Chapter 2

Dean studied his surroundings and tried to read his cell phone, but the reception was spotty in these areas. The last time he looked, he was about five miles outside of Laramie. He must have traveled at least three miles. Either he had to walk until he could get reception on his phone, or he had to find somewhere to hunker down until the storm passed.

He bundled up in his work jacket, which had seen better days, but it was the warmest jacket he owned. The flannel insert and the high collar protected him from the elements. He wore long johns under his blue jeans and thick socks and winter boots. He grabbed his work gloves and winter hat and got ready to leave when the wind howled and rocked the old beater.

Dean didn’t like the idea of walking in this mess, but he really didn’t like the idea of freezing his balls off in the truck either, waiting for someone to come by, which may or may not ever happen. Now that he thought of it, not a single vehicle had passed him for two hours now.

“Maybe they listened to the weather reports and stayed in,” Dean grumped to himself.

Pushing the door open and pulling his hat down low over his brow, Dean grabbed his cell phone and wallet before trudging through what looked to be a foot or more of snow.

Great, he thought. Just fucking great.

Dean kept up the frosty walk, but it started to really wear on him. He felt like he’d been walking for hours when, in reality, it had only been about one.

“Son of a bitch!”

His phone beeped, stating his battery was about to die. Either it hadn’t charged fully, or the extreme cold froze the battery. This was turning out to be a nightmare. Dean’s boots were full of snow and ice, and he desperately needed to sit for a minute and regroup. He spotted a log a short walk from the main road. Fuck, he was cold. He could definitely think of better things to do than sloshing through the snow in subfreezing temperatures, and he could absolutely think of better ways to keep warm. If he just sat a minute to take the snow out of his boots, he could figure out what to do next. Then the wind started to howl, and the snow turned to freezing sleet.

* * * *

“Hey! Can you hear me?” Shaking the stranger again, Colt yelled a little louder this time. “Can you hear me?”

Colt was beyond frustrated. What kind of an asshole would leave the main road to sit on a log during an icy blizzard? Fucking tourist or just plain stupid. Colt grabbed the lapels on the stranger’s coat and lifted him up.

Holy shit, this guy is heavy.

The guy swung his arm out and hit Colt’s hat right off his head.

“What the fuck, man?”

Colt wasn’t a tolerant man on a good day, but today had started like shit and turned even worse. What little bit of tolerance he had left vanished hours ago. Fuck this. Colt let go of the guy. If the man wanted to sit and freeze his nuts off, let him. Stupid fucking asshole. Stunned, the guy stared up into Colt’s eyes. The stranger’s eyes were a deep stormy blue, like the ocean when storm clouds were brewing. He had dark lashes and a gorgeous rugged face. The man grimaced as he stood up to his full height, which must have been at least six-foot-one, and rubbed his ass.

“What the fuck was that for?” The stranger looked at Colt with a disgruntled frown.

“You fucking swung at me. I was trying to help you!”

Confused, the man looked at the scenery around him and sighed loudly. “Sorry, man, I was walking. Then the snow got deep, and I decided to sit and get the snow out of my boots. I must have spaced. Look, I’m Dean, by the way. I am not a complete fucking idiot. I sat for a minute and…never mind. Can you give me a lift into town or…?”

Putting his hand out again, he repeated, “I’m Dean, and you are?”

A horn blew in the distance.

“I’m Colt. Let’s go.”

Colt made his way to his idling truck parked on the road with the hazards blinking. When Colt turned quickly, Dean ran right into him, bouncing off his chest with an undignified grunt.

* * * *

“Uh, sorry.”

Dean shook himself. The first thing that ran through his mind was the steely strength in the guy’s chest and the fire in his eyes. The horn blew again and broke the brewing tension. Colt shook his head in what seemed like amusement.