I chuckled, but my tone lacked any amusement. “So let me get this straight—you wait to see if another man can protect mebetterthan you before you decide whether you should step up? Is that what you’re saying? If so, that’s exactly why we’dneverwork. You think protection is about outdoing another man instead of actually keeping me safe. Bryce wasn’t trying toimpress nobody, per se. He acted because the moment required aman.What you showed me tonight is that you only move when you feel threatened, not when I’m in danger! That’s not a partner; that’s a competitor!"
“I just didn’t like how you looked at him. It was like…hewas the one you trust to keep you safe."
Hell, he is!I almost blurted.
“If y’all so close, maybe you should’ve slept next to him tonight instead of trying to play house with me.”
I rubbed my temples in exhaustion. “Wow. You’re actingwaytoo emotional right now, Adrian. And don’t even try to blame it on the bear, ‘cause Bryce had that situation all covered! And I’m not taking sides, but let’s be real, it’s not like he lied about anything he said. Thank God I know how to protect myself. But what if I didn’t, Adrian? What if I was just as scared as you and Brycewasn’there?” I gestured around us. “A week later, our faces would’ve probably been on a T-shirt with the wording,‘Gone Too Soon’under a picture of a bear licking its paw.”
I paused, letting that marinate.
Adrian rolled his eyes with all the flair of a man who swore he was misunderstood by the universe.
“Look, if you wanna be mad because your ego got bruised, your pride got stepped on, and your manhood got dragged across that floor like a damn throw rug, cool… be mad. Hell, go write in a journal, call your therapist, or scream into a pillow if you need to, butdon’tslam no doors in here like you paying for the hinges. Matter of fact, you can go sleep in another room with that negative energy. No… better yet, sleep on the couch.”
I saidcouch, because knowing Adrian, he would’ve chosen theoneroom in that entire cabin designed specifically for me and Bryce; the one with our matching robes, his-and-her pillows, and that soft-ass candle I only lit after we had sex.Hence, whyBryce had asked which room I was sleeping in. He already knew that was off-limits, and so did I.
I waved Adrian off dismissively and slid beneath the covers, turning my back to him.
“Now I don’t know about you, but I’m done with this. Goodnight… again.”
I was officially done talking.
I could feel him staring holes into the back of my head like he was trying to set me on fire with his thoughts.
Adrian sucked his teeth, muttering something under his breath, loud enough for me to catch the edge of his annoyance but not clear enough for me to engage in yet another round of pointless bickering. Seconds later, the bed dipped under his weight. His petty ass went and laid at thebottomof it like he was a damn housecat.
I just shook my head—I didn’t give a damn.
But what I do know? Oh, I’m leaving here tomorrow… right behind Bryce and his little delusional snowflake. There’s no way I’m spending another second stuck in this cabin with a man whose masculinity is so fragile it cracks under pressure.Because now I know, if anything elsepops off between now and the time I leave here, there’s only one man in this cabin who has the instinct to protect me… and it damn sure isn’t the one currently sulking like the bear stole his girl.
Chapter ten
Bryce
“A Storm, a Slip-Up, and a Sleeping Beauty”
Iwoke up to the warm and wet suction of something that felt... divine.
Damn.
With my eyes still shut, my head rolled back against the pillows, and my hand instinctively dropped down, tangling in thick hair.
“Mmm, Chess…”
Wrong damn name.
“Excuse me?!”
I blinked myself fully awake, eyes snapping open like a switch had been flipped.
Isis shot up like a demon summoned straight from the pits of hell, face twisted in disbelief, mouth still glistening with betrayal.
“Seriously, Bryce?!” she snapped, wiping her lips. “Let me find out that she’s been on your mind since we got here!”
I sat up, dragging a hand down my face, wishing it could’ve erased the whole damn moment.
This right here is exactly why I haven’t taken a woman seriously since Chesteria. I never brought a female to this cabin for a reason…but I don’ slipped and let a pretty face with some good pussy gas me into inviting chaos into a sacred space.
