“Here,” I say, darting in front of him, so I can lead the way and open the door for him.
He strides down the hall behind me and deposits Octavia on top of her messy, unmade bed.
“I’ll wait in the hall,” the Viking says.
I glance at his retreating back. More points to him for not hanging out to sneak a peek. Tavi is one of the Top 10 Hotties on campus. I’m sure no hetero guy at GU would mind seeing her undress.
Once I’ve got her coat and shoes off, I pull the blankets over her. My efforts uncover a jewelry pouch. Opening it, I find a teardrop-shaped aquamarine pendant. There’s a small piece of paper with the wordsI love youscrawled on it.
I smile. There’s something to be said for being super sweet and addicted to sex. Guys seem to find it an irresistible combination. Extremely big boobs don’t hurt the cause either.
I hope she never regrets her wild times. Setting the felt pouch on the nightstand, I exhale a soft sigh. Then I hustle out of the room and through the apartment.
Sorensen stands in the cold just outside the door. Once I’m out, he pulls the door closed and checks to make sure it’s locked. My hand checks, too, after he’s done.
He gives me a side-eyed look. “You don’t trust me?”
“Not particularly.” I flash a small faux-sweet smile. “But you scored points for the assist on getting my girl home.”
“Not looking to score points. And you’re welcome.”
That draws a genuine smile from me. At the moment, I like his gruffness. I get sick of all the fake politeness that’s around.
“Got an interesting text from your friend Eden,” he says.
Shit.
“Good for you.” I pick up my pace back to the truck. When I try the passenger door’s handle, it doesn’t open.
The Viking doesn’t click the fob to unlock it until he’s standing next to me and can open the door for me himself. Ignoring his offered hand, I climb in and buckle my seatbelt without looking at him. It’s rude, and I wait for a reaction.
Apparently, I’ll be waiting forever. Sorensen closes the door without the slightest change in expression. At times, he’s got the personality of a boulder.
We return to his place, which is still freezing. I do like the crisp, almost antiseptic smell of the air. It’s so clean. Conducive to concentration.
I hang my coat and go directly to my suitcases. “It’s freezing in here. Leave it to my family to banish me to Winterfell,” I mutter with a roll of my eyes as I head toward the bathroom with an armful of clothes.
His small snort of amusement tells me he’s aGame of Thronesfan, which causes him to lose points.
In the bathroom, I change into yoga pants and a t-shirt, with an oversized UCLA sweatshirt on top. When I return to the living room, he’s lit three lanterns and placed them in front of the center windows. The effect is beautiful.
He’s also lit a lamp next to the dining table and is eating his dinner. He’s several places down from where there is still hair on the floor from his haircut. We need to sweep that up.
I glance around, wondering where he keeps the broom. “Thanks for not bitching about having to leave Declan’s before dinner.”
“No problem.” He takes a bite of steak and then turns his head to look at me.
I grab the throw blanket from the couch and wrap it around myself while walking to the windows. The horizon and the water bleed together in the dark. The distant dots of light must be from houses across the river.
“The sweatshirt… who goes to UCLA?” he asks.
Glancing down at my chest, I shake my head. “Got it in a fire.”
“A fire?”
I smile. “You don’t know that expression? It’s what people say when they’re left with some of an ex’s stuff after a breakup.” When he doesn’t say anything, I turn. “Ever been in that kind of fire?”
He continues eating without answering, which, of course, annoys me.
