Page 32 of Beast

I nodded, running my fingers through my hair.“Yeah.It wasn’t so bad.”

“At least there’s one good thing.”He grinned.

“And that is?”

“We can be fairly sure Drake had nothing to do with this.”

“True.”I gave him a rueful smile.“But I can blame him anyway, right?I’ve kind of got into the habit of blaming him for anything that goes wrong in my life.”

Beast took off his chaps and cut, hanging them over the back of a wooden chair to dry out.“You’re a fierce little wench, aren’t you?Who would have thought a pint-sized singer could hold such a mean grudge?”

I bowed mockingly.“That’s me.Small but fierce.He did try to have me killed so I think I’m justified.You might want to keep that in mind if you ever cross me.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”He moved to the kitchen counter and looked at an old-fashioned metal coffee maker, the kind you set on a stove.Ground coffee, sugar, and powdered creamer were neatly stowed in glass jars beside it.“Looks like whoever was here last left us some supplies.”

“A stovetop coffee maker?Do you know how to use that thing?”I remembered the type well from all the times Mom hadn’t paid the power bill.

“Yeah.Not my first time here.It’s kind of a community shelter for whoever is passing by and needs to stop.Unwritten rule is you leave it stocked for the next guy.It doesn’t always work out, but it’s nice when it does.Should be one of those green camp stove things in the cupboard, and hopefully some fuel for it.”

He reached over and turned the tap.A trickle of orangish colored water splashed down into the sink.

I wrinkled my nose.“I think I’ll pass on the coffee.That looks nasty.”

“Good thing we still have a couple bottles of water left from our picnic.You want coffee, I can make it happen.”

“No, but thanks.”He really could be sweet despite his name.

“Hard to say how long we’re going to be stuck here.”He glanced over at one of the windows.“I’d better check in with Ace.”He pulled out his phone, holding it up and walking around the room.

“No signal?”

“Nope.Don’t read anything scary into it.These storms tend to interfere with cell phone signals.”

“If this were a spy movie, there would be a guy outside with a hi-tech device blocking the signal so no one would know we were being butchered,” I pointed out.

“And if this were a tropical storm in the southern states, there would be a lot of weather blocking the satellite signals.Possibly a tree or two down over the lines to kill the power, although that really isn’t an issue here.No power to kill.”He put the cell phone back in his pocket.“Come hold the door for me while I bring the bike inside out of the weather.”

“You’re bringing the bike inside the cabin?”

He nodded.“Damn straight.It’s our transportation and it’ll be a whole lot safer inside than being blown around in that wind, not to mention wet electronics and very wet seats.”

“Good point.”My hand went to the damp material on my ass as I followed him to the door.I tried to hide behind it from the pelting rain as I held it wide open for him to wheel the bike inside.Even having the door open for that brief period of time caused a big puddle to gather inside the doorway.I hunted through the kitchen cupboards and came up with a pile of rags to help dry things up.When we were done, the bike was safely parked against the wall where we wouldn’t be tripping over it.

He walked over to the fireplace.Crouching down, he peered up the chimney.

I frowned.“What are you looking for?”

“Just checking nothing’s taken up residence in the chimney before I light a fire.Birds.Squirrels.Badgers.That sort of thing.”Apparently satisfied, he proceeded to build a fire with the paper and wood stacked neatly against the wall.When the flames were crackling cheerfully, he turned with a big grin on his face.“Pretty good for someone who’s not a boy scout, huh?”

I laughed.“Yeah.I’m impressed.”The damp chill was already disappearing.I guess it didn’t take long to warm up a small open space like this.

“So now what?”I placed one of the chairs in front of the fireplace and hung the rags over the back to dry off.

“We find some way to kill time until the storm passes.”He shrugged.“These things usually blow themselves out in an hour or so.”

“We could play spy.”I batted my lashes at him.He’d taken off his wet shirt after bringing the bike in, and all that bare skin and muscle caused naughty thoughts to flood my brain.

He cocked his head.“Never been much of one for games.I can think of better ways to kill time.”

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