AllFreeNovel
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“Come on, sweetheart. We don’t have much time. The gas in the car could freeze, and we’d have to walk back all the way to the house.”
“I’m going nowhere with you!” I retort.
It’s not reasonable, but I’ve never been reasonable when it comes to Less.
I’ve always wanted more.
“Is that Alessandro?” my sister calls from the lounge.
Shit. My sister.
She’s here with me and we’re almost out of wood.
Of course we have to get out of here.
But why did it have to be him, out of anyone else?
Hands trembling, I make myself open the door again.
He’s lowered his scarf and removed his night glasses.
“Hey, Bels,” he calls, like they’re the best of friends. “You guys ready to get out of here? The SUV’s parked at the gate. We’d better go before something goes wrong in the cold.”
“Who knew you’d be prince charming?” she giggles, throwing herself in his arms like he’s safe.
He hugs her for half a beat and lets go. Both of them are smiling with a complicity and friendliness I hadn’t expected. I didn’t even think they knew each other that well. Bella doesn’t tend to talk to me about him.
Because she knows it makes you freak.
“Anything you guys want to take with you? We have clothes, food, all that. Just personal stuff. We can’t carry much over the fence.”
“Over the fence?” I repeat, putting my ski boots on.
Their fence ishuge. That doesn’t sound easy, or safe, today.
“Don’t worry, poison. I can always carryyou.”
“No need, there’s a weakness in the fence a few meters from the main door,” Bella said. “Nic showed me a few years back when we snuck into town for beer.”
“Why didn’t he tellme?” Less pouts at her.
Pouts.
If I hadn’t seen the look in his eyes seconds ago, before she came, I’d think he lost his edge. But no. He’s still fire and ice tome. She gets the nice boys.
“Likely because you wouldn’t have let us sneak out. We were leaving you to dine with the parents alone.”
“And here I thought you were just fucking,” he snorts.
We’re both ready in no time, and she takes us a few meters left of the fence, where one of the iron poles can be pushed down and removed to let a person through. It seems manufactured to work like that, rather than an incidental weakness.
Then on the other side, as promised, there’s a white SUV, shining in the snow. I try to take the back seat, but my sister jumps in it as soon as I open the door, and I can’t very well let someone who traveled in such a weather to get us out of an ice box drive at the front alone like a chauffeur.
Even if it’s him.
Inside, it’s still warm, smelling of new leather, and safety, and Less Valmont.
His name should never be used at the same time as safety, but in a thundersnow, all bets are off.
