My breath hitches and I beg my eyes not to fall from his.Life has tested me in many ways, but this is a whole new level I wasn’t expecting this afternoon.
“I’m so sorry. I was on a call with my agent and lost track of time. I just need five minutes to finish getting dressed.”
“Okay.” I swallow.
“You can wait in here if you want.”
Henry doesn’t let me answer and instead stalks off to where I’m assuming his bedroom is. As he turns, I let my eyes wander down tan and smooth muscular ridges to the two small dimples at the base of his backside. His jeans sit low on his hips, making me suck in a sharp breath. I swear the universe is testing me.
“Oh, and one quick question,” he says, turning around quickly.
My eyes are still trailing up his body when his gaze catches mine. Heat rushes to my face, and I jerk my head up, but it’s too late. The smirk tugging at my lips is enough to confirm he knows exactly what I was doing.
His arms cross over his chest, and he quirks his eyebrow. “Were you just?—”
“No,” I cut him off. I close my eyes and regret my defensiveness. If it wasn’t obvious before, it sure as hell was now.
Henry’s smirk deepens, and something dark pools in his eyes. “Right. Anyway…” He cocks his head, letting his eyes drift down my body. My skin tingles with awareness when his gaze hovers over the exposed skin of my collarbone for a beat too long. I clear my throat, prompting him to make eye contact again.
“What was your question?”
“Should I wear boots, or are sneakers okay?”
“Boots would be better,” I answer. My voice feels like gravel spilling out of my dry mouth. He smiles in response and turns back around.
When Henry’s half-naked frame disappears into the other room, I press a palm to my flushed skin. That was theexact opposite of keeping Henry in the friend zone. It was an open invitation to do very unfriendly things.Get it together, Emma.
I try to distract myself by taking a moment to look around his apartment. It’s smaller than mine, but most of the fixtures and walls are the same.
I know he’s only staying here for the summer, so I’m not surprised there isn’t anything decorating the blank walls surrounding his modest living space. The only character in the entire apartment is the bookshelf sitting next to his makeshift desk in the corner of the room.
My legs pull me to the shelf filled to the brim with books. I smile when I see a mix of classic literature and romance novels. Henry said his two novels were romances, so it’s only fair that half his bookshelf is filled with them.
My hand drifts to a random book, and I slide it off the shelf to inspect the cover. It’s hard not to laugh when I come face to face with a Fabio-esque-looking man holding onto a woman whose blouse looks like it’s about to blow off her body. I quickly shove it back to his place like I uncovered a dirty secret.
I’m about to take a seat on the couch in the other corner of the room when I spot a framed photo sitting on his desk I hadn’t noticed before.
The photo features a younger version of Henry, with his glasses covering half his face. He’s sandwiched between two women who I don’t recognize. The woman on his right shares Henry’s big brown eyes and tan complexion, so I assume it’s his mother. The other woman must be his mom’s wife he told me about the other day.
I lean in to get a closer look at the photo when I feel something rub against my legs, making me freeze in place. When I look down, my heart rate begins to calm when I realize it’s a cat.
I crouch down and offer my hand to the furry creaturewho’s already decided I’m not a threat. “Hey there, little guy.”
Purrs vibrate through my hand as Henry’s cat gracefully accepts my gesture of goodwill. My mouth stretches into a smile when the grey and white fur ball flops on the ground and rolls around playfully.
“I think he likes you,” a voice says from the other room.
When I look up, Henry is leaning against the doorframe, his head tilted toward me. He has the same goofy smile as in the picture I was just examining.
“What’s his name?”
“Darcy,” he answers proudly.
“Darcy?”
“Yeah, like Mr. Darcy fromPride and Prejudice.”
“Wow. You’re such a nerd.” I smile.
