El sat on a stool next to Rowan while Quinn and Brogan stood on the other side of the kitchen. She listened as Brogan issued orders for them to stay inside. Neither she nor Rowan was allowed to leave the house without one of the men. He went on about the weather and snowstorms that blew up unexpectedly, but she didn’t think that was why he was forbidding them from venturing out.
She couldn’t quite work out what exactly was up but that was the least of her worries. Rowan had just agreed without batting an eyelid. El’s mind fought over whether to do as she was told or argue the point that she wasn’t stupid and wouldn’t get into trouble stepping out into the yard.
The undercurrents running between Brogan and Quinn had her worried. Something was going on beneath the surface and she wanted to know what made these two strangers think they could order her around. She knew whatever it was had to do with her but what could she have done to warrant being a virtual prisoner in this house?
“Okay, now that’s settled I’ve got calls to make. I’ll be in my office if you want me.” Brogan strode from the room without another word.
Rowan’s stool scraped along the floor and over El’s nerves. She sat in stunned silence, unable to move or think past what had just happened. Why hadn’t she protested? Had the man scrambled her brain so much with one orgasm? Sure it had been mind-blowing, the best she’d ever had to be honest, but she’d never allowed anyone to order her around before. Why start now?
A cup of coffee landed on the counter in front of her. Snapped out of her thoughts, she glanced up to find Rowan looking at her with concern and Quinn nowhere in sight. When had he left the kitchen?
“Are you sure you’re okay? You still look a little pale, maybe you should go lie down until dinner.” Rowan’s forehead creased with worry and El felt bad for causing her friend any anxiety this close to her wedding.
“I’m fine, honest. Still tired but fine. There’s nothing to worry about except getting all the final details of your big day finished.” El smiled and hoped it reassured Rowan enough for her to stop fretting.
She suffered through a minute of continued scrutiny before Rowan nodded and went to get the folder with all the information for next Saturday. El didn’t think there was anything left to do but they agreed to go over it one more time to be sure.
Three cups of coffee and two hours later, they were both satisfied everything was in place and excluding bad weather, the day would go off without a hitch.
She busied herself rinsing their mugs and stacking them in the dishwasher while Rowan puttered about behind her, pulling things from the fridge.
“Why don’t you go watch some TV or read while I get dinner started and then we can spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing,” Rowan said.
“You don’t want help?”
“No, you go on into the lounge room, the fire should be going and I think there are some magazines on the side table.”
Rowan bumped El with her hip as she carried vegetables to the island counter. “Go.” She made a shooing motion with her elbow. “I’ll join you in a few.”
El laughed. “Okay, I’m going but if you don’t join me soon I’ll come get you.”
The whole scene reminded El of when they lived together, how easily they fit around each other. How Rowan had always tried to mother her and anyone else she could. Smiling, she entered the lounge room and found the fire roaring in the hearth, the room cozy and welcoming. She plopped down into a recliner and picked up a magazine with one of Hollywood’s latest starlets splashed across the cover.
She had no idea how long she sat pretending to read the articles or why she couldn’t get her mind off Brogan and his damn orders to stay inside. If he’d said nothing she probably wouldn’t have wanted to go out, but because he’d told her she couldn’t, her mind had decided she had to.
She felt trapped, suffocated. The house was warm and inviting but it made her itch to breathe fresh air. She wanted to suck the cold winter chill into her lungs and look up at the clear blue sky. Just sitting on the front steps would be enough to relieve the pressure constricting her.
Damn the man for making things difficult.
There was that little scene up in his room to consider too. She’d realized while showering she’d been equally to blame for what happened. At first she’d decided she should leave it alone but then the thought of tiptoeing around each other for the next week made her cringe and she had to apologize.
He’d stood there naked, all sculptured male perfection and her mind had emptied. Completely devoid of anything other than the urge to jump him and finish what they’d started. Even now she hummed with arousal and need. He had her going around in circles. How could she want him so much when she wasn’t even sure she liked him?
El hated her indecision, hated the swinging back and forth between lust and loathing. She’d never been this mixed up. She needed to get outside. Needed to walk and think. Action always cleared her mind, gave the answers to her problems. Brogan certainly was turning into a problem. A big one.
Surely she could go out on the porch? She could walk the length of it and clear her head. Would it hurt to sit on the step and watch the world around her? Other than the quick look on the drive in she hadn’t seen much of Whispering Springs and Rowan had told her so much about the mountains and her home at Whispering Creek Lodge that El wanted to see it through her own eyes. Just one look, that’s all.
Snapping the magazine closed, she dropped it back on the table and pushed from the chair. He couldn’t stop her from going outside. Not unless he tied her to her bed. A shiver ran down her spine as an image of Brogan tying her up flashed across her mind’s eye.
It wasn’t a shiver of fear.
“Grrrr!” Her teeth ground as her frustration built.
Walking down the hall, she put her head in the kitchen door where Rowan was busy washing lettuce. Taking advantage of her distraction El said, “I’m just going to sit on the front step for a bit, get some fresh air.”
