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“She what?” Hannah stared at him, looking as startled as if her twin had suggested they elope to Las Vegas.

“I had the same reaction,” he said dryly. “I told her you’d never go for it. Then she reminded me there’s a storm in the forecast and mentioned you hate driving over the mountain passes in the snow.”

“I don’t hate it,” she said automatically. “It’s just not my favorite thing.”

“I don’t mind it,” he said. “And I have a big four-wheel-drive truck that does fine in all kinds of weather. I’d be willing to take you and the kids down. You know. If you wanted.”

“Why would you do that?” she asked quietly.

“We’re going to the same place,” he said. “Seems silly to take two vehicles. It makes sense to carpool. And before you ask—yes, I’m taking Kodi. But there still should be plenty of room.”

Snowflakes drifted down between them, settling on her purple hat, on his jacket. She looked at him for a long moment, clearly weighing all the unspoken complications. Her mouth parted like she was about to answer.

Before she could, the front door banged open.

“We found the scarf!” Carter yelled, bursting out with a bright red knit scarf trailing behind him like a flag.

“And the carrot!” Riley added, holding it aloft in triumph. Kodiak barreled out after them, nearly taking out Hannah’s knees in his enthusiasm.

The moment shattered, scattered like snow kicked up by kids’ boots.

“Okay,” Hannah said, her voice a shade too brisk. “Let’s give this snowman a face.”

Wes knew better than to push. For now.

Chapter 16

Her sister was going to receive a very cranky phone call later.

What had Holly possibly been thinking to make the suggestion that they go together? It was ridiculous. Impossible.

Still, as Hannah watched Wes scratch Kodiak’s ears, she couldn’t quite ignore the uneasy truth sliding through her.

She hadn’t been looking forward to the drive.

She was worried about keeping two excited, anxious children entertained while she kept both hands on the wheel and both eyes on snowy roads. She was worried about black ice, about whiteout conditions, about tractor trailers barreling past on slushy roads.

Going with him was not ideal. It was the exact opposite of ideal. But could she make it work?

Yes. For Riley and Carter. For Morgan. To help the children celebrate their mother’s birthday with her and for them to be reminded that she was real and fighting and still theirs.

She had no feelings for him anyway, she reminded herself fiercely.

A bald-faced lie.

But even if her feelings were more complicated than she wanted to admit, what did it matter if they spent a little time together for a few days? She was a grown woman, not a teenager with a crush. She could share a vehicle with him without dissolving into a puddle of longing.

For the kids’ sake—and for Morgan’s—she could make this sacrifice.

“What time are you planning on leaving?” she asked.

“As early as you want to,” he said, a flicker of surprise in his eyes that he quickly hid.

“We can be ready to go by six thirty or seven,” she said after a quick mental inventory of their morning schedule. “Would that work?”

“Seven would be fine,” he said. “That way we can try to beat the storm. Do you have a place to stay overnight tomorrow?”

“Not yet.” She brushed snow off her gloves. “I figured I would find a hotel once we got there. Do you have something booked? I can try to find a room at the same place.”