by Ali Parker
Harper
I took a few minutes to collect my thoughts. I couldn’t believe I was in this mess. Hiding in the bathroom was not going to fix anything. I needed to face him. I wouldn’t let him chase me out of my own cabin.
I blew out the candle and walked out of the bathroom. I tried my best to ignore him and walked directly to the woodstove. I stuffed another log in the stove, keeping my back to him.
When I got to my feet and turned around, he was pushing the couch back.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“It’s cold in here,” he said.
“It’s not that bad.”
“We either move the bed over here or we put the mattress on the floor in front of the fire.”
“No, the bed will be plenty warm.”
“Did you use the heater last night?”
I nodded, wondering why he cared. “Yes.”
“It’s cold, Harper. Really cold. That wind is zapping the temperature in here.”
I rolled my eyes and walked to the bed. He was right. There was a noticeable difference in the temperature. The woodstove was cute, and it created a nice ambiance, but it wasn’t big enough to keep the place warm when the wind was howling and the temperature was below freezing.
“You can sleep on the couch,” I muttered.
“I’ll be a perfect gentleman,” he insisted.
I glared at him, displeased with the entire situation. I felt like I was being taken advantage of. I knew he wouldn’t do anything I didn’t want, but I still didn’t like being forced to share the same air with him, much less the same bed.
“Whatever.”
“Help me move this,” he said.
I mumbled under my breath and walked over to help him push the couch back. Then we pulled the mattress off the bed and dropped it on the floor. I grabbed all of the available blankets from the chest and carried them to the mattress.
“That’s it,” I told him.
“It’ll be fine. I’ll make sure I get up every couple of hours and put a log on the fire. We can’t let it get cold in here.”
“Why not?”
“Because it will get too cold, and to get it warm could take a long time, and we don’t want that.”
“Oh,” I said, not really an expert. I was going to rely on his expertise.
“Do you want to change?” he asked.
I looked down at my warm leggings and the baggy, long-sleeved shirt I was wearing. “No,” I said. I wanted to keep on lots of clothes. “You?”
“I’m taking off my jeans.”
I glared at him. “There are enough blankets that we don’t have to share.”
He cocked his head to the side. “You’re seriously worried?”
I ignored him and flopped down on the mattress. I pulled three of the blankets over me and up to my chin. I stared up at the ceiling, ignoring the fact he was taking off his pants a few feet away from me. He got under the blankets, pulling the ones on me over him. I scowled at him. He smiled in return.
“Are you warm enough?”
“I’m fine.”
“Good night.”
I snorted. “Yeah.”
I looked up at the ceiling, trying to make sense of the whole situation. How did I get here? How did I find myself in the same bed with my pant-less ex that was the only human that could break my heart?
I was stuck with him. I couldn’t get away from him. We didn’t speak again. The dark and the fire cracking created a very calming atmosphere. I couldn’t sleep. I was almost afraid to fall asleep. He was a temptation I didn’t know if I could resist in sleep. I didn’t want to roll over and snuggle with him.
I heard him breathing slow and even and knew he was asleep. I slowly turned my head, verified what I suspected, and rolled to my side. I put my hands together under my face and watched him sleep. He looked so young, so much like the man I remembered from high school. I wanted to reach out and trace my finger over his jaw.
It would be so easy to love him. So easy to fall for him all over again. I was always falling for him. I liked the idea of being with the man I thought he was.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t the man I thought he was. He was this man.
He was successful and used to getting his way. He didn’t think about how his actions might hurt me. He just did. That was something I couldn’t deal with.
A cold chill, followed by the loud howl of a powerful wind gust, washed over me. The large window was great during the day when looking out at the picturesque scenery, but it was not so great with no heat in a blizzard.
Despite telling myself not to do it, I was snuggling closer to him. I could feel his body heat and wanted just a little. I could smell his cologne and the scent of the woodsy shampoo he used. I inched closer, inhaling his scent. Before I knew it, I was touching him. Not a full-on body press, but there was definitely contact. I closed my eyes, letting the feel of being close to him wash over me.
It was comforting and sweet and it was exactly what I needed to fall asleep. Being close to him was so soothing. I was no longer cold with his warm body next to mine. I fell asleep with a smile on my face.
I woke the following morning feeling remarkably well rested. I was warm and cozy with the heavy weight of the blankets piled on top of me. I sighed with contentment until I realized I was on the floor. My eyes popped open as I jerked back, remembering I had fallen asleep snuggled against Chase. He wasn’t in the bed.
I rolled to my back and looked around the room. I didn’t see him. I sat up and noticed the fire was burning strong like it had recently been stoked. I dreaded leaving the comfort and warmth of the bed, but nature called. Unfortunately, Chase was likely in the bathroom. That was really the only place he could be.
I got up and moved to grab the percolating coffee pot, and I noticed the bathroom door was open a bit. I walked over and slowly pushed it open to see if he was inside. “Chase?”
There was no answer. I quickly took care of business and walked over to the large window to peer outside. There was no one there, but holy shit, there was a lot of snow. The drifts nearly covered his SUV.
