Page 19 of One Night With You

“At least we’re having fun, right? I’m sad the others aren’t here.” She tossed back half her old fashioned, and I winced, and realized maybe we both needed water. But then I had another drink, and realized maybe it was okay that we didn’t.

Maybe it was okay that we just enjoyed ourselves.

There had been enough stress and heartache going on around us. So I was just going to let the bourbon do the talking and thinking for us all.

“These are really strong,” Claire said, as she sank into the cushions of the couch next to me and let out a deep breath. “But it’s good that they’re strong. Because then it lets me forget about the fact our best friends arestuck back at home or at the bottom of the mountain because they can’t get up here.”

“We always knew that closing the pass was going to be a possibility,” I said, trying to be adult about the situation. Only I was pretty sure I slurred a couple of those words. What did I know?

She smiled up at me and took another sip.

“I just feel bad. But I would feel worse if you were up here alone and I hadn’t made it. Or if I was up here alone. And then I would have serial killer mountain dweller, Bigfoot worries.”

I nearly snorted the bourbon and had to set down my glass for a second.

“Did you just call Mr. Sasquatch a serial killer?”

“Did you just call him Mr. Sasquatch?” she asked, those gorgeous eyes of hers widening.

I really needed to stop thinking of her eyes as gorgeous if I was going to make it through this night whole.

“We have to put respect on his name.”

“I’m saying serial killer or Bigfoot. Or Sasquatch if that’s what name you’d like to use.”

“I just feel like that’s what name he would like. Bigfoot sounds kind of derogatory.”

“I thought if you had big feet, you had a big dick. Why would you think that was a bad thing?” Sheblinked at me slowly, before she pressed her lips together, her eyes comically wide.

“I really don’t want to think about Mr. Sasquatch’s dick.”

“I’m pretty sure that’s not a sentence you’ve ever thought you would say aloud in your life.”

“There’s really no going back from this.”

“This is a ridiculous conversation.”

“It really is. But there is security out here. It’s sort of what my family does.”

Her face sobered for an instant, and I could have cursed myself.Wehad had security in the apartment where she’d almost died before. And it hadn’t been enough.

“I trust you guys. It’s the whole woman living alone thing. Even before…well before that incident. But I’m just going to have another drink and I’m not going to think about this, okay?”

She said the words very quickly, so quickly that it took me a minute for me to understand them all.

“I’m so fucking sorry.”

She put her hands to my mouth, my lips pressing against her skin. “No. You don’t need to be sorry. It’s over with and done—it’s in the past.”

“Claire,” I whispered against her skin, and she pressed firmer. So I kissed her fingertips. I didn’t mean to, it just felt like something I should do. When shefroze for an instant, I realized that was probably a very bad idea.

Her fingers fell, and I felt bereft, but I didn’t say anything. Instead I just stared at her, as she looked down at her hand, and then back up at me.

“Sorry.”

“Claire...”

She shook her head. “Okay, so you’ll protect me against Bigfoot. I mean Sasquatch. Good to know. However, I’m glad I’m not alone up here. Even the wind gets creepy in the trees when you’re alone in a cabin in the woods. I’m pretty sure there is a serial killer. Or maybe like a monster.”

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