31 Days of Winter (40 page)

‘Shit, of course. Can I get you some books from
the library?’

‘I can go and get them, the snow isn’t so hard
now, it’ll be easier to walk through.’

‘Ok, why don’t you go and do that while I get
changed? I’d like to know you’ve made it back in one piece before I go.’

‘If you could go and get changed that would be
great. It’s very distracting seeing you half naked in that little towel.’

‘Fully naked in a little towel,’ he replied with a
cock of his eyebrow as he walked past and entered the boathouse. I twisted my
head around to watch him walk towards the bathroom and gasped as he tugged the
towel off and swaggered down, probably with the knowledge that I was watching
again. He was
evil.

I gulped down the rest of my coffee, finished my
sandwich, grabbed my boots and his large jacket and made my way up to the
house. Dan was right, the house was really cold. I tried to remember which
lights were on when the power went out and went around turning off the plugs
and flipping down the switches. I turned off my iPad and iPhone to conserve
power for if I needed them, packing them in a small bag along with a selection
of books to read. When I checked my laptop I actually still had some hours of
charge left in the battery, so I took that with me as well. It seemed I’d live
out my fantasy of typing my novel in the boathouse after all. By the time I got
back there, Dan was sitting outside with another coffee, dressed in some track
pants, a t-shirt with an unzipped sweatshirt on top. He managed to look hot
even dressed so simply like that.

‘Sorry I took so long.’

‘No problem, not like we’re in any rush. Will you
be ok on your own?’

‘I’ll be fine. It’s no different to any other day.
What will you do for lunch?’

‘I can make a sandwich and take it with me.’

‘I’ll do it for you and pack you up some of the
cold cuts and sausages and bits we didn’t eat last night. Would you mind if I
used your kitchen tonight to make dinner?’

‘No. What were you thinking?’

‘Turkey in a white wine sauce with mushrooms and
those asparagus that need eating with some rice. Is that ok?’

‘Sounds great.’ He gave me one of his dazzling
smiles and I blushed and headed in, dumping my bag and coat and preparing a
covered platter with his lunch.

‘Ready when you want it,’ I called.

‘Now who’s flirting,’ he laughed as he stepped
inside, ducking to get under the door.

‘I think you read sex into everything, Dan,’ I
observed.

‘So do you, Miss Baxter,’ he winked. ‘This is all
for me?’

‘You have a big appetite.’

‘I do, for many things.’

‘I think you ought to go before one of us does
something we regret,’ I advised as I turned to wash my hands. I tensed up as I
felt him behind me and he placed a hand on my hip.

‘Thank you for my lunch, you know where I am if
there’s an emergency.’ I closed my eyes as he placed a delicate kiss on my
hair. By the time I reopened them he was closing the front door and I was all
alone. I sighed, I really needed Brooke right now. How was I supposed to keep
my hands off him for another night, especially now I’d seen what I was missing
in the flesh?

I made myself another coffee and sat at the bistro
table and fired up my laptop and started typing, using Dan as an inspiration
for the steamier scenes I was having to conjure up. I stopped when I realised
that the light was starting to fade. It got dark up here even earlier than in
London. I quickly took stock of the candles, we were going to have to economise
or we were going to run out if we had a few more nights without power. Thank God
the boathouse had a gas oven and gas fired boiler for the hot water. I prepared
dinner before it went too dark, put it in the oven ready, put some extra logs
on the fire and curled up with a book, using a small candle on the lamp table
to the side to see what I was reading.

‘Ellie … Ellie, wake up.’

‘What?’ I moaned as I slowly blinked my eyes and
adjusted to the dim lighting. Dan was crouched at my side, his hand on my
forehead.

‘Hi. You’ve been asleep for a while, it’s nearly
eight o’clock.’

‘Really?’

‘I take it the book wasn’t scintillating?’ he
chuckled as he removed his hand. I hated that I felt the loss of its reassuring
presence. I loved it when he was touching me, sexual or not.

‘It was great, I just didn’t sleep well last
night.’

‘Why not?’ he frowned.

‘I just felt a bit uncomfortable us sharing like
that. You don’t need any temptation.’

‘You being in Scotland is a temptation, Ellie.
Being in my bed is fucking torture.’

