Cillian’s house—now her house—was massive in comparison. It was a tall two-story with dozens of rooms Cillian barely used, including a stunning kitchen and sprawling basement. She wandered around it, feeling a bit like a pea rattling around in a can. At the same time, there was something about it that she liked. She couldn’t put her finger on what, but she couldn’t deny that she felt at ease there, despite the circumstances.
Those thoughts continued running through her head as she accidentally wandered into a spare bedroom, hunting for spare linens. Huffing when she found none, she turned and went back into the hall. She tried to remember the layout of the house, to map where she might be able to find them.
“Looking for something?”
She turned to see Cillian leaning against the wall, watching her, his head tilted.
“Trying to find the linen closet,” she said. She tried to ignore the fact that her heart beat faster when she saw him. She didn’t want to think about why that might be.
“Down the hall, second door on the right.”
She nodded and brushed past him, trying to ignore the fact that he smelled a little of leather. It made her heart beat even faster. She hurried down the hall, not missing that his footsteps were following her.
“Are you all right?” Cillian asked as she opened the drawer and pulled out a fresh set of sheets.
She frowned, tucking the soft sheets beneath her arm as she considered him. “Of course I’m all right. What are you talking about?”
“You just seem distracted, like there’s something bothering you.”
Her throat went dry. Most people couldn’t tell when she was upset. She put up her façade for a reason. But somehow, Cillian had recognized the signs. Had she been that terrible at hiding her emotions around him, or had he managed to see something that no one else could?
Either way, it didn’t matter. She wasn’t going to talk about it, and she certainly wasn’t going to talk about it with Cillian, the man who had forced her to marry him.
“Everything is fine,” she said, forcing a smile. “Just had a long day at work, that’s all.”
He scrutinized her again. That stare seemed to pin her. What was it about him and that look that made her entire body heat and her heart pound? She certainly shouldn’t be this wildly attracted to him. She coughed and turned away, hoping that he could see her flush.
“If you’re sure,” he said.
“I’m sure,” she responded, perhaps a little more curtly than normal. Inside, though, there was another squirm of discomfort. She wasn’t used to someone peering through the barriers that she had meticulously built. It showed there were cracks when she had assumed her shield was solid. It made her feel vulnerable.
Coughing again, she twisted away from him to fidget with her shirt, not wanting him to see that he had unsettled her.
“How do you like your job, anyway?” Cillian asked, almost as if he could sense her unease and embarrassment.
The question took her by surprise. Most of the other men in her life hadn’t cared one way or another about how she felt about her work, as long as she kept bringing money in. She chewed her lip, a blush crawling over her face despite her best efforts.
“I like it,” she finally said. “I’ve always liked plants.”
“Better than the library?” he asked. “You used to work there, right?”
She gave him a peculiar look. Once again, she wasn’t used to any guy caring about any of this. None of her boyfriends or partners had bothered to ask about any part of her life. It took her a minute to figure out how she wanted to respond.
“It’s different,” she said. “I loved working at the library, but I needed a change of pace, and I’ve always wanted to learn about plants and horticulture. So, when the job opened up, I jumped at it. Didn’t ever expect to get the position.”
“It seems to suit you,” he remarked.
“I miss the books, though,” she said, surprising even herself. Again, a flush crept over her face despite herself. It wassuch an innocuous thing to say. Why did she feel so embarrassed by it? “It was nice getting to be around them all the time.”
“You’re a reader, then?”
Amber nodded, shifting from foot to foot, that sense of unease and bashfulness only growing. Why? What was it that made her so uncomfortable talking about innocuous things with him? It came easy with her friends, like Izzie, Dana, and Nikki. Even Alex. Why was it so much harder with Cillian?
“What do you like about it?” he asked.
She studied him, hunting for some sort of hint or trick. He couldn’t seriously be interested, but there was nothing but earnest sincerity in his face. She glanced away before speaking.
“I like the escapism,” she said. “It’s nice being able to turn off my brain and let it go somewhere else for a few hours. I like the different worlds.”
