Standing outside in the freezing ass cold, shoveling the pounds of snow that had fallen was the last place I wanted to be. Even though things in the house were tense as fuck between me and Lena, I would rather be snuggled up in bed, with her soft feminine curves pressed up against me. Damn but she felt good. All woman and shapely curves, soft skin. And fuck me, the little sounds she made when I touched her had practically sent me off like a fucking rocket.

But she’d gone quiet, like she had a reason to be mad. I was the one left with a hard and aching cock. Not her. She’d gotten off. Despite that, she hadn’t said much since, spending most of the day yesterday curled up with her small e-reader. Quiet, but not sullen. Mostly she looked lost in thought.

Probably about the business she wanted to start at the mansion, but that wasn’t my problem. I wasn’t getting involved, no matter how much Lena, or Marcus and Lulu wanted me to.

With the shoveling done—for now—I stomped the snow from my boots and stepped inside the mudroom at the back of the cabin to undress. Even before I opened the door leading to the kitchen I could smell sourdough baking and the scent of garlic and beef steaming the air around me. Inside the kitchen I spotted Lena, but today, instead of bopping to the music, she stood stock still stirring the pot, looking lost. “You cooked,” I said plainly, pulling her from her thoughts.

Lena turned to me, now wearing the jeans, tank and hoodie she’d arrived in. “I am,” she sighed, sounding exhausted, like just dealing with me tired her out. “Is that a problem?”

“Not for me. Thank you.”

I cooked because I had to, but nothing I ever made had tasted as good as the dishes Lena had cooked over the past few days. She definitely knew her way around a kitchen. Too bad a successful business was about more than the good food, and Lena had no experience running a business. I did, and I had no intention of playing babysitter to her while she learned the ropes. Nope. I didn’t have the time, I had my own successful handmade furniture business to deal with.

After a quick shower and change of clothes, I came back down just in time to catch Lena pulling the loaf of bread from the oven, her heart shaped ass in the air, teasing me until I felt my cock coming to life inside my sweatpants. She stood and placed the loaf on a wooden board and set it on the table. She returned to the stove to retrieve the pot and ladle, which she placed on a wire rack in the middle of the table. Without a word she took her seat and dug into the meal with the enthusiasm of a death row inmate.

“This is damn good,” I told her after I finished half of bowl number one.

“It’s just stew.”

“Damn good stew is never just anything. It’s better than mine and I eat it twice a week, sometimes more. Thank you for this.”

“Gotta earn my keep, right?” With a small smile that was ten thousand percent fake, she dug back into her own bowl, dismissing me as soundly as if she’d slammed a door in my face.

Earn her keep, that’s really what she thought? I guess I’d done a better job than I thought of keeping my distance over the years, except for those hours between dusk and dawn.

“No, you don’t. But I’m happy to be on the receiving end of your skills.” I flashed a smile, but it was wasted because her head was down as though the stew was the most interesting thing in the whole world. “So, Lena, what’s new with you?”

“Not much, Rex. How about you?”

I grinned at her transparent efforts to be civil. Polite. “Business is great. I just sold a big ass dining set for twenty. Took a long time to finish, but the client was pleased with the outcome.”

“That’s good,” she said. “Congratulations.” When my mom first met her dad, she’d been fascinated by my work, always hanging around and asking a million questions. Back then I’d only sold pieces at craft fairs and for local theaters, but Lena acted like I was some world famous artist. At least she had when my workshop had been one of the smaller cottage houses at Cody House, before I moved to the mountain. She’d been so inquisitive back then. So eager to know more about me. Such a sharp contrast to now.

“Thanks. How are you keeping busy now that you’re back?”

“I’ve been back for some time and I’m looking for work,” she answered shortly. “Marcus and Lulu seem to be having a good time on their cruise,” she added in another transparent effort to change the topic.

“Any place where mom can spend most of the daylight hours sun tanning, she’s happy.” Despite their divorce, I had a sneaking suspicion that Marcus and Lulu actually enjoyed spending time together. And I wondered what Lena thought about it. “Are you okay with them dating again?”

She shrugged. “I don’t really care. I like Lulu and Dad seems happy with her.”

Damn it was like pulling teeth to start a conversation with her. “But you’re not happy about it?”

She sighed, and I swear those green eyes attempted to slice me open. “I don’t care, Rex. Dad is a grown man and can do what he wants. At least I know Lulu genuinely likes him.”

She seemed to mean it, and I couldn’t say anything in response to that. “When are they coming back?”

She sighed when it became clear that I wouldn’t let the meal continue in silence. “A couple months. They touched down in Australia a couple days ago and they’ll be there until April. Lulu said they’ll be back in Cody by Spring.”

That surprised me. “What do you plan to do while they’re gone?”

She dropped her spoon into the bowl and stood. “I don’t need you to worry about me, Rex. I’m not your sister or your problem.”

Shit. I’d done such a damn good job of keeping my distance and now we were stuck together until the storm was over. And late winter storms could be gone in a few hours or a few days. A few years ago the storm had me trapped for a week. We might kill each other in a week.

* * *

“Teach me how to cook something.” I dropped down on the other end of the sofa and waited for Lena to respond.

She laughed, never even taking her gaze from the e-reader. “Sure, Rex. I’ll teach you how to cook.”

“I’m serious.”

She looked up, exploring the expression on my face until she was satisfied I was being honest. “Fine, what would you like to cook?”

She didn’t sound happy about the distraction, but I was done caring. Three days snowed inside was too much, and her silent treatment was starting to get on my nerves.

