Stevie was all over the place. She grabbed Boots and carried him to the back of the stove, where Dixie was sleeping, and then picked up the edge of the blanket and began to rub the kitten’s fur.

Cody dropped to his knees beside her. “He wasn’t in the snow more than two minutes, tops. Is he alive? I never should have opened the door.”

Stevie ignored his question, which made Cody wonder if there was hope for the kitten.

“What can I do?” he asked.

“Keep the barn door closed,” Stevie said. “You must have gotten him just as he went under because there’s no snow in his nose. That’s a good sign. Water in the nose could mean sinus and lung problems later. He’s just scared and cold. Look, he’s opening his eyes. Time for Dixie to be a good big sister.” Stevie tucked the kitten against Dixie’s belly, and then Dolly made her way over to him. “It’s a good thing you saw him run out of the barn. Now about your hands…”

Cody held out his hands. They were bright red and tingling. Another few minutes and he might have suffered frostbite. “They’ll warm up in a little while.”

Stevie rolled up on her feet, went to the worktable, and came back with his gloves. She warmed them on top of the stove for just a minute and then stretched them onto his hands. Even though his fingers felt like icicles, her touch shot desire through his body.

“Don’t reckon I could get you to pull my boots off?” he asked. “The snow went over the tops, and…”

“Good God! Did you roll in the snow?” Stevie asked.

“Nope, just crawled in it. I couldn’t let a kitten freeze to death,” he answered. “Are you sure he’s going to be okay?”

Stevie nodded toward Boots, who was now up and nursing on his mother. “He’s fine, but you’ve got to come out of those jeans as well as your boots.”

“And what am I going to wear?” he asked.

“I’ve got a pair of sweatpants and extra socks in my go bag. They’ll keep you warm while your jeans and socks get dry, but they are pink,” she answered as she set about removing his boots and socks. “You’re a doctor. You know how fast frostbite can set in when you’re wet like this. You should have taken all this off while I was working on Boots. Now, you need to get those wet jeans off.” She set his cowboy boots beside the stove and started for the door.

“And let you see me half-naked?” Both his eyebrows shot up.

“This is not the time to joke around,” she threw over her shoulder as she closed the door behind her.