Page 5 of Snowed In with Benefits

I watch the pretty, and surprising, newcomer glance down at herself. A flush rises in her cheeks and she pulls her coat—no, Emmett’s coat, I realize belatedly—more tightly around herself.

“I have clothes. I was trying to change into them, but then Beau distracted me.”

“Distracted you by bringing my own goddamn firewood into my own goddamn house,” Beau grumbles. I glance at my twin. He’s obviously annoyed, but there’s something more to it. He’s a bit thrown. The sanctity and solitude of the cabin has been breached, and while unexpected guests are my idea of a good time, they aren’t really Beau’s speed. Or Emmett’s, for that matter. They enjoy the isolation. They rely on it.

Still, they aren’t arguing with me about letting her stay. They know as well as I do that she’ll freeze to death out there. They might be two steps away from being feral mountain men, but they aren’t so detached from humanity that they’d let another human being freeze to death. Emmett bringing her back the way he did illustrated that beautifully. I know these men better than I know myself, and I know that Beau will grumble and Emmett will glare the whole time they’re doing the right thing.

“I’ll show you the bathroom if you want to change.”

She blushes, then nods. She quickly gathers her scattered clothes and shoves them into her suitcase, zips it up one-handed while holding the coat closed with her other hand, then straightens up and looks me in the eye. I like the contrast in her. How bold she is in some moments, how flustered she gets in others. She’s like a butterfly struggling to get out of the cocoon. I wonder what she’ll look like when she’s flying.

“Follow me.” I smile at her and note the bit of suspicion in her eye. I’d bet this whole cabin that the mistrust has more to do with the discarded wedding dress on the floor and less to do with me.

I notice my brother and Emmett watching us as we leave. They’re both thrown off by the intrusion. I’ll have to smooth things over later, I’m sure.

“So, upstairs are just the bedrooms.” I gesture to the stairs as I lead her into the hall. “On your left is the office, bathroom’s on the right, and the kitchen is at the end of the hall. Emmett has a workshop off the living room⁠—”

“So, not a dungeon,” she says under her breath.

I chuckle. “No dungeons around here, I’m afraid.”

She gives me a little smile that warms my heart. “Right in here.” I gesture her into the bathroom.

“Thanks.” She closes the door and I can hear her moving around.

“We only have the three bedrooms upstairs,” I tell her through the door. “We haven’t had much need for a spare room, but we can set you up with something.”

She answers quickly. “The couch is fine! I’ll be heading out first thing in the morning, I won’t need anything fancy.”

She’s running. I’ve heard that tension in my own voice, in Beau’s, in Emmett’s. We’ve all had our moments of running from something too big to face. We all ran here. And now, here she is, running too. Ending up here. Maybe that’s the magic of this place, to catch the runners and keep them still until they’ve faced their inner demons.

Some of us might be here for a long, long time if that’s the case.

She’s doing something else now, something I can’t quite identify. Brushing her hair, maybe? I hear her swear under her breath.

“You okay in there?”

“Uh, yeah. Glam hair is a bitch to take down.”

“Feel free to shower if you need to.”

The shower turns on. She must be freezing from her adventures tonight, and I can smell the heat from the hallway. I stand here thinking while she showers, ruminating over the potential consequences.

Emmett will be fine. He’ll bristle and get quiet, but he’ll be fine if she has to stay for a while. This storm is supposed to last for days, and who knows how long it will take for the county to clear the roads. She’s insisting that she’s going to leave in the morning, but we all know that isn’t going to happen.

It’s Beau that I’m worried about. He’s a little fragile. Having someone in his space that he doesn’t know isn’t just going to bother him, it’s going to rattle him to his core. How is he going to deal with days or weeks of an invader?

I’m lost in my thoughts long enough for her to finish her shower, and I hear her start to brush her teeth. “I’ll get you some blankets and pillows for the couch. Are you hungry?”

“Uh-uh,” she mumbles around her toothbrush.

“Well, if that changes, feel free to help yourself to anything in the kitchen. We just restocked ahead of the storm, there should be plenty of food.”

“’hank you.” She spits and rinses out the sink.

She opens the door and steps out. Her blonde hair is parted into two braids, and she’s wearing a bright crop top and matching leggings. It’s technically clothes, but not clothes meant for winter in the mountains. The clothes highlight her soft curves in ways that I can fully appreciate, but won’t comment on. There’s a bit of toothpaste at the corner of her mouth.

“May I…?” I reach for it and wipe it away with my thumb, lingering for just a moment on her lower lip. Her eyes dilate and she blushes, sending sparks through my hand to my chest. I chuckle. “You know, you walked into a cabin with three guys, helped yourself to the place, and now you’re sleeping here.” I curl my finger around the end of her blonde braid. “You’re basically Goldilocks.”