by Terry Towers
“Not too sure about that. You didn’t see the look she gave me when I put her in the back of the truck.”
“Placed or threw?”
I shrugged, a grin touching my lips. “Maybe a little from column A and a little from column B. It’s not like she was a willing participant.”
“Well, let’s get out of here; the storm isn’t getting any better.”
Grabbing what we thought she would need, we proceeded to leave the cabin, locking the door behind us. I was partially surprised that she was still sitting in the back of the cab, though it wasn’t as though she had much of a choice. She had nowhere to go. It’s not like she could walk to the town.
Once we placed the items we’d brought from the cabin in the cab with her, Brock got back behind the wheel while I slid into the passenger seat. “You should be happy with our selections.”
She looked down at her laptop case and pulled it onto her lap. As Brock started the truck she checked through the contents of the case and nodded.
“It’s fine.” That’s all that was said the entire ride back to our cabin.
Chapter 4
Tyler
By the time we pulled up to base camp the storm had taken a severe turn and it had gotten to near white-out conditions. This was going to be one of the worst storms in many, many years; thank God we were well prepared for it.
“Home sweet home for the next little while,” I said over my shoulder to the woman, who I still needed to get the name of. She looked up at me and gave me a sneer. A sneer! What in the hell did I do to deserve that? The woman was pig-headed, that was the problem. “You know you should be thanking us.”
The sneer evaporated as she raised a brow at me. “As I kept trying to tell you two. I’m perfectly fine on my own. And I want my gun back. I have a permit. My right to bear arms is the second amendment in the constitution. You might want to check out the fourth as well while you’re at it.”
I couldn’t stop the chuckle that escaped me. She was amusing; I’d give her that. If she dropped the attitude just a smidge she might be fun. “This is for your own good.”
“I’m not a child.”
Brock huffed as he turned the key and shut off the engine. “Diva,” he muttered under his breath.
Her eyes narrowed as she looked at my partner. “I am not a diva.”
Brock got out of the vehicle without answering and walked to the front door, pulling his keys from his pocket and opening up the large cabin. It was close to twice the size of the one the woman in back was staying in. Though we had a lot of search-and-rescue equipment in both the cabin and the adjacent shed.
“Come on. We gotta get settled in.” Getting out of the vehicle, I opened the back door for her and between the two of us. We were able to take her belongings into the cabin in one trip.
I allowed her to enter before me and noticed her shiver as she entered. Things had gotten so heated back at her cabin that I hadn’t even given her a chance to put a jacket on and what she was wearing was hardly suitable against the elements. We hadn’t packed any jackets for her either, but she could borrow one of ours. It would be big on her but would still do the trick.
“There’s only two bedrooms here, so you can have mine and I’ll sleep on the sofa,” I said, walking into the cabin behind her and kicking the door closed with my heel. She didn’t protest, following behind me with her belongings in her arms.
While I placed her belongings on the bed, she placed her computer on my dresser. My room was immaculately clean so there were lots of open spaces.
“There’s a desk that you can use to work if you like. We’ll do our best to keep out of your hair.”
She turned and faced me. “All right. I still want my gun.”
I nodded. “I’ll tell Brock to give it to you as long as you promise to not use it against us.”
Rolling her blue eyes at me, she nodded.
“I want to hear the words.”
A smile cracked on her lips. “Okay. Fine. I promise not to shoot either of you if I can have my weapon back. Are you happy now?”
“Yes. I’m happy now. I’ll be right back.” Leaving her to settle herself in, I left the room and found Brock working on building a fire in the wood stove.
“The storm is pretty severe. We need to be prepared for a possible power outage. Once I’m done with the fire I’ll go outside and make sure the generator is good to go.”
“I’ll do that.”
“No. You won’t.” Seemingly satisfied with the fire, he closed the stove and straightened. “You’re still feeling under the weather. You take my room; I’ll sleep on the sofa. I won’t take no for an answer.”
