Mistletoe & Marriage: Snowbound Cowboy

That same husky soft voice called his name again. Boone looked toward the doorway and saw Amelia. Holding a hurricane lantern, she stood shadowed in the dim light. Her dark hair was slightly mussed and she had a blanket bundled around her trim body. Her gaze was questioning.

Boone drew another breath, trying to fight the urges she invoked in him. He zipped the bag and went to her.

“Is there a problem?” he asked.

“I think we’re going to need more firewood.”

He suddenly became aware of the chill. “Maybe you should turn on the heat, too.”

She released a breath. “I’m just worried that the generator won’t hold out.”

He nodded. “How’s Jesse? Is he warm enough?”

She smiled. “He’s fine and sound asleep. How are you doing in here?”

“It’s not bad.” Hell, it was cold.

She smiled at his lie. “Okay, we turn on the heat. But I’ll need to close the vents upstairs.”

“I’ll help you.”

He followed her through the kitchen, checking on Jesse as they went. The boy was layered with blankets on the sofa. He followed Amelia up the steps to the second floor where she opened the door at the top.

Amelia felt the drop in temperature immediately. “Oh, burr, it’s freezing.”

“Colder than a witch’s…” Boone began. “It’s darn cold.” He stood behind her and held up the lantern. “Go back downstairs, Amelia. I can handle this.”

She turned, nearly bumping into him. “But I know where all the registers are.”

With a nod from him, she headed into her grandmother’s bedroom. They worked quickly to shut off the vents, then moved on to Jesse’s room. Next, they went into hers. This had been her childhood bedroom and not much had changed since then. It seemed strange to have Boone here. There hadn’t been a man in here ever, not even Jesse’s father.

She knelt down next to her twin bed, and worked the iron grate, but it wouldn’t budge. “Stubborn thing.”

Boone appeared, shinning more light. “Here, let me try.”

Before she could get out of the way, he leaned over her, and his hard chest brushed against her back. She felt his muscles strain as he fought the stubborn lever and won.

He didn’t move away, and strangely, Amelia didn’t want him to.

“Where to next?” His voice vibrated against her ear. “Your sister’s room?”

“Kelley doesn’t live in the house anymore. A few years ago she moved into the foreman’s cottage.” She stopped her rambling and took a breath to relax. It didn’t help. Was she so starved for a man that the slightest contact set her off?

With this man, yes.

He finally moved back. “Then I guess we’re finished,” he said. “We should head downstairs.”

Still on her knees, she turned to face him. In the dim shadows, they were close in the confined space. Dangerously close.

Suddenly she heard her name called. “Mom! Mom! Where are you?”

She broke eye contact, got to her feet and hurried into the hallway. “I’m coming, Jesse.”

“Hurry, Mom. Izzy’s having her puppies.”

Chapter Five

BOONE FOLLOWED AMELIA downstairs to find the mother-to-be in her box in the pantry. Seeing her owner, Izzy whimpered.

“See, Mom?”

Amelia knelt down inside the narrow enclosure next to her son and gently stroked the dog’s head. “What’s the matter, girl? Are your babies getting impatient to be born?”

In answer, the animal licked her hand and panted heavily.

“Mom, is Izzy having her puppies now?”

Amelia stood and backed out of the small space. “It looks like it, honey. Maybe we should give her some privacy.”

The boy didn’t like the idea. “But what if she needs us?”

“She might. So we need to get some towels and thread to tie off the puppies’ cords in case she needs help.”

When the boy started to argue, Boone spoke up, “Come on, Jesse, I’ll help you, too. Do you know where the thread is?”

With the boy’s nod, the threesome gathered the things needed and returned for the expected delivery. Wrapped in a blanket, with the lantern next to him, Jesse sat in the doorway waiting.

Boone stood holding another light overhead, and watched in awe as Amelia coaxed the Labrador to push out the first tiny puppy. Jesse gasped in delight, and showed even more excitement as the second and third came along.

“You’re doing fine, girl,” Amelia spoke to her patient as she wiped off each new arrival. “Here comes another,” she said, then amended that. “Oh, and another.”

Boone handed Jesse the light and instructed him how to hold it. Then he jumped in and assisted Amelia so none of the puppies would be lost.

By the end, the litter count added up to eight healthy puppies. Amelia gently helped clean the last arrival, and gave it to the mother to begin nursing. Then she worked quickly to removed the soiled towels and replace them with fresh bedding.

Boone took the dirty towels and set them aside, then helped Jesse bring some food and water for the new mother.

“Mom, can we keep one this time?” Jesse pointed to the yellow pup that was busy trying to find a vacant nipple to feed on.

“Honey, we talked about this. You know we have to sell them. Besides, Mr. Clevenger might want that one to keep.”

The boy hung his head. “What if I don’t want to go to college?”

Amelia looked at Boone. “We started breeding Izzy when our neighbor, Ralph Clevenger, approached us because he had a registered Labrador, too. After Ralph takes his pick, I plan to sell the others and put the money in Jesse’s college fund.”

Boone wanted to tell Amelia that she didn’t have to worry about money for college. Russ had left everything to his son, along with a hefty life insurance policy. But that wouldn’t mean much to a little boy who wanted a dad. Instead, Boone spoke to Jesse. “Your mom will make sure they all have good homes with other boys and girls.”

Amelia glanced down at the new mother. “This is Izzy’s third litter. I usually have the vet come out to check her. That’s not going to happen this time.”