Forbidden

The sight of thick, damp snow swirling around outside the window caught Kayla’s full attention. “My God!” she said.

The cowboy turned back, ready to come to her rescue again if need be. “You all right?”

“It’s snowing,” Kayla said inanely. She turned to stare at the cowboy, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open. It was September 18th, and it was snowing.

“First snowfall of the year,” he told her. “From the looks of it, we’ll get a dusting — no more ‘n six inches.”

“Six inches.” Six inches of snow was going to fall tonight. That wasn’t a dusting. That was a major snowfall. At least it was where she came from. “If you hadn’t found me, I would’ve been buried under six inches of snow?”

“Probably.”

“I would’ve died,” Kayla said, the realization hitting her hard in the stomach. “I would’ve been frozen to death.”

He nodded. “Wearing what you’re wearing — yeah.”

“You saved my life tonight.”

The cowboy thought about it for a half a second. “Yes, ma’am,” he said. Turning, he left the room.