Chapter 2

Two

" H ome sweet home."

Esmeralda shut off her rental car and took in the sight of the one town on earth her father vowed she could never return to. Vowed until he lost all color to his face that over his dead body would any kin of his ever return to Savage Ridge, Alaska.

Why he picked it as his final resting place still sat heavy on her mind.

Hard to believe that twenty-four hours ago her surroundings were gray and colorless compared to the postcard-worthy view beyond her windshield.

Snow-tipped mountains gave way to a crystal-clear sky so blue it made the world look like it glowed with an invisible energy. Cold air filled her lungs and she tilted her head back to catch the first rays of Alaskan sunshine as the sun greeted the morning. As precious as the stones her father pulled from the frozen ground. More so in her opinion, but no board member could pocket that value.

"Hey sweetheart, you lost, or in need of a little help?" A deep craggy voice shattered her moment of Zen. Esmeralda shot the intruder a sideways glance and returned her attention to the gas pump.

Squinting, she held up a hand to block the rays angled just so to hit her square in the face.

Ash-blond hair caught the rays of morning light momentarily hiding his face. Before she could blink, he towered over her. By then, it was too late to make a fast withdrawal to the safety of her car or the store. He appeared out of nowhere that she could see and covered the distance of the small parking lot in a handful of strides.

She shifted positions and placed the sun at her back. Smeared grease covered most of the guy's coverall, and the grungy orange material looked faded and tattered in places from prolonged use. A small, white logo stood out on the sleeve, marking him as a mechanic from the shop around the corner. He must have been watching to catch her all the way over here.

With a tilt to his head, he performed one of those one-sided elbow leans on the gas pump probably thinking it made all the chicks dig him.

She huffed her surprise as she flipped the lever to the gas pump. "You have to be kidding." As misinformed as he may be, it might have worked if he didn't ooze massive amounts of creepy dude vibes and rock a half-torn wife beater like they weren't standing in on the fringes of the Arctic Circle.

With him propped up on her gas pump, she had no choice but to reach around him to return the nozzle.

She needed to get going if she had any hopes of making it off the mountain before nightfall. Who knew, if lucky, maybe she'd be out of here before then. Keeping her promise to her aunt might score her a twofer—apple pie AND her award-winning chicken soup.

A girl needed her comforts.

Esmeralda flipped the lid to her rental car's gas tank closed and stepped around the wall of a man who couldn't find a clue if it were taped to his forehead apparently.

In her line of work, getting bullied by entitled pricks and hit on all in the same hour happened to be another day at the office. "After the week I've had, buster, don't. Just don't." She sliced a hand through the air and put several feet of cracked cement between them.

"Come on, let me make it better." He reached out and caught a strand of her air between his fingers.

Ugh. Esmeralda stepped back with her hands up. "Look, I'll go my way, you go yours, Gigantor." Don't antagonize the man, smart-ass. The lopsided smile that pulled at the corner of his lips made her stomach do a chug and heave.

"You haven't seen big yet, baby." In a sleazy glide, he wrapped his hand around his crotch and cupped his bulge.

"Sorry, little dicks don't impress me."

Seriously? The man had the looks to land any girl, but his method needed an overhaul. Her heartbeat rattled around in her chest and almost made her lose her step as she rounded the trunk of her four-wheel-drive.

Steel fingers wrapped around her upper arm and dragged her close with a yank.

"Look, whoever you are," she threw a hand up between them. "Go find a back alley girl to play hanky-panky with—I'm definitely not your type."

Beady blue eyes peered down at her as if calculating how far he could push her before the claws came out. His stare bored into her and caused her to slink back.

"How would you know? I happen to be everybody's type, sweetheart. Wait till you get a good long taste."

"Keep dreaming, pal!". God, the man needed a Tic-Tac and a shower. All in that order. She dug her heel into the cement. Raised her opposite arm and shoved her palm into the bridge of his nose before he could make good on his promise with his puckered lips inching closer.

"Surprise! Next time, take a hint."

His grip loosened and she pulled free. "You stupid little bitch." She backtracked, her target the double glass doors of the convenience store and as much space between her and the angered man as possible.

He raised his hand and she flinched as her boot caught on the raised platform for the gas tanks. But the fated backhand across the cheek never came.

