Page 10 of Holiday Friend Zones
Cullen turned the steering wheel, his shoulders tense, but then it was too late.The car in front of us swerved to the side and hit the embankment, as the car coming towards us, headlights spinning, but we were still too close.It didn’t clip us, but we spun, the ice beneath the wheels too much.I blinked as headlights shone, and then there was darkness, then headlights again as we did a circle and a half, before a roaring sound filled my ears, and we slammed into the icy side of the road.
And finally, the scream that I had been holding, escaped.
ChapterThree
CULLEN
Heart pounding, I thankfully was able to right the truck, the embankment not too far away from the road, but I put the truck in park and turned towards Posy.“Are you okay?Are you hurt?Talk to me.”
It tasted like metal on my tongue, just thinking about what could have happened.None of the other cars had stopped.In fact, the one that had spun out had kept going.The other cars that passed us probably couldn’t even see us in this near whiteout.My lights were on, so maybe they thought we were just parked on the side of the road, but I didn’t know.I didn’t have time to think about some asshat who had been driving too fast on icy roads, when we all should have been tucked safe at home anyway.
“I’m fine.No bumps or bruises, you weren’t going that fast, and you leaned into the skid like you were supposed to.That’s right, right?Leaning into the skid?I clearly don’t remember driver’s ed.And thank God I wasn’t in my car.”
That metallic taste turned to bile at the thought of her in that crappy sedan trying to make it through this snowstorm.“Well, we don’t have to think about that, because your car’s safe back at the Montgomerys’.”
“I’m going to have to deal with that soon.”
“You know they said that it was easier just to keep it there than take it to a place when it’s most likely closed anyway.So come on.Let’s figure out what the hell we’re going to do.”
I still wanted to run my hands over her, to check to make sure she was safe, but I resisted.Barely.
“Do you think we can get out of this ditch?”she asked, her voice shaky.
“I hope to hell we can.Thankfully I don’t think it’s too big of a ditch.And there were those cabins not too far.I don’t want to have to walk in this.”
She shuddered.“No.Let’s not.”
Praying to whatever gods were listening, I pulled back onto the road, grateful there were no cars in the way.
It only took a few minutes of white-knuckle driving, and me doing my best not to look over to ensure that Posy was safe, for us to find the entrance to the cabins.There was a vacancy sign, though I didn’t know how many others had pulled off.There were already a few cars with their lights on, telling me they had just pulled in as well.
“You stay here, and I’ll go check to see if they have a place to stay.At least for a little bit.”
“You don’t have to keep the truck on, let’s save gas.”
“If you get even a little bit cold, you turn the truck on.Got me?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
Even as she said the words, her mouth pressed into a thin line, and we just met each other’s gazes.I was not going to think about that or go down any path that was going to be too much.As it was, I had a feeling if we were lucky, we were going to be spending the night alone together in a cabin.If we were unlucky, we’d be alone in my truck.
Fuck.
I opened the door, braving it against the strong wind as that shock of cold air hit my face.
With gritted teeth, I jumped out of the truck and slammed the door closed, hopefully keeping as much of the warm air in there as possible.
The snow was already starting to pile up, and I trudged my way down what I hoped was a path towards the front office.I stomped the snow off my shoes and opened up the door, hoping to hell we were going to have options.
There were a few snowbound people in the room, and an older couple behind the desk.They each had worried expressions on their faces, tight brows, pinched mouths, but when they looked at the person in front of them, they gave a sad smile, and yet, kept handing out keys.
“Okay, your cabin’s out the back, you’re going to have to trudge through some more snow, my son’s out there helping out another couple with their luggage, and he’ll be there to help you.”
An older gentleman shook his head.“You keep him warm.I’ve got it.I’m just grateful you have this.”
“We have ways of getting to you, and we like snow.And don’t worry, we also have food coming to you.We’re not going to let anybody starve in this storm.”
I was pretty sure we had just found an oasis, and I had to hope there was space for us.
