“Liar.”
A beat of silence. Then, softer, “Okay, I lied. I came to check on you.”
My grip tightened on the doorknob. “Why?”
“Because, Elliot,” he said, voice calm, “I want to make sure you’re okay. I want to see how you’re doing after the hospital.”
I closed my eyes briefly.
Damn it.He wasn’t going to let this go.
“I’m fine, Elliot,” I said because anything else would invite more questions.
“Can I spend some time with you?”
I glanced at my reflection in the hallway mirror. My face mask had started cracking, my hair was in rolls under my bonnet, and my robe hung just a little too loosely off one shoulder, exposing my black satin nightgown underneath.
I looked ridiculous.
“Um,” I hummed, crossing my arms. “I’m a little preoccupied with some self-care.”
Elliot didn’t miss a beat. “Okay. Can I spend time with you?”
I turned back toward the door. “I’m not presentable right now.”
“I don’t care about that, Ellie,” he declared with a little too much bass in his voice. “I just wanna hang out.” He paused, then said, “I brought Thai food.”
I exhaled sharply through my nose.
Slowly, I unlocked the door and pulled it open.
“There she is,” he sang with a grin as he took in my appearance. I stuck out my tongue in a childish way, and he chuckled. His eyesfound mine, and something unfamiliar but comfortable passed between us before he lifted the brown takeout bag as bait.
“Can I come in now?” he asked.
I sighed and stepped aside.
As he walked in, he glanced at my face again and smirked. “Can I get one of those face masks, too?”
I stood by the kitchen counter, bottles in hand. “White wine or rosé?”
Elliot barely looked up from unpacking the food onto the coffee table. “White. Rosé is too sweet.”
“Okay.” I grabbed two glasses and the bottle, carrying them over to the couch where he had already made himself comfortable. He sat back, legs spread, unbothered as I sat next to him, careful to avoid unnecessary touching.
“I didn’t know what you liked, so I told them to give me the most popular stuff but only options without nuts.” He shook his head, almost impressed. “You’d be surprised how many foods have it.”
I plucked a skewer of chicken satay from one of the containers. “Not really. I lived in Thailand, remember?”
Elliot narrowed his eyes. “Show-off.”
I giggled, biting into the chicken. Then, an alert went off, and El pulled out his phone. His jaw ticked as he checked the screen, then he muttered a curse under his breath.
I leaned in slightly. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah.” He exhaled through his nose. “Just my blood sugar’s low. I need to eat.”
Without another word, he unboxed one of the meals and started eating. In a way, he handled it so smoothly, like it wasn’t a big deal, even though it kind of was.