"Unless you want to find yourself answering to the sheriff I suggest you get your sorry ass out of my face, Brax. I don't think I need to remind you what happens when you get another strike on your record." Her eyebrows shot up so far they had to be touching her hairline. Her gaze danced between both men and the arrogant smile her new admirer wore swiftly faded to a deep scowl.

Whatever it was had to be bad.

Fear filled the creases outlining his lips and eyes. It was plain to see as was the fake bravado he wore like a shield. Cold-hearted hatred chilled the air between the men beyond anything Mother Nature could do to an Alaskan winter.

Brax growled but didn't make a move other than to toss a nasty look filled with cold fury over his shoulder at her. Like she'd planned this all to get him in trouble.

"Keep your woman outta my way." The way he slung out the warning made her spine go rigid. Several seconds slipped by as they watched the hulking man slink back around the corner.

"Are you okay?" Slightly dazed, she momentarily missed the outstretched hand her mirage offered. He couldn't be real. Could he? Oh, get a grip. You knew running into your past lover would happen. But nothing actually prepared her for the chance encounter.

"I, uh, yeah, I think." Drake fuuurrreeaaking Savage loomed over her, his thick thighs covered in some sort of bright orange snow gear and the upper half unzipped to hang freely around the waist to reveal his chest wrapped in what had to the tightest shirt ever made in the history of mankind. God, what a chest! Even in the form-fitting, long-sleeved pullover he sported not a detail slipped past her raking gaze. She made sure of it!

Until her gaze landed on his. In that instant, the sunshine, the snow-capped mountains and all the heartbreak weighing on her melted away.

Heat rushed into her cheeks and she took his outstretched hand. "What was that guy's problem?"

Drake shook his head and a soft scent of pine lingered between them. As if he spent the dawn hours in the woods and nature clung to him. "That man is a puzzle even to me."

Whiskey eyes, warm and inviting, lured her in. She heard him say something but didn't pay too much attention to it. Two dimples on either side of his cheeks sent a lightning bolt of lust to strike her square in the girly parts.

How crazy. She couldn't help but feel safe. Drawn to the man she hadn't laid eyes on in forever and a day.

She nodded. More than one thing hadn't changed since she'd left the snowy picturesque landscape five years ago.

Gently he took her hand and hauled her up with a little too much force. She lost her balance and stumbled forward. Hands out, she clutched the nearest thing within reach. Wouldn't you know it? Two well-formed pecs were right where her hands landed. She groaned and his eyes turned from whiskey to molten gold in a flash. The throaty growl made her want to taste his lips. All she had to do was lean a little closer...

Had his eyes always been so sexy? So bright?

"Esme," Drake gruffly whispered like his nickname for her held all the magic in the world.

"Sorry." Her breath caught. Did her fingers just flex? Oh, God. She yanked her betraying hands back and forced them to stay at her side. Why did she have to pack the one pair of pants that had no pockets!

"I hit my head." She cringed inwardly. Let him know you're off your rocker. Smooth.

She'd lost her damned mind.

Was it too unrealistic to ask for someone to light a match and blow the gas station? A squeaky groan slipped and she took a couple of steps toward her car. Mirth brightened his irises and the firm straight-faced man that played her guardian angel melted into the warm, smiling Drake Savage: the man she fell in love with when she was the sweet, innocent seventeen-year-old.

Drake Savage, the son of her father's rival.

"Did your old man make it back with you?" Drake scanned their surroundings looking for a threat of some sort to pop out at him.

Her mind briefly drifted back to the boy barely older than her. In his awkward teenage years he'd been handsome, but never in a thousand years did she think he'd turn out to be so... gorgeous. So fucking gorgeous.

Not that he knew it from the way he wore the same bright smile and easygoing manner.

"Uh, no. You don't need to worry. It's just me." From one foot to the other she shifted her weight and hoped he didn't dig deeper. Even as a teenager, Drake had been bigger than the rest of his cousins. Now he towered over her a good half a foot, making her five-five stature feel petite.

Her knees trembled in time with her racing heart. Small lines creased the space between his eyes and her gaze roved over her very impressive mirage. Drake wasn't the boy she remembered. He'd gained weight in all the right places. Once lanky arms and legs now robust with heavily defined muscles.

Finger-length sable hair brushed the collar of his shirt. It was longer than she remembered, but he still rocked out the mussed don't-give-a-damn look, but in a sexy way. Longer strands swept down to brush either side of his face. Not too long, but enough to make her fingers twitch with the urge to touch. She had to admit the man oozed sex appeal without even trying.

