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Zara stilled. All she heard was silence because no cars were out. It was as if the rest of the world had ceased to exist, leaving only her and the boss she’d dreamed of last night.
“I don’t hear anything,” she told him, shoving that fantasy aside. “You have to be freezing. Come on.”
He still wore his suit and the dress coat from the party. At least she could bulk up in warm layers. No way was he not freezing out here.
“Wait a second.” His eyes searched the ground near her house. Slowly, he took a step, then another. “Go on inside if you don’t want to wait, but I heard a cat.”
A cat? She didn’t own a cat. Compassion was not in her genetic makeup, so she’d spared all animals and sworn to never own one. She wouldn’t have the first clue what to do if left in charge of a living, breathing thing.
Just as she reached for the door handle, Braden crouched down. Zara gasped when he pulled a snow-covered kitten up in his gloved hands. Instantly he cradled the animal to his chest and swiped the snow off its back.
Braden took cautious steps toward the back door, keeping the kitten tucked firmly just inside his coat. Zara realized his intentions immediately.
“You’re bringing that inside?”
His eyes went from the gray bundle to her. “Yes. He’ll freeze to death out here. He’s wet and shivering.”
Zara glanced around. “Where’s the mom? Aren’t animals made to live outside? They have fur on.”
His brows shot up. “You have a coat on, too. Do you want to stay out here and see if you survive?”
Swallowing, she shook her head. “Um...so what do we do once it’s inside?”
Braden tipped his head to the side. “You’ve never had a pet, have you?”
“Never.”
Braden’s sharp gaze softened. “Let’s talk inside. This little guy needs warmth, and so do we.”
Zara opened the back door and ushered Braden in ahead of her. Once they had their coats and boots off, Braden started searching her cabinets. He seemed to be satisfied with the box of crackers he’d found.
“Grab a bowl of water and let’s get back upstairs where it’s warm.”
Without waiting on her, he took the box and the kitten and disappeared. Okay, so he’d basically ordered her around in her own home and that was after bringing in a stray animal.
Was badass Braden O’Shea brought to his knees over a little bundle of fur? Zara nearly laughed as she pulled out a shallow bowl and filled it with water. By the time she got upstairs, Braden was sitting on the edge of the bed, the kitten at his side, as he peeled off his socks. His feet were red and had to be absolutely freezing.
“These got soaked,” he told her. “The snow went right into my boots.”
“Let me have those.” Placing the water on the floor at the foot of the bed, Zara reached out and took the soaked, icy socks.
“My pants are wet, too.”
Her eyes darted up to his. That smirk on his face had her shaking her head. “Oh, no. Don’t even think of stripping. You can roll the pant legs up and come sit by the fire.”
His big hand stroked over the cat as the damp animal snuggled deeper into her cream duvet. “You’re no fun at all.”
“Oh, I’m loads of fun. I’m an events coordinator. I get paid to be fun.”
After she laid his socks by the gas logs, which she cranked up because she was still shivering, she turned back to see Braden feeding the kitten small bites of a cracker. For a second she just stood there and stared. She’d not met many men like Braden, hard and powerful on one hand, soft and compassionate on the other.
“You’re staring,” he stated without looking up.
She remained where she was because the sight of him on her bed being so...adorable was not something she’d planned on. She’d had a hard enough time resisting him when he’d been flat-out sexy. Now that an adorable factor had slipped right in, she was losing what little control she had left.
How would she handle another night with this man?
Six
So now Zara was not only nervous around him, she was nervous over a cat. This woman had so many complex layers, and damn if he didn’t want to peel back each one.
“I’m going to take my pants off if you keep looking at me like that,” he threatened. He didn’t know what was going through her mind, but he couldn’t handle her looking at him as if he was some savior or something.
