Read Online Fire & Ice by Anne Stuart - Free Book Online

here, but her feet were numb and she was shivering too badly to get to her feet. She needed to stop crying—the tears would be freezing to her face before long. She rubbed them away with her sleeve. He was dead, she was abandoned, and she didn't know which was worse.
    “Are you crying?”
    The voice was annoyed, impatient, and came from the hill below her, as Reno appeared from a thick stand of trees.
    She didn't stop to think, she simply flew from her huddled spot and leapt on him, knocking him flat as she wept all over him.
    “I thought you were dead!” she sobbed. “I thought they'd caught you and killed you and I was going to die alone in the woods.”
    He lay still beneath her for a moment, then pulled her arms away from his neck, pushing her up so he could look at her. “I'm hard to kill,” he said. There was an odd expression in his eyes, one she couldn't read. But she could guess. Annoyance.
    “Sorry,” she said, scrambling to her feet, slipping a bit on the icy ground. He jumped up, effortlessly, catching her arm as she slid, holding her upright.
    “Come on,” he said after a long, awkward moment. “The trucks down below.”
    “The truck? Where'd you get a truck?” “I stole it.”
    She sighed, the sound shaky as she pulled herself together. “You 're lucky your grandfather's a gangster or they'd throw your ass in jail so fast. Unless stealing cars is considered a minor crime.”
    “I wouldn't call Ojiisan a gangster,” he said, starting down the steep hill, one hand clasped on her hand. “And I'm not sure I'd call myself lucky. I think he's got a traitor in his organization. Your Russians have had inside information—there's no way they'd know about the summerhouse unless someone told them.”
    She skidded, and his hand tightened on her arm. She was going to have bruises, she thought. Unless her flesh was too frozen to show them. “You said he owned the place. Maybe they just made an educated guess. And they're not my Russians. They're after you now, too.”
    “I don't believe in educated guesses.” He tugged at her. “Hurry up. We need to get out of here before the snow gets deeper.”
    “I'm t-t-trying,” she said, unable to control her shivers.
    He halted. “Idiot gaijin” he muttered under his breath, stripping off his leather jacket. “You could have told me you were cold.”
    She didn't want to accept it, but he wasn't giving her any choice. She felt the warmth wrap around her, his body warmth, as he shoved her arms inside and pulled it tight. He was skinny, she had boobs, but at least he managed to zip it up, cursing the whole time. And even if she felt the accidental brush of his hand across her breast, he didn't notice.
    Aren't you cold?” she asked, her teeth still chattering as the warmth sank into her bones. He was only wearing a dark T-shirt, and somehow, in these dire circumstances, she managed to notice that for a skinny punk he certainly filled out the T-shirt well. She also saw the dragon tattoo snaking down his arm. How fitting.
    “I'll survive,” he said, starting the steep descent once more, dragging her after him.
    The hike down seemed endless, but at least she'd stopped shivering. Her sneakers kept slipping in the thin layer of snow, but Reno, in his smooth-soled cowboy boots, seemed to be having no trouble at all. His bright red hair was a beacon in the moonlit night—probably keeping him warm, she thought grumpily. When they finally came out onto the deserted mountain road, the small, narrow delivery van was waiting.
    “Thank God,” she breathed, heading for the passenger door.
    Only to have him catch her, hauling her back. “Right-hand drive,” he reminded her, opening the door.
    Now that they'd finally reached their destination, her muscles decided not to work. She tried to climb up into the van, but her legs refused to obey her, and her hands were too numb to haul herself in.
    He picked her up effortlessly, which was a shock, and put her in the seat,