“I know.”
“My sisters.”
“I know.”
The third answer should have felt repetitive. It didn’t. Each one landed like a stake driven into ground he was not disputing.
“I don’t do impulsive decisions.”
“No.”
“And I don’t abandon what I’ve built because of a man.”
His jaw shifted once. “Good.”
I turned to him. “Good?”
“Yes.”
“Most men would object to that sentence.”
“I’m not most men.”
No. He really wasn’t.
“I’m asking you not to decide from a distance before you’ve even left.”
My fingers tightened on the edge of his jacket. There it was—not a demand or a promise, but a logical trap. Nick Mercer at his most reasonable was a devastatingly effective strategist.
Naomi’s laugh drifted from the back seat, followed by Graham’s voice as the world waited for us to rejoin it. I removed the jacket slowly and folded it once across my lap.
“I should give this back,” I said.
“Yes.”
Neither of us reached for it. The silence stretched until his fingers brushed mine—not an accident this time. His thumb touched the inside of my wrist for a fraction of a second before he took the weight of the jacket from me.
“Dinner at nineteen hundred,” he said.
“Is that an order?”
The corner of his mouth moved. “Wear something warm. I’m concerned about your circulation.”
He stepped out before I could decide how to answer. By the time I climbed down from the jeep, the group was already moving toward the lodge. Cufflink was clutching a bottle of reserve red like a trophy while Alina walked slowly, her gaze lingering on the back of Nick’s head.
I had less than twelve hours left. And Nick had not given me a single reason to make leaving easier.
Chapter 20
Before the Morning
JULIETTE
Thelodgechangedoncethe departure board appeared.
I stood at the edge of the veranda, watching the staff move luggage tags between the storage room and the main desk. Someone had placed a departure board near the entrance—handwritten, elegant, listing names and transfer times in careful script. My name sat third from the top. 7:00 A.M. Private transport.
Twelve hours.