‘Then let me sleep down here tonight. See, I’m
really comfortable and had no trouble sleeping just now.’

‘Are you sure? I just feel bad. You’re the paying
tenant.’

‘For this cosy boathouse, not the huge house.
Trust me, I’m more than happy with the deal I’ve had. Sleeping on here for a
few nights is no hardship. I’ll get up and get dinner sorted. I may need your
torch.’

‘Sure,’ he nodded and held out his hand to help me
up. I bit my lip as I took it. I could smell that he’d had a shower, he must
have been back for a while. I wondered how long he’d been watching me. I fought
the urge to throw myself onto him, wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him
the way I wanted to, the way I knew he wanted me to. Instead I focussed on
cooking as I tried to work out again what his deal was. There was no lack of
sexual attraction on either part, he was willing and very obviously able, as was
I, but something was still holding him back. I just knew it had something to do
with his twilight zone disappearing act most days. I wish I knew where he
usually went every day, why he was hiding out here, if it had anything to do
with his scar and accident. He was so intriguing, I was so desperate for any
scrap of personal information from him. ‘Are you ok?’ he asked, breaking my
thoughts.

‘Yes, why?’

‘You’re very quiet.’

‘I’m not sure what to talk about, I have loads of
questions that I know you probably won’t answer.’

‘About me?’ he sighed.

‘Yes.’

‘Find some other questions,’ he suggested, as if
it were that simple.

‘Talking’s over rated anyway,’ I sighed and stayed
silent as I cooked the rice with the light from the gas ring and Dan’s torch
helping me.

‘This isn’t easy for me, Ellie. I’m not used to
talking to people.’

‘I know that, I just don’t understand why.’

‘I spend a lot of time alone and I’ve told you
before, I’m a very private person. I don’t want everyone knowing my affairs.’

‘I hardly think you’d have the worlds press and
news crews landing here if they discovered Dan, whatever your surname is, was
looking after guests, chopping logs and driving to town every day for four
hours.’

‘There’s no need to be sarcastic.’

‘I wasn’t being sarcastic, trust me if I was you’d
know about it. I’m stating facts. You’re hardly living in the fast lane and
creating news worthy headlines, Dan. Why do you need to be so private?’

‘Why do you need to be so damn nosy,’ he snapped.
‘I shouldn’t have to explain myself to you.’ I looked around surprised at his
tone, in time to see him slam the front door as he stalked out.

‘Great,’ I muttered with a roll of my eyes. ‘You
fall in love with the most infuriating and closed off man on the planet.’ I
carried on cooking and plated up, then set the bistro table for two, before
opening the front door, figuring he couldn’t have gone far as I had his torch.
Given the brightness of the moon, which cast an eerie glow across the frozen
water and snow laden trees, I could make him out, slumped in one of the wooden
armchairs, his elbows on the arms with his forehead in one of his palms. ‘If
you’re hungry, dinner’s ready. I put it on the table or you can eat alone out
here if you prefer, I’ll give you the torch.’

‘I’ll come in.’

‘Ok.’

‘Ellie, I’m sorry. I’m not used to having company,
no one ever wants to know about my life any more, it just takes some getting
used to.’

‘Whatever, dinner’s getting cold,’ I replied and
headed back inside. I wasn’t about to let him off that easily. If we were stuck
together in such a confined space, he was going to have to act a little more
like a human being if we weren’t going to have a blowout. I’d already started
when he walked in and I avoided looking at him. We ate in silence, but I
couldn’t help myself smiling as I heard the grunt of approval as he cleared his
plate in record time.

‘You really are a great cook.’

‘It’s easy, you could do something like that in no
time.’

‘I’m just the guy who looks after guests and chops
logs,’ he retorted. I definitely didn’t miss the sarcasm he threw in my
direction with that comment.

‘I never said there was anything wrong with that,
there’s no need to be so defensive.’

‘I don’t like you thinking I’m less than I am.’

‘What do you care what I think? I’m just a paying
guest who’s leaving soon. My opinion of you shouldn’t matter.’

‘It does.’

‘Why?’ I frowned as I tried to read his face, but
he was blocking the glow of the fire and the small tea light emissions barely
reached his chest.