“Okay.” Rowan’s acknowledgement came just as El had hoped, without thought.
She backed out of the doorway.
If Brogan found out she’d gone outside he’d flip but what he didn’t know couldn’t hurt him, or in this case, hurt her. The man might be an “I’m in charge type” but El wasn’t about to let him tell her what she could and couldn’t do. She marched down the hallway to the front door, building up steam as she went.
Just because he was used to giving orders and people taking them didn’t mean she had to. They’d only just met for God’s sake. But what really got her mad was that even when he told her what to do or made her angry she was still attracted to him. Her brain might want to argue and tell him to go to hell but her treacherous body wanted to jump his bones.
How could her body betray her like that? And what happened to her spine? Had that bastard Ken done so much damage to her self-esteem? Well, no more. She wasn’t about to let any man choose what she could and couldn’t do. Or tell her where to go and not go.
El stormed through the front door, breathing hard and mumbling under her breath about tyrants and giving orders. At the last second she swung back, palm out and caught the solid oak panel before it slammed closed. Heaven forbid Mr. High and Mighty hear her disobeying one of his rules.
Who did he think he was? Standing there dictating what they could and couldn’t do like some maniac despot ruling his subjects with an iron fist. She wasn’t even all that pissed off that he’d given the orders. No, she was pissed because both Rowan and Quinn had gone along with him as if he should be obeyed in every way.
Don’t do this! Don’t do that! Christ, he’d be telling her when to come next.
El stumbled. One foot hit an icy patch of snow and she slipped, her legs separated and wobbled beneath her. Her arms flailed about until she got her feet back under her and caught her balance. Braced with her legs apart and her arms out wide like someone doing jumping jacks, she stood perfectly still and sucked in a breath of frigid air.
Was that what had her so agitated? He aroused her beyond belief and she wanted to do what he said. Wanted to please him.
She squeezed her eyes closed, breathed slow and deep and tried to steady her pounding heart and jittery nerves. He’d had her all riled up from the second they met, her body at once screaming for her to get away and get closer. El opened her eyes and continued to walk, taking care not to step on any more slippery patches of snow even though she wanted to stomp about to release the frustration bubbling inside.
A drop of moisture landed on her cheek, distracting her from her troubled thoughts. It was starting to snow. El tilted her face up to let the cold flakes bathe her skin.
It was such a magical scene. The view of the forest and mountains covered in a white blanket that shimmered as more snow fell from the sky was spectacular. The cold didn’t just cool her body, it cooled her temper too. Taking the edge off enough for her to think rationally about what Brogan had asked and to see it from his point of view.
She couldn’t blame him for being worried about her out here in unfamiliar territory. She’d never been here before and he had a right to be concerned she might get lost or hurt. But she wasn’t stupid or incapable and wouldn’t put herself at risk.
A sigh exploded from her chest. This was so unlike her, so completely out of character. She prided herself on her level-headed approach to life. Had the last few months done far more damage than she’d believed? Sure, she’d known her pride was dented, and her self-confidence had taken a blow, but this irrational attraction and anger coupled with confusion just wasn’t her at all.
The snow sparkled as it floated to the ground, landing on the path and trees, on El. She shuddered and wrapped her arms across her chest. She rubbed her hands from elbow to shoulder, trying to ease the chill and wished she’d grabbed her coat before leaving the house. The storm was getting worse.
Time to head back inside.
She turned and slipped, her hands flying out to stop herself from landing face first. Her fingers sank into the powdery cold slush. Pushing up, El stood and stared at the forest in front of her. The stumble must have turned her around. Gingerly, she spun around. More forest. Sucking in a breath, she twisted back again. Forest.
Oh God!
Slowly she rotated a full three hundred-sixty degree turn.
“Where’s the house?” Her whispered words the only sound in the silence of the snowfall.
Oh God! Oh God! Where is it?
She stood still and turned her head to look over her shoulder. She stared straight ahead again, at where she thought the house should be. Was that gray shadow between the trees the house? With her eyes squinted it didn’t get any clearer and the curtain of falling snow had grown heavier, causing the scenery to blur further. The shiver that went through her had nothing to do with the cold. Panic lodged in her throat. Fear clutched her heart.
Brogan was going to kill her. She’d done the one thing he’d told her not to and instead of proving she was capable of looking after herself, she’d proven him right.
Her body shook violently. This time it had everything to do with the cold. Her thin sweater was drenched on the shoulders and the sleeves weren’t far behind. Her short hair stuck to her scalp, wet with snow that dripped onto her face. Her running shoes were soaking through and her toes had gone numb.
Her teeth chattered sending a jarring rattle through her head. Her fingers and hands were stiff with cold and the knuckles ached. Wrapping her arms around her body, El tucked her hands under her armpits, trying to ease the throb. Now that she stood still and took stock of her body she realized her jeans were wet and getting wetter and she was halfway to frozen.
If she didn’t work out which way to go soon Brogan would be the least of her worries. If she couldn’t find the house, she’d freeze to death before he got to her.