His tone wasn’t hostile, just curious. Like no one had ever asked him that before.
“Maybe?” She licked her lips, tasting raspberry ice cream on her tongue. “It’s not for me to say. If you’re fine with your life as is, then I wouldn’t worry about it. But it seems like this stuff has been weighing on you for years. Especially since you didn’t get to tell everyone the truth.”
When he said nothing, she worried she’d gone too far. Here he was, opening up about his past, and now she was encouraging him to make himself more vulnerable.
He nodded slowly. “It would be nice not to have it locked up inside me like an ugly secret. But damn if I know where to start. Besides telling you, I mean.”
“You don’t have to do anything just yet. Maybe…leave the door open and see what happens.” She licked a drop of ice cream from her hand. “I’m such a mess. This is melting all over me.”
“You’ve got a little smear of it on your chin.” He reached over and rubbed his thumb against it. “There, that’s better.”
His gentle touch made her shiver. When he locked eyes with her, she wanted to inch closer and place a soft kiss on his lips. And from the intense way he was staring at her, she was certain he felt the same way. But they were out in public, with people all around them. Not the best place for a first kiss.
What she wouldn’t give for a few more hours alone with him. This longing was stronger than the tiny spark they’d shared when he’d come into her bedroom. Or their almost-kiss in the storage room. This time, they both wanted more.
Hopefully, they’d get the chance to act on it soon.
* * *
For the restof the day, Charlie couldn’t get Knox off her mind. If she’d had any doubts that he liked her, they were gone now. Even though they had yet to go on a real date, he’d let her into his world and shared his secrets. That counted for a lot.
By the time she got home from work and settled into bed, it was half past midnight. One of the downsides of working the late shift was that it messed up her schedule. Not ideal, given that she needed to be at the Duchess at eight tomorrow for an early meeting.
Unfortunately, needing to fall asleep and being able to do it were two different things. After a half hour of tossing and turning, she flicked on her bedside lamp and grabbedLove’s Passionate Conquest—yet another pirate romance. Since she’d read it before, she knew what to expect and had already memorized the locations of the steamiest chapters. She was halfway through one of them when her phone chimed with a text.
She grabbed it off her nightstand, brightening when Knox’s name appeared on the screen.
Knox: Are you awake? I have a question for you.
Was Knoxsextingher?Charlie regarded her phone with trepidation, but the urge to text him back was too hard to resist.
Charlie: I haven’t been able to fall asleep so I’m reading for a bit. What’s up?
Knox: How long until I get to the good stuff in this book? And by good stuff, I mean sexy times on a pirate ship.
Oh, God. Knowing that Knox was reading the book she’d loaned him—which was packed full of racy scenes—made Charlie feel both embarrassedandaroused.
Charlie: Patience. The author needs to immerse you in the story first.
Knox: I’m already immersed, damn it.
Charlie: Fine. Chapter 8 is where the magic starts. Chapter 14 is smoking hot. By chapter 20 you’ll need a fire extinguisher.
Knox: I’m impressed you immediately knew which chapters.
Charlie: I might have read that book a few times. Just saying.
Knox: What are you reading tonight?
Charlie: Another romance. Same series as yours but set on a different pirate ship. There are a lot of lusty pirate captains out there.
Knox: Too bad I couldn’t work pirates into The Hidden Forest.
Charlie: I wish! Even without pirates, some of the show was kind of steamy. Like that love scene between Elodie and Finn at the end of season 3.
The number of times she’d watched that scene bordered on humiliating. What she’d loved most about it wasn’t that it was explicit, but that it showed so much tenderness between the two characters. Upon first viewing it, she couldn’t conceive ofeverfinding a lover who would treat her that way. But now she was wondering if it might be possible. Especially since Knox had been the one responsible for that episode.
Charlie: You wrote that episode, didn’t you?
