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Her first attempt to sling it around her shoulders failed, but before she could try again, his hands were draping the coat around her.

She snuggled in as best she could and dropped into a crouch, knees to her chest to conserve body heat.

Only a shiver or two tore through her system before she realized Colton was also stripping off his clothes. The vision made her shudder for another reason.

God, he was a beautiful specimen of a man. Masculinity rolled off his chiseled form in waves. His face was turned in profile to her, and she studied the angles of his jaw and hard planes of his cheeks. His nose had a small, crooked bump in the middle, obviously having been broken at some point.

As he peeled off his plaid outer shirt, she took a moment to admire his biceps. When his T-shirt followed, she restrained a gasp. His sculpted chest rounded into hard pecs and tapered down his trim torso to washboard abs.

Wet jeans clung to his hips, and she knew just how impressive his cock was when hard. She was not prepared to see it hard now.

Turning his head slightly, he eyed her. Deciding that a thin set of boxer briefs could prevent them from acting on the urges that had been pounding through their systems for weeks now, he left them on.

Her teeth chose that moment to start chattering.

He looked at her full in the face. “Thank god. That means you’re finally warming up.”

She shook so hard that the jacket slipped on her shoulders. In two steps, Colton was there, crouching in front of her. As he drew the coat into place, his stare fixed on her mouth.

“We should…share…body heat.” Her words came in harsh bursts between her quaking shivers.

His dark eyes shifted to hers. The depths were hard. But after a heartbeat, he nodded.

Dropping onto his backside, he scooted close enough to her that his heat washed through her side.

“Daddy always…told me…to take off my clothes if I get wet. The…mountains can…kill you.”

“For Christ’s sake. Come here, Meadow.” Colton snaked out an arm and drew her right into his lap.

A burst of air escaped her lungs. She buried her face against his warm chest and let him envelop her in his arms.

Being even slightly warmer had her shakes hitting full force. She could barely hear over her teeth chattering and the small moans she made.

He tucked her head under his chin and held her tighter. She swore she heard him murmur something that sounded like, “This is tearing me up.”

“Try to relax. What body parts are warmest?”

His question had her biting down on her lip. Did he really want to hear how, despite her physical state, her pussy throbbed against the steely erection underneath her?

“Meadow, talk to me. Is there any part of your body that’s warm?”

“My…arms are getting warm.”

“Good. That’s good. Think about that warmth spreading through your whole body.”

Something passed over her brow. His lips?

Her heart gave a hard flex. Was he trying to offer her comfort?

Burrowing closer, she spread her fingers against his chest. He sucked in a gasp but endured the chill she must have caused him.

Outside the mouth of the cave, rain slanted in torrents with no sign of letting up in sight. Before long, one of the ranch hands would come looking for them. She expected her father to return any minute too—his trip was already taking longer than expected.

“This is my fault.” Colton’s statement roused her from her thoughts.

“What do you mean your fault? You didn’t cause…any of this. Neither did…I.”

“If I’d realized that cow had wandered from the herd sooner, I would have come after it. Right now, it would be tucked away safe in the brooding shed with the other pregnant heifers, eating hay. And you wouldn’t be half frozen.”