Cabin Fever by Alisha Rai Read Free Book Online Page A

Alex. “Look at that, it’s pink too. Bet you’ll love that.” She placed the pan next to him and did her best to walk casually to the front door. “Have fun.”
    “Wait, where are you going?”
    She jammed her feet into a pair of boots and swung her coat off the coatrack. “Sorry. I’ve got other bodies depending on me too. See you later.”
    “Genevieve! Genevieve, damn it, get back—”
    The snick of her door cut off his tirade. A grim smile crossed her face as she envisioned him swearing at the door and then struggling to use the bedpan on his own.
    What , indeed.

5
    G enevieve expected to return to a barrage of insults and a bed full of angry male. Instead, Alex was dead asleep. He didn’t even stir when she crept close to take care of his bedpan. Nursing her mother for as long as she had, the chore was just that to her, a chore.
    She was still irritated with the guy, but her outrage had burned off as she stomped in the snow outside. To be fair, she had wanted him to look at her like that—she’d deliberately done something which would take his pride away and instill fear. He’d be wary of her now, keep his distance. No more of that bantering and flirtation.
    Alex needed his rest so badly. She slipped out to the back room. It had been fashioned as a sunroom with a large closet on one end and a small bathroom at the other. A huge bag filled with her crafts took up one end of the beaten-up couch. She settled into the cushions and removed a half-finished blanket. She entered her crafting Zen mode. The silence in the small cabin was broken only by the sounds of the house settling, the wind rustling and the click of her needles. From her position, she watched the afternoon slip away, the darkness of night overtaking the darkness of a snowy afternoon. She snapped on the small lamp next to her.
    When the sky had become pitch black, the falling snowflakes only visible thanks to the light from inside, Genevieve heard a slight stirring coming from within the main cabin. She laid down the thick blanket and made her way inside.
    Sure enough, Alex was struggling to sit up. Just as she was about to help him, he managed to haul himself up on the pile of pillows. When he noticed her, his gaze was still a bit blurry. With the short strands of his hair sticking up and the stubble on his jaw, he should have looked crazy, not sexy. She waited for him to stare at her in horror, or call for her to be burned at the stake. Instead, he rubbed his hand over his face. “Did I fall asleep?”
    “For most of the day.” She waited. Now. Now he would start looking for a pitchfork.
    He shook his head. “I didn’t mean to. Is it still snowing?”
    “You needed the sleep. And yes. Phone’s still out too.”
    “I guess I did need it. I’m still tired.”
    What game was he playing? Were they going to pretend she hadn’t messed around with his body? Well, that kind of didn’t surprise her. Most people repressed what they couldn’t explain. He’d convinced himself, no doubt, that it had been a figment of his imagination. She didn’t know if she was disappointed or elated, neither of which made sense.
    “Genevieve.”
    She couldn’t help but stiffen. You shouldn’t like the way he says your name. “What?”
    “I’m sorry.”
    She blinked. He was apologizing to her? “For what?”
    “You know for what. I shouldn’t have said what I did. It was wrong and cruel, and I apologize. Can you forgive me?”
    Genevieve studied him, looking for the catch. What the hell? His gaze was direct, his expression open. Sincerity dripped off of him. She couldn’t help but be suspicious. “What’s your angle?”
    “No angle. I was wrong.”
    She shrugged. “Fine.”
    “Seriously. You saved my life, and I paid you back by treating you like I was scared of you.”
    “You are scared of me.” She meant for the words to be low and a bit threatening, not the plaintive statement it came out as.
    His response was instantaneous. “No. I was