I grunt and try to look away as she plops herself right in my armchair, legs tucked under her, her bright sweater riding up just enough to reveal a strip of pale skin.
She’s alluring, distracting, and completely off-limits.
I retreat toward the counter, pouring two fingers of whiskey. Anything to focus on but her.
“Cozy?” I repeat, trying to keep my voice flat, tossing back the alcohol.
“Yeah! I mean, it’s freezing, right? And you’ve got a roaring fire. And I’ve got… a small bed in the corner. Not exactly the most inviting sleeping arrangement.”
She glances at the pull-out in the corner, then back at me, her eyes sparkling.
“Unless… you have another, more inviting option?”
Her suggestion, so innocently phrased, ignites a firestorm in my gut.Another option.There’s only one other option in this cabin. My bed.
And she fuckingknowsit.
“No,” I say, my voice breaking. “No other options.”
She pouts, a playful, tempting expression that's too fucking sexy. “Are you sure? Because it looks like there’s a perfectly good bed in that other room.”
She gestures vaguely towards the crack in the door that reveals my bedroom.
“That’s my bed,” I state, my jaw clenched. "Can't you read a book if you're so bored?"
I gesture to the bookshelf as my battle-hardened mind screams:Danger. Danger. Proximity. Temptation allure.
“Not now,” she says, her voice dropping to a low, seductive purr that sends a jolt through me. “I just can't stop thinking about that big bed, Edward. And it’s cold out here. And we’retwo consenting adults, trapped in a blizzard. Don’t you think… shared warmth might be… prudent?”
My eyes snap to hers. She’s not just hinting. She’s openly, brazenly suggesting.
Consenting adults.Shared warmth.
My pulse thunders against my ribs, a trapped bird desperate for escape.
She’s bored. Stir-crazy from the storm.
That’s all this is. It’s not… me. It can’t be.
But my body betrays me, tightening with a raw, unwanted hunger.
The warmth she mentioned earlier, the one that bloomed in my chest, now flares hot, spreading through my entire body.
My thoughts, usually a tangled mess of trauma and self-loathing, are suddenly crystal clear, focused solely on her lips, the inviting sparkle in her eyes.
The raw, primal desire that has been simmering below the surface ever since she walked into my cabin.
“Penny,” I growl, my voice strained.
Every fiber of my being wants to pull her into my arms, to bury myself in her warmth, to feel something other than the cold despair that has been my constant companion.
It's been so long. So damn long.
But the ghosts of my past scream too.You’re broken. You’ll only hurt her. She deserves better.
She takes a slow step towards me, her eyes never leaving mine. I swear to God she's swaying those wide hips on purpose.
The firelight flickers, making her golden hair shimmer, outlining the tempting swell of her body beneath her clothes.
