Page 6 of Snowed In With the Mountain Man
“It’s just… My job is stressful, you know? They weren’t happy about me taking more time off, and I need to finish up work tonight before I head into the office tomorrow.”
He nodded as she trailed off, shooting him a dubious glance that had him battling a smile.
So wary, this one. But what he’d discovered he liked best about her was that she knew how to speak her mind. He lost the battle with his grin when she demanded, “Why are you just nodding like that? If you want to speak, speak!”
He smiled over at her, which earned him another scowl. “When I have something to say, I say it. When I don’t, I don’t.”
She stared at him for a long time. He held her gaze as long as he could without endangering his driving.
“Can I ask you something?” she asked.
“Shoot.”
She twisted so she was facing him in her seat. “Does anything ever faze you?”
The question caught him so off guard, he glanced over with arched brows. A surge of pleasure hit him smack in the chest. Yes, sir, he really did like how she spoke her mind.
She spoke plainly and honestly, even when it might offend.
And that, he knew, was a gift. Even if it did tend to annoy people.
And because she asked so forthrightly, he gave the question the thought it deserved.
But of course, she couldn’t stay silent long enough for him to formulate an answer. “Seriously. You’re always so unflappable and calm. Doesn’t anything ever make you feel off-kilter?”
He glanced over again, and when her gaze met his, one word popped into his head.You.
He bit it back before he could say it aloud, because…that wasn’t the truth, was it?
He frowned. Was it?
She was intriguing, yes. And it was awfully fun trying to get past her prickly defenses. But that was where his interests began and ended. Right?
“Well?” she said.
The exit for the airport came into view, and he took the chance to avoid the question entirely. “This is our exit.”
3
Dahlia stared at the pale blonde behind the ticket counter until the airline employee’s bright smile began to falter.
“What do you meancanceled?” she repeated.
“I’m sorry for the inconvenience, ma’am.” The woman winced.
Inconvenience? Dahlia stopped herself just in time, before she could once again repeat the woman’s words back to her.
It was starting to sound like she didn’t understand English. She did, it was just that she was having a heck of a time believing it.
This could not be happening.
Dahlia’s stomach pitched toward the ground as she imagined her bosses’ response if she wasn’t in the office tomorrow. They hadn’t minded her first trip over the holidays, since the office had technically been closed, but this last one…
The timing hadn’t been great. Work was busier than ever, and even though she’d handled it all remotely, they’d been frustrated when she wasn’t at their beck and call.
She pinched the bridge of her nose and forced herself to take a deep breath so she didn’t lose her cool at the friendly airline worker.
It’s not her fault. It’s not her fault. It’s not her—
