Chapter Thirteen
Thirteen
Leslie glanced across the table at Sloan.
She had cooked baked salmon with cabbage, rolls and slices of Yukon Gold potatoes.
She’d even made a berry pie for dessert.
Although he seemed to be enjoying the dinner she’d prepared, he wasn’t saying much.
Something was up and she could sense it, but she had no idea what that something was.
She knew better than to try to figure out Sloan or his mood.
After decorating the tree, she felt good.
The last thing she wanted was for Sloan to put a damper on her own mood.
She definitely had no plan to ruin it by engaging in any type of verbal sparring with him.
After dinner she would do what she’d done last night, what she intended to do every night, which was to go into her bedroom, shower and then curl up with her e-reader.
“I made a decision about something an hour ago, Leslie.”
She looked up from buttering her bread and held his gaze. “A decision about what?”
“It was a decision about you. I will no longer hold you to the stipulation that you be here this week.”
What exactly was he saying? “Meaning what, Sloan?”
“Meaning you need to pack tonight, because I’m taking you back to Wasilla in the morning. Nothing will change as far as my being your business partner, but I will now admit what I asked you to do here was unfair.”
Yes, it had been, and she couldn’t help wondering what had made him realize it. “Like I told you, Sloan, I wasn’t going to sleep with you anyway.”
“I had hoped to seduce you.”
Leslie frowned at him. He sounded so confident, as if he believed he would have been successful in doing so.
Back in the day, when she was his girlfriend, he’d never had to seduce her into anything, because she’d always been willing and ready to share his bed.
That was then and this was now. And now he wanted her gone, so she would never know the extent of his seduction skills.
“I’ll start packing tonight and will be ready to leave in the morning,” she said, standing. After walking over to the sink to place her dishes in it, she then walked out of the kitchen.
Deciding to take a shower before packing, she began stripping off her clothes. She liked this cabin, and although leaving here was the last thing she honestly wanted to do, maybe it was for the best. Sloan obviously thought so.
In the privacy of the shower, while water cascaded down her naked body, she closed her eyes and remembered those times when she and Sloan would shower together. Recalling how he would touch her all over, fill her with an intensity of sexual longing and desire she hadn’t felt in years.
Showering with him was something she’d always looked forward to doing. The last time it had been in a hotel room the night before he was to fly out to prepare the cabin for their upcoming spring break week. The reason she hadn’t left when he had was because of an exam in one of her classes.
Because Redford and Tyler had been Sloan’s roommates at his apartment, and Sarah had been hers, the only time they’d had any privacy was when Sloan reserved a hotel room for them. He’d done that a lot because he’d said he wanted them to spend as much private time together as possible.
Although her father had been disappointed in her decision to spend spring break with Sloan instead of coming home, he had understood. He’d known how much she loved Sloan, and after meeting Sloan, he was convinced Sloan loved her, too.
Getting out the shower, she dried off while thinking Sloan would never know how hard it had been to decorate that tree with his eyes on her the entire time.
She had tried to ignore him, had refused to look over at him, but she had been conscious of him sitting there, his masculine scent and the vibes she’d felt emitting from him.
Had he felt the strong sexual chemistry between them, too? Was that why he’d decided to take her away? Had he seen seducing her as a double-edged sword? Would he be tempting himself as well?
It truly didn’t matter what had made him change his mind. He no longer wanted her here, and she didn’t want to be here.
But, as she slipped into her nightgown, she knew that was a lie.
She had begun looking forward to spending time here this week.
She loved the cabin, she loved the tree, she loved being able to clear her mind of Cassidy Cosmetics business and do something she hadn’t done in a while, which was read for pleasure.
She didn’t want to think about returning home to spend the rest of the holidays alone. It was the new normal, and one she needed to get used to.
Leslie pulled her luggage from underneath the bed and then she heard the knock on her bedroom door. She wondered if Sloan had changed his mind and had decided not to wait until morning but to take her home tonight. “Just a minute.”
Grabbing her bathrobe off the bed, she quickly put it on and tightened the belt around her waist before opening the door. Sloan stood there, frowning.
