and made it back up the mountain, they would probably have closed the runs. As it was, they would be lucky if the state patrol didn’t close the pass. Well, they’d cross that bridge if they got to it.
    In the meantime, her weight in his arms was sweetness. Not something he was used to feeling. A light shone out of the stormy shadows—the dome light. Hawk had the passenger door open, the crutches stowed, and the backseat ready for the patient. He told himself he was more than glad to lower her gently into the shelter of the vehicle. Snow no longer stung his face, although it did beat an angry rhythm against his back as he leaned over to help buckle her up. Her hair brushing against his chin felt like the finest strands of silk. His arms felt strangely empty as he took a step away.
    “All settled?” he asked, his voice unusually husky.
    “Very. Thanks.” Her grateful smile was pure wholesome charm. “Tell me you don’t drive the way you ski.”
    “If I do, then what’s wrong with that?” he quipped. She was teasing him. Well, he could do it, too. “Buckle up. I suggest you hold on to something.”
    “Funny. I feel so much better now.” She collapsed against the seat, exhaustion bruising her face. “My chauffeur is a comedian.”
    “Only an amateur comedian, but a good snow driver.” He closed the door, welcoming the numbing cold of the icy snow. It whipped his face, driving outthe warmer emotions that had taken root in his chest. He had given up on love. It didn’t exist for him. He wasn’t good at it. He had no business feeling anything tender toward anyone. End of story.
    Besides, a girl like Lexie would never want anything to do with a man like him.
    “You okay?” Hawk asked, rattling his keys in one hand.
    “I’m good.” There were some things best left unsaid. “What’s the latest on the roads?”
    “Word is the pass is about to close.”
    “Let’s hope this isn’t going to be a short ride.” He waved his buddy off, who headed for the truck parked behind Lexie’s SUV. Snow had already accumulated on the side window, so he scrubbed it off with his sleeve before he