Beautiful Distraction(45)

He’s looking at me intently as he asks Mandy, “How far did you get?”

Holy shit.

Is there something growing on my nose, or why the fuck won’t he look away? If he continues to be so weird, Mandy will get all suspicious and then will start drilling me for details, her dirty imagination making up things that will never happen.

“I got as far as the next town,” Mandy says slowly.

“You drove all the way?” I ask incredulously.

“Why wouldn’t I?” Mandy retorts, slightly annoyed. “I wish I hadn’t bothered though. All I found was a string of taverns glued together. And get this. There are no shops. Not even a Starbucks. I don’t know how those people survive. It was literally impossible to find a working phone. Or an Internet café. Even the post office and the police station were closed.” She raises her brows the way she always does when something strikes her as unbelievable.

“That’s probably the storm’s fault,” Kellan says patiently. “Phone lines are often down during and shortly after bad weather. The main roads are also blocked by uprooted trees. It takes a while to clean it all up, which takes all the manpower the sheriff can get.”

“Yes.” Mandy draws out the word. “But that usually only happens in movies. I need to get a manicure and make a very important phone call. Not to mention the fact that I really need to check my emails. Maybe you could point me to the nearest hotel, preferably one that has a spa and deluxe rooms. And I wouldn’t mind a well-stocked mini bar. Anything to help me sleep through the days I’m stuck in the middle of nowhere.”

“Of course.” Kellan winks at me. “The hotel’s down that way.” He points out the window, in the direction of the barn, and I can barely stifle a snort.

Now that Mandy thinks I’m interested in Kellan, she no longer sees the need to pretend, so she’s basically returned to her true NYC persona. Gone is the pretend off-the-grid nature fan she was about to morph into last night when she thought Kellan and she might turn into an item…if only for a night.

“I didn’t see it,” Mandy says.

“That’s because there’s nothing there,” I say.

Her eyes narrow on Kellan and me. I can see her little head working. “Did you guys have fun?”

“She sprained her ankle.” Kellan points to my bandaged leg, ignoring her question.

“Oh.” Mandy looks at me, disappointed. “In that case, we can’t leave just yet.”

“I can walk around, though it still hurts a little,” I say. “But my ankle’s not the reason why we need to stay. It’s the car. The mechanic’s not been here yet, so I don’t know how long it’ll take to get it repaired.”

“Damn. And there’s no way we can borrow his?” She gestures at Kellan like he’s not standing there listening.

“Mandy!” I give her my usual ‘don’t you dare’ glare. “We’re already imposing.”

“What?” She shrugs. “We need to check into our hotel. We’ll be losing a day.”

I shoot Kellan an apologetic look. “Even if we could leave, the streets are still blocked.”

“What are your plans for tonight?” Kellan asks, his gaze cemented on me.

He doesn’t want me to leave.

The realization hits me like a wall.

I shrug and look at Mandy, her attention jumping back and forth between Kellan and me, like a ping pong ball, as she’s analyzing our every move and word.

“What are your suggestions?” Mandy says. “Ava likes to go out just as much as she enjoys an evening in.” Now she sounds like she’s in a TV reality show and trying to get the guy to choose me instead of the two other desperate floozies.

“I was planning on getting to bed early. You know, catch some sleep,” I say.

Mandy shoots me a dirty look.

“What?” I mouth and frown.

“You’re a lost cause. I’m going to take a shower because I’m most certainly not staying in tonight,” she mutters and walks out. She calls over her shoulder, “And you’re not staying in either. There’s got to be something remotely exciting to do in this town. And I’ll find it, dammit.”

“I think she wants you to go out with me,” Kellan remarks, amused, as soon as a door slams down the corridor and we’re alone again.

“Yeah, she’s not very subtle at expressing her wishes.” I brush my hair out of my face and look all the way up to meet his impossibly green gaze.

That was a big mistake.

“Is there a bar somewhere around here?” I ask.

“Sure, there is. And it serves the best beer in the state.” Kellan’s arms are crossed over his chest as he regards me with that challenging flicker in his eyes.