All this back and forth was testing my patience. I was so numb with cold, I was tempted to barrel past Mason toward the fire I could see burning in the hearth. It cast lively shadows on the walls of the den at the end of the hallway. I imagined sitting close enough to feel its heat and finally warm up.
"One night isn't going to kill anyone, is it, Ace?" Shaun went on. "What kind of men are we if we turn these girls away?"
Mason said nothing, but the muscles in his face visibly tightened. He couldn't have made his feelings more clear. He didn't want us in the cabin. Shaun, on the other hand, was more than happy to let us stay as long as we needed. Had the two argued before Korbie and I arrived? I could feel the tension between them crackling like a live wire.
"Can we please talk this over in front of the fireplace?" Korbie asked.
"Good idea,” Shaun said, leading the way. I watched Korbie follow him down the hall toward the den, unraveling her scarf as she went.
Left alone with Mason, I caught his eye, and for one second, I saw his face go slack with defeat. The look was gone in an instant, his expression hardening. With anger? Animosity? His gaze cut into mine, and I thought maybe he was trying to tell me something. There was an intensity to his eyes that seemed to indicate a deeper meaning. "What's your problem?"I muttered, attempting to step around him. Mason stood directly in front of me, blocking the hallway, and I expected him to step aside at my approach. He didn't. He kept me boxed in the doorway, his body uncomfortably close. "Thanks for the warm welcome,” I said. "So warm, I've almost thawed."
"This isn't a good idea."
"What isn't a good idea?"I challenged, hoping he'd tell me why he was acting so bizarrely.
"You shouldn't be here.”
”Why not?"
I waited for him to answer, but he merely continued to eye me in that dark, fierce way.
Coolly, I said, "We didn't exactly have a choice. I guess it's too much to ask you to save my butt twice in one day."
"What are you talking about?" he said irritably.
"You helped me save face in front of my ex, remember? But keeping me from freezing to death is obviously too big a burden.”
”What's with the whispering?"Shaun hollered from the den. He and Korbie sat together on the leather love seat, and her legs were crossed toward him. It almost looked like the toe of her boot was touching his leg. Clearly she'd gotten over waiting for Bear to rescue her. "Get in here where it's warm."
Mason lowered his voice, speaking with quiet urgency. "Is it as bad as you say? Is your car really stuck? If I take you to it later tonight, can we dig it out?"
"Anything to keep me from staying here?" I asked testily. I didn't deserve to be treated like this. Not after what we'd shared earlier. I wanted an explanation. Where was the Mason from before?
"Just answer the question,” he said in that same low, hurried voice. "No. The road is too icy and the grade is too steep. The car isn't going anywhere tonight.”
”You're sure?"
"Quit being such a tool." I stepped around him, even though he didn't make it easy. He stayed rooted to the spot; I brushed his arm as I squeezed between him and the wall.
Halfway down the hallway, I glanced back. He still had his back to me, and was scrubbing his hand roughly over his cropped hair. What was bothering him? Whatever it was, it was making me antsy too.
Even though Korbie and I were out of the storm, I didn't feel completely safe inside the cabin. Other than from my run-in with him this morning, I didn't know Mason. I knew Shaun even less. And while Korbie and I were no longer in danger of freezing to death, we were staying the night with two guys we didn't know if we could trust. It was unnerving. For now, I had no choice but to keep my guard up and hope the snow stopped soon.
I met Shaun and Korbie in the den. "Thanks again for letting us crash here,” I said. "This weather sucks."
"I'll drink to that,” Shaun said, raising a plastic cup of water. "Do you have a land line?" Korbie piped up. "Our cell phones aren't getting service out here."
"No phone. But we do have chili and warm beer. And an extra bed. Where were you planning to crash tonight? Before the storm hit, I mean,” Shaun asked us.
"At my family's cabin,” Korbie answered. "Idlewilde."
Shaun's face didn't register recognition. Which meant I'd probably taken a wrong turn and we were nowhere close to Idlewilde. "It's the really big, beautiful cabin with stone chimneys,” I added, hoping to stir his memory. Idlewilde sat alone on the lake and was a landmark in and of itself.
"How far is your cabin from here?"Mason cut in, his voice preceding him down the hallway. He stopped in the den's entrance. "I can walk you there."
Shaun shot a brief, displeased glance at Mason, subtly but firmly shaking his head no. In response, the line of Mason's mouth tightened and I felt a strain in the black look they shared.
"Might want to check the road conditions before you commit to that,” Korbie chimed in. "Envision a layer of mud, several inches deep. And then imagine eight inches of snow and growing on top of it. Nobody is going anywhere tonight."
"You got that right,” Shaun said, rising from the love seat. "Can I offer you girls a drink? We've got water and hot chocolate mix, though I can't vouch for its freshness. And two bottles of warm beer."
"Water, please,” I said. "You got it. Korbie?"
"Same,” she said, folding her hands on her knees and flashing him a winning smile.
"Ace, buddy?"
Mason hovered near the entrance to the den, a clouded, almost uneasy look on his face. He must have been thinking hard about something, because a few seconds delayed, he jerked. "What?"
"Drink?"
"I'll get it myself."
When Shaun disappeared into the kitchen, Mason stuffed his hands in his pockets and leaned against the wall, never peeling his eyes off us. I cocked my eyebrow at him in a challenging way. I told myself I was better off ignoring him, but I couldn't help it. Curiosity was tearing away inside me. What was with the moody act? Where was the friendly and, dare I say it, sexy guy from this morning? Because I wanted that guy back. In a way I couldn't explain, I wanted that guy more than I wanted Calvin right now. Which said a lot.
"This place is so adorably rustic,” Korbie said, her eyes tracing the exposed timbers along the ceiling. "Which one of you does it belong to?" Korbie and I looked at Mason when he failed to answer.