‘I don’t know. I don’t like you thinking I’m some
nobody.’

‘I don’t think that. I think you’re an intelligent
man who’s chosen to hide away for some reason. I just don’t understand why you
feel you can’t talk about it. Did no other guests want to know more about you?’

‘No,’ he laughed. ‘We tend to cater to couples on
honeymoon or a romantic break. Not much call for a third party’s interactions.’

‘I don’t know, you ought to start advertising to
couples who are looking to add a bit of spice in their relationship. I’m sure
they’d love your third party interactions.’

‘Are you being rude, Miss Baxter?’

‘Just saying it’s a waste, a guy like you should
be having sex, lots of sex. Not being celibate. Has no couple ever tried it on
with you?’

‘No.’

‘You really ought to advertise your services. I
think couples would be ecstatic to arrive and find you as part of the package.’

‘Would you have been?’

‘You already know the answer to that. You’re not
the only one who can avoid answering questions,’ I replied as I blushed and
cleared the table. ‘You know if Brooke were here she wouldn’t take no for an
answer. I swear she’s been reincarnated and was prisoner of war interrogator in
a previous life. She wheedles secrets out of everyone in no time at all. In
fact, I’ve a good mind to tell her to get her arse up here and she’d have you
spilling everything in seconds.’ I rinsed the plates and set them to drain as I
washed my hands. When I turned to dry them I jumped and screamed to find Dan
standing right behind me. ‘Jesus. You should wear a bloody bell, how did you get
over here without making any noise? My heart’s pounding. You gave me the …’

‘Shut up, Ellie. You talk too much,’ he
interrupted as he backed me up against the sink, pressed into me and clasped my
face between his hands. My stomach somersaulted at the contact, as I tried to
control the familiar trembling that radiated through my body whenever he did
that.

‘What are you doing?’ I whimpered as I looked up
at him.

‘You’ll yammer all bloody night if I don’t do
something to shut you up, and I like the quiet.’

‘That’s unfair, I … I …’ I groaned as he lowered
his head and sealed his lips over mine. He surprised me by being tender. Gentle
kisses with the odd flicker of his tongue against my lips as his thumbs stroked
my cheekbones, turning me to jelly. ‘I don’t think this is a good idea,’ I
whispered.

‘I don’t want to talk and you’ll just embarrass
yourself trying to fill an awkward silence. I vote we kiss, for as long as it
takes for you to relax and fall asleep.’

‘What if I don’t agree with your vote?’ I mewled.
He kissed me again and I mentally kicked myself as I heard myself sigh
contentedly.

‘Tough. This island is governed by a dictator and
I’m commanding you to obey me, now shut up and kiss me back,’ he growled as he
took my mouth possessively. I automatically wrapped my arms around his neck and
he lifted me up onto his hips and carried me to the fire. He lowered me down
onto the sheepskin rug and half lay on top of me as he took control of the pace
of our entwining tongues. I was floating on a cloud of bliss. I wanted sex with
him,
so badly
, but something told me he still wasn’t going to break and
I didn’t want to force him. If we did it, I wanted him to want to do it, for it
to be natural. I just let him smother my body with his, his one hand cradling
the back of my head, cushioning it from the floor, his other hand gently
holding my throat in a seriously domineering way.
Like I was going to pull
away when his kisses made me feel like I wanted to die in his arms?
I was
gripping the back of his one shoulder as my other hand tugged at the back of
his hair. I lost track of time as we just continued, we kissed like we’d been
doing it all our lives, like our mouths instinctively knew how to bring the
most pleasure to each other’s. Eventually he rolled onto his back and took me
with him, so I was outstretched on his front, his erection painful against my
belly.

‘Dan,’ I sighed. He reached up and clasped my face
and kissed me again.

‘No talking,’ he instructed. ‘No talking and no
sex. Just kissing. Ok?’

‘Ok,’ I nodded, not too proud to take whatever
scraps I could from him. His green eyes seemed luminescent in the glow of the
fire. The flames flickered in the reflection of his deep pools of black.

‘Has anyone ever told you that you’re the most
beautiful woman they’ve ever seen?’ he whispered.

‘I thought you said no talking,’ I reminded him,
trying to cover up how much that one sentence had just made my night.