Mack stroked his beard with a long-suffering sigh. “Somebody has to do it.”
“Hurry, Allie,” Johann called over his shoulder. “Starving, remember?”
“I hear you.” I laughed. Nothing worked up an appetite like an afternoon on the slopes. I’d pay for playing hooky all afternoon later, but if the smell wafting from the kitchen was any indication, my impending late-night Calculus cram would totally be worth it. I closed the door and dug around in the bottom dresser drawer. Sure enough, I pulled out a pair of skinny jeans, a t-shirt, and a hoodie that were just my size. Perfect. I changed, folded my ski gear in a neat pile, and set it by the front door near my boots. Then I followed the sound of laughter and the smell of awesome down the hall and into the kitchen.
And my heart thudded to a stop.
“What are you doing here?” I blurted at the tall, muscled, blond guy sitting at the table.
Professor Vidarsson crossed his arms and pinned me with a stare. “Did you search her for weapons? This one’s into chemical combat.”
Oh. My. God. The hottie I’d pepper sprayed was my new crew’s roommate. Because my week hadn’t been awkward enough as it was, now I had to eat dinner with the maniac.
“Very funny.” I mirrored his posture. “Maybe if you didn’t jump out and attack unsuspecting girls on a late-night run, then said girl wouldn’t need a weapon.” I didn’t care if this Vidarsson guy was a teacher or not; I wasn’t about to let him mess with me.
A slight grin tugged at the corner of his lips. The snort from my right reminded me of the three other presences in the room. Bodie, Johann, and Mack stood huddled together by the sink, covering their mouths and shaking with barely contained laughter. Bodie’s body jerked under the strain of forced decorum, and when I raised my eyebrows, he appeared to give up. His guffaw was quickly echoed by Johann. They both doubled over, laughing.
“My eyes burn so bad!” Bodie fell to his knees screaming.
“She attacked me!” Johann moaned.
Mack was the only one with the brains to stay quiet. I sensed he’d borne the brunt of Professor Vidarsson’s wrath before. I also sensed said wrath was about to return.
Professor Vidarsson didn’t take long to prove me right. He stood abruptly, reaching his full, menacing height so he towered over the rest of the guys. An air of authority crackled around him as he growled. “You boys want to step outside?”
Johann and Bodie quieted quickly. “Naw, I’m good,” Johann demurred. “My shoulder is still healing from the last time.”
Bodie rubbed his knee. “I’m good too. Let’s just eat.” They both slid quickly into empty chairs. Professor Vidarsson followed, frowning.
“Yeah, sorry,” Johann chimed in. He glanced at Mack, who’d donned oven mitts and an apron. “Sit down, Allie. Mack gets crabbier than Tore if we’re not at the table when the food hits it.”
“Manners.” Mack shrugged.
He moved to the counter and removed the lid on a steaming crockpot. A savory aroma filled the kitchen, and I stood rooted to the spot near the island, trying to make up my mind about what I wanted to do. On the one hand, I could stay and enjoy what smelled like a truly epic dinner. On the other hand, I could bail and run to my car. It was clear the visiting professor wasn’t the crazy assailant who preyed on jogging co-eds I’d believed him to be, but our first encounter had been far from pleasant—no way should he have grabbed my arm that hard. Our second encounter was just plain weird. What was the deal with his ‘energy manipulator’ accusation today? Or the way he made our entire class read their books, or the fact that he had no signature? None? I was no expert, but I’d always been able to read people’s energy—even if that person was a few rooms, or even a few houses, away. But I got absolutely zero reading from this guy. It was like he was invisible . . . or intended himself to be.
“La oss spise. Let’s eat.” Mack placed a steaming hot bowl of stew on the table. The fumes wafted my way, and all logic went out the door. I plopped into an empty chair and bellied up, so enamored with the smell of Mack’s meal that I no longer cared who was at the table with me. It was a cruel twist of fate that I was a wretched cook, yet food was my weakness. The universe had a wicked sense of humor.
For the next five minutes, no one spoke a word. We just shoveled food into our mouths, and emitted the occasional moan about how amazing it tasted. Seriously, I needed this recipe. If it was too hard for me, I could always convince Mallory to cook it for us.
“Tell us about yourself, Allie.” Professor Vidarsson lowered his water glass and stared at me. Again. “Have you trained in any martial arts? Or, even better, swordsmanship?”
I paused, my spoon halfway to my mouth. This guy was definitely not socially gifted.
“First of all, that is a weird thing to ask at a dinner party.” I arched one eyebrow. “And second, why do you want to know? You scared of me?”
Professor Vidarsson’s breath hitched. His ice-blue eyes practically glowed with venom as he shot me the mother of all glares. I glared back. Weirdo.
“What am I supposed to call you, anyway?” I set my spoon on my plate. “Are you Professor Vidarsson at home, too?”
Johann snickered. “Professor Vidarsson? Why the Hel would you call him—oh gods, are you the crazy teacher who freaked Allie out today? That was your contact plan? What is wrong with—ouch! Why’d you stomp on my foot?” He glared at the glowering blond next to him.
“My first name is Tore.” Tense blue eyes studied me, and that feeling coursed through me again—the spark that felt like a charged pinball pinging around my stomach. “You may use it.”
“Gee, thanks, Tor-ay,” I pronounced. I’d never heard that one before. Apparently, Norwegians were super creative namers.
“So, what’s your major?” Bodie asked me a normal question. Thank you, Bodie.
“Environmental Studies,” I said.
“Ah.” Bodie nodded. “You’re one of those tree huggers who—”
“Where did you get that necklace, Allie?” Tore interrupted.
“Stopp avh?r henne!” Mack yelled, slamming his fist on the table.
I jumped to my feet. Lumberjack fist pounding was totally my cue to leave. “Well this has been nice. Thank you for dinner, but I have a ton of studying to do. So . . . bye.”
Mack shot Tore a glare that could have cut ice. “No, stay, Allie. V?r s? snill.”
I raised an eyebrow.
“Please,” Mack translated. “We have a pool table in the basement. Tore’s easy to beat.”
“No, thanks. I’ll just get my stuff.” This situation had become very uncomfortable.
Bodie held out his hand. “Give me your keys, Allie. I’ll hike down and bring your car up so you don’t have to trek through the snow.”
My heart softened. Bodie was a sweetheart. “It’s really okay. I don’t mind walking.”
“I insist,” Bodie said.