Darby had been left behind due to lack of space on board the life flight. She’d been left to worry and fret, glued to the radio until her father had finally called to tell her the bad news. Over the radio. When she’d been all alone hundreds of miles from any sort of solace. She’d cried for hours and when her father had finally returned to the cabin the next day, he’d had a remote look in his eyes that hadn’t been there before. And it had never totally gone away, except for perhaps when they’d been reunited after her kidnap last summer.

Her reflection in the glass looked so much like her mom it was almost like seeing a ghost.

Darby swallowed the last of her pizza and pretended her loss didn’t matter anymore.

A deer stepped out of the trees and made its way warily past the property.

“Beautiful.”

She glanced over her shoulder. Eban smiled at her and she felt her cheeks heat. Hopefully, he’d think it was the fire and not her reveling in any stray comment she could twist into a compliment and braid through her mind like daisies in her hair.

“It is.” She wiped her fingers on a paper napkin and sipped her beer. “What’s our next move?”

Let’s have sex.

He grabbed his third slice. “We can watch a movie or read?”

Damn. Not even in the same book, let alone on the same page. Even though she was enjoying the moment she knew neither of them was particularly good at doing nothing. She was itching to study her data. He probably wanted to work on the case.

She hugged herself even though it was warm inside the cabin. “If it wasn’t so cold today, we could go snowshoeing through the woods.”

He looked doubtful about that. Probably because it was so freaking bitter out.

“Why don’t we use the hot tub?” She loved hot tubs.

“In these temperatures?”

“That’s what it’s there for.” She laughed at his expression. “Where’s your sense of adventure?”

“My life is exciting enough without freezing my nuts off. Plus, no swim trunks.” He wiped his mouth with a napkin. “I’m pretty sure I packed you a bathing suit amongst all the random stuff I grabbed though.”

“You’re in Alaska now. Skinny dipping is definitely a thing here.” She put her beer on the table. “For the sake of your delicate sensibilities I’ll put on my suit.”

His eyes bugged and he quickly swallowed another bite of pizza. “Don’t worry on my account.”

Was he flirting with her? She found it hard to contain her smile as she climbed up to the loft. It only took her a minute to change. She tied up her hair and felt a little self-conscious as she climbed back down the ladder in her one piece before grabbing a robe and a towel off the hook near the door.

She found a pair of slippers there too and shuffled outside, catching her breath at the ambient temperature—at least minus twenty, possibly minus thirty, but at least they were protected from the wind here.