It was nice – maybe a littletoonice, because I was already getting spoiled. As the door shut behind me, I smiled, catching sight of Ryder on the balcony. He wasn't looking my way, but I could see his profile, staring off to the right.
He wasn't smiling. And when he turned to face me, nothing about that changed.
I felt my own smile falter as our eyes locked across the distance, and his non-smile turned into a frown.Had something happened?
I set my stuff on the side table and moved toward the balcony while he stayed put.And now I felt guilty.Normally, he stopped by the coffee shop on my lunch break, and he was nearly always waiting for me right after work.
Today, he'd been missing on both counts, and I'd just figured he was busy. But I should've checked – at least by sending him a text to make sure everything was okay.
As I joined him on the balcony, I asked, "Hey, is everything alright?"
He studied my face for a long time before asking in an oddly neutral voice, "How was work?"
It wasn't lost on me that he hadn't actually answered my question.In truth, work had totally sucked.I'd accidentallydropped a whole tray of cookies and then set off the smoke alarm when I forgot to set the timer on the replacement batch.
But judging from Ryder's expression, his day had been even worse.
"It was fine," I lied. "But how about you? Did something happen?"
His gaze sharpened. "Why do you ask?"
I searched his face. "I don't know. I guess you seem…a little off?"
"A question."
"Yeah?"
Sounding more curious than accusing, he asked, "Why are you still riding Maisie's bike?"
"Oh." And now, I felt awkward. "Well…the truth is—"
He made a sound suspiciously like a laugh.
I frowned. "Is something funny?"
"No. Go on."
"Okaaaaay…" I took a deep breath and tried again. "The bike you got me, which I totally love, by the way – it's down in the basement because I'm not really sure how to explain it."
"To who?"
"Well…for starters, Maisie. I mean, she gave me the loaner to use, so I'm just thinking she'd wonder where the new one came from."
"Except you and Maisie aren't talking."
"Sure, not at the moment, but the island's a really small place. And I ride by Maisie's shop at least a couple times a week, so I'm just thinking…I should talk to her first, you know?"
"Right."
I stared at him. "So that's why you're upset? Because I'm not riding the bike?"
"Nope. Like I said, the bike's yours. Trash it, crash it, sell it if you want. No strings."
Something about that stung, even though technically, he'd said nothing wrong. My eyebrows furrowed. "Actually, I don't want to do any of those things. And just for the record, I'd never sell it." I tried to joke. "Not unless I needed a kidney."
His jaw flexed. "Right."
It was the second time he'd said that, and for some reason, it felt more unsettling than the first. "Is there something you're not saying?"