I scanned the outside and didn’t see him. I turned around and didn’t see him. It was a little creepy to have him just vanish. I didn’t think he would be dumb enough to try and walk back to the city.
The quiet felt too loud. I didn’t necessarily want him there but the thought of being completely alone was freaking me out a little. I wasn’t sure I was ready to be stranded alone with no food and very little wine. How long could I survive?
Would anyone come looking for me? If Chase actually did try and walk back to town, he might never be found until spring. I shivered at the thought.
Yes, I was freaking out about something that was very unlikely, but when I was alone in the middle of a blizzard way outside of town, all bets were off. I needed to relax. I needed to chill out and drink some coffee. At least there was plenty of that.
A strange sound caught my attention. I looked around the room, trying to figure out where it was coming from. Then I noticed the braided rug near the door moving. Not moving but bouncing.
I shrieked and leapt back. I ran for the poker, ready to attack whatever it was that was moving under the rug. It would have been really nice to have a man around at that moment.
Suddenly, the rug lifted and a door in the floor swung upward. I held out the poker, ready to attack. Chase rose from the floor. I stared at him with complete shock. “What the hell?” I gasped.
He grinned, holding a wooden crate in his hands before kicking the door closed. “Surprise!”
“What the hell?” I said again.
“I went out to get some wood and did a little scouting around the area. I was hoping to find a neighbor or something. I noticed a drift near the cabin where it shouldn’t be. I dug around and saw a cellar door. I found your Christmas gifts.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You what?”
He held up the crate. “Merry Christmas.”
“I�
��m so confused,” I said, shaking my head.
He carried the crate to the kitchen counter and put it down. I checked out the door before putting the rug back over it.
“Come see,” he said with a smile.
I couldn’t resist. I walked over and peered into the old apple crate. “What is all of this?”
“The root cellar is stocked with some canned food. It looks like whoever lived here was something of a survivalist. There is some of that dehydrated food stuff, like the kind you can take hiking. You add a little water and voila, you have a meal.”
“Oatmeal,” I said, pulling out one of the cans. I reached back in and saw several small mason jars. “Strawberry jam and peaches.”
I was really hungry. Like really, really hungry. I was ready to dig into the food right then. If he wasn’t there, I would have, but good manners insisted I eat like a human. My stomach growled loudly.
He laughed. “Let’s get some water on the stove and we’ll make some oatmeal.”
“What else is down there?”
“Not a lot, but if we had to, we could live off that cellar for a week. I think we need to be careful with the home-canned stuff.”
I grabbed the jar of peaches and studied it. “My mom said it was fine as long as there was nothing stinky, slimy, or moldy at the top. If the liquid is clear and the food isn’t fuzzy, it should be okay.”
He wrinkled his nose. “It still seems a little sketchy to me. There were green beans down there too, but they did not look good.”
I ran my finger over the top and saw a date written on the lid. “These are only two years old. That isn’t bad at all.”
“If you say so,” he said and moved to fill a pot with water.
He put it on the stove while I rummaged through the crate of goodies. Things were looking a little better. If I could get some food in my belly, I would be able to deal with him.
He came back over to the counter.
“Thank you,” I told him.
“For?”
“My Christmas gift,” I said with a grin. “I have to say it’s probably the best gift I have ever gotten.”
I gave him a hug. I did owe him. I would have never found the cellar on my own.
It was a good thing he showed up when he did, or I might have found myself starving.
Chapter 54
Chase
I took the last bite of the oatmeal with the chopped peaches and leaned back on the couch. I was stuffed, and it felt great. “That was actually really good.”
“Yes, it was. I never thought I liked oatmeal. I was wrong. That was amazing.”
“Because you were starving,” I teased.
“You’re right. We should go for a walk and see how bad things are.”
“You want to go outside?”
She shrugged. “It’s not snowing right now. I want to try and walk down to the road to see if the plows are running yet.”
I looked out the window. “Okay. The sun is out. It might not be too bad. Maybe we can dig out the SUV.”
“I’ll get my boots on. I only brought my coat and gloves. No hat.”
“Maybe there is something in that closet.” I nodded.
She immediately walked over and opened the door. She pulled out a few flannels that were too small for me, but fortunately, there were some warm hats and scarves along with another pair of boots. Again, they were too small for my feet, but she would be able to wear them if her boots got wet.
We bundled up, only our eyes exposed. She burst into laughter. “If anyone sees us, they are going to keep driving. I wouldn’t stop if I saw us on the side of the road.”
I wouldn’t mind terribly if I was forced to be stuck with her another day or two. I could feel her warming up to me. I didn’t think she was ready to hop into a relationship with me, but she didn’t hate me. I would take every bit of hope I could get.
“Let’s do this,” I mumbled behind the scarf wrapped around my face.
I opened the door and a gust of wind nearly cut me in two with the fierce cold.
“Holy shit,” she shouted. “That’s cold.”
“Are you sure you want to go out?”
She nodded. “I’m fine. It was a bit of a shock.”
We stepped off the porch and into the snow. “It’s deep in some places,” I warned her.
