“Calm down, it’ll be fine,” I said, grouchier than I’d intended. “The pilot light probably got blown out or something. I can check to see. Just chill out.”
“Nothing about this isfine, Ryan,” she said, her pretty lips pursed indignantly. “Have you looked outside yet?”
“I actually hadn’t, because my bigger concern was getting frostbite,” I snapped as I walked over to the window.
When I pulled back the curtain, my eyes widened when I saw what she meant. It hadn’t just been a run of the mill snowstorm; it was a goddamn blizzard.
“Son of a bitch!”
The snow was up to the door of my SUV, and that was definitely a problem. There was absolutely no way that much snow could get plowed anytime soon. And it was still falling. No one could get in, and we couldn’t get out. For days, at least. Jeremy definitely wasn’t going to make it, and neither would her parents.
“My mom called ten minutes ago. All flights to this area are grounded for another day or two. Probably longer. They got a hotel room and are going to be spending Christmas in sunny southern California,” she said with fake cheer. “My brother will get to stay home in his heated apartment with his new girlfriend. But, oh joy, I’m stuck here with you for who knows how long! It’s an absolute disaster!” April yelled.
“Like this is what I wanted either?” I retorted.
I would much rather be back at my place too. I would have my comfortable apartment and bed, sports to watch, and I could call Thea for a last-minute booty call. Hell, I’d rather be pretty much any place other than here.
“Obviously not,” she shot back. “But if I’m going to die up here, I’d really rather it wasn’t with you.”
“Way to be a drama queen. It’s just some snow. We have enough food and water, and we still have electricity. I’ll get the furnace fixed, and we’ll survive,” I said. I was stressed out as it was, I didn’t need her hysterics too.
“And how much longer will we have electricity?” she argued, a slight tremor in her voice. “I’m surprised that it’s lasted this long.”
I looked back at her, surprised at her reaction. It was hard to tell because we so rarely spoke to each other directly, but I thought that under the anger, she might be the tiniest bit scared. Of which part, I wasn’t sure, but I felt a little bit bad for being so harsh.
This really was an awful scenario for us. If there was a medical emergency or one of us got hurt, we were unreachable. Or god forbid, something happened to the cabin. Ever since my parents’ deaths, I had been overly paranoid about safety precautions. I made a mental note to check the smoke alarms later. If the furnace really was dead, we’d have to use the fireplace, and that would put me on edge. The Dodd’s had always been great about not using it if they didn’t have to.
But if it was that or freeze…
“There’s a generator down in the basement. I saw it last year,” I said, rubbing a hand along the stubble on my jaw while trying to remain calm. “Your dad told me that he always keeps some fuel on hand. I’ll check when I go down to look at the furnace. Why don’t you make yourself useful and get some flashlights and candles or whatever. And look for firewood, just in case.” I told her.
I knew she hated it when I bossed her around, which was exactly why I did it. If she were mad at me, she would be less likely to panic.
“Anything else, Master?” she asked sarcastically.
An internal heat sluiced through my veins at the wordMaster, even if it had been laced with mockery. “I’m sure I can think of something.”
Yeah, all sorts of inappropriate orders filtered through my brain, like,take off your clothes so I can see every inch of your gorgeous body. Or,bend over the couch so I can spank your ass for being so mouthy.
“Bite me,” she replied, giving me the finger.
More dirty thoughts . . .of biting the curve of her neck, the fullness of her breast, the inside of her thigh.
My dick twitched at the images in my head, which I immediately shook from my thoughts because yeah, none of those erotic fantasies were ever going to happen—except in my dreams.
I was about to head down into the basement when I abruptly stopped and turned back, and something in my chest constricted when I saw the way she was hugging herself, as if to keep from falling apart.
“Seriously, April,” I said, more gently this time. “We’ll be fine. I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise.”
She met my gaze, her expression skeptical. She was probably trying to figure out what the joke was and why I was being so nice. “Ok…”
Neither of us spoke for a minute. Something inexplicable passed between us, an awareness that made my heart speed up a bit faster. I didn’t like where that feeling was heading, so I opened up my mouth and ruined the moment between us.
“Your family would be pissed if I let you die,” I blurted out, which earned me a swift frown from April. “I doubt that I’d be invited back for next Christmas.”
“Right. Thanks. Your concern is noted,” she retorted, and then she stormed away.
#