Page 10 of Snowed In With the Mountain Man
But also, she’d come to think of this man as so very quiet. Was he really about to tell her a story?
“You were?”
He nodded. “The first flight was canceled. And at that point, I’d been traveling nonstop for several days, so I was exhausted.”
She gaped at him as he settled in, amusement making his eyes gleam again. “So the second flight they put me on…” His wince was comically self-deprecating. “Well, I slept right through the boarding call.”
“No!” She surprised herself with the outburst, and when he chuckled, she found herself smiling as well. “What did you do?”
He shrugged. “What could I do? I waited for the next flight. But then…”
He shot her an arched look, and she just barely smothered an embarrassingly girly giggle. “Oh no…” she murmured.
“Oh yes,” he said. “The next flight was on this little prop plane. I took one look at it and turned green.”
“Just from looking at it?”
His answer was a chuckle that had her sinking back into the seat, more curious than she cared to admit. “So? Then what happened?”
4
Nearly two hours later, JJ wondered if Dahlia had any idea how cute she looked when she was engrossed in a story.
Probably not.
Actually, she’d probably smack anyone who had the nerve to say so.
Still, she was awfully adorable when she was trying not to laugh. Even cuter when she was pretending like she wasn’t engaged in the tale.
And then there were moments like this one, when she seemed to forget her quest to stay aloof and defensive, and he caught a hint of the girl she must have been.
Her eyes flashed with amusement as she took in his latest revelation.
He wished he could pull out a camera and take a picture of her looking like this. Eyes wide, lips parted, a reluctant, hard-to-earn smile softening her model-sharp features.
This was one of very few outright smiles he’d gotten from her as he’d regaled her with stories from his traveling days, and every glimpse of her gorgeous smile had him itching to see more.
The fact that she didn’t dole them out easily made them that much more satisfying when she let one slip like she had just now.
“So wait… you actuallyranwith the bulls?” she asked with wide eyes.
He grinned.
Yeah. She was cute as a button, all right.
“Are you saying you haven’t?” He pulled a swig of water from the bottle she handed him.
They’d sought out some snacks and drinks a little while ago, more of an excuse to stretch their legs than anything. Then they’d found new seats, as they watched Dahlia’s flight get pushed back, and then back again.
She fidgeted in her seat, her gaze torn between him and the screen overhead where the flashing “delayed” sign next to her flight glared down at them.
“I’ve never been to Spain,” she murmured.
“But if you’d gone…”
Her sidelong smirk made him chuckle. “Oh, I’d have run with those bulls.”
“I have no doubt.”
