9. Clay
CLAY
“W ake up! Clay, wake the hell up already.”
Was she serious? I could barely open my eyes.
It didn’t help that I hadn’t done much more than take a brief nap during the night after slamming the door and jerking off with the taste of Mira’s lips still fresh and the sound of her desperate whimpers ringing in my ears.
After coming until I couldn’t see straight, I stripped down and got into bed, forgoing pajamas in favor of oblivion. Normally, I would’ve passed out cold.
Instead, I lay in the dark room, listening as the wind picked up on the other side of the curtains, fighting like hell to stay where I was and not invade her room, sinking inside her.
What it would feel like to have her pussy clench around my cock buried inside her, taking my length inch by inch until she was screaming my name.
We were so close. She wanted me, wanted so much more than my hand against her mound.
Self-control had never been a problem for me until now.
And I was supposed to be happy, waking up to her urgent cries after she robbed me of sleep?
My head weighed a ton, but I managed to pick it up from the pillow. “What time is it?” I asked, fumbling for my phone in the dark room.
I hadn't locked the door, and now I had to deal with her sticking her head in and disrupting what sleep I managed. “We’re snowed in.”
Of all the things she could’ve said. “Get real,” I grumbled, dropping back to the pillow and throwing an arm over my eyes. “I need more sleep. How long do I have before we?—”
“I’m not kidding.” She marched across the room and flung open the curtains. The light changed dramatically on the other side of my eyelids, making me open them in shock.
I couldn’t believe what I saw. The wind that had kicked up overnight brought a blizzard with it. “It wasn’t supposed to do this, was it?” I asked, watching the windblown snow sweep past the glass.
“No, it almost never storms like this in April.” She stood in front of the window with her hands on her hips, shaking her head like she expected Mother Nature to apologize.
“When are they plowing us out?”
“That’s the problem.” Throwing her hands into the air, she released a heavy sigh.
“The shed’s inaccessible until somebody shovels it out, but I just checked the radar on my phone, and it looks like this is going to be coming down until at least noon, maybe later.
They estimate more than two feet have already fallen, and we’ll get maybe another foot before it’s over. ”
“Remind me to call you the next time I need a weather report.”
“Could you stop being a sarcastic prick for like three seconds?” she snapped. “We have a bunch of guests snowed in at the lodge. Of course, there’s plenty of food and everything up there. Thank God we’re the only ones staying in a cabin.”
Now that my brain was working, I saw the problem. “There has to be something worked out where we have a contingency plan in place for a situation like this.”
“I agree. Right now, they’re trying to find a free plow somewhere in the area that can get up here. The lodge is short-staffed since not many people can make it in. This is a hopeless fucking mess.”
It was, though, for a very different reason than the one making her tap her foot on the floor before she started to pace, arms wrapped around herself. “For one thing, we are supposed to be working up here,” she fretted.
“All of that can wait. It’s more important for them to take care of the guests down at the lodge at a time like this.
” I would have loved to know who dropped the ball.
No, I hadn’t the first clue it was supposed to snow like this, but someone should have been aware.
There had to be a plan in place so this wouldn’t happen again.
“Yes, I know.” Her face fell when she turned toward me. It was like this was the first time she had seen me since she walked into the room. Until now, she hadn’t noticed I was naked under the blankets now bunched around my waist, leaving the upper half of my body exposed.
I looked down at myself, then back at her. “Is there a problem?”
Let her shake her head all she wanted. The bright color creeping up her neck, flooding her cheeks, told another story. “No. Of course not.” Still, she wasted no time leaving the room, almost slamming the door behind her.
“Afraid I’ll bite?” Why couldn’t I let it go? I considered the question as I pulled on a pair of loose, cotton pants, forgoing a shirt in favor of joining her in the main room, where she typed on her phone, ignoring me.
“At least the kitchen is stocked,” she muttered without looking at me. Either she hadn’t heard what I said, or she was determined to pretend she hadn’t.
That was one problem solved since my stomach growled audibly. She glanced my way finally, her gaze crawling over my chest and abs before she snapped her attention back to the phone. “Do you know how to build a fire?”
