She wasn’t going to assume they would sleep together, but she didn’t want to not assume that either. Better to be prepared.
He paused near the window and twitched the curtain aside, looking down at the party outside. “One big happy family.”
Not really hungry but unsure of what to do with her hands, Eve placed the plate on the desk, and moved the foil aside. She picked up a roll and tore it apart, chewing on a tiny piece. He didn’t sound caustic, just tired. She swallowed. “Indeed.”
He dropped the curtain. “What did you do today?”
“Went to the lake.”
“Did you have fun?”
“I did.”
“Nicholas laying off you?”
“Yeah. He actually, uh, apologized.” She thought about their brief meeting in the office. “I told him about my business idea too.”
“What’s your idea?”
He’d asked before, and she’d brushed him off. If she told him, how long would it take for him to make the leap from a ride-sharing service to Ryde to Anne? Not long. And then she’d have to explain why she’d driven him around for months secretly like a weirdo. “It’s not important.”
He didn’t pursue the topic, for which she was grateful. “How did he react?”
“Not well. I mean, he had a lot of objections.”
“He’ll come around. Don’t back down.”
She wouldn’t back down, but that didn’t mean she was looking forward to having to stand her ground. “What did you do all day?” Weird, how this felt like something a couple would do. She’d never really been in a relationship where she could tell her partner about her day. Both of the men she’d dated seriously before hadn’t been interested in her days. They’d been interested in her name or her fortune.
Don’t get used to this.They weren’t a couple, she reminded herself.
“I hung out with Jackson.” His shoulders relaxed. “I didn’t realize you guys were such good friends.”
“We get along well.”
“He said he never would have thought he would like you as much as he does. That you were, and I quote,better than most humans.”
That was the highest of praise from Jackson. “Wow.”
Gabe’s lips quirked up. “Please tell me. What’s the secret to cracking his code?”
“He told you. Don’t make small talk. He’s uncomfortable in most social situations. Too much friendliness, and he gets nervous and clams up.”
Gabe smiled and turned back to watching the crew outside. “I must drive him crazy. I talk when I’m nervous.”
She bit her lip, uncertain of how much she could overstep. He’d made it clear he didn’t want to talk about his parentage, but his siblings... well, that was a bit of a gray area. “Is it weird? Knowing about them when they don’t know about you?”
His nod was infinitesimal. Livvy’s shriek of laughter filtered through the room.
She pressed. “You and Paul were so close. Did he know about Robert?”
“No. He died not knowing.”
There was a wealth of pain in those words, the heavy grief of a beloved brother. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know him well, but I’m sorry.”
He cleared his throat. “Thank you. It didn’t matter in the big picture, I guess. He treated me like a brother. Always had Kareem address me asuncle.”
She hesitated. The words were practiced, like Gabe said them to himself a great deal. “Do you regret not telling him, though?”
