Page 88 of Snowed In with Four Firemen
“There’s nothing going on here,” Emily finally says, her fingers crossed.
Chloe gives her a once-over. “Doesn’t look like nothing.”
I see a flash of something disappear into her pocket, something that looks like a phone. But I’m distracted when Emily, after one last look, turns on her heel and walks away.
“Let her go,” she says sweetly, though her smile doesn’t reach her eyes. “It’s not like you’ll get anywhere with her now, anyway.”
I can see the muscles in Jace’s jaw clench as he glances down at Chloe’s hand on him. His whole posture screams that he’s seconds away from snapping, and I can’t blame him.
“Why waste your time chasing after her when you’ve got other options right here?”
“He told you to move,” Axel says. He can be pretty intimidating when he wants to be.
“Fine,” Chloe says.
“I was just trying to help. But good luck dealing withher,” she says, her eyes flicking to Emily’s retreating figure.
With one last infuriating smirk, Chloe saunters off down the hallway.
Jace exhales sharply, running a hand through his hair. “This is a mess.”
“No kidding,” Axel mutters, glancing down the hall where Emily disappeared.
“We’ve got to fix this,” I finally say, my voice low. “Because if we don’t, we’re going to lose her.”
And none of us can afford that. I know I certainly can’t. Because I’ve fallen in love with her.
CHAPTER 25
EMILY
I’m pacingin my room, still pissed off about everything that’s happened. My mind won’t stop racing, replaying the argument with Axel, Jace, and Tanner in the closet, and Chloe’s smug face as she blocked Jace from coming after me.
How could they think that was okay? How could they think they had the right to decide how things should go without even talking to me?
A knock on the door breaks through my angry thoughts. I stop pacing and glance at the door, my heart skipping a beat. I already know who it is before I open it.
Ben stands there, looking tense and unsure. His eyes meet mine, and I can see the guilt written all over his face. “Can we talk?” he asks softly, stepping into the room.
I cross my arms, not quite ready to let go of the anger that’s been bubbling inside me all day. “Were you involved in thispacttoo?” I ask sharply, not bothering with pleasantries.
He winces, then nods. “Yeah, I was.”
I can feel the frustration bubbling up again, and I take a step back, shaking my head. “Unbelievable.”
“Emily, wait,” Ben says quickly, stepping forward, his hands raised as if trying to calm me down. “Look, I know it sounds bad—it isbad—but it wasn’t like that. We weren’t trying to make you feel like some kind of prize. We just—” He pauses, searching for the right words. “We didn’t want to overwhelm you. We didn’t want to mess things up by all coming after you at once.”
I raise an eyebrow, not entirely convinced. “And you thought the best way to handle that was to…what? Decide what was best for me without even talking to me?”
Ben runs a hand through his hair, looking pained. “We screwed up, I know that. But we were only trying to keep things from getting more complicated. We all care about you, Emily. More than any of us expected to.”
I let out a bitter laugh, shaking my head. “You guys have a funny way of showing it.”
He steps closer, his voice soft. “We didn’t want to hurt you, Emily. That’s the last thing any of us wanted.”
I sigh, rubbing my forehead as the frustration starts to ebb, leaving me feeling tired and raw. “I don’t even know what to think anymore, Ben.”
Ben’s eyes soften, and he reaches out, hesitating before lightly resting his hand on my arm. “Just…don’t shut us out. Please. Let us make it right.”
