“Oh yes. You can’t even deny it. I overheard part of the conversation you were having with your girlfriend or boyfriend or whoever the hell they were.”
I exhaled a heavy breath, releasing pinned-up tension that had settled in my shoulders since Cadence stormed outside. My frown deepened as my heart continued to break. “Cassidy isn’t my girlfriend. I already told you this. She never was. We went out on a couple of dates as a favor to our mutual best friends, that was it.”
She shook her head and kept her gaze on the ground. She shivered even more. And I didn’t have to guess to see she wasn’t convinced. Whatever part of the conversation she had listened in on, she had formulated a story around it, and nothing was going to convince her otherwise.
At least, not yet.
I was going to have to take this one baby step at a time. The first one was getting her out of her car, and she was. So, that was progress. I wasn’t sure if there was a limitation to her willingness to listen to reason, but I still hoped she would see I didn’t lie to her. Even if it took me the rest of my life to prove that to her.
There had to be a better way to convince her.
“I understand how things must have sounded to you, and look to you,” I said, keeping my voice low. “But Cassidy and I really are only friends. We will only ever be friends. You truly don’t have anything to worry about.”
She shook her head. “I don’t really care what you label things with her. I am not an idiot. I just want to go home and forget last night ever happened.”
I smiled sadly and then nodded. “Well, I’m sorry to inform you that you can’t go home. Not yet. Not until the snow melts off.”
“I can’t stay,” she said. “I can’t live under the same roof as you. I can’t keep being reminded of the mistake I made.”
I nodded. “I understand you feel that way. Please, come inside. I will keep my distance. You can stay warm, and I won’t have to worry about you freezing to death.”
I almost held my breath waiting for her to respond. I wasn’t sure what made her believe Cassidy and I were more than friends. I couldn’t believe misunderstanding a few exchanges of dialogue in one conversation was the tipping point for her. Even her quoting some of the things I had said to her didn’t make sense or add up in my mind to what she assumed, but it had me worried that things between us were over before they even got started.
Who the hell was I trying to convince? I should have known better than to take advantage of her.
My best bet was to leave well enough alone. Just as soon as she got inside, because I didn’t want her to freeze to death. I hated the idea of any harm coming to her.
13
CADENCE
I stared at Guy unable to believe him. How could I? The way he was talking with the person on the other side of the line—Cassidy, he had mentioned her name was—he spoke to her in a way that gave me the impression she was much, much more than just a friend.
I felt used, betrayed, and let down. I wasn’t stupid either, which made the fact that he insisted on me believing him not only an insult to my intelligence, but it chapped my ass as well.
He wanted me to buy into his lies? Not on his life, and certainly not in this lifetime.
I should have known he was too good to be true. Now I was eating my words, regretting my decisions, and wishing I had the ability to turn back time and stop myself from making such a horrible mistake.
Needless to say, I was growing more and more aggravated by the second. Hell, it wasn’t just him I was frustrated with. I was becoming angry with myself because even I realized I was refusing to listen to reason when it came to me not freezing to death. Who could blame me though? I really wanted to go home. Come hell or high water, or even hell freezing over, I wasn’t about to spend a minute longer than necessary with this man.
Not now.
Not anymore.
“I need to go home,” I said. “I have a life I can’t just leave behind for the sake of comforting you.”
He gaped, taken aback by my words. Maybe I was being too harsh, but there was no way I was staying with him longer than absolutely necessary.
“Look lady,” he said. “I really don’t give a damn what you believe, call it what you will… but if you honestly think I want you to stay for the sake of my comfort, you’re even more wrapped up in yourself than I thought.”
I shrugged. “Whatever. I couldn’t give a shit less about what you think about me. I’m going home and that’s final.”
“You can’t,” he said. “Look around you. The only way you are getting out of this is to wait until the snow melts off and not until then.”
“Oh but, I can go home,” I insisted. “If anything, you can shift and take me home.”
I realized my lack of desire to spend more time with him than necessary probably contradicted my statement, but I had a point. He was a shifter. He had the ability to maneuver high snow. He could carry me home, easy-peasy. Then I would be out of his life until I had to come back for my car… but still.