“That’s been taken care of,” said Arthur, gesturing to the men at his door, one of whom was heading our way.
Grace ran her teeth over her bottom lip, and my dick woke up, images of doing that to her lip myself flooding my brain. “Is this what it’s like to be famous?”
Arthur cocked his brow. “Famous?”
“All these…” She waved her hands vaguely at the trio of us, then at the Pendragon men. “I’ve got five bodyguards now, and someone checked my room’s safety when I wasn’t even on the same floor.”
“Four,” Merlin chuckled. “I’m no bodyguard.”
“Still, it’s a trip I won’t forget.” She smiled at Arthur and Merlin. “Thanks for dinner. And the sheep story. And...” She gestured vaguely. “All of it.”
“Get some rest,” Arthur said. “Tomorrow’s going to be a long day.”
“Goodnight, Grace,” Merlin added.
She smiled at each of us and vanished into her room.
After a week as her shadow, not walking into the room with her felt wrong. As though the gravity between our hands was pulling at my entire body now.
“The Pendragon guys have her covered for the night,” Arthur said, as the second Pendragon operative came to a stop between Grace’s door and mine. “No need for you to camp out in the hallway.”
“I wasn’t planning on it.” I wasn’t thinking like a bodyguard anymore. I was thinking like a man who wanted to be on the other side of the door,withher.
“Just making sure.” He clapped my shoulder and steered me along the hallway to the next door. “You have an adjoining room, so if anything happens, you’ll have immediate access to her.”
“I know.”
Arthur stopped in front of my door with me. “You said you haven’t been sleeping much since you took this job?—”
“Not a job.”
“Favor, I get it.” He raised his hands in mock-rebuff. “Either way, get some sleep.”
Merlin snorted. “He’s going to owe you weeks of work to pay for this fucking hotel.”
“I told you, it’s part of our startup marketing budget.” Arthur grinned. “We should schedule a photo shoot for the company website.”
“Photos?” I pulled out my room card and scowled at him. “Fuck off.”
The two men laughed at me and bid me goodnight before heading to their giant suite.
I stood in the hallway for a moment. The Pendragon guys in the hall were at ease, but attentive. We had professionals watching our backs tonight. Maybe Icouldfinally get some real sleep. I let myself into my room and did a sweep out ofhabit. Checked the bathroom, the closet, behind the curtains. Everything was clear. Everything was secure.
So breathe.
Standing in front of my duffel bag on the luggage rack, I did as I’d told myself, and breathed. Tomorrow’s visit with Henri Dubois and Brandon Caulfield might go as smoothly as today’s visit went. Or, if Caulfield had tipped off Werner Kessler that we had the egg he wanted, we might finally find out what thehard waywould be.
The adjoining door stood six feet away. On the other side, Grace was probably getting ready for bed, washing her face, brushing her teeth, and changing into her pajamas. She’d worn the same soft pants and oversized T-shirt every night. Was she already in that? Or when she was truly alone for the night, did she sleep in less? Was she tucked into her bed, naked, reading her book? Did she touch herself at night to wind down?
Stop it, Garrett.
I sat on the edge of my bed and pulled out my phone: no new messages. I checked the secure app that linked to the Round Table team’s comms: all green, all clear. Checked my email: nothing urgent. Checked the weather for tomorrow, because apparently I’d run out of things to check.
The adjoining door stood there, waiting.
I wanted to knock. I wanted to knock so fucking badly it made my chest ache. I wanted to see her face when she opened it, wanted to know if she’d been hoping I’d come to her. I wanted to kiss her again, touch her again, drown in her until the rest of the world disappeared.
But I couldn’t. Grace deserved someone who wasn’t carrying the kind of darkness I was. Someone who could give her a life she deserved—bright and warm and full of the joy she gave to everyone else. Not someone like me.
