The Cabin (Published Preview)

Chapter Two

After about an hour of drinking, I eased off so I wouldn't be flat on my face before it even got dark. Josh and Courtney, the only couple, had gone off to his parents' room, as it was the only double, for a bit of privacy, which meant Josh wanted sex.

Megan and Aaron were in the kitchen. I could hear her laughing at something he'd said. Kyle had gone to the toilet shortly after Josh and Courtney went upstairs, which was ages ago, so I vowed to never use that bathroom.

Blake stretched his legs, kicking his booted feet up on the coffee table. He didn't fit in. He drank with us and joined in with conversation when necessary, but he didn't contribute much. There was tension between him and Josh that went beyond the usual dislike that the rest of us had. They stared each other down if one said something the other didn't like. It was awkward and made me want to leave the room.

They clearly didn't get along, so why on earth would Blake invite himself ?

"What do you do back home?" I asked, trying to get to know a little more about him other than his favorite alcoholic drink.

"I work here and there," he grunted.

OK, it was like getting blood out of a stone. "You're not very chatty, are ya?"

He flicked his eyes to me without moving his head. "What's the point?"

"To get to know people, to make friends, to not live like a hermit..." I rewarded him with a charming, toothy smile, which softened his face.

"You think I'm a hermit?"

"Aren't you?"

"No," he replied. "I don't spend much time alone at all."

The spark in his eye told me everything. I turned my nose up in disgust. "Different girl every night?"

"Not every night."

Hmm, that didn't make sense—unless his earlier shyness was an act? But why would he pretend to be shy around women? He was obviously proud that he could sleep with practically whom­ever he wanted.

My stomach knotted at the thought of him hooking up with loads of girls, which was ridiculous. We weren't in a relationship. I hardly knew him. I pursed my lips. "Previously broken heart or just not grown up yet?"

He frowned. "What?"

"I want to know why you use women."

"Can't it just be that I like sex but don't want a relationship?"

"Not usually." A thought popped into my head. "Ah, don't worry. I get it."

Sighing, he asked, "Get what?"

"Get why."

He rubbed his forehead in exasperation and muttered, "Women... What do you think you get, Mackenzie?"

"You don't want a relationship because you lived through your parents' less-than-amicable divorce. You're scared of history repeating itself with you."

He sat frozen for a minute, his face falling, and I knew I'd hit the nail on the head. Mackenzie, one. Blake, zero.

A moment of silence stretched on, and I fiddled with my fingers. Blake narrowed his eyes. "You don't know what you're talking about. I haven't met anyone I wanted to see exclusively, that's all."

"Whatever you say."

His glare turned colder.

Damn it. My stomach turned with guilt. "I'm sorry, Blake. I didn't mean to offend you."