You wrapped your arms more tightly around your waist as you trudged along the side of the road. Goosebumps covered your bare skin. You'd known it was going to be a chilly evening when you dressed for your date but you hadn't anticipated having to walk anywhere. Your wrap and your phone had been left in your haste to get away from the asshole that had dumped you on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. On top of everything else, you were in heels. You couldn't remember the last time you had been so miserable.

A car approached on the damp pavement behind you and you stepped a little further off the road. Your clothes were dark and there weren't a lot of streetlights out here. The SUV wasn't far past you when the brake lights lit the night as it pulled off to the side. Wary, you stopped, ready to run into the woods if needed.

"Y/N? Is that you?" the familiar voice of Chris Argent called as the driver stepped from the vehicle.

Relief flooded through you and you started to hurry in his direction. "Yes. Thank God it's you. It's freezing out here."

"Here," he said as he moved toward you. The warmth of his jacket enveloped you as he wrapped it around your shoulders. His crisp, clean scent invaded your senses and you fought the urge to sigh in contentment. There was no one else you'd rather have come to your rescue.

You slipped your arms into the sleeves and wrapped it more tightly around you even as Chris trotted over to the passenger door and opened it for you. You slid into the car with a quiet "thank you."

Once he was back behind the wheel, he fiddled with the dials and cranked up the heat for you. You held your frigid hands in front of the vent trying to thaw them a little. They were so cold they ached. You hated the cold with a passion. Thankfully you lived in California so nights like this were few and far between.

Your rescuer grabbed your hands and sandwiched them between his own in an attempt to warm them more quickly. "Christ, Y/N," he hissed. "How long have you been out here?"

"I honestly have no idea," you answered with a shake of your head. Realistically you knew you hadn't been walking as long as it seemed. The temperature had made every second seem like a minute.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked as he continued to rub your hands between his own. The skin burned as it began to warm up. You sighed as you debated whether or not to tell him. Though you had long wished for more, the fact was that you and Chris were friends and he wouldn't take well to what Trent had pulled.

"Y/N?" That low voice and arched brow of his were your undoing. He knew you well enough to know you were hesitating for a reason.

"I was on a date," you finally answered.

Chris nodded as if that explained everything though of course it didn't. "You warmed up enough that I can drive us home?" he asked.

"Yes, please."

He chuckled at the enthusiasm for warmth in your voice as he released your hands. You both buckled in and you slipped your hands between your knees as you shivered. He glanced at you with a frown as he put the car in gear, his bright eyes studying you by the glow of the dashboard lights. For a moment he was quiet but you knew it wouldn't last.

"Do I want to know how a date ended with you walking by yourself along the side of the road in the dark?" he finally asked.

"Probably not," you answered honestly.

"Why don't you tell me anyway," he said, his voice taking on an edge you were well familiar with. He expected you to tell him whether you wanted to or not.

"Apparently my date and I had differing opinions about what going to dinner meant. I thought it meant I would get to eat some food and he thought it meant he could feel me up in the car."

"What?" You flinched at the anger in Chris's voice.

You sucked in a breath. "He wouldn't keep his hand off my leg and kept sliding up further up my dress. I told him stop more times than I could count. He didn't seem to get the message so I asked him to take me home. When he wouldn't, I broke his finger."

A burst of surprised laughter came from Chris. "Of course, you did. What did he do?"

"Pulled over and told me to get the fuck out of his car. He peeled off before I could get my wrap or my phone. Dickhead," you grumbled. Honestly you were more pissed about him still having your phone than anything else.

Chris made a sound of agreement as he pulled up in front of his house. "Stay put until I get the front door open. I don't want you out in the cold any more than necessary," he said. Your eyes followed him as he hurried to the front door and opened it. He flipped on a light inside and punched the code into the alarm by the door.

By the time you got your door open to follow him, he was back to help you out. He wrapped a heavy arm around your shoulders and tucked you against his side as he hurried you to the house. Once you were inside and he'd shut the door and locked it, he pushed you down the hall in the direction of his bedroom. "Raid my clothes, put on something warm. I'll make you something hot to drink."

You nodded and went to do as he'd instructed. It didn't take you long to find a pair of flannel pajama pants and a sweater. You stepped out of your dress and laid it across the end of the bed with Chris's jacket. You slid into the warmer clothes and instantly felt better. Your ensemble was completed when you found the sock drawer and pulled on the thickest pair you could find.

