“You’re incredible.”
I don’t argue. I don’t have the energy to.
I’m grateful that I have just showered and brushed my teeth repeatedly, when he leans in slowly, like he’s giving me every possible chance to pull away, and when I don’t, his mouth finds mine. The kiss is soft at first, careful, like he’s checking in with my body before anything else. My shoulders loosen. My hands, usually so precise and careful, curl into his shirt instead.
Something inside me gives.
Not in a dramatic way. Not all at once. Just enough that I feel lighter than I have in days. No months since the last time we were like this. His taste is immediately recognized, and makes me even hungrier for this.
When he lifts me, it’s instinctive and gentle, the kiss never breaking as I wrap my legs around him out of reflex. We move down the hall slowly, deliberately, like we both know exactly where this ends.
And then reality nudges back in.
I pull away just enough to rest my forehead against his. “I should warn you,” I whisper, trying for humor and landing somewhere near honesty. “I’m typically a three-date girl.”
His breath hitches with laughter. “Is this a date?”
“I think so,” I say. “We had tea. And feelings.”
His lips twitch into a quick smile. “Dangerous combination.”
He carries me into the bedroom anyway, setting me down carefully beside Lucy, whose small body is sprawled across the pillows like she owns the space, like she owns my heart. He tucks the blankets around both of us with reverence. Before he turns off the light, brushes a kiss to my hair.
“Rest,” he murmurs.
I watch him step back, visibly collecting himself —and yes, I remember that part of him too— the line of his jaw tight with restraint rather than frustration. He gives Lucy one last glance, then me.
Nothing changes in his expression.
Nothing disappears.
When he leaves the room, the door clicks softly shut behind him, and I close my eyes and smile.
Chapter 17
Mornings
Lenzin
“Does Hildy know?”Lucy asks.
“No, she does not.” I scowl at Anna, whose childlike grin only adds to my frustration as I plate the scrambled eggs I whipped up after Lucy barged into my room at six AM, insisting she was going to make breakfast and wanted to know my favorite kind of eggs. “I’d appreciate it if you both kept that information to yourselves and let me ask her properly, like a gentleman.”
Lucy glances at Anna, and they both erupt into giggles.
Anna is spilling secrets that are not hers to spill, but she and Lucy seem to be getting on very well, and I want that to continue.
“When are you heading back to Germany?” I inquire, trying to steer the conversation back to safer waters.
Anna gasps theatrically, “That was rude.”
Lucy mimics her gasp, chiming in, “Faulker rude is not nice. Say sorry to our friend.”
“But I’m not sorry,” I retort, sliding the plate across the kitchen island. “And I don’t lie.” I fix my gaze on Anna, who is stifling laughter. I point the spatula at her playfully. “Butseriously, how long do we get the pleasure of your company, your grace?”
Lucy giggles again.
“You’re a genius,” Anna says, lightly tapping Lucy’s nose. “You already understand his sarcasm.”