Drake looked over her shoulder for the man who'd once cursed him and his people with every fiber of his being. "Sorry to hear that."

She smiled politely, twisting her fingers into a knot to keep them to herself. She doubted it, but she appreciated the sentiment for her sake anyway. "I have to be going. I have a flight to catch. But it was really great seeing you." Esmeralda bit the inside of her cheek at the lie. If she let him in on her real plans he'd try to stop her.

"Is that so, Esmeralda Morgan?" Drake closed the distance what little distance there was between them. Heat swallowed her up the closer he came and she loved it. Wanted more of him. Was it possible to fall in love at first sight for a second time?

He said her name in a slow drawl with just a hint of gravely inflection that coaxed memories from the deep well she hoped to have drowned them in. Apparently, they'd found a life raft and clung on like little pesky nuisances to come back and bite her in the ass when she least expected it. Because what else explained the way her veins flooded with an unsolicited amount of adrenaline as Drake tangled her fingers with his?

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Her face warmed as his eyes came alive. Tingles brushed along her skin as if she didn't have a stitch of clothing on. Steel bands wrapped around her and pulled her deeper until her body flushed against his. One muscle at a time relaxed into his hold. He knotted the length of her ponytail around his hand and angled her lips upward. As that one action held her spellbound, her core warmed and the walls of her pussy pulsed with the memory of what it felt like to have him taking all of her. His nostrils flared and the gold specks in his eyes danced.

"Carebear, is that you?"

Drake groaned.

He looked down at her. "This isn't over." Voice was thick with emotion but rang with a level of certainty she felt hard-pressed not to ignore.

He took a half a pace back and with him the delicious heat he emitted. Unable to break the connection any more than she was, he tightened his fingers around hers.

The look in his gaze connected as if invisible magic twined them together. Her nipples pebbled in the soft confines of her bra at the sinful promise. She pressed her lips together and swallowed.

"It is you! Damn, Drake why didn't you tell me guests were coming?"

Oh God, she couldn't handle two Savage boys at once. A big diesel rig pulled up behind her. So tied up in the moment she failed to hear the arrival of Drake's brother.

"Ethan. She pulled out her handy insta-smile and flashed her pearly whites as she turned on her heel. Braced for impact, in two seconds the middle boy of the Savage men had her pinned against him, feet off the ground and squeezing her into a giant bear hug. Whatever they fed these Alaskans made their men iron solid and drool-worthy down to the double dimples. That last one was probably genetic, but damn she'd never seen red plaid look so good on a man.

"She can't breathe, for God's sake. Let the poor girl go."

Ethan planted her back on the ground but didn't let her go. This made his brother's scowl deeper.

"I think you may have irritated your brother quite thoroughly." Feeling bold from the big welcome, Esmeralda tossed a wink at Drake that scored her the classic Drake stare. Hands crossed over his chest and a straight line for a mouth. But the golden flecks of his irises still swirled with the same energy as before.

"Damn girl, you're looking fine. New York has been better than just good for you." Ethan pulled back from her and placed both hands on her shoulders. Letting out a low whistle, he twirled her around. Shucking the designer shoes for the more practical gear of Alaska, she couldn't help but feel self-conscious over her several layers of sweaters and jeans tucked into her ankle-high boots. It had been a long time since her last winter here.

Ethan planted a big kiss on her cheek and from beneath thick lashes she caught Drake's expression. If he frowned any deeper his face would crack.

"Yeah, who knew I had city-girl blood in my veins?" Esmeralda shared a laugh and another hug from Ethan who couldn't seem to believe she was real.

Despite hating the nickname he Christened her with after he and Drake had taken down a bully who'd made fun of her freckles in eighth grade, Esmeralda smiled. This time for real.

"I see you're still a big flirt, how are you? Have you made any lucky girl Mrs. Savage yet?"

"I don't know about that, but I've made a few go wild if you know what I mean?" Ethan waggled his brows and made her laugh. Drake groaned beside her. Esmeralda tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and dipped her head to hide a giggle.

In a matter of seconds one of her oldest childhood friends brushed away some of the dark gloom from her aching heart.

"Ahem... Playboy here was just leaving."

Ethan reached over and tousled the ends of her ponytail as if they were still those young kids without a care in the world.