“I don’t know. Something easy but delicious, that I can always make if I get a craving.” I didn’t really give a damn what she wanted to teach me to make, as long as it wiped that sad look from her face. And distracted me from spreading her out on the counter and fucking her until my cock was completely drained.

“Fine. Let’s see what you have.” She closed the e-reader and set it gently on the table, giving me a great view of her ass as she walked into the kitchen.

I found her in the pantry, bent over to look at the bottom shelf, giving me a front row seat to the way her ass curved in those jeans.

“Anything?”

“How about lasagna? Guys always love lasagna and it’s easy if time-consuming. Or we could do a French style stuffed chicken, I remember seeing a whole chicken in the freezer.”

“Let’s go with lasagna because I can eat it for a few days, which would make it worth the time.” I flashed a grin, but she seemed unaware as she piled lasagna noodles, stewed tomatoes and plenty of dry herbs into my arms.

While I put the ingredients on the counter, she bent over the freezer and I couldn’t resist walking past and brushing up against her. That little gasp she made told me she was still as affected by me as she ever was, she’d just gotten better at hiding it. I couldn’t say why that made me feel better, other than the fact that I’m a cocky bastard, but it did. When she stood, her arms were full and she didn’t acknowledge my touch, but her cheeks still flushed a beautiful shade of pink.

“Okay, let’s get started.”

I watched Lena, a small smile on my face as her own was lit with animation as she explained about seasoning the ricotta, sautéing vegetables for the tomato sauce and the meat. “It seems like a lot of work but we’ll knock it out fairly easily, not that we have much else to do,” she said with a pointed gaze out the window where the snow still fell in sheets and the wind howled like an angry wolf. “You want me to put this in there, raw?”

“Use the garlic press so it’s fine pieces, but during cooking it’ll soften out the flavor.”

Damn, but Lena had turned into a knockout. Gone was the gangly little girl who was all arms and legs and big bifocal glasses. She had all the right parts in all the right places, but when she talked food, her face lit up in an unforgettable way that had me hooked. I had to have her, which meant I would have her. Living in the mountains made people think I was a recluse, but the truth was that people fucking sucked and I liked living somewhere they weren’t likely to drop by unannounced. “Won’t the meat get cold?”

“No, we have to drain the excess grease and then we’ll add it to some of the sauce.”

“Some?” I frowned. “I like my lasagna saucy.”

“Well that’s strange because you asked me to show you how to cook something and now you’re telling me how to do it.” Arms crossed, she tried for fierce but her lips curled at the corners gave her away. “Slice the olives so we can start putting this bad boy together. Ten minutes later it was ready to go in the oven and Lena set the timer for fifty-five minutes. “Now, we wait.”

For a fucking hour. “Whatever will we do?” Flirting with her was probably a bad damn idea, considering what was between us at the moment, but it came naturally. And I was dying to fuck her.

The look she gave me said she was thinking the same thing, but I doubted she would act on it. For all her bravado, Lena was sheltered, and she didn’t know as much about the world as she thought she did. So, I would have to make the first move. “I have an idea, actually.”

“Yeah? Building a snowman? Making snow angels? Monopoly?”

She glared at the smug smile I wore. “No, I was thinking more of an indoor activity.” That green glare turned into an alluring smile that made my body react strangely. “It involves my lips and your body.”

I swallowed hard. “Fuck.”

She laughed and took a step closer, laughing harder at my clear shock. “I haven’t taken that off the table. Not yet, anyway.”

“What are you saying, Lena?” I didn’t understand it, couldn’t make sense of it. “Don’t play games with me.”

She nodded. “You’re the only one allowed to play with people?” Lena smacked her lips in admonishment. “Too bad,” she said, taking another step closer and slipping her hand down my sweatpants.

“Lena,” I growled to make her stop, and then I wondered what the fuck was wrong with me. This was what I wanted, to lose myself in a hot, willing woman for a few hours, and the fact that it was Lena only made me want it more.

“What?” She looked at me for a long moment, waiting for me to say something. Anything. But I couldn’t, and with a shrug she knelt down in front of me and tugged on the waistband until my cock sprang free. “Wow. You’re a big boy.”

My head dropped back and a low groan escaped at the feel of her soft, small hands wrapped around my cock. She squeezed it just right, tugging it until all my thoughts settled onto her. Her soft scent that was somehow still detectable over my body wash, the way her hands felt on my body and the breathy sounds of pleasure she made when she touched me. It was too much, and not enough. And then she slicked a tentative tongue across my cock head. “Oh, fuck Lena.”

“Interesting.” One hand continued to stroke my cock in fast, up and down movements as her soft, hot mouth enveloped me completely. She was tentative at first, small flicks of her tongue until she grew bolder, grabbing me harder and licking, sucking with more energy, more enthusiasm until my hips began to move on their own, thrusting deeper into her mouth. “Oh wow,” she said around my cock, gripping my thighs and letting her mouth open more to receive me.

“Lena,” I growled, thrusting harder, daring her to accept more of me and she met the challenge with delight. It felt so damn good, my balls began to tighten and sweat beaded along my hairline. I stepped back until my cock was cold and lonely without her mouth.

“What?” she asked, cheeks flushed with desire, lips pink and swollen.

“I want you Lena. So fucking bad I can practically taste you.” My chest heaved and my nostrils flared with the effort to keep from taking her like an animal.

She looked up at me, freckled face flushed and those eyes looking greener than ever as she still gripped my cock. “Okay,” she said finally and it was the sweetest fucking word I’d ever heard.