Within minutes, Reed was softly snoring.
I gave a self-satisfied smile and closed my eyes.
After tonight, we’d return to Blue Harbor and everything would go back to normal. And hopefully my desire for him would stay in Ivory Falls.
***
“Um.” Reed turned from the window the next morning and cringed, letting the heavy curtain fall back in place. “So, the snow didn’t stop.”
“What?” I walked out of the bathroom after brushing my teeth and went over to him, peering outside. The snow was so thick that it covered the entire walkway and nearly reached the bottom step of the porch. And it was still coming down. Hard. “Goddammit.”
Reed snickered. “I’ve never heard you cuss before.”
“This is not the time to be laughing,” I growled, snatching up my phone and checking the weather. My blood turned to ice in my veins. “A goddamn blizzard warning is in effect until noon tomorrow.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means we’re probably fucked,” I hissed, then took a deep breath and swept a hand through my hair. “I’m sorry for my language. I just didn’t expect to be stuck here for another day. This isn’t good. I have too much work to get done, and this will put me behind.”
“I know you prefer to control everything, Mr. Sawyer, but this is out of your hands.” Reed sat on the edge of the bed and brought his legs up, wrapping his thin arms around them. He was still in his nightclothes. “We can work remotely from here. You brought your laptop, and mine’s in the car, so I can run down and get it. Any urgent emails can be answered, and time-sensitive matters can be handled. I’m sure we can even Skype with clients if need be. It’ll be okay.”
Though I was still frustrated, I felt a bit better. Reed had, once again, calmed me down before I got too worked up.
“Get dressed,” I said, sitting in the chair in the corner to put on my shoes. “We’ll eat breakfast and then figure out what to do. Take it one step at a time. Who knows, maybe the roads are fine and we can be on our way shortly.”
“Maybe.” Reed hopped up and gathered his clothes from yesterday before going into the bathroom to change.
While he got ready, I took the sheets off the cot and folded it back up so it wasn’t taking up space in the room. With luck, we’d be able to leave soon and I wouldn’t need to sleep on the damn thing again, but I had little hope.
A gut feeling told me Reed and I would be spending a lot more time together. Nerves swam inside my veins at the thought, and I plopped down on his bed. He hadn’t made it after waking up, so the sheets were wrinkled where he’d slept. An indention of his head was still on the pillow. For some reason, it made my chest tighten a bit, and I ran my hand over the pillow.
The bathroom door opened, and I quickly stood.
“You think they have donuts here?” Reed asked, walking back into the room, using a Q-tip before discarding it in the trash can. “I’d kill for a chocolate donut with sprinkles.”
“With sprinkles?” I grabbed the room key and slid it into my back pocket before walking toward the door. “What are you, five?”
“Five and a half, actually.”
I shook my head and opened the door. Light spilled in through the many windows of the manor, lighting up the area with the staircase beautifully.
“I feel like I should be wearing a ball gown and running dramatically down the stairs in glass slippers,” Reed said, craning his neck as he looked around. His hazel eyes landed on me, and he smirked. “You know, like Cinderella?”
“Never watched it.”
“What?” he asked, shocked. “How is that even possible?”
“I’ve heard the story, of course, but have yet to see the movie.”
“That’s insane.”
“Not everyone grew up watching Disney movies and dreaming of happily ever afters, Reed. Some of us had it harder than others.” My confession stunned me a bit, and I did my best to hide that shock. Clearing my throat, I looked ahead. “You running in heels would be highly amusing, though, I have to admit.”
He cracked a smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I didn’t grow up that way either, you know.”
“In what way?”
“An easy childhood where I watched Disney movies and everything was perfect.” A faraway look shone in his eyes. The light hit his face at the right angle, emphasizing his bone structure. It also brought attention to the sadness in his expression. Longing, perhaps. “I did dream of a happily ever after, though. I wanted a prince to ride in on his white steed and sweep me off my feet. To take me away.”
The center of my chest ached. The more we talked over this trip, the more I realized how little I actually knew him. I knew nothing of his life apart from the little glimpses I’d gotten at the office.
“Did that prince ever come?” We were at the bottom of the stairs now, and I turned to face him.
He looked up at me, his light brown hair falling across his brow in a way that made me want to brush it aside. “Still waiting. Good thing I’m patient.”
Was that why he read romance novels and liked sappy movies? He didn’t strike me as the overly romantic type, but maybe that was the point. He escaped with those things because he craved it for himself.
Stop thinking about it. Reed’s personal life was no business of mine.
“Smell that?” he asked, sniffing the air before walking toward the left hallway. “Smells like heaven.”
With him in front of me, I trailed a gaze up and down his slender body. He was like a little spitfire, both masculine and feminine. And damn if he didn’t send my heart racing each time his hazel eyes met mine. I hadn’t been that attracted to someone in a long time. Just my luck that it was someone I could never have, never touch.
Reed led us to the breakfast area.
Round tables were placed throughout the room, each set with silverware and a small vase with a flower in the center. Simple, yet elegant. Large windows let in natural light and also gave a view of the winter wonderland on the other side of them. Guests moved down a buffet where scrambled eggs, biscuits, sausage, and other breakfast food steamed in platters.
“Good morning,” Cole said after walking from the back room and spotting us. His brown hair was tousled a bit, and his lips looked a little puffy. “Grab a plate and help yourself.”
Ian then left the same room Cole had come from, straightening his wrinkled shirt.
Reed grinned. He’d clearly noticed the same as I had. “Morning.”
I nodded to the both of them before following Reed to the stack of plates. He grabbed one, and I did the same, and then we moved down the buffet-styled breakfast bar. He piled sausage links, scrambled eggs, and bacon on his plate, as well as two biscuits and a lemon blueberry muffin.
“Are you really going to eat all of that?” I asked.
“I’m gonna try,” Reed said. “There’s no challenge I back down from, as you should know by now.”
“Oh, I’m well aware.”
I hadn’t been lying when I’d said Reed was a go-getter the night before. When he set his mind to something—at least in regard to work—he didn’t stop until he succeeded.