She regarded him for a moment. “However... are you okay?”
“Me? Sure.” Seb leaned back in the chair, hiding his turmoil.
“Yeah, right.” She took a sip from her mug. “You can fool everyone else, Sebastian Percival Hudson—”
He groaned.
“—but you can’t fool me. You don’t have to be so stoic all the time. It’s okay to let yourself feel things.”
Ever since he showed up at Jade’s motel room, he’d been engulfed in feelings. The first was when she opened the door, looking like she’d tumbled out of bed and more captivating than he’d ever seen her. He wanted to take her in his arms and kiss her senseless.
But he’d gone to her room for a reason, and he had to focus on that, not on what he wanted. Besides, he couldn’t have it anyway. And when he saw her reaction after he mentioned Lydia, he knew he’d made a huge mistake. It wasn’t just the anger. It was the deep, stark pain in her eyes that made him realize that he should have never said a word.
“You don’t have the right.”
He absolutely didn’t.
As horrible as the fire was, it had given them both an out from the conversation. But then he almost lost her—
“Oh, hey, Jade.” Evelyn bounced up from the chair and went to her. “How was the shower?”
“Good.” Her voice sounded gravelly. “I feel much better.”
Seb rose, unable to keep his eyes off her. That wasn’t unusual, considering every time he saw her he struggled with staring, but the outfit Evelyn gave her didn’t help. His sister was more petite, and the turquoise sweatpants Jade was wearing were on the tight side, as was the waffle weave pink shirt. He didn’t mind that at all.
There was also a bigger, more important reason why he was staring—one that didn’t make complete sense. If he looked away, she might disappear again. His chest constricted at the thought.
Evelyn walked to her small kitchen, which was just off the living room of her one-bedroom apartment. “Can you two keep down the fort for a little while?”
He whirled around. “You’re leaving?”
“I’ll be back in a bit.” She slung her purse over her shoulder.
“Make sure you cater to her every whim, bro. She deserves it.”
“Evelyn Margot—”
His sister dashed out the door.
Sebastian faced Jade and shrugged. “Welcome to my world.”
“I like her.”
“Me too... sometimes.” He hesitated, unsure what to do next. “Do you, ah, need anything?”
“Some water would be great.” She clasped her hands in front of her.
Seb was glad to see they weren’t shaking, like they had in her motel room. “Coming right up.” He quickly fixed it and brought it to her. “Do you want to lie down?”
“I probably should.”
“Okay. I’ll be here until Evelyn gets back.” He sat back in the chair.
“You don’t have to stay.”
He looked up at her. “I want to.”
* * *
