I stared at the words, the reality of what we were doing settling over me like a heavy weight.

Ryker was risking everything—his reputation, his freedom, his company.

And all for two children he had only met a few days ago.

“Evelyn,” Clara said, her voice barely a whisper from the back. “Owen is burning up.”

I unbuckled my seatbelt and reached into the back seat, placing my hand on Owen’s forehead.

His skin was hot and dry, and he was shivering violently.

“He has a fever,” I said. “We need to get him inside and get him some medicine.”

“Almost there,” Marco said, turning the SUV onto a gravel road that led up into the hills.

The tires slipped slightly on the steep incline, but the four-wheel drive caught, pulling us up through the dark trees.

Up ahead, the outline of the log home appeared, dark and silent against the snow.

Marco stopped the car near the porch.

“I will go in first and disable the alarm,” he said, opening his door.

The cold air rushed in again as he stepped out, his boots crunching in the deep snow.