Chapter Eleven
The atmospherein the car is as frosty as the layer of snow covering the winding mountain road. Bryce is driving, Max up front with him. Hudson is sitting on the back seat next to me. I haven’t said a word since leaving the chalet, despite both Max and Bryce trying to make friendly conversation. I don’t care. I am upset and angry and I feel betrayed. I thought we were friends. Stupidly, I had begun to believe that they cared about me, that they didn’t just see me as a piece of flesh, but as a person. Then last night they caught me in a vulnerable state and tried to seduce me and now, this morning, Hudson has blackmailed me into going with them on this stupid bloodytrip.
“Not much longer, the cabin is about ten minutes away,” Max says, turning to face me. I don’t bother to answer him, I just keep my eyes fixed on the view. Below, I can see the resort that the brothers Freed own getting smaller and smaller, the peaks of the chalet roofs and hotel disappearing the higher we climb. I still can’t quite believe they own the damn resort. I mean, the information kind of jars with the fact they were all brought up in a care home. That sounds really shitty of me, I know. Why can’t three boys from a care home grow up to be successful businessmen? It’s just in my experience, a shitty upbringing usually means a shitty life. In a different state of mind, I am sure I would have found the view beautiful and thought very differently. As it is, I feel a cold, empty, hollow space inside where my heart shouldbe.
A couple more miles up the road, Bryce takes a left turn. The snow is deeper on the side road, but not deep enough that the 4x4 can’t manage to traverse it without too much trouble. We pull up outside a small, single-story wooden cabin that has a wraparound porch. It sits nestled in the crook of the mountainside. Over to the left of the cabin is a forest of evergreen trees that fall away and down the side of the mountain. There are piles of logs stacked up on the porch and icicles hanging from the corner of the roof. Bryce jumps out of the car and opens the door forme.
“Here we are. Welcome to Petite Cabane,” hegrins.
“Thanks,” I mumble, following Bryce across the crunching snow and inside the cabin whilst Hudson and Max fetch our luggage and supplies from thetrunk.
Inside, the cabin is a smaller version of the chalet back in the resort. It has the same layout with a kitchen on one side and a small living room on the other, but instead of a flight of stairs separating the space, there is a single door. I assume that just beyond are the bedrooms and bathroom. It is a cute space, homely, cosy even, with red throws and pillows that match the kettle, toaster, and utensils hanging from little hooks in thekitchen.
“There are two bedrooms through the door. Take the one on the left. Hudson, Max and I will share the otherroom.”
“There are only two bedrooms? I’ll sleep on the couch,” I sayquickly.
“Absolutely not,” Hudson says as he enters the cabin, a large box in his hands. “You’ll take the room Brycesuggested.”
“But…” I start toprotest.
“No buts, do as you're told, Louisa,” Hudson insists, giving me alook.
“Fine, have it your way. I’ll just go unpack,” I say ungratefully. I take my overnight bag from Max who has just entered the cabin and head through the door off the kitchen. On the other side, there is a corridor with two bedrooms facing each other. The one on the left has a huge king-sized bed that’s big enough for several adults to have a small orgy, on the other a similar-sized room with a normal-sized double and a single bed in the corner. I wonder which of the brothers will share the bed and who is going to get the single. At the end of the corridor is the bathroom. When I push open the door I am surprised to find a large room with a pretty impressive jacuzzi bath in one corner and a large walk-in shower in the other. In the centre, between the two, is a sauna. Closing the bathroom door, I go back to my room and put away the few items of clothing I’ve brought with me into the large wooden wardrobes, then sit on the bed, wondering what to donext.
“Louisa, do you have aminute?”
I turn my head to see Hudson standing in my doorway. He has his hands pushed into the pockets of his jeans and a strange expression on hisface.
“Fine,” I sigh, not really in the mood but knowing I’m going to have to listen whether I want to ornot.
Hudson walks in the room and shuts the door behind him. He leans against the door and closes his eyes for a moment before swiping a hand through hishair.
“Why don’t Bryce and Max know about the money I stole?” I ask him before he can make up some story I don’t want to hear. I know he hasn’t told them, Bryce and Max are acting like I wanted to come and wasn’t bribed intocoming.
“Because I didn’t tellthem.”
“Well that’s obvious, but why didn’t you tellthem?”
Hudson pinches his nose and gives a heavy sigh. “They wouldn’t have agreed to me using that piece of information to get youhere.”
“Isee.”
“I don’t think you do. From the moment you walked out on us last night, I knew you wouldn’t have come along, no matter what any of us said. I did the only thing I could think of to get you to agree to comehere…”
“So, you decided to blackmailme?”
“No,” he starts. “I mean, it might seem like that, but I would never have sent you home or called the police.” Hudson pushes off the door and comes to sit by me on the bed. He doesn’t try to touch me or sit so close that he invades my personal space and I am glad ofit.
“This isn’t normal behaviour for me, Louisa. I swear to you, I am not normally such an arsehole.” He looks at me and I raise my eyebrows. “Okay,” he says, holding his hands up. “You think I’m a womaniser, I am. You think I treat women badly, perhaps I do in the long run. But in the moment, when I make love to a woman, she is all that exists in the world. I am not a selfish lover, Louisa. Neither are my brothers. We worship women. Last night we would have worshipped you too.” My heart does a flip-flop in my chest at his words and I curse myself, yet again, for being so damn mixed up when it comes to thesemen.
“What about respecting a woman? What about friendship, love? What about those things,Hudson?”
“Those are like the holy fucking grail for me. For Bryce and Max too,” Hudsonsays.
“Sex isn’t everything,” Iwhisper.
“But it’s all I know. At least it wasuntil…”