Page 4 of Cowboy Stolen Kiss for Christmas

He caught her hand and used it to tow her the rest of the way down the sidewalk toward the sleigh. He didn’t dare meet Flash Billings’ gaze, not wanting to know what the old fellow was thinking. Ames was all too aware that the beginning of his perfectly planned evening was a complete disaster. He wasn’t sure there was any coming back from their tumble down the porch stairs.

He was extra careful as he assisted Laura into the sleigh and extra gentle as he lifted and tucked one of the quilts snuggly around her waist.

“Careful!” She pointed down in alarm, but it was too late.

The lower edge of the quilt caught the side of the coffee cup on the right. It toppled over, sending rivulets of frothy brown coffee across the floorboard of the sleigh.

Ames dove forward to save the second cup, grateful that at least one of the espressos had survived his hapless fling of the quilt. “It looks like your cup is the sole survivor of my clumsiness.”

He couldn’t have been more wrong. As he started to hand it to her, the breeze whipped off the lid and sent it flying over the edge of the sleigh. “What in the—?” He stared after it in puzzlement, realizing he must’ve knocked over the good cup, which meant the one in his hand was the one he’d popped the lid loose on earlier.

Laura’s startled gasp alerted him to the fact that he was tipping the cup. Steaming coffee sloshed onto the quilt covering her lap. A dark, damp spot spread across the fabric.

The sleigh passed over a bumpy part of the yard, sending a second splash of coffee over the rim.

Laura abruptly removed the cup from Ames’ hand and tossed it over the side of the sleigh. “This is clearly not my night.” She wrinkled her nose at him. “It’s me, not you. Trust me. I should’ve never left home this evening. I’ve been a wreck ever since I found out…” She bit her lip to silence the rest of what she’d been about to say.

Ames gusted out a breath, pretty sure he knew what was bothering her. “Ever since you found out Brex Morrison was in town, eh?” No matter how much she didn’t want to talk about him, there was no point in continuing to beat around the bush. Her ex was the proverbial elephant perched on the bench between them.

“Yes,” she sighed. “Wait!” She tipped her face up to his, looking distressed. “How did you?—?”

“It’s a small town,” he reminded, flinging the soggy quilt into the damp floorboard. He’d offer to have it dry cleaned. At the sight of the damp spot on the thighs of Laura’s jeans, he unzipped his leather coat and started to shrug out of it.

“Don’t you dare!” Her voice grew so threatening that he stopped.

When she shivered, his hands started moving again. “I’m not gonna let you freeze,” he protested.

“Right back atcha, cowboy!” She leaned forward to snatch the other quilt off the bench across from them. “You planned an amazing evening for us. There’s no way I’m going to thank you by allowing you to turn into a block of ice.” She tossed the quilt over both of them, tucking it carefully around him the way he’d tucked the other quilt around her only minutes earlier. She was shivering like crazy by the time she finished.

Ames drew her snugly against his side, sharing as much of his body heat as he could. Then he called to Flash Billings, “You’d best turn around and get us back to her place pronto. She’s soaked to the skin from all the coffee I spilled on her.” It was no wonder he was still a single guy. Rough and tough bronc riders like him simply weren’t made of boyfriend material.

The aging postmaster obligingly drove his team of horses in a wide circle and retraced their path. In short order, he had them back in front of the Lees’ chalet.

“Sorry about tonight.” Ames gave Laura one last lingering hug before letting her go. “This was far from the evening I had planned for us.”

“I know.” Despite her own misery, Laura’s voice was filled to the brim with empathy for him. It was just how kindhearted of a person she was. “Come inside,” she urged, tugging on his hand. “We can thaw out together over a fresh cup of coffee. My treat this time.”

“Nah, that’s okay.” He curled his upper lip at her, anxious to put an end to the nightmarish evening. “You’re the one who—” A violent shiver came out of nowhere, interrupting his sentence.

She snickered. “I’m pretty sure you’re wearing as much coffee as I am, cowboy.” Her teeth chattered over the last few words.

She threw off the quilt and hopped out of the sleigh.

Ames gave Flash Billings an apologetic look. “Listen, I intend to cover the dry cleaning bill for those quilts.”

“That won’t be necessary, son.” His tone was far more cheerful than the dismal situation warranted. “I’ll throw ‘em in the washer like I always do, and they’ll be right as rain by the time you reschedule your sleigh ride. You’ve got at least an hour and a half left of the slot you reserved.”

“Thank you, sir. I’ll, um…take a look at your schedule.” Ames highly doubted he’d be rescheduling. What woman in her right mind would want to relive an evening like this one?

He stepped from the sleigh and hurried after Laura, keeping a careful grip on the railing as they made their way back up the stairs they’d fallen down earlier.

Moments later, they stood inside the entry foyer, facing each other. The interior of the chalet was surprisingly silent, telling him they were alone.

Though it was much warmer inside, Laura gave another shiver. Then she flung herself into his arms. “Thank you, Ames. For the sleigh ride and the coffee.” She gave a chuckle that held a hint of a sob around the edges. “Lucy let it slip that you asked her for my favorite coffee order, so I know you put a lot of effort into this evening.”

He hugged her back. “Much good it did me.” He was the proverbial bull in a china shop. Can’t seem to do anything right where you’re concerned. “Where’s Lucy, by the way?”

“Out with friends.” She snuggled closer to him.

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