Page 4 of Undoing His Innocent Enemy (Hot Winter Escapes)

‘C-c-cold,’ she said, starting to shiver violently.

He nodded. Shivering was good.

He shook the thermometer, snapping off its protective covering. Then he pressed his thumb to her chapped bottom lip and placed it under her tongue.

He clicked the timer on his watch, to count down four minutes.

‘Wh-wh...?’

‘Don’t talk.’ He glared at the girl, who was staring at him now with a dazed, confused expression in those bright eyes as she continued to shudder.

Not so good.

The timer dinged.

He tugged out the thermometer. Ninety-four point nine degrees.

He cursed softly.

Anything below ninety-five was mild hypothermia.

Great.

‘Come on.’ He dumped the thermometer on the coffee table, stood, and scooped her carefully into his arms. ‘We must get you warm,’ he said as he strode towards the wooden staircase that led to the guest bedroom that had never been used on the ground level.

As he marched through the house, with her still shivering, he considered his options.

Perhaps he should call the EMT station in Saariselkä. But she was young, still lucid, looked healthy enough. And he’d located her fairly quickly. Plus she was conscious and her temperature was on the cusp. If he could get it back past ninety-five quickly, there would be no need for hospital treatment and hopefully no ill effects. It would take over an hour for the EMTs to get here even in a chopper and the storm still stood between them.

And he’d be damned if he’d give up the location of his home to help out a stranger before he absolutely had to... And before he knew who this person was, and what she had been doing on his land—getting herself lost in a snowstorm.

That said, he thought grimly as he began stripping off the wet outer layers of her clothing, while she stood shivering and docile... This promised to be a very long night.

CHAPTER TWO

WHEREAMI? Who is this guy? And why don’t I care that he’s taking off my clothing?

Another violent shudder racked Cara’s body as her rescuer kneeled in front of her and lifted each foot to tug off her snow boots. She had to grasp his shoulder to stop herself from falling on top of him—but he seemed oblivious, his movements swift and deliberate as he peeled off her sodden snowsuit and the ski-pants beneath.

His shoulder flexed beneath her ungloved fingers making her aware of the thin thermal undershirt he’d stripped down to—which moulded to his impressive physique like a second skin. Another series of shudders turned her body into a human castanet.

Maybe I don’t care because I’m exhausted. And I’d rather be here, wherever here is, than out in the storm.

Something about Mr Angry felt, if not safe, exactly, because he was big and grumpy, then at least not dangerous.

‘Wh-who a-a-are y-you?’ she managed through the shudders, so exhausted now she was astonished she was still upright.

‘Save your energy,’ he said, not answering her question. ‘You will need it.’

He stood, and his piercing silvery blue gaze locked on her face, the icy glare trapping her like a tractor beam. Suspicion flashed across his features. His jaw hardened under a rough stubble, which looked as if he’d forgotten to shave for a while, rather than grown it intentionally. His hair was a thick dark brown and long enough to touch his collar. He swept the unkempt waves off his forehead, but they dropped back again almost immediately. He didn’t look as if he’d had a proper haircut in years, Cara thought vaguely. How odd, that he couldn’t afford a haircut, when his place—if this place was his—looked so exclusive.

Much like the living area they had first entered, the sparsely furnished bedroom had a massive glass wall at the far end of the room, which took in the view of snow-laden forest and wide open sky, the darkness sprinkled with stars and brightened by the blue glow of a full moon...

His home was beyond stunning, a steel and glass minimalist palace that wouldn’t look out of place in a glossy travel magazine. Or a Superman comic.

A Fortress of Solitude... She tried to focus her mind, grasp hold of that thought and the strange feeling ofdéjà vu. Why did she feel as if she knew this place? Or knew of it?

He was still staring at her as he pulled the zip down on her fleece and tugged her arms out. The fierce expression didn’t just look suspicious now, it looked annoyed, and he was making no effort to hide it.

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