There’s a shuffling sound on the other side of my door, out in the hall. Figuring it’s Oscar coming up, I ignore it. If she wants in, all she has to do is nudge the door open. I haven’t closed it completely.
“Aw, babe. Come stay with us for a while.”
“No, I’m not leaving where I am. I just…” Attempting to pull myself together, I blow out a big sigh. “I’m just sad for no good reason. And I’m tired.”
“I thought the mountains helped you with that.”
“Usually yes, but this time not so much.” I want to tell her that I’m crazy over a man I just met. That I’m temporarily living with him and secretly hope I never leave because the thought of being anywhere else sucks. I want to tell her that I feel rejected for no good goddamn reason because spoiled Grace Finch isn’t rolling in bed, getting sweaty with the lumberjack of her dreams, downstairs. To admit any of this will have her worried for my safety and sanity and she’ll be on a private plane to get to me… likely with Landon, Kerrington, and even Mason in tow.
I can’t let that happen.
Tears fall down my cheeks and I quickly swipe them away.
The sounds of the cabin don’t help my mood. Not only is Oscar moving around, but the wind has kicked up, so everything sounds strange to me. Dean has more trees on this side of the stream than there were around my rental cabin. It’s creaky and grindy and fucking with my head.
“I saw a bear today,” I say, changing the subject so I don’t crack.
“A bear-bear?”
“He was so fluffy and fat.”
“Aww. Floof!”
See? She gets me.
“It was terrifying at first, but Dean—”Shit.
Nicole cocks her brow. “Go on.” Her shit-eating grin makes me squirm. Well, if you can’t tell your bestie what’s going on, then who can you tell, right?
“Dean put himself between me and the bear. Not that the bear even really noticed us.”
“Dean, huh? And how did you two meet?”
Leaving out the shit about Bryson Clyde-Smith, I proceed to go into this long saga about how the past week has been for me with Dean between my legs and how talented his tongue skills are. “So yeah. I’m here for the winter. And I swear, if you tell Mason, I’ll never forgive you.”
“I won’t. If he found out you’ve done this, he’d go ballistic.”
“Which means you can’t tell Kerrington and Landon either. You know how they get.”
I’m the little Finch sister everyone keeps tabs on and won’t let out of their sight. Does it matter that I’m twenty-six? Nope.
“I’ll divert them,” Nicole says with an evil grin and brow waggle.
I cackle laugh much louder than I should. “Take one for the team, girl.”
“I’ll be takingtwo.”
That’s right, because my bestie is in madly love with two of the richest, hottest guys on the planet. “Your sacrifice is noted.”
“You really like this guy, huh?” She knows I don’t get attached to men.
“He’s so different from what we’re used to. He even has huge callouses on his hands.”
Nicole groans. “I bet they feel rough and amazing on your thighs.”
“They’re amazingeverywhere.”
We both giggle again and I feel a world better.