I knew there was no point in arguing with him and in all truthfulness, I was starting to feel the effects of the long day. I was feeling much better, but certainly not 100%...yet.
“Fine.” Running a hand through my hair, I nodded. “Appreciate it.”
“Don’t mention it.” Brock walked past me, but I stopped him. “She wants her gun back.”
He hesitated, then nodded. “Sure. Yeah.” Reaching behind him, he pulled the gun from his waistband and gave it to me. Stuffing it, barrel down into the back pocket of my jeans I shed my jacket and placed it on a hook behind the cabin door. “Are you sure she’s not going to try to shoot us.”
I chuckled. “I already asked her that.”
Brock smiled. “Then I’m reassured.” Grabbing the door handle he opened the front door allowing a massive gust of wind and snow in that sent a chill through me.
“Good.”
“Fucking freezing,” Brock muttered, stepping outside and closing the door behind him.
Turning, I made my way back to what was formerly my room. My first thought was that it would be easier to just relocate her to Brock’s room, but upon entering the room I found her grumbling to herself as she unpacked the clothing that we’d grabbed for her and hung the items up in my closet, next to my clothes. There was no reason to poke the already pissed bull. I’d just grab what I needed for the night and next day and deal with the rest tomorrow.
Maybe a little sugar was in order. “Look, I think we all got off on the wrong foot.”
She finished hanging up a blouse and spun to face me. “You think?”
I nodded. “I’m pretty sure.” Leaning a shoulder against the door jamb I crossed my arms over my chest as a wave of tiredness washed over me. A couple more days and I’d be as good as new, but for now I was starting to feel extra shitty.
“You two were bullies. Do you realize that?” She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at me.
“We’re not bullies. When you get to know us you’ll find we’re a couple of pretty good guys.”
She cocked a brow at me. “That a fact? Is that what your girlfriends say about you two?”
“We’re both quite single.”
She huffed. “No doubt.”
Oh, sweet God, she was exhausting.
“Okay. Let’s try again. I’m Tyler and my partner is Brock.” I pushed myself off the door jamb and walked over to her extending my hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Her jaw clenched, but then it relaxed again and her expression softened. She looked down at my hand as if suspicious of me, but slowly extended her hand to meet mine and gave it a shake. “I’m Genevieve.”
A smile broke out on my face. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Genevieve.” I didn’t expect for her to return the sentiment and she didn’t disappoint. The handshake was strong and formal, her hand soft and delicate in my larger one. When I released her hand, I couldn’t resist but to use the tip of my index finger to run down her wrist and down her palm. She gasped softly and a soft rosy glow began to color her cheeks as she snatched her hand back fully and shoved both hands into her back pockets.
The room grew quiet as we looked at each other. Despite the attitude, I couldn’t help the feelings of attraction I had for her. Physically, she was the exact type of woman I went after. The bright blue eyes, long
chestnut colored brown hair that fell halfway down her back, and a thick curvy body. She had what I would guess to be D-cup breasts, a narrowing at her torso that rounded out to wide hips and sexy round ass.
“How long do you think I’ll be here?”
“Hard to say. It’s supposed to be bad for close to a week.”
“A week!”
“Look. You’ve got everything you need right here. You can have my room to work and we won’t disturb you. The most important thing is that you’re safe.”
“I don’t think I was in danger to begin with.”
My patience was coming to an end. “We’re the experts here. We’ve been doing this a long time and if the convicts are around, we can protect you.”
She was silent a moment as she eyed me. “Did you get my gun?”
With a sigh, I pulled her gun from my pocket and passed it to her. “You won’t need it when you’re with us.”
“It doesn’t hurt to have it nearby.” She walked over to the plain, one-drawer nightstand and pulled open the drawer, placing the gun inside. I was halfway expecting her to make mention of the amount of condoms and lube in the drawer, but to my surprise, she didn’t. When she did turn to face me there was a hint of a grin on her lips, however.