Who the hell cared about a fire? As hungry as I was for food, it was the sight of her in nothing more than a T-shirt and shorts that left me craving her until I could barely breathe.
My hands flexed, eager to explore what I had barely gotten the chance to touch so far.
The luscious brown locks flowing over her shoulders gleamed in the light flowing through the window.
She lifted her head to look at me, arching an eyebrow.
I hadn’t answered her question because I couldn’t find my voice.
On the other hand, the tip of my nose was already getting cold, and the rest of my body would probably follow suit soon enough.
“Sure, I’ll have this place warmed up soon.
” It was something to do, at least, while she went to the kitchen and made way too much noise opening and closing cabinets and pulling out pots and pans.
There was only one thing I was interested in eating, even with my empty stomach growling loudly.
There was nowhere to go, no hope of avoiding each other in the intimate cabin.
I could antagonize her all I wanted over how skittish she seemed, but I was just as tormented. Why were we torturing ourselves?
I couldn’t remember why it seemed smart not to fuck her senseless. Any thoughts of complication dissolved in the face of sheer need. The little taste I’d gotten of her so far had done nothing but sharpen my appetite.
Soon, small flames licked the kindling I’d piled. Their light started to spread before the logs caught fire and sent out warmth. “We’ll be comfortable soon,” I called out while placing the grate in front of the fire.
One might say it was comfortable, but there was nothing comfortable about walking around with a permanent erection while a lifetime’s worth of unspoken words hung in the air.
There was nothing to do now but look at her, and I did, taking in every curve, the way her body moved under her clothes.
We came so damn close. My dick thickened while the memory of her moans and whimpers threatened to tear me apart.
How was I supposed to forget how easy it was to tap into the passion under the surface?
How was I supposed to deny myself what we both wanted?
“What about an omelet?” She was unaware of the way my gaze was locked on her. Either that, or she thought ignoring me would do any good. “It won’t be Michelin star or anything, but I know what I’m doing.”
I didn’t answer immediately, too deeply focused on her body as I approached the kitchen. Only when she glanced over her shoulder, scowling at my silence, was I able to find my voice. “Yeah. That’s fine.”
“Are you going to watch me?” Another look over her shoulder, this time paired with a derisive snort. “This isn’t a cooking show. Maybe you should go put some clothes on.”
She couldn’t let it go, telling me how deep under her skin I’d burrowed. “Does my choice of clothes offend you?”
If she rolled her eyes much harder, they might fall out of her head. “Get real. But I wouldn’t want my husband to catch pneumonia because he was too busy annoying me to put a damn shirt on.”
Folding my arms drew her attention again, though she pried her eyes away from my chest before I could accuse her of staring. “You think I’m trying to antagonize you?” I asked.
“We both know you are, and I don’t appreciate it.
” I watched as she cracked eggs into a bowl and whipped them hard and fast like she was trying to teach them a lesson.
“Just because one of us has the presence of mind to avoid making a massive mistake, it doesn’t mean you have to hold it over my head. ”
She read me easily enough, which did not thrill me. “Is that what you think I’m trying to do?”
“As a matter of fact, it is.” How she could focus on melting butter and pouring eggs into the pan while having this conversation was beyond me.
There I was, my eyes glued to her every move and my tongue almost hanging out of my mouth.
I was practically panting like a dog over forbidden fruit.
I didn’t do well with being forbidden from doing anything.
For lack of a safer topic, I offered, “You’re not bad in the kitchen.”
“Thanks. I used to like hanging out in the kitchens at our properties and watching the chefs.”
The sudden insight into her past managed to distract me from wanting to tackle her to the floor. I could almost think clearly. “You spent a lot of time around the hotels, didn’t you?”
“My entire life.” She lifted a shoulder, swirling the eggs until they covered the bottom of the pan, lifting the edges with her spatula. “Papa never liked the idea of leaving me with a nanny, so he brought me with him everywhere.”
“What about school?”
“I went to school, but I had tutors who kept me up to speed during the times I had to travel.” She chuckled, glancing at me and adding, “That was a perk. The other kids would get so jealous.”