Sofie did her best to keep her seat as another roll of thunder peeled across the sky. Her horse had nearly tossed her into the plains and bolted with the last lightning strike. The only positive feature of the icy rain that was beginning to fall in giant drops against the dry earth and kick up little clouds of dust to tickle at her nose and throat was that it harshly scrubbed away the heat of her tears. How could she have been so foolish? What was it she thought she had to prove in setting out without the Ranger? Now here she was, not even sure if she was still moving in the right direction, without any source of light other than the occasional flash of lightning since the clouds had overtaken the sun in early twilight, at the mercy of the elements. She deserved every sharp slap of rain across her face for her stupidity. Wiping her hair out of her eyes, she turned the horse around once more in an effort to get her bearings, not that she had any faith in her ability to recognize her surroundings.

She was about to give in to a fit of sobs when she saw something peculiar in the distance. It looked like a light, but it was bobbing along…

“Cleigh!” her shout was swallowed by another round of thunder as she turned her horse in that direction.

The tiny speck of light grew as she approached, eventually materializing into a lantern held aloft by Cleigh. Its soft glow radiated a warmth that drew Sofie in like an angelic beacon. She was so happy to see Cleigh she hardly took note of his anger as they rode up beside each other and he began to shout.

“Fool woman, you just had to have the last say, didn’t you?! Now you’ve got me out here like an even bigger idiot chasing after you! I don’t even know that throwing your hide in jail will be worth it!”

Sofie didn’t respond. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t. She was shivering uncontrollably, and her teeth chattered so badly she had no hope of stringing a sentence together. Cleigh brought the lantern closer in front of her, but she couldn’t face his scrutiny. She was soaked through, watching with envy as the water pilled and rolled off Cleigh’s oiled jacket. Little streams were also spilling over the brim of his hat; Sofie blinked against the water running down her face. Something seemed to shift in him, and a softness came over his countenance.

“Come on.” His tone was much softer, just strong enough to be heard over the torrent that engulfed them.

Sofie was so stiff with cold by the time they arrived at camp that Cleigh had to practically pull her off her horse and carry her to the tent. The space was cramped, obviously not meant for two people to share. Sofie could barely sit up and trying to maneuver around each other was practically impossible.

“Here.” Cleigh offered, as he wrapped a blanket around her shoulders.

Sofie pulled the edges close around her but couldn’t manage to stop shivering. She looked up as Cleigh cleared his throat. He looked decidedly uncomfortable and didn’t meet her gaze.

“You, uh…you should get undressed.”

“What?!” Sofie shouted through chattering teeth, “Y-You r-r-rake! I-I m-most ce-ce-certainly w-will n-not!”

Cleigh rolled his eyes in exasperation. “That’s not what I meant. You’re chilled to the bone. You’ll freeze by morning if you don’t catch your death first.”

“I’ll take the chance.”

“Hang it, woman!” Cleigh took hold of Sofie’s shoulders and forced her to look at him. “I’m not going to let you be stubborn on this. Please.” The last word was softer but insistent

To Sofie’s bewilderment, it wasn’t just anger she saw in his eyes, but concern and fear. It seemed out of place but moved her in a way she couldn’t ignore. Biting her lip, she nodded. “Turn out the lantern?”

Cleigh nodded, but before doing so rummaged through his bag, setting a folded piece of fabric on the blanket beside her. “It’s a spare shirt.”

“Thank you.”

Cleigh put out the flame in the lantern and Sofie set to work trying to extricate herself from her wet clothing. Luckily, she wore a front closing bodice, but she ran into trouble when she realized the laces of her corset were much less inclined to move when wet. She struggled to manipulate the laces with her cold-numbed fingers for several minutes before admitting defeat. “Cleigh?”

“Yes?” Getting undressed for sleep had been much easier on his part, his hat, jacket, and chaps had all been treated to repel water. He’d already tucked himself under his own blanket.

“I need your help.” The statement was a barely audible whisper, so embarrassed was Sofie at her predicament. She heard him sit up, but it was pitch dark in the tent, she could barely see his outline against the slightly lighter canvas behind him. She shyly reached out for his arm, relieved when her fingers encountered a sleeve. She trailed her hand down his arm until she found his hand, taking it and setting it to rest against her back. “The laces.” She whispered, “I can’t unfasten them.”

“Ah.” He croaked through what sounded like a dry throat, then brought his other hand up and began feeling for where the laces crossed.

Sofie thought she felt his hands tremble. Maybe the cold had gotten to him too? She didn’t think that was the case since she could feel heat radiating into her from every spot his hands touched along her back. It was enough to burn her through the fabric, and she felt as though she were starting to come to life again after a long winter. Sofie held her breath against the butterflies that started to stir and quake inside of her. The instant the laces were loose enough for her to continue undressing she practically jumped from his grasp as though she’d been bitten.

“Thank you.” She breathed, hoping she didn’t sound as breathless to him as she did to herself. She quickly finished changing and buried herself under her blanket. Try as she might, though, she couldn’t get herself to stop shivering. Time dragged by, but the cold didn’t abate, even after the deafening roar of rain on the tent canvas subsided. Sofie pulled the blanket tighter around her and scrunched her eyes shut, but it didn’t matter. It was going to be a long, cold, sleepless night. You deserve it, she thought bitterly.

A movement beside her startled her. She’d thought Cleigh had long since fallen asleep, and now worried that she’d woken him.

“Come here.” Cleigh’s voice was soft but insistent.

“What?”

“Come here.”

Sofie felt the corner of her blanket raise up and knew Cleigh had scooted himself closer beside her. She remembered how warm his hands had been on her back. Her body begged her to move closer to him, but her sense of decorum kept her rooted to the spot. Cleigh sighed in that show of irritation that had become so familiar of late, and Sofie felt his hand slide over her shoulder. She gasped as he began to pull her gently in his direction.

“If your teeth don’t stop chattering before daybreak, neither of us are going to get any sleep. You’re half frozen already.”

Sofie opened her mouth to argue, then shut it again. His hand radiated that same burning heat through her, and she found herself scooting closer to him. Where her own blanket hadn’t offered any retreat from the cold, Cleigh’s offered a cocoon of warmth as he lifted the edge to allow her entry. Sofie wasn’t brave enough to face him, so she turned onto her other side. Cleigh finished arranging the blankets over them and lay beside her, one arm draping over her and resting alongside hers. Oh, dear, she thought as her breath caught. I’ll never sleep.

Yet, somehow, as her shivering ebbed and Cleigh’s warmth began to infuse through her own body like a winter liqueur, her muscles began to relax, and her eyes began to droop. The steadiness of his breathing was like a lullaby. In the morning, she’d silently note it was her most restful night since being taken from her father’s home.

I hope you enjoyed this little tidbit from Her Queen City Ranger. If you’re curious enough to check out the full story, please check it out here, and don’t forget to leave a comment and/or review to let me know what you thought!