"Mari." The stranger - Remy - looked down at her and put one big warm hand on her cheek. "You don't believe me, do you?"

"Huh?" Her brain was still frantically plotting escape routes, but the moment Remy had touched her, all her nerve endings sprang back to life. Gods, he was tall, and radiating heat. She resisted the urge to rub her cheek against his calloused hand.

"Okay, cherie. Time to take this inside, I think."

Remy debated whether to take the terrified ...