I might have had good reason not to be a gracious host, but for the life of me, I can’t see the enemy she’s meant to be, which only serves to frustrate me.
That and the damn kiss complicates everything.
At the very least, I should take the meal to my office, seeing as she went to all the effort to cook for us.For me,despite how shit I’ve treated her this past week.
But I’m tired of hiding away.
“No need, I’m starving,” I say and grab the pitcher of water from the refrigerator, along with two glasses, and take them to the dining table. Grace follows my movement, her mouth dropping open as if I’ve done the exact opposite of what she expected. She snaps out of it quickly and follows my lead, bringing the meals with her, placing one on the end of the table where I’m standing and the other at the adjacent corner.
Our knees almost touch under the table when we take our seats, and it feels awfully close to some kind of date setup.
Shit, maybe the dining table wasn’t the best idea. I should have stuck to the island bench. I might have had to eat standing, but at least there’d be a two-metre slab of stone between us.
We eat in silence.
Awkward as all hell, silence.
What do you ask your stalker who’s been living in your penthouse all week?
The one you kissed after telling you her mother was dead.
The one who used her tongue to clean sauce off your thumb.
I sneak another glance at her, and my gaze strays directly to her mouth, thinking of all the other places she could put her tongue and those rose lips.
Fuck, don’t think about that.
“How was work?” Grace asks abruptly, and I almost choke on my food.
I clear my throat a couple of times and take a sip of water, all the while trying to clear any thoughts of Grace’s mouth on my body from my mind.
“Are you okay?” she asks, a small frown between her brows.
“Fine,” I say after another sip of water. “Work was okay.”
My response is short, even to my own ears, and from the way Grace seems to close off, I wasn’t the only one to hear it.
I let out a sigh. “Sorry, it’s been a long week. Business is good but busy.” I was going to leave it there. I should have left it there, but the words come out before I can stop them. “We nearly got him…”
“Wha—” she starts, but then her head snaps up. “Ian?” Grace swallows hard, and I gauge her reaction.
When she doesn’t say anything further, I dip my head in a slight nod.
“But you didn’t?” she asks, and I shake my head, no. Grace lets out a breath, but I have no idea what to make of it. Is she relieved? Disappointed? The slight drop in her shoulders has me leaning towards the former, and now I need to know why.
“It’s only a matter of time before we do get the bastard,” I say, but this time, I don’t regret the sharp tone. A few seconds tick by, and I wait for some kind of reaction from her. A show of fear. A shaky breath. Anything to indicate she might be hiding her connection to the man, but there’s nothing. Another few seconds pass before she nods her head twice, but if anything, the only hint of emotion I detect is resignation.Interesting.
“How was your week?” I ask, changing the subject and feeling somewhat guilty that she’s been locked in this penthouse all week.
I haven’t forgotten why she’s here, as Easton seems to believe, and I want answers. But the more time I spend with her, the less likely it seems she had anything to do with my parents’ murder.
“Nothing to complain about,” she says, and that answers my question as to whether she’s going to mention Easton’s visit. I contemplate bringing it up, but honestly, I’ve had enough of him today, and I’d rather not spend any more time on it. “I’ll clean these up.” She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes, and I can’t help but compare it to the blinding smile she gave me the same night I kissed her.
“No. Let me.” I place my hand on hers to stop her from doing anything further. “Thank you for dinner,” I say.
Her cheeks turn a soft shade of pink, and this time, her smile is genuine. Not as grand as the one imprinted in my mind but beautiful all the same. I want all her smiles—every last one. I’m just not sure how to get them.
Collecting our plates, I take them to the kitchen and rinse them off before placing them in the sink.