“Okay, then. Gunner, it’s nice to meet you.”
He sat down on the edge of the bed. “You come here often?”
A chuckle escaped before I could hold it back. “That’s your pickup line? Really?”
“How about this one: Want a raisin? No? Well, how about a date?”
I laughed and held my hand up. “Please, no more.”
“But I have more. This next one will win you over,” Gunner teased. “You ready?”
I nodded, and he looked at me with that expressionless face he’d perfected so well. “If you were a chicken, you’d be impeccable.”
A full belly laugh burst out of me. “Not sure we should start over. You might be making this worse. Because if I’d met you and you’d given me those lines, I’d be walking the other way.”
Gunner grinned at me. “Come on, they weren’t that bad.”
“Have you ever used them on anyone to know if they work?”
“Never really had to use a pickup line,” he confessed.
NowthatI could believe.
I already thought it was very likely that I would indeed regret playing this game with him. But I’d never been known to do the smart thing. I liked to run into a wall a few times before I believed it was too hard to get through.
Gunner got up, his gaze lingering on my face before he turned away.
I buried myself under the warm blankets and lay on my side, facing the room. I didn’t know how to deal with a nice Gunner. To avoid confusing my poor emotions further, I turned out the small light next to the bed, plunging the room into darkness, the only source of light coming from the fire.
“Good night, Gunner,” I whispered.
“Good night,” he replied from where he was now sitting on the couch. He had a blanket and pillow, but the couch was too short for his giant frame. His feet would hang off the end. I felt a little bad at him having to sleep on it, but the feeling passed quickly.
I must have been more exhausted than I realized, because I drifted off as soon as I closed my eyes.
7
“You gotta be kidding me,”I growled and rattled the cuffs that tied me to the bathroom rail.
Gunner held up his hands. “We need food that doesn’t come out of a can. And I don’t trust you. You were awfully nice the last two days. I feel like you’re working your way up to something.”
I gave him my best toothy smile. “Why ever would you say something like that? I thought we agreed to turn over a new leaf. Start anew. Give each other a second chance.”
“That’s one scary smile,” he said, winking at me. “I’ll be back in a few hours. Four tops.”
“Four hours?” I shrieked. “Are you insane? You can’t cuff me to the towel rack forfourhours.”
He frowned as if he didn’t understand why I was upset. “You have water, access to the toilet, and I left you a few snacks. You’ll be fine.”
“Forget the new start. This right here means war,” I said and rattled the cuffs.
“That’s my cue to get out of here.” And he left.
Unbelievable. I really thought our shaky truce was going well. Until he got the handcuffs out again.
I’d already been moody after being stuck at the cabin for the past few days with the one person I vowed to avoid for the rest of my life. Turned out staying in the middle of the woods was as unexciting as washing your hair.
Not even Killer wanted to play with me, preferring to sit on Gunner’s lap. But it was worth it just to see the look on his face. So far, he’d made no move to remove my bunny whenever he hopped up.
