Because nothing was as he’d expected it, Cliff was silent. He’d wanted passion, but he’d never imagined the scope of it. He’d wanted what her song had whispered of, but the reality had been much more dramatic than any words or any melody. He’d been certain that once the tension between them had been released, once the lure had been accepted, the needs would lessen.

It was true his body was sated with a pleasure more intense than anything he’d known, but his mind— Cliff closed his eyes, wishing his mind would rest as easy. But it was too full of her. So full that he knew even a touch would set his body raging again. That kind of need was a shade too close to dependence for comfort. They had nothing to offer each other, he reminded himself, nothing but outrageous mutual desire.

And suddenly he remembered a line from her song. “Desire is madness.”

If he could have stopped himself, he wouldn’t have touched her again. He was already reaching for her.

“You’re cold,” he murmured, automatically drawing her against him to warm her.

“A bit.” There was an awkwardness she didn’t know how to alleviate and a need she didn’t know how to explain.

“Here.” He tugged the tangled spread over her, then pulled her close again. “Better?”

“Yes.” Her body relaxed against his, even as her thoughts continued to race.

They lapsed into silence again, neither knowing quite how to deal with what had flared between them. Cliff listened to the rain beat against the window glass, adding to the sense of isolation. Even on a clear night, he knew, you would see no light from a neighboring house. “Are you having trouble staying out here alone?”

“Trouble?” Maggie hedged. She wanted to stay exactly as she was, wrapped close around him, warm and safe and untroubled. She didn’t want to think now of staying in the big house alone, of sleeping alone.

“This place is more isolated than most around here.” How soft she was, he thought. It brought him an odd sort of contentment to feel her hair lie against his shoulder. “A lot of people, even if they were raised here, would have trouble being this far back and alone, especially after everything that’s happened.”

No, she didn’t want to talk about it. Maggie closed her eyes, reminding herself that she’d come here determined to take care of herself, to deal with whatever came. She drew a deep breath, but when she started to shift away, Cliff held her still.

“You are having trouble.”