"Not so fast, bro."

Drake growled, but that didn't seem to slow Ethan's roll any. "Listen, Carebear, come on by the house later on. Mom is pulling together a nice meal to celebrate Kara's baby."

Baby? The younger Savage sister had a baby? "I don't think that's a great idea." Drake shuffled beside her and she caught the stiff look that passed between him and Ethan.

"Nonsense. You've been missed in these parts. Dad would love to see you and Mom too. Hell, the whole family would love to give you a big hug and see what you've been up to since leaving us."

Drake nailed Ethan with a glare at his poor choice of words. Sometimes the filter between his brain and mouth malfunctioned growing up and landed him in some hot water on a few occasions. Apparently, it still did.

She placed a hand over Ethan's. "It's fine, really."

"No pressure okay, but it would be nice to have you come over." As if stepping right back in without missing a beat, Ethan welcomed her back just like that. With Drake, she still walked on thin ice, even if he did almost kiss her.

The instant heat kindled right back up with no problem, but walking back into their lives as if nothing happened? That she couldn't do.

A small part of her envied their large, easygoing family. The bond they shared went beyond anything her family ever had for one another.

Beneath heavy lashes, she risked a glance at Drake who'd taken a step back from her and crossed his arms like a man that didn't have time for little brothers and old girlfriends. For a moment it looked as if he wanted to push his brother back in the cab of his truck and be rid of him, too.

He was right. She'd come here for one purpose.

She flicked away the distraction of the allure Ethan painted for her and worked her mouth open to decline.

As if sensing her mental shift, he spoke up.

"Besides, Mom is gearing up for winter solstice too. I think you still know what that means." How could she forget? That had her eyebrows climbing. Mama Savage's barbecue made the worst of enemies momentarily set aside differences. She loved to grill no matter the time of year. Crazy, but then again who knows what normal is supposed to look like.

"If you're going to be around for a while, meet us back at the lodge up on Risky Whiskey road and we'll head home together."

She smiled at the mention of the town's best unkept secret. Risky Whiskey Run is where the town held its annual knicker run-fest. After drinking down countless shots of whiskey all the contestants stripped down to their knickers and raced to the end of the main drag that cut through the heart of downtown. One of the best ways to pass the cold winter and introduce the tourist to the local flavor of crazy.

Home. Neither brother seemed to notice, but that single word made her heart swell. After everything her father said and did to these wonderful people, how could they welcome her with open arms? Ethan couldn't know his family would welcome her so graciously.

He bent to place a chaste kiss to her cheek before pegging Drake with a pair of gloves he pulled from his back pocket. "Saddle up man, we've had an avalanche on the backside of Base One. Rangers are already scouting the area and have called in the additional support. You and me are playing air taxi too."

Base One. "How bad?" She let the question slip out as if she was only asking out of fear for the possibly injured people. She cared for them, hoped they were all okay and could make it down in one piece and breathing, but if the back passage up the mountain was closed, she'd be trapped here with Drake until she could do what she came here to do. That was beyond dangerous.

"Don't know. It wasn't anyone we took up. People fool enough to be back there alone, sorry to say it, has it coming."

Drake rubbed a hand over the back of his neck and nodded as Ethan pulled back to the truck to give them some space.

Drake turned to her. "Wait for me. Don't go anywhere. We need to talk. Wait for me?"

Damn. His eyes pleaded with her and it cut her deeper than she thought possible. She swallowed and bit at her inner lip. Pine invaded her senses and those damn eyes of his made her weak at the knees. He stood so close. Warm fingers cupped her face, and he held her attention the second his fiery gaze locked on hers with enough heat to ignite something so deep within her that no one had touched in forever. Well, frankly, since him.

"I'll pick you up from the lodge." Of course, he knew where she would be with only one place in this small town.

No question in his tone, no plea for obedience. Simply stated, Drake expected her to obey. She braced herself. Air caught in her lungs, refusing to budge. He lowered his head just as Ethan honked his horn. She clenched her hands at her side to keep from holding him where he stood. "I won't be long." His words brushed against her ears and reached deep inside to stir up more than emotions. He conjured up something else she didn't quite understand. There was no stopping the warm flush that consumed her from head to toe.

Damn him.

Esmeralda watched the tail lights of their truck disappear around the corner of the gas station. Drake Savage knew better than to turn his alpha as fuck machoness loose on her.