Snow Bound Enemies by Seraphina Donavan Page A

harsh West Virginia winter.  The sneer on his face was just about all she could take.  Ready to give him more than just a piece of her mind, she opened her mouth, but whatever she was going to utter was lost on a shriek as he simply leaned forward and hoisted her onto his shoulder. 
                  “What are you doing?  Put me down!”
                  “Why?  So I can watch you fall?  I don’t think so, princess.  You might be a pain in my ass, but your brother is my best friend.  I’m not going to let you kill yourself out here just to be held responsible for it later.”
                  Patrick crossed the snow covered road in a few quick strides, the curve of Kayleigh’s bottom pointed skyward on his shoulder.  He kept his hand fastened firmly around the backs of her thighs and completely ignored any urge he had to let it wander.  Steven would kill him if he knew the kind of thoughts that routinely crossed his mind about Kayleigh.  That was the primary reason he always picked at her.  It was easier to keep the necessary distance if she was also hissing and spitting at him.  There had been one night, the night of Steven’s wedding, when they’d stopped clawing at one another for a few minutes.  As the best man and maid of honor at that wedding, they’d been required to dance together, and somehow they had danced right beneath the mistletoe.  It had been a brief kiss, just a brushing of their lips together, but it had set him on fire, and he’d done everything possible to avoid her since. 
                  Reaching the SUV, he deposited her on the passenger seat and stowed her bags in the back.  He climbed into the driver’s seat without a word and turned the key.  The engine roared to life and he headed up the mountain.  The drive was tense and quiet, neither of them speaking and the vehicle slipping dangerously.  When the finally reached his house, they just sat there in the driveway for a moment, relieved that the hellish trip was over.  He cursed her foolishness and his own, and he cursed fate for locking him a snowbound cabin with a woman he could never have.   It was going to be a long few days. 
                  “Well, this is a fine mess,” she mumbled. 
                  “That it is, but it looks like we’re stuck with each other, princess.  Better make the best of it.”  With that, he switched off the key and climbed out of the SUV. 
                  Kayleigh reached for the door handle and climbed out of the vehicle.  A loud groan above her caught her attention, and as she looked up, one of the branches of the large tree next to the cabin bowed, sending a shower of snow down on her.  Her hair was soaked.  The cold, wet snow invaded her clothing.  It slid between the collar of her jacket and her neck.  It dipped into her cleavage and managed to spread the icy wetness into her bra.  It was the final insult of the day.  It was literally the last thing she could take.  The tears that she’d been staving off for days just erupted. 
                  “It’s just a little snow, princess,” Murphy said to her, as he once again picked her up. 
                  At least this time he didn’t throw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, she thought.  Instead, he scooped her into his arms and cradled her to his chest.  She had to fight the urge to bury her face against his massive chest and just sob out all of her worries and heartbreaks.  He wouldn’t appreciate it very much, she was sure, and there was the added bonus of giving him more ammunition to use against her.
                  Inside the cabin, Murphy flipped the light switch and cursed when nothing happened.  He had a freezing, snow soaked woman in his arms who was crying as if she’d just lost both her dog and her best friend. Sobbing women, as a rule, made him very nervous.  The