Chapter 5
Chapter
Five
ADAM
S he said she won’t do the movie.
Of all the scenarios I envisioned, this was not one of them.
Looking down at the food in front of me, my head spins. What am I going to do now? Do I run after her? Try to convince her to stay, passionately claiming I’m not really as terrible as I seem?
But would that be the truth?
Probably not.
There’s nothing to prove. I’m just as much the monster she thinks I am. And I proved it by staying here in the dining room.
But a minute later, she reappears. Her eyes are wide, and there are white snowflakes in her hair.
“It’s snowing,” she says, her voice low.
And now I realize I’m back in the power position. I have the advantage. And I’m going to use it to the fullest.
I wait a moment. “Is it?” I reply.
She nods slowly. “And my car can’t handle the conditions.”
“Ah.” I stab a piece of broccoli and take a bite, biding my time .
She presses her lips together. I know what she needs. She needs to stay here for the night, and it’s killing her to have to ask. But I’m not going to make this easy for her, not when she said she didn’t want to do the movie with me.
That wasn’t supposed to be her decision. It was mine . And now she’s ruined everything.
She finally clears her throat. “Since I’m unable to drive, do you think that I…would it be all right if I just…” Her voice trails off, and she gestures with her hand to fill in the blanks.
I stare at her blankly. “I’m sorry. What’s the problem exactly?”
She crosses her arms across her chest and presses her lips into a firm line. “Can I stay here tonight?”
I set down my fork, folding my hands on the table. “Well, well, well, that’s a little soon, don’t you think?”
She probably can’t see my smirk from across the room, but her mouth drops wide open. “I did not mean like that!”
“I don’t know. You’re the one asking to stay the night. In my experience, that only means one thing.”
She gives a little yelp of frustration. I may have pushed too far.
Before I can salvage the conversation, though, she collects herself, straightening to her full height and slowly walking up to me at the table. She stands next to my chair and looks down at me, but I pick up my fork, keeping my eyes on my plate, and take a bite of chicken.
“Let me make myself abundantly clear,” she says, her voice low and dangerous.
And sexy.
Crap.
“There is no universe in which I would ever ask to stay the night with you in…that way. We’ve spent barely thirty minutes together, and that has already become blatantly obvious. I am as king for you to find a shred of humanity, which I hope exists under this grizzly exterior, to allow me to stay overnight so I don’t die in a blizzard.”
I wish her words didn’t sting. I wish they didn’t cut me to the core and make me question our entire interaction today. A ‘shred of humanity?’ Does she really think I’m incapable of that?
I clear my throat. “Lionel. Make sure Brigette gets the Lily room ready for Ms. Lovett to stay overnight.”
Lionel inclines his head and leaves the room.
“Thank you,” Isabelle says. She turns and follows Lionel, and I notice her nearly untouched dinner plate. A pang of guilt runs through me. Not only did I make her wait for hours alone to eat, but now she won’t even finish her dinner.
“Wait!” I call out before she’s able to exit the dining room completely. “What about your dinner?”
Her eyes soften for a moment. Maybe she sees a ‘shred of humanity’ in me, after all. But her eyes narrow a second later. “I lost my appetite.”
And with that, she leaves.