She nodded, saying nothing as we walked down the driveway. We hit a drift, sinking into the snow several feet. I gently pulled her to the left and around the deep snow. We walked in silence. It really was a beautiful morning with the sun shining on the fresh snow. It was so peaceful and quiet.
“It’s so pretty,” she whispered. “I’m afraid to disturb the peacefulness.”
“It is nice. I could see myself in a cabin like this, with a few more amenities.”
“A generator would be nice,” she added.
“Absolutely and a healthy supply of alcohol and a lot more food.”
“Definitely,” she said with a laugh.
We both stopped walking.
“I think this is the road,” I said, not entirely sure.
She groaned. “It’s going to be a while before they get up here with the plows.”
It was hard to know where the road started and ended. The only clue was the wide divide in the middle of the trees. “If it stays like this, the snow will melt.”
She sighed. “I guess we have to accept we are going to be here a bit longer.”
“I’ll show you where the root-cellar door is. We’ll do a little grocery shopping.”
I started back to the house, following our footsteps until it was time to veer to the right. I pointed out the door that I’d brushed off earlier. When we started back toward the front door, we took a different path.
I heard her shriek and her arms flailed out as she slipped and nearly landed face first in the snow. I caught her just in time. “Got you,” I said, yanking her against my body.
Her eyes locked with mine, and for one brief moment, I thought I might get a kiss. And then I remembered the damn scarves we both had wrapped around our faces. It was a beautiful moment and then it was over. There was a flash of something in her eyes, and the next thing I knew, we were falling to the ground. Not accidental either. She yanked me down.
We fell into the snow with her laughing. She rolled away from me, lying on her back and spreading her legs wide before closing them again. “Snow angels!” she shouted.
I laughed and joined in. I was happy to go along with whatever fun she had in mind. I was too thankful to be back in her good graces. I would make snow angels all day if that was what she wanted to do. “Want to make a snowman?”
She sat up, her legs splayed wide. “Why not a snowwoman?”
“With boobs?”
She rolled her eyes. “You are such a man.”
“No boobs?”
She got to her feet and got to work. It had been a while since I built a snowman with the exception of helping the little boy at the Winter Wonderland. We each started with a snowball and began rolling. “I’ve got the bottom,” she announced.
I looked at her misshapen bottom half and was grateful she couldn’t see the smirk. “I’ll put mine on next.”
She looked at my equally weird-shaped ball. I dropped it on hers and we both laughed at the ridiculous-looking snow person we were building. We didn’t stop. I put a third snowball on the top while she dug around looking for arms.
“What are we going to use for a face?” she asked.
Everything was covered in snow, hiding pebbles or other debris. “How about pine cones?”
“Pine cones?”
I shrugged. “Not a lot of options.”
She walked to a tree with the boughs hanging low with heavy snow. She plucked a few pine cones and carried them back to our creation that was looking like something out of the Frankenstein playbook. I stood back and watched her work.
“Done,” she declared.
I studied the snow monster, once again happy she couldn’t s
ee my face. I chose to clap instead. “Good job.”
She put a hand on her hip and looked at me, then the snowman. “It is the ugliest thing I have ever seen.”
We both laughed again. “We better get out of the snow. We’re both soaked. We can’t afford to get sick.”
We trudged through the snow, stopping at the front door to take off our boots and dust off the snow. I brushed her back and then turned for her to brush mine.
“Okay, now I’m cold,” she said with a shiver.
“Go stand in front of the fire. I’ll get it going.”
She stood to the side while I stirred up the coals and added another log.
“That was fun,” she said.
“Why don’t you go change out of those wet clothes?” I said. “I’m going to go grab my overnight bag.”
“You brought an overnight bag?”
I should have kept my mouth shut. “I did.”
“Presumptuous.”
“It was dark when I left and snowing. I wasn’t sure I would make it back to the hotel. I wasn’t presuming anything.”
She eyed me but said nothing. “I’m going to take a hot shower.”
“Sweetie, there isn’t any hot water. No electricity, no hot water.”
She groaned. “Dammit.”
She dug in her suitcase and disappeared into the bathroom. It wasn’t like I hadn’t seen her naked before. I got the fire going before sliding into my cold wet boots and going out to grab my overnight bag. When I got back in, she was wearing a pair of light gray sweats and a hoodie that had definitely seen better days. I went into the bathroom to change, thankful I did bring the clothes.
She pulled one of the two chairs at the small table over near the woodstove. Her pants were draped over the back with her other wet gear spread over it. “Here, I’ll hang yours,” she offered.
I gave her my clothes. It was an odd, intimate feeling watching her hang my clothes. When she was finished, she moved back to stand in front of the fire. I could see she was still cold.
“We should get under the blankets until that fire gets going,” I told her.
She hesitated before moving to sit down on the mattress. I sat beside her and pulled the blankets over us. I had pretended to be asleep, but I felt her move close to me last night. I didn’t dare put my arms around her, but I made sure she stayed close. In the light of day, I felt like it was a safe move. I pulled her close, spooning her and willing my dick to stay down.
