AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The second I have that thought, we round a bend in the road and I slam on the brakes. A huge tree lies across the road, thick trunk digging a rut into the dirt. Branches are splayed everywhere on one side; tangled roots wave at the stars on the other, clumps of dirt still clinging to the bark.
“Fuck,” I say to no one. “Fuck.”
Why am I surprised? Things like this happen on this road. It was always a risk coming out here tonight, and now I’ve set Luna up for a cold, miserable night.
“Princess…”
“Don’t call me that,” Luna snaps, and I swallow. Yeah, this is gonna be hell.
“Sorry. I should’ve—should’ve thought before I drove you all the way out here. If we back up half a mile, there’s another path to Aiden’s cabin, but it’s worse than this one. We shouldn’t drive it in the dark. I can take you back to my cabin, but reversing can be tricky—”
“It’s fine.” Luna pulls her legs up and wraps her arms around her shins. “What would you normally do, Griff?”
Sleep here for the night. There’s no way I’m suggesting that, though.
But: “Stay here?” she asks, like she can read my mind.
“Well…”
“Do you have blankets?”
Obviously. I have everything we need and more. But Luna’s gonna be cold and stiff and uncomfortable, and she’s clearly not my biggest fan. Fuck, I hate that. I’d give anything to change it. And it’s a gamble, but there’s a chance I could get her back to my cabin tonight; could build her a fire and warm up some hot soup.
“Griff.” Luna’s voice is soft. “Do you have supplies?”
“Yeah.”
“Then we’ll stay here.”
“But…”
“But what?” The steel is back, snapping through her tone. Luna’s staring at me through the gloom, her pale blue eyes ghostly in the moonlight. “But you think I can’t hack a single night without a feather bed? You think I’m going to complain all night and keep you awake?”
“No.” I really don’t think those things. I just…
I want to do right by her. That’s all.
And on a selfish level, can I last a whole night in a truck cab with her? I’m not sure. Not for the reasons she thinks, but because every breath of her lavender scent erodes another piece of my self control. Every word in her soft voice digs deeper into my chest.
But Luna’s staring at me like she’s waiting for the worst. Like she’s bracing for me to be a dick to her again. And I can’t do that, can’t disappoint her like that, so I clear my throat and nod.
“We’ll sleep here tonight. Then I’ll back up the truck at first light, and we’ll take the other path to Aiden’s cabin. Okay?”
There’s a long, slow inhale, then cool fingertips ghost across my shoulder. I stiffen, heart pounding, until they drop away again.
“Thank you, Griff. Really. I appreciate all this, I swear I do.”
I sure hope so. Because this journey may be nothing more than an irritation to Luna Lindgren, but I have a sneaking suspicion that it will ruin me for life.
Three
Luna
“H-how are you not c-cold?”
Griff frowns at me from across the cab, his seat tilted back and his arms folded over his chest. The moonlight spilling through the windshield tints the shadows on his face deep blue, and his beard shifts as his jaw clenches.
I don’t blame him for being annoyed. After all my high and mightyI don’t need a feather bedcrap, here I am hogging every single blanket from Griff’s stash, and I’m still going numb from the cold. Meanwhile, Griff is sitting there in nothing but a flannel shirt, listening to my teeth chatter.
