Exposed (Exposed 1)

I freeze in place. It wasn't supposed to happen this quickly. I thought we'd have dinner first. I thought I could down a few glasses of wine to help curb my inhibitions. "Your place?" The question sounds harsher than I intended.

"Is that a problem?" He motions for me to get into the car.

"No." I say bluntly. "I just assumed we'd be going to a restaurant."

"I eat out every night. I get sick of the noise and the rush." He scans my face as if he's searching for reassurance that he's made a good choice in me. "I'll order something in and we can eat at my place. It's quiet. We can talk."

I don't say anything as I carefully lower myself into the car. Maybe I should have given this more thought. Maybe I'm not ready for this after all.

Chapter 12

"I didn't know anyone alive could enjoy sushi as much as me." He pushes his empty plate to the side of the table. "You have a great appetite for someone who doesn't even weigh one hundred pounds."

I laugh out loud at the suggestion. "I weigh more than a hundred pounds." I take another long sip from the wine glass he's already refilled once for me.

"Okay, one hundred and one pounds." He laughs and stands to clear the table. "You're very tiny. I'm not sure where all that food went."

I giggle as I watch him move towards the kitchen. His home is spacious, bright and beautifully decorated. It screams of personal style with eclectic artwork on the walls and a bookshelf dedicated primarily to vintage titles. I caught a few familiar names when I first arrived but I haven't had a chance to go back to drink in all that literary gold.

"Do you play?" I nod towards the baby grand piano that is nestled into a corner by a huge bay window.

"No." He laughs as he guides me towards it. "My mother plays. It's here for when she visits."

I sit down at the bench and run my fingers over the keys. "Where does she live?"

He settles in next to me now, his hand resting on my thigh. "New York."

I scan the keys before my eyes move upwards to the top of the piano. A small, but vibrant, bouquet of dyed roses sits in a curved vase. Next to it are several framed photographs.

"Thank you again for the beautiful flowers," I say as I search the pictures for his face. I settle on one of him when he was younger. He looks as though he's in his late teens. "Is that you?" I reach for the frame.

"That's me," he says huskily. "That's Jax." He points to the other man in the picture.

I pull the picture closer noting how similar Jax looks now to the boy staring back at me from the frame. "You two have been friends a long time." It's a statement, not a question.

"We have." He reaches to touch the edge of the frame but I don't relinquish my hold.

"Who is she?" I nod towards the woman in the center of the photograph. She's stunning. Her hair is a vibrant red, her eyes a molten blue. She's firmly got Hunter's hand grasped in her own.

"Jax's cousin." The tension on the frame is more apparent. He's trying to pull it out of my grasp.

"She's holding your hand." I note with a faint smile. I can sense from his reaction and his palpable desire to get the picture away from me that he's not that comfortable talking about her.

"We dated briefly." He yanks the picture from my grip now. "It was a long time ago."

"She's really beautiful," I offer. It's obvious that this woman meant something to him judging by his reaction. "Did you meet her through Jax?"

"I knew her first." He stares at the picture that is now in his lap.

"What's her name?" My curiosity combined with the wine is making it easier to ask questions I normally wouldn't.

"Coralie." His voice breaks as he says it. "Coral."

"That's so pretty." I push myself away from the piano seat. "I need to use the washroom."

"Down the hall." He points past the kitchen. "It's the first door on your right."

I walk swiftly towards the reprieve of the restroom. I can't believe that just happened. Why did I pick up that frame and ask so many questions? Why does a girl he dated when he was a teenager still cause that powerful of a reaction in him? Dammit. I wish I had brought my phone to the washroom with me so I could have texted Alexa.