I wasn’t about to ask her what she was grinning about. I was just thankful she no longer had the I-hate-your-fucking-guts look.
“I’m still getting over a touch of pneumonia so I’m going to leave you to settle in. Brock can help you with anything you might need.”
She nodded. “Thank you.” The words came out as barely more than a whisper, but I heard. Considering all the hostility I was quite shocked.
“You’re welcome.” Our gazes locked and we stared at each other for a long moment before I pulled my gaze away and exited the room.
~*~ TT ~*~
Brock
It was getting more bitter by the minute. I had a very bad feeling about this. I could feel it in my bones. It was going to be a hellish ordeal, and to make it worse we had to cater to the ungrateful princess inside the cabin. If we were going to be trapped inside the cabin with her for a week or more, I feared I’d strangle her in her sleep.
Reaching the front door of the cabin, I opened it up and stepped inside as quickly as possible, closing the door firmly behind me and engaging the lock. A little bit of snow managed to get inside, but nothing to worry about.
Unzipping my jacket, I shrugged it off and hung it onto the hook behind the door next to Tyler’s. Pulling off my boots, I set them on the rack to dry out before venturing further into the cabin.
I was damned hungry. We were so busy notifying the residents that we’d missed both breakfast and lunch. I wasn’t the type of guy to function well without a meal in my stomach. With my lifestyle I consumed a ridiculous amount of food.
Going to my room to change I noticed that the unnamed pain in the ass was already settled in and pounding away on the keys of her computer. I hesitated a moment at the open doorway. Despite her being a pain in the ass she was a beautiful woman. And I did have to appreciate how strong she seemed to be. She wasn’t a typical damsel-in-distress type of girl. If she wasn’t just blowing hot air up our asses about how she could handle a gun, I had to say it was quite sexy to know she could handle it with competency.
Before I could carry on my way she straightened in the high-back leather chair at the dresser which now doubled as a desk and turned her head to look at me, her alluring blue eyes burning into my green ones. “Can I help you?”
There was a split second where I didn’t know how to respond. There wasn’t really anything I needed. “Are you hungry?”
She shrugged.
“I don’t know what that means. Yes or no.” Everything with her was so fucking hard.
“What are you having?”
“Something pretty simple. Have you had hot dogs over a wood stove?”
She grinned. She had a very pretty smile, it carried up and to her eyes. “Can’t say that I have.”
“Would you like a couple?”
“I think I would. Thank you, Brock.”
Hmmm. She wasn’t being combative. That was a bonus. Maybe all I needed to do was feed her? Her welcoming demeanor enticed me to linger a little longer in the doorway. “What’s your name anyhow?”
“I’m Genevieve,” she replied not bothering to get up for a formal introduction. That was okay, I was just happy with the smile—it gave me hope.
“Well, Genevieve. Give me ten minutes and dinner will be served.”
She nodded and then turned back to the computer immediately beginning to pound away on the keys.
Chapter 5
Genevieve
Where in the hell am I? The bed was damn hard and my back was screaming at me as my eyes fluttered open and I surveyed the room. It took a moment, but the memories of the previous day came rushing back to me.
I’d been kidnapped and was being held prisoner! Well, not exactly, but close enough. I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere and so here I was, for God knew how long. At least the prison guards were hot enough. Despite being angry I couldn’t have helped feasting my eyes on their tight asses and broad chests—I was only human after all.
“Jesus, my back,” I groaned rolling over from my back and onto my stomach. Pulling myself up to my knees, I reached high above my head and stretched. I could feel the cracks as my joints and muscles pulled and stretched. Sitting back on my heels, I felt marginally better. Damn, I was only twenty-eight; hard bed or not my back shouldn’t be feeling this bad. Maybe it was time to start hitting the gym, maybe some yoga?
Sliding off the bed, the unmistakable smell of bacon drifted to my nose. Oh yes, now that was definitely the way to wake up!
