Page 18 of Snowed in: With the Alien Tentacle Monster

CHAPTER 5

Logan stoodin his darkening kitchen, staring at the ruined meal. Steam still rose from the container, carrying the smell of overcooked food through the cabin. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides, anger a hot knot in his chest as he looked at the waste of Mrs. Henderson's careful preparation, her yearly act of... what? Love? Pity?

Logan shoved the thought aside to focus his frustration back on Valen, who was responsible for this.

Damn alien couldn't leave anything alone. Couldn't respect a single boundary. The nectar, the attempts at getting into Logan’s head, and now this.

Through their bond, he felt echoes of Valen's hurt. Distant now, muffled, like Valen was trying to shield him from it. Good. Let him hurt. Maybe then he'd learn that actions had consequences, that you couldn't just go around intruding on people without their permission.

He should clean this mess up, but even looking at the ruined meal made his blood pressure spike. The persistent effects of the nectar weren't helping, leaving him raw and oversensitive. His skin still hummed with unwanted awareness, his body aching from hours of fighting its influence.

Valen would be fine out there. He was some advanced alien being who could turn into light. A little snow wasn't going to hurt him.

Logan dragged himself to the couch, exhaustion warring with his anger. He just needed to sit down for a moment. This day had been too much. The sexual exhaustion, the bond, and now this. Just... too much.

The couch welcomed him with familiar comfort as he sank into its worn cushions. Outside, snow continued to fall, heavy flakes drifting past the window. The bond tugged at him, a gentle pressure in his chest, pulling toward wherever Valen had gone.

Logan ignored it. Valen had made his choice. If he wanted to sulk in his ship, that was his problem.

He'd only rest for a moment. Just until this day stopped feeling like it was trying to drown him. Then he'd...

Sleep took him before he could finish the thought.

He woke to darkness and cold.

For a moment, Logan couldn't place where he was or why his neck ached so badly. Then awareness filtered in: the couch, the smell of wood, the dying fire. Outside, the storm had picked up, wind howling through the trees.

How long had he slept?

He fumbled for his phone, wincing at the bright display. 6:47 PM. Christ. He'd been out for hours.

Something pulled uncomfortably in his chest, like a muscle stretched too far. Valen was still out there, still distant. Still hurt. Logan tried to ignore that last part, but it was harder now. The anger that had sustained him earlier had drained away during his sleep, leaving him hollow.

This was what he'd wanted, wasn't it? To be left alone with his grief, his traditions, his memories of Jeff. He'd driven three hours into the wilderness specifically for this solitude. And now that he had it—now that Valen had actually given him what he'd been asking for…

The loneliness of his cabin looked sad rather than welcoming.

If Jeff could see him now, he'd tell him to get off his ass and stop moping.

What had become of him?

Something lost and pitiable.

The kind of bitter person who’d send someone else out into the snow.

Logan pushed himself up, muscles protesting. The nectar's effects had mostly faded, leaving only a bone-deep weariness in their wake. He should probably eat something. Should definitely restart the fire before the cabin got any colder.

His gaze drifted to the kitchen, where he knew the ruined meal still sat. Jeff's mom had started bringing him these Christmas dinners the year after... after. "You shouldn't be alone," she'd said. "Even if you refuse to be with us, you should have a proper Christmas dinner."

He'd never told her he couldn't bear to eat them. That they sat in his freezer until spring, when guilt finally forced him to throw them out. Easier to accept them than explain why every bite would taste like ash.

And now this year's dinner was actually ruined by someone who'd tried to take care of him, and he'd thrown a tantrum over it.

The wind rattled the windows, and Logan shivered. The temperature had dropped with the sun. How cold was it out there now? Valen had said the cold didn't affect him in hisenergy form, but was that true? Or was it just an impulsive statement from someone who'd been hurt and wanted to leave?

The bond twinged again. Logan pressed a hand to his chest, trying to interpret what he was feeling through it. Distance, yes. Hurt, definitely. But something else too. A sort of... resigned acceptance that made his stomach twist.

He got up and walked to the window. In the gathering dark, he could barely make out the shapes of trees thrashing in the wind. It was still snowing too.

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