She’d been born and raised in Southern California, and was in no way ready for this sort of weather. She’d been so excited over receiving the job she hadn’t even thought to research what climate she was stepping into. Stupid, stupid, stupid. Running back inside she gulped warm air into her frozen lungs.
“Okay. You can do this,” she told herself as she looked down scathingly at her completely inefficient shoes. “Heels? What was I thinking?” Heels and sexy lingerie were her concessions to blatant femininity. Otherwise she wore beige and dark colors, and downplayed what she’d been blessed with.
Raising her head, she studied the people passing her by. None of them were wearing heels and a skirt. No. They were clad in warm boots, thick coats, and trousers. She threw her suitcases a disgusted look as it dawned on her that she’d have little choice but to spend some of her precious savings on warmer clothing.
Reaching into her carry-on bag, she pulled out her warmest jacket, which wasn’t going to do much, but it was better than nothing. She was wishing she’d done a lot more research on the weather in Montana before her arrival. Making her way back to the doors, Natalie glared at them as if they were the gates to hell, and took a deep breath before moving forward again.
As she stepped outside, tears sprang instantly to her eyes, and her entire body shook, but she forced herself to trudge to the curb. Thankfully, there was a cab waiting. Fearing she’d never feel warmth fully return to her body again, she huddled in the backseat after giving the driver the address for the little furnished house the school district had set up for her.
The people of Sterling had been unbelievably kind. One woman—her name was Bethel—had even sold Natalie a small Toyota sedan, dirt cheap. That was one less thing she had to worry about. The vehicle should be parked in her driveway already.
First she’d get settled in, and then she’d drive around town. She hoped they kept the roads plowed, because her little car wasn’t going to make her feel particularly safe, and she couldn’t fork out the money needed for a truck or SUV. Her mind drifted as the miles passed and she gazed out absently at an endless expanse of white.
“Looks like Hawk’s here to show you the place.”
Startled, Natalie looked up to see the cabbie peering at her through the rearview mirror. “What?”
One of Natalie’s worst faults, or at least what she felt was one of her worst faults, was that she’d get so lost in her own head she’d tune out the rest of the world.
A vivid imagination was great when you were teaching young children, but not so great when trying to hold normal conversations with other adults. How pathetic. Her life was so dull that she spent most of her time in a fantasy world.
That was going to change, though. She was a teacher now. A professional. Pulling a little notebook out of her purse, she turned to the list of goals she’d written out in clear, even handwriting. With pure delight, she checked off Get first teaching job. Of course, not everything on that list would be crossed off so easily.
“Hey, Mickey. How was the drive?” asked a husky male voice.
Whoa. When Natalie looked up and saw the man leaning against the side of the cab, she felt frozen to her seat. And it had nothing to do with the cold air drifting through the now open window. A pair of linebacker shoulders completely swallowed up the open space. He was wearing a thick coat, sporting dark and slightly unruly hair, with piercing brown eyes with lashes that seemed to go on forever.
And those lips. They were full and turned up in an electrifying smile as he bantered with the cabbie. Natalie had no idea what the two men were saying, because the deep timbre of this man’s voice enveloped her. It seemed to be sending all sorts of wrong signals to her stomach, which was fluttering.
Suddenly, her side door flung open and the man stood there with his hand out while saying something to her, but all she could hear was buzzing in her ears.
Nonsense!
This was total and utter nonsense. She didn’t believe in love at first sight, or even lust at first sight. So to be looking at this man as if he were a piece of her favorite chocolate was freaking ridiculous.
She was a professional woman who’d just had a weak moment. He was holding out a hand to help her from the taxi. That was all. She could do this. She’d reach out casually, take his hand, say a polite thank-you, and make her way into the house. Easy-peasy.
But when she did reach out, the sensation of his gloved fingers gripping her bare ones sent tingles through her body. She somehow managed to climb gracefully from the vehicle. But as their eyes met for the first time, she felt as if she were being sucked into another dimension.
“Hawk Winchester.”