“A party, you say? Where?”
He put a carton of milk in the refrigerator before answering. “At my sister’s place. It’s just family, nothing fancy. But it should be fun, and the food will be amazing.”
She kept her expression even as she mulled it over. It would cut into her time searching the apartment, but seeing his sister’s place could yield clues. And if everyone there was busy talking, maybe they wouldn’t notice her poking around.
“Sounds good. Now, how do you like your eggs?”
“Cooked,” Rafe replied. “That’s about as picky as I get.”
Diana picked up a spatula. “Okay then.” She hated to admit it, but if she didn’t hate Rafael DeMarco so much, she’d probably like him.
With a deep breath, Rafe knocked on the door, waiting until he heard her soft response before opening it. Diana lounged on the bed, reading one of the thrillers from his bookshelf.
“Are you ready to go?”
Diana sat up so fast the book fell to the ground. “Already? I figured it would be at nighttime.”
“No, it’s actually a birthday party, so it’s in the afternoon. We have time if you want to change or… do girl stuff.”
Her lips twitched. “I probably should. I’m sure your family will wonder why you’re bringing some girl who looks like she was on the losing end of a boxing match.”
Fucking hell. He hadn’t even considered that she might not feel well enough to go. “I should have asked how you were feeling first. Sorry. If you’re sore, we don’t have to go. We can stay here and hang out.”
Diana looked at him strangely. “You don’t have to miss a family party because of me. Besides”—a light blush tinted her cheeks—“I’m okay. The ribs hurt a little bit less when I breathe in each day.”
He wasn’t sure
how to respond. Was she just saying that so he wouldn’t worry? He was severely out of practice at decoding woman-speak. Sure, he’d had relationships of sorts. But none ever lasted for more than a few months. And none of those women had ever known who he was or even a reasonable facsimile of the truth. Three months was usually the mark where it became too exhausting to lie all the time. Even when he was deep undercover and he had to fully believe the story of who he was, it was still hard to lie to someone you were supposed to trust. In the field, that saved your life. But out in the real world, that just destroyed you.
“Good. That’s good then. But take your time getting ready. I didn’t mean to rush you.”
Another flush and she tucked a wayward blond lock behind her ear. “Oh. Yeah. Sure. Let me just maybe change into something a little nicer.”
“You don’t have to get dressed up or anything. It’s just a birthday party. We’re not formal people.”
She shook her head. “Yes, I do. Men don’t get it. I can’t show up looking horrible. They’ll wonder what’s wrong with you taking in a stray.”
Rafe stepped into the room and sat on the bed next to her. “You look great. And if I’m being honest, having you there will help me feel less nervous. Please come.”
Who the hell was he? He wasn’t used to asking anyone for anything. Usually what came out of his mouth when dealing with women were commands. Do this. Come here. Let’s go to bed. He didn’t have softness in him. But for her, it seemed he did.
She licked her lips, and Rafe’s eyes pinned to the pink tip of her tongue. Instant heat flashed through his body. Shit, he really needed to get a handle on that.
“Look, it’s not like that. Everyone will be cool. Besides, I don’t want you sitting here cooped up and scared. I want you with me.”
She licked her lips again, and he worked hard to stifle a growl. “You’re sure no one will mind?”
“Are you kidding? My sister will very likely roll out the welcome mat for you.”
She gave him a shy smile. “Okay. Give me ten minutes to change.”
Much to his surprise, she appeared in the living room exactly eight minutes later. Rafe was used to a different measurement of time when dealing with women getting ready to go out. Usually ten minutes meant forty-five. But Diana was wearing the same dress, now laundered and dry, that he’d found her in.
She was quiet as he led her down to the parking garage. Rafe had no idea what to say, so they made the short drive in silence.
When they reached the Blake Security building, Diana peered up at the signage. “Wow. Glass and steel. Impressive. What are we doing here?”
“This is where the party is.”