“They?” Emily squealed.
“Not so loud.”
“Oh my God! What do you mean, they?”
“Snakes live in dens. With other snakes. They ball up to help stay warm. People do it, too. You know, in the wild when you’re stuck in a blizzard or something. You huddle together, and it helps you survive.”
“So…what? You think there are more in here?”
“Could be. You never know.”
A shudder ran through her. It wasn’t exactly like a sexual climax, but it felt good anyway. “What do I do? Can I stay with you until we make sure they’re all gone?”
Normally, I’d say yes. But lust was raging in my body, and the petty part of my mind brought up how she’d said I was only worth ten minutes of her time. Therefore, I shouldn’t give in easily.
“What’s in it for me?” I asked.
“Um.” She squirmed some more against my back.
Jesus. My dick said, Man up. She might offer to sleep with you. Women sleep with guys who perform heroic deeds.
Don’t count on it, I shot back at my one-track cock. Women also offered to sleep with rock stars, but Emily wasn’t even close to interested.
“How about dinner?” she said finally. “You like pizza?”
Was she serious? She could do better. “I can buy myself a pizza.”
“Okay. How about shrimp scampi? I make a great scampi.”
Well, then. I liked Italian. And having dinner together was a good next step. Like a date. Besides, based on how she ate crackers and junk food all the time, I could see how cooking for someone would be a big deal to her. “I accept.”
“Hey, can you grab my laptop and phone on the way?” she said, still on my back.
“Why?”
“I have to work. I’m about to wrap up Molly and Ryan’s story.”
“Molly and Ryan’s story” still sounded weird. But I picked up her electronics without arguing. “Anything else?”
“No, that’s it. Now carry me out of this nest of serpents!”
Chapter Nineteen
Emily
After calling the local pest control and animal removal company for some emergency service, I spent the rest of the day at Killian’s house working on my manuscript. Although Killian gave me full use of his dining table and took himself into the living room, I was braced for endless interruptions I couldn’t do anything about.
Sad to say, most people didn’t respect my time because I was home. Which to them meant I wasn’t doing anything worthwhile. That was the biggest reason I no longer bothered to date. None of the three men I’d been involved with before moving to Kingstree had learned the art of entertaining themselves while I was working. In addition, since I was “just on my computer,” they’d thought they had every right to bother me, no matter how many times I explained I was working. They hadn’t respected the fact that every time they tapped my shoulder or talked to me, I was pulled out of my flow, and it would take me at least half an hour to reimmerse myself in the story.
However, I couldn’t dump Killian because we weren’t dating. I needed him more than he needed me, and I owed him dinner for taking care of that awful snake.
But—amazingly—Killian stayed quiet. He put on a headset and read one of the books he’d borrowed the day before. The peace and quiet lasted the entire afternoon, and I had to admit I was impressed. Or maybe my book is just that damned good, I thought with satisfaction.
Finally, I typed the long-awaited The End, emailed it to my editor and jumped to my feet, closing my laptop. “Yes!”
It was done, done, done! I was sure I’d get hundreds of comments to review later, but for now, the thrill of having the basic manuscript finished was sizzling through me. It was the best thing I’d written, and if it didn’t resonate with my readers, I didn’t know what would. I couldn’t wait to see Dad eat his words!
Killian looked over from the couch, raising his eyebrows. I gave him both thumbs up, and he pulled the headset off. “All done?”