Then both our phones buzzed.
The sound cut through the quiet like a blade.
Joy reached for hers on the nightstand. I grabbed mine from my jeans, still crumpled on the floor.
The message was short:Someone I'd like you to meet. When you're available. -S
Silas.
I glanced at Joy. She was frowning at her screen, her expression shifting from relaxed to stressed in the space of a heartbeat.
"Everything okay?" I asked.
She looked up, apologetic. "There's been a screw-up with a big order. I need to go to the shop."
"Now?"
"Yeah." She was already moving, sliding out of bed, reaching for clothes. "I'm sorry. This is—it's a mess. The wholesaler sent the wrong varieties and we have an event tonight and?—"
"Hey." I caught her wrist gently. "It's fine. Go."
She paused, meeting my eyes. "You're sure?"
"Yeah."
She leaned in and kissed me—quick, soft, distracted—then pulled away and started dressing in earnest.
I couldn't stop watching her.
The way she moved. The way sunlight caught in her hair. The curve of her back as she pulled on her shirt, the glimpse of pale skin before it disappeared under fabric.
She caught me staring and smiled, flushed. "You can save your ogling for later."
"I'll ogle as much as I want, thank you very much," I said.
Her laugh was bright and real, and it did something to my chest that felt like a wound opening and closing at the same time.
Once she was dressed and freshened up in the bathroom, she crossed back to the bed, skirt brushing her thighs as she moved, and kissed me again. She lingered longer this time, her hand on my jaw, her mouth soft and warm.
"Lock up on your way out?" she said against my lips.
"Yeah."
She grabbed her bag and was gone, the door clicking shut behind her, her footsteps quick on the stairs.
And then I was alone.
In her space.
Surrounded by her things.
I should've left immediately. Should've cleaned up, locked the door, and gotten back to the Palmetto Rose to wait for Silas's next move.
Instead, I stayed.
I washed the dishes first. Dried them. Put them away in the cabinets where they belonged, guessing at the right spots based on the order I found them in.
Then I made the bed.