The guys hadn’t grabbed any of my pajamas so I’d been forced to borrow a pair of Brock’s pajama bottoms and matched it with a tank top of my own. With him being a foot taller than me I had been forced to roll the pant legs up so I wasn’t tripping over them.
Going to the full-length mirror screwed onto the back of the door, I gave myself a good look-over. My hair was mussed and I looked kinda frumpy. My lips formed into a grimace. I was tempted to try and clean up, but in reality it wasn’t like I was trying to impress my captors anyhow.
Screw it, they can see me at my worst, what do I care?
I slowly opened the door, inviting the chitter chatter of both men to my ears, and peeked out. To the right of me were both Brock and Tyler, both in blue jeans and t-shirts that hugged their chests and torsos. My breath caught in my throat at the sight of them. Damn they were sexy. Were they that sexy last night?
Didn’t matter. I pulled myself up to my full height of 5′4. It’s not like anything would ever happen between me and either of them anyhow. I was only here until they released me. The thought of being “released” only made me angry all over again. I was stuck here until they let me go.
Tyler turned and his gaze immediately caught mine. “You’re up. Great. We’re almost done making breakfast. We were debating whether it was safe or not to come and wake you.” His lips turned into a teasing grin.
As much as I wanted to remain angry, I couldn’t stop myself from smiling back at him. He had the cutest smile, with dimples on either cheek. It was no wonder he had a drawer full of condoms and other stuff. I imagined he got a lot of action. I would wager that he had slept with most of the good-looking women in town. Then there happened to be the tourists that came through to indulge in the skiing. Why would he have a girlfriend when he had a buffet of women I was sure would fall to their knees for a chance with him?
“It would have been safe as soon as I smelled the bacon.”
“Ahhh. A bacon woman, are ya?”
“Everyone loves bacon, don’t they?”
He shrugged. “Anyone with taste, I suppose. Not sure I could trust a woman who didn’t like bacon.”
I shrugged. “I don’t think I could trust a man who didn’t like it.” We shared another smile. Maybe they weren’t so
bad…
Hell no, you’re not going to fall for either of them. They’re trouble and severely out of your league, a voice in the back of my head warned. I hated that voice. It had kept me from going out of my comfort zone many times over the years. It kept me safe and secure…and single.
I groaned inwardly. Either way, it didn’t matter. I was pissed at them and having an attraction to them wasn’t going to change that.
Brock turned and looked at me. “Hey, morning. How did you sleep?”
I grimaced. “Okay, I guess. The bed was hard, but it wasn’t a big deal.”
“Yeah, Tyler likes it hard.”
My eyes narrowed as I caught my lip between my teeth. Was he teasing me? That was a tad inappropriate considering I’d just met the both of them.
“I’m messing with you, Genevieve. I meant nothing by it.” He nodded to the small four-person table. “Have a seat, it’s about done. I’ve got bacon, scrambled eggs, pancakes and breakfast potatoes. All, or just a portion of it? Pick your poison.”
“Fix me whatever. I’m famished,” I replied, my stomach grumbling its confirmation. Walking over to the table, I sat down, feeling a little uncomfortable with the fact they were serving me. I wasn’t used to people serving me outside of a restaurant environment.
“Great.” Brock smiled and went back to the wood stove that he was using to prepare the meal while Tyler set out the plates and began grabbing the food as it became done and dividing it between the plates.
I couldn’t help but ogle a little bit as I watched them work; it was surprisingly sexy. They seemed to have a fluid rhythm going that only a couple of people who knew each other extremely well could possibly have.
Once the four items were finished being cooked and plated the guys brought the three plates to the table, along with a pitcher of orange juice. They placed a plate of food in front of me, with the men sitting on either side of me each with a heaping breakfast. The smell of the eggs and bacon drifted to my nose with intensity. It smelled delicious. I prided myself on my skills at preparing breakfast, but Brock’s certainly looked even better.
