Chapter Ten
It wasn’t a dream.
But if it was, it was the best I’d had in a long time.
My fingers traced the ghosts of a kiss on my lips, as if by touching them, I’d rewind to the moment we connected.And I could’ve given in, opened up and threaded my hands through his hair, instead of backing away and saying goodnight.
I was such a coward.
It had been a long while since I enjoyed the company of a man who wasn’t pushy, until yesterday.
Yet, one kiss, onepowerfulkiss, and I tucked tail and slithered away.
Yep, I was definitely a coward.
And why?What was I hiding from?
Responsibilities.A life in another city.My children who still depended on me to pay the bills for the most part.
I sat up, rubbing a palm over my eyes as a soft knock sounded on the door.Feet moving faster than my brain registered, I flopped over and yanked open the door.
No one was there; however, a note was taped below the peephole.
Coffee in the lobby.
Breakfast ends at 9.
— T.
Just an initial.It wasn’t intimate or distant, but it was perfectly maddening, and definitely Tristan.
I showered and dressed with the speed of someone determined to feel nothing, and marched myself toward caffeine.
I spotted him instantly leaning against the counter, cradling a Styrofoam cup like he didn’t know what to do with his hands.His hair was damp.He must’ve showered.Of course he’d already showered.He probably reorganized the chaos of life itself before I woke up.
“Morning,” he said, voice a shade too careful.
“Morning.”I poured myself coffee, pretending the cup required intense concentration.
We sat in a corner booth across from each other.I studied the way he shifted in his seat, the way the collar of his sweater was slightly off kilter, and the way his lips twitched as if he wanted to speak but wasn’t sure what to say.
Although that could’ve been me as well.
He cleared his throat after a gulp of coffee.“Sleep okay?”
“I was warm enough,” I said.
A ghost of a smile, the kind that didn’t dare reach his eyes, surfaced.
Silence again, more awkward than uncomfortable.
“Did you want to grab some breakfast?”He motioned toward the continental breakfast.It wasn’t much and all pretty standard; toast, pre-packaged foods, an assortment of fruit—but it was infinitely better than nothing.And I was hungry.
Slowly, still unable to look him in the eyes, I slid to the end of the booth.“Yeah, I’ll grab some snacks and reinforcements for later.”