“What do you want, Sloan?”
“Forget about packing. There’s no way I can take you home tomorrow.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and frowned back at him. “And why not?”
“I just got a call from Walker. In case I hadn’t been paying attention to the weather reports, he wanted to let me know about the severe snowstorm headed this way. It’s the worst this area has seen in years.”
Sloan figured Leslie wouldn’t be happy about the forecast, but instead of disappointment in her expression, he saw concern.
“Is there anything we need to do tonight, Sloan? Are you sure the generator will work? Do you have any idea how long the snowstorm is expected to last? Do we have enough chopped wood for the fireplace? Do we—”
“Whoa, Leslie. Slow down. We’ll get through this. Yes, the generator will work. Not sure how long the storm will last, but I’m hoping it will blow over in a few days. Yes, there’s plenty of chopped wood, and yes, there are a few things you can help me do to get prepared.”
“What?” she asked, and he could hear the eagerness to help in her voice.
“I’m going outside to put the car in the garage and to cover everything that needs to be protected. I’d like you to go around and gather the candles and matches. There’s also batteries and mobile phone chargers in the closet at the end of the hallway.”
“Okay.”
“And since it’s best not to run a generator overnight, we’ll need to sleep in front of the fireplace for heat. That means we need to grab sleeping bags and blankets from that hall closet.”
“Separate sleeping bags, of course.”
“Of course,” he said, somewhat annoyed she’d think he would take advantage of the situation.
“Give me a few minutes to get dressed and I’ll get to everything right away.”
An hour later, Sloan had done all the outside chores that needed to be done and had also brought in more wood for the fireplace.
He’d noted that snow had already begun falling, and there was an increase in wind coming off the strait.
He’d weathered harsh snowstorms before. You couldn’t live in Alaska without having experienced a few; however, he had a feeling the one headed their way was a doozy.
As he bent down to add more wood to the box next to the fireplace, he could hear Leslie moving around in the kitchen.
He couldn’t help thinking about the fresh-showered Leslie who’d opened her bedroom door earlier.
She had smelled good and had looked even better in her robe.
First time he’d ever seen her in one. There was a time when she’d been comfortable wearing very little around him or nothing at all after a shower.
He’d noted during one of his wood-toting trips into the house that she’d changed into a pair of jogging pants and a sweatshirt. She looked good in that, too.
“I pulled water bottles out of the cabinet and loaded them into one of the coolers filled with ice, Sloan.”
He glanced up to see the subject of his thoughts standing beside him as he knelt in front of the fireplace. “That’s a good idea,” he said. “Glad you thought of it.”
“Can you think of anything else you need me to do?” she asked.
He broke eye contact with her to poke at the fire. “I can’t think of anything at the moment.”
His phone rang, and he stood to pull it out of his back pocket. “Yes, Garth?”
“Regan and I are looking at the report on the weather channel. Sounds like pretty bad weather headed your way. You’re ready to hunker down for a while?”
“Ready as we’ll ever be, Garth. Leslie and I will be just fine.” He saw the lifting of Leslie’s brow. Did it bother her that Garth knew she was there with him?
“Well, take care and I’ll check on you guys tomorrow,” Garth said, reclaiming Sloan’s attention.
“The wind is pretty high outside. If you can’t reach us, it might be the result of too much wind near the towers.”
“Okay, I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll call and check on Walker, Bailey and the twins now. Tell Leslie hello.”
Sloan ended the call with his brother and put the phone back into his pocket. “Garth says hello.”
“He knows I’m here?” Leslie asked.
“Yes. Is there a reason why he shouldn’t?”
She shook her head. “No, there’s no reason. I’ll make us some hot chocolate.”
He nodded, appreciating that she remembered how much he liked the stuff. “Thanks. I have a feeling it’s going to be a hot chocolate kind of night.”
“I have that same feeling,” she said, and then he watched her turn and walk off toward the kitchen.
Sloan rubbed his hand down his face. A turbulent Alaska snowstorm was headed their way, and of all things, he was stranded here alone with Leslie.