He laughed and twisted the caps off, handing one bottle to her. “I need to call my mom like the good boy I am and tell her not to expect me.” Grayson used the landline in the kitchen to make the call. “Yes, Mother,” he said, rolling his eyes at Emma. “I thought you might agree it’s better if I stay put. You’ve got enough firewood to get you through tonight and tomorrow. Call Noah if you need anything. All right. I will.” He put down the phone. “There. My duty is done.”

Seeing no sign of Molly and Linc, Emma said, “Let’s go in the den.” Back to the place where they had connected so completely the night before, she thought, looking forward to more time alone with him.

He followed her, lit the fire that had been laid in the hearth and then turned off the lamp so the only light was from the fire and the twinkling white lights on the Christmas tree. Outside, the wind howled and the snow pinged against the window. “Is it okay to say I’m sort of glad it snowed tonight?” he asked.

“Why’s that?”

“Because if it hadn’t, I’d still be wishing I could do this.” He raised his arm, inviting her to move closer.

Emma smiled at him and leaned into him so he could put his arm around her. “This is nice,” she said, resting her head on his chest.

He ran his fingers through her hair. “It certainly is.”

Emma closed her eyes and tried to lose herself in the romantic moment while not thinking about the many reasons it was a supremely bad idea to get involved with a man who lived so far from her. Cameron and Lucy did it, she thought, and made it work. But they hadn’t had a child to think about. Simone made everything more complicated for her, not that she minded. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for her child, and that included stopping herself from getting too involved with a man she couldn’t have.

That didn’t mean, however, that she couldn’t enjoy the time they had together this week.

“What’re you thinking about?” he asked.

“Too many things.”

“Care to share?”

She lifted her head from his chest so she could see his face. “I’m thinking about how much I enjoy being with you and how sorry I am that you live so far from me.”

He raised his hand to caress her cheek. “Your thoughts are amazingly similar to mine.”

“Maybe it would be better if… if we didn’t.”

“Is that what you want?”

She shook her head.

He gazed into her eyes for a long moment, seeming to commit her features to memory. Then he shifted his gaze to her lips in the seconds before he kissed her.