Page 90 of Snowed In

To his credit, Owen didn’t push, silently taking one of the proffered blankets and arranging it over his lap. “And I’m guessing you didn’t have the funds to call someone out yourself.”

That was putting it mildly. “Working at a chain coffee shop keeps the lights on, but that’s about it. It’s fine though, it’ll be spring soon.”

Owen rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s not going to fly. I’ll fix it tomorrow. I’d go and do it now, but if the pipes are frozen, it’ll be too difficult.”

I flushed red. “You can’t do that.”

“Think you’ll find I can.” He winked at me, giving my cock all sorts of unhealthy ideas. “Don’t worry, I’m a qualified gas engineer as well as a plumber. Your central heating is safe with me.”

“It’s Christmas Day though. You need to go and spend time with your family.”

“Meh.” He shrugged. “Mam’d have my hide if she found out I left you here alone, in a freezing house on Christmas Day. That is, unless you have plans?”

“No.” I couldn’t look at him, crossing my arms over my chest. “No plans that don’t involve my sofa and a tub of Quality Street, anyway.”

“Honestly, that sounds grand.” Owen gestured towards the window. “With the way the snow’s coming down, I doubt I’ll be going anywhere any time soon. So long as you don’t mind me staying, of course?”

Mind? It’s literally a dream come true.“Not at all. It’ll be nice to have the company.”

“Great. I’ll fix your heating and then we can’t freeze to death while bingeing Christmas telly and chocolates.”

I rolled my eyes and leaned forwards to poke him in the chest. “Owen, you’re welcome to stay, but you don’t need to fix my heating. You’ve already done enough.”

He grabbed hold of my finger before I could withdraw it. “I’m not leaving you here to freeze for the rest of winter, Rory. Who’d make me my morning coffee then?”

“Literally any other barista. We’re ten a penny.”

He squeezed my finger lightly before releasing it. I balled my hand quickly, trying to savour the heat.

Owen just smirked. “It’s happening, Rory. It’s not like you can stop me, I’ll just sit on you.”

My mind provided me with several images of Owen sitting on me. Pinning me down. Naked. While feeding me his cock.

“Okay,” I squeaked, forcing my brain to stay on topic. I bit my lip as I tried to figure out how much Owen might charge. Shit, it’d be Christmas Day too, making it double time, if not more. Where the fuck would I come up with that kind of money? “Can I pay in instalments? I wouldn’t usually ask, but my car gave up the ghost a couple of months ago, so I’ve been saving and was hoping to get it fixed in January. If it’s a problem though, I can put that off and?—”

My words were cut off by Owen’s warm hand covering my mouth.

“You won’t be paying me, Rory,” he said firmly. “This is an off-the-books job for a friend.”

I tried to protest, but as he hadn’t removed his hand, all that came out was a muffled grunt.

“Also, if your car has been broken for the past couple of months, how have you been getting to work?” Not sure how I was supposed to answer that, I raised my brows until he removed his hand with a chuckle. “My bad. Guess I like touching you.”

My heart jumped into my mouth, but I whacked it with cold logic.He doesn’t mean it like that, you muppet. He’s straight.

“To answer your question.” I rearranged my blanket as I spoke, making sure there were no telltale signs of the erection I was sporting. “I walk.”

Owen blinked at me incredulously. “Not to throw your own words back at you, but it’s five miles. Given I know what shifts you do, you’re definitely doing that walk in the dark, downandup the mountain. Are you insane?”

“It’s called not having another option,” I said lightly. “I have to work, Owen.”

He stared at me hard for a few seconds. “When’s your next shift?”

I frowned in confusion. “The twenty-seventh. Why?”

“I’ll pick you up at seven.” He pulled out his phone. To my horror, I saw him inputting a calendar entry saying just that. Not just for that day either, but every weekday for the rest of December and the entirety of January. I didn’t work weekends, leaving those shifts to the students, who were desperate for them. “What time do you finish? Four, right?”

What is happening right now?

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