I sighed as I looked over at Abby. She was already switching the channel to a television show that had her smiling. I turned my back toward her and looked out the window, watching the sheets of snow coat the rental car I’d gotten back at the airport.
“It’s such a long story, and I don’t have time,” I said. “Do you have the presentation?”
“Yes,” he said. “It’s in my inbox. You’ll be there for the charity event to give your speech though, right?”
“Yes. I will be there for that. Tell everyone that I’m sorry I’ll be missing the meeting. Just be honest. My flight got grounded due to snow, I tried to get out as fast as I could, and I just didn’t make it out on time.”
“Does this have anything to do with the ‘we’ portion of your statement?”
“Trust me,” I said. “It’s not as entertaining as it seems.”
“Whatever you say,” he said, chuckling. “Anything I should know before this meeting?”
“Yeah. It’s the biggest one in the company’s history. Don’t blow it.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Keep in touch, and I’ll see you at the charity event.”
“Let me know how the meeting goes,” I said.
I got off the phone and pinched the bridge of my nose. This situation couldn’t possibly get any worse. I was half-naked with a woman whom I’d just had sex with, and now, she was wrapped up in a dusty old sheet, laughing at television that was now growing fuzzy. It was like every connection we had to the outside world was fading because of this damn storm, and I felt my jaw clenching while Abby giggled behind me. Her optimism was getting on my nerves, and I was suddenly, painfully aware of the fact that we’d have to sleep together again tonight on that bed.
I turned toward her, and she caught my stare. Then I watched as a sly grin crossed her face.
“We could always go for round two if the T.V. goes out,” she said.
I rolled my eyes at her while she threw her head back in laughter, but what pissed me off the most was my body.
It heated at her words, and I could already feel my pelvis burning for another round.
Chapter 8
Abby
Making Colin squirm was going to be fun. If he was going to go back to being insufferable, then I was at least going to get a little joy out of it. I tugged the sheet from the bed and wrapped it around me like a massive toga, then went off in search of my phone. I dug through my bags until I found the ancient piece of technology, then plugged it into the wall. Colin was doing something on his own phone, with his chiseled body sitting in its perfect posture. I had the best glimpse of the muscles in his back, and immediately, I felt the heat rising up my legs.
He was immovable and way too serious for his own good, but he knew how to use his body.
I sat by my phone until I could turn it on. Then, I scrolled through my contacts. I wanted to call my mom so I could let her know what was going on. With my phone being dead, there was a good chance she was already trying to call me. My mother was the kind of woman who kept track of everything. Names with gifts so she could write thank you cards. Numbers and addresses so she never had to fool with an address book. She could memorize any recipe simply by looking at it, and she knew everyone’s schedule in the house by heart. The woman was a freak of nature in that aspect, and I had no idea why I had to inherit my father’s absentmindedness, but I knew the moment I told her where I was traveling, her eyes would be glued to the weather reports.
And just as I suspected, before I could press the call button, she was ringing in.
“Hey, Mom,” I said.
“Finally,” she said. “Abigail Thompson, where in the world have you been?”
“Don’t worry,” I said. “I’m fine. That’s why I was calling you.”
“Where are you?” she asked.
“A small town in Iowa. I’m about halfway home now. But we’ve gotten caught in the middle of this massive snowstorm. How are you guys up there?”
“It’s coming down pretty hard, although it’s let up a bit in the past hour,” she said. “We’ve got about four inches now, but we’re expecting four or five more before tomorrow morning.”
“The area I’m in is expecting an entire foot and a half before it’s over,” I said.
“But you’re in a hotel, right?” she asked. “You’re not stranded somewhere?”
“It depends on your definition of stranded,” I said as I grinned over at Colin. “But no, I’m not on the side of the road or anything.”
“Good. You guys got hot water?”
“Not by the sound of it, but the hotel staff’s working on it.”
“What about food?” she asked.
“Still to be determined. I’m sure I’ll figure it out.”
“You always do, Abby. You’ve always been the strong one of the family.”
I sighed and closed my eyes at her words. My mother always thought the best of me, but right now, I didn’t feel strong. I was allowing myself to lose control and indulge a little bit of my wild side in order to forget the fact that I wasn’t strong. I was ignorant and naive and an idiot. And with some of the things Colin was saying to me, I was beginning to think he was right. I was beginning to think that maybe I was a bit too much. That maybe I was a lot to handle and that I could get a bit annoying. He hadn’t called me annoying yet,
