Page 9 of Shielded Hearts

Up until this moment, he hoped she’d tell him to drop her back at the hangar and she’d find her own accommodations. Seeing her crestfallen expression tugged at the heartstrings he thought he’d been born without.

“I’m not leaving you here.”

She issued a low sigh, breathy and soft. “Thank you. Let’s try the next motel.”

They drove on. The next town might have a bigger hotel, but unfortunately, when they both entered the small office, the clerk informed them that a scrapbooking convention was in town.

Aspen wrapped her arms around herself, an action that he was starting to become familiar with as her way of closing up.

On the way out again, he glanced at Aspen and tried to lighten the mood. “What the hell is scrapbooking, anyway?”

“You don’t seem like you’d be interested in learning what that is.” She exhaled slowly, her narrow shoulders even more slumped since hearing that the second motel had no vacancy.

This day was dragging on and on, but Colt was no quitter. He was a goddamn Malone. And he would unload the travel agent in a safe place before taking off into the mountains.

In the truck once again, he turned to her. Darkness had fallen, casting her in blue shadows and making her white skin appear even paler.

She looked cold.

He switched on the heat to warm her up. “The next town is forty minutes away.”

She nodded. “If you’re willing to drive, I’m game.”

But forty minutes later, he found that every single room in that town was booked too. He eyed the desk clerk.

“You must have an extra cot you can put in a broom closet.”

She arched a brow at him. “Sorry, no closets.”

He scrubbed a finger between his brows, but even that didn’t smooth the pucker there.

When he returned to Aspen, she took one look at his expression and buried her face in her hands.

“You’re kidding! How is this place full too?” Her voice pitched louder with every word.

He leveled her in his gaze. “Shouldn’t you be on your phone or something? Isn’t this what you do? Find people rooms?”

She gave him a flat look. “Travelconcierge. Remember? This isn’t my thing. No one comes to me saying they want to go to Buttfuck Nowhere!”

Her profanity made him choke on a laugh. He struggled for two heartbeats before he managed to swallow the outburst.

She ran her fingers through her hair, collecting herself. “I am a concierge of travel. This isnotconcierge. I’m baffled that people actually want to stay in any of these small towns. This area of Wyoming isn’t even a blip on the travel industry radar. It’s a black hole.”

He leaned back in his seat, body angled to face her. “How does someone become a travel concierge exactly?”

She issued a roughened sigh as though she was more exasperated with him than the entire situation she’d landed in. “I had the benefit of traveling for six months with a friend who had the resources to stay anywhere she wanted. Thanks to my friend’s social media posts, my name became well-known. That’s how I ended up starting my business.”

“Are you headed home?”

She stared out the window at the dark landscape. “No. I’m supposed to be going to Montana. I have days mapped out on my schedule to look at new destinations.”

“You’re saying that Montana is good for travelers and Wyoming is Montana’s poor cousin?”

She gave a little grunt. “Pretty much.”

He huffed out a laugh. “You must not see what I do.”

“And what is that?” She angled her body toward him too.

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