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I didn’tthe room unceremoniously When I closed the door behind et control of myself She was hot as hell, but I couldn’t let myself think that way She was at ed to let someone in I shook my head

No I couldn’t let myself do that to her Or myself

6

Desiree

It had been a full day since I showed up at Aiden’s cabin, lost, freezing, and terrified The ht about it, the more it see Shuddering at the thought of it, I picked up the book by the bedside table and tried to read again

Aiden had a bookshelf in his bedroom with a number of books double stacked on it He offered that I could read anything on it, since I ithout my phone or any other source of entertainment The electricity had finally failed in the ht, and Aiden said he didn’t want to run the generator or the gas power except for the stove to cook in order to conserve electricity I understood that, though it s rather dull

I was trying to see the positives, few though they were I was alive I arm and fed Aiden had offered his food, and I had every intention of paying hiift, even if he was a little gruff and we hadn’t doneOne would think in a situation like this, two people would get to know each other, but that wasn’t the case Aiden kept his distance, and I got the iood with people It wasn’t malice or rudeness I think he just didn’t particularly want to open up to anyone

Especially a strange woot herself killed and wound up on his doorstep

He didn’t need to take me in the way he did He could have not answered the door, which, looking back, was probably the s to do I could have been a rateful that I got the chance to prove I wasn’t going to steal a kidney him in his sleep

Not that he should have much to worry about He could overpowersoap back froathered he’d been in the service He’d clearly kept his body in fighting shape even now

He was also inordinately attractive At first, I thought it was justtricks on ht my brain just screwed up what he really looked like andto hiht’s sleep and soe that he was a standoffish loner who fit all the markers of someone ould live in a cabin alone in the woods All the markers except one, he was stupidly hot

I put the book down after reading the saood I just couldn’t concentrate on anything other than et back to s, even if I didn’t have my people Granted, I didn’t know if I had electricity at the house, and as far as I knew, there was a wood stove and a fireplace, but I hadn’t even inspected the stack of wood outside in the shed I just took the landlord’s word for it

Aiden was cooking so in the kitchen, and it sarlic convinced et up, so I walked out of the bedrooingback to the stove

“I hope you like tomato sauce,” he said “I don’t really kno tovariety of stuff anyway Spaghetti sauce, though, I make a decent one of those”

“That sounds great, actually,” I said “I’h my veins”

“Well, it won’t be fancy Just a siround pork for it I hope you can stomach it”

“I’ this interaction with Aiden It was one of the longer conversations we’d had since I showed up at his door

He went back to cooking and looked out through the tinyabove the sink

“Looks like the snow stopped,” he said “It should startto the weather report”—he indicated a crank radio beside the stove— “I should be able to take you back down to your car and help you get it out tomorrow”