You padded back down the hall and into the kitchen. Chris turned as he heard you come in and smiled as he looked you over. "Well, you certainly look warmer."

"Thank you," you said sincerely as you took the mug he offered you and wrapped your hands around it. You inhaled the rich aroma of hot chocolate and took a seat at the table. He came to sit beside you with a mug of his own.

"You going to tell me who the date was?" he asked, his tone casual as if the answer wasn't important. Liar.

"I wasn't planning on it, no."

He sipped his drink. "I can find out, Y/N."

You knew he could. That wasn't the point. "Fine, but you have to promise not to do anything to him. I broke his finger. That's sufficient."

"I promise I won't lay a hand on him."

You scoffed. "You can do a lot of damage without laying a hand on someone, Argent."

He chuckled, the skin at the corner of his eyes crinkling with amusement. "Fair enough. I won't hurt him. Promise."

"Fine. It was Trent."

"Sawyer?" There was no mistaking the disgust in his tone or on his face. "Come on, Y/N. You can do better than Sawyer."

"Well, that's obvious now."

He leaned back in his chair and gave you a disbelieving look. "Even before the sexual assault he was an asshole, Y/N, and you know it."

Irritation flared through you mostly because he was right. But what were you supposed to do when the only man you wanted to date didn't see you that way. You and Chris were friends. Period. "He asked, Chris. I wanted to go on a date so I said yes."

He either didn't pick up on the annoyance in your tone or he didn't care. "You don't have to say yes just because someone asks you out."

You sat your mug on the table with a thud. You needed to get out of here before you said something you would regret later. As you stood to move away from the table a large hand wrapped around your wrist and pulled you to a stop.

Chris gave a little chuckle and that sexy grin of his that never failed to make your knees weak. "I wasn't trying to make you angry, Y/N."

You just looked at him, waiting for him to let you go. His gaze turned serious, calculating. He shifted his grip so he was touching the bare skin of your arm and ran his thumb across it.

You hissed in a breath before you could stop yourself. "Don't, Chris. Let me go."

His tongue darted out to lick his lips and he tilted his head as he looked you over. "Why?" he asked as he repeated the gesture.

You pulled your arm from his grip. "Because I have had a shit day and would love nothing better than to believe you mean the things you do the way I want you to. But you don't. And I'm okay with that if it means I get to keep you in my life even if it's just as a friend. And I may be able to kick supernatural ass but I am feeling vulnerable right now and can't deal with this. I just can't. Okay?"

Chris stood and you took a step back surprised by the sudden closeness. His hands settled on your hips and those captivating eyes of his ran over your face as the corner of his mouth kicked up. "And how exactly did you want me to mean it, Y/N?"

Damn this man. Always pushing. This time you were going to push back. You leaned forward and pressed your lips to his. There was only a second's hesitation before he joined in. You wrapped your arms around his neck to hold him to you. Your fingers played in the hair that brushed his neck. Only when you both needed to breathe did you separate.

He laid his forehead on yours. "I assure you, Y/N, that is precisely how I have meant every touch, every look, every word for the last two and a half years."

"You could have just asked me out, Argent."

He leaned back and smiled. "And you could have just asked me out, Y/L/N."

You grinned at him and kissed the corner of his mouth. "Fair enough."

He laced his fingers with yours and started pulling you down the hallway. With his free hand he pulled his phone from his pocket and started typing. You lifted yourself up on your toes to try to see the screen only to have him tilt it away from you.

"What are you doing?" you asked when you reached the bedroom. He shut the door and locked it behind you.

He didn't answer as he stared at the screen. When it buzzed with a response, he smiled and placed the phone on top of his dresser before turning his full attention back to you. "We are going to warm you up." The smile he gave you was positively sinful and shot a jolt of longing straight to your core.

He stepped forward and closed the little space between you. You laid your hand on his chest to stop him as he leaned in for another kiss. "And the phone?"

Normally you wouldn't be so curious but you wanted to know what was so important it couldn't have waited. "Oh, that." He wrapped his arms around your waist and held you to him. "Derek will drop your phone off in the morning after he has a little discussion with Sawyer."

"Chris, you promised."

"I did and I won't harm a hair on his head. I have no control over Derek, however."

He knew that wasn't what you meant when you had extracted that promise from him, but as his lips claimed yours once more, you suddenly found you didn't care enough to argue the point. You were warm, you were wanted and you were loved. That was all you needed.