“Can I help you?” I ask as neutrally as I can. I want to rip into him again, but heismy ride. I don’t want to push my luck and end up stranded. That would be the crowning achievement of this trip.
He laughs. “Yeahyou can.”
My gorge rises in my throat.Ew.No, thank you.“What do you want?”
He looks me up and down, not even trying to be subtle about it now. “I knew you were a sure thing when I saw you step out of the car. Girls like you always are.”
God, what a tool. “You should go sleep it off, Monty.”
“I plan to. After we finish.” He tries to take a step in, but I block his path, and he frowns. “Come on, are you serious right now?”
“Yes,” I tell him with an incredulous laugh. How he could think even for asecondI’d sleep with him after everything just boggles my mind.
His face goes even more ruddy. “You’re seriously telling me I drove to this piece-of-shit country lodge half-buried in horse shit and I’mnotgetting laid?”
I can’t help another laugh, and I shake my head. “That’s exactly what I’m telling you.”
His eyes go flinty. “Frigid bitch. It’s no wonder your boyfriend dumped you. Probably got tired of never being able to pry your fucking legs apart.”
I think I should probably be more insulted than I am, but his insults are so damn unoriginal, all I can do is snort and close the door in his face. He immediately starts pounding his fist on it and tries the handle.
Before I can really panic, I remind myself that it’s locked, and he doesn’t have a key. I can hear him muttering insults, but after another couple of seconds, the noise stops.
My adrenaline is pumping though, and I pace, feeling restless as I listen for him to return. Minutes tick by—ten, fifteen, twenty. By the time half an hour passes, I’m finally sure he’s gone.
I flop back on my bed and put my hands over my face. “Shit, that was—” I don’t get the chance to finish talking to myself. A massive crack of thunder hits, and then the rain starts to come down. It’s a deluge, and it sounds like a waterfall just outside the window.
I see a set of headlights in the parking lot, and I wonder if maybe that’s Maddox heading back to wherever he lives before the storm gets too bad. I feel a small swell of disappointment, but it’s not like I had any real expectations.
He probably thinks I’m some clumsy idiot, and that’s kind of fair considering he found me hiding from Monty, then saved me from cracking my head open after I tripped over my own feet.
Rolling onto my stomach, I stare at the TV, but there’s no point in turning it on. The power’s flickered twice now, so there probably won’t be a satellite signal. Instead, I plug my phone in to make sure it gets as charged as possible, then curl up under the heavy duvet.
I don’t think I’m going to sleep at all, but I find myself replaying the warmth and safety of being wrapped in Maddox’s arms for that single moment, and the next thing I know, I’m out.