He blinked but didn’t glance down. “This one appears to be quite fond of me.”
My entire body was heat. “It’s not—those aren’t—we just… shoved things in there. Earlier. To tidy up.”
“No explanation required.” He stuck a piece of toilet paper on the bloody cut where it flapped gently, a limp white flag ofsurrender. “Although I think your cupboard may have been trying to prescribe me something.”
From the bedroom, I heard Eliza’s muffled laughter.
“Your head… I… um… do you want a cup of tea?” I asked.
Tea. I was offering him tea.What the actual fuck, Andrea?
Mr. Darcy chose that exact moment to run into the hallway, dragging his white toy mouse with him by the tail.
Except his toy mouse was gray.
This was a tampon.
He must have pulled it out from the box under the sofa.
Liam looked at Mr. Darcy, then at me.
“I… actually, I think I’ll be going.”
“Probably for the best.”
We stared at each other.
“I’ll be in touch.” His eyes locked onto mine, his mouth tight. “Although… dinner, this week? Say, Tuesday? We still have a lot of things to discuss.”
Oh. He just invited me to dinner. I felt a chill run up my spine and, for some inexplicable reason, into my nipples.
“Yes, okay,” I said, far too quickly, immediately hating myself. “I mean… I’ll check my diary.”
I had tons of things going on, and there was no way I’d be prioritizing Prima von Donna over everything else. This was a business meeting and nothing more. It just happened to be over dinner.
“Great, then,” he said.
“Yes. Well, thanks for coming.” I held out my hand in a way that I hoped kept things professional, ignoring the fact that my pulse had picked up.
He shook it.
“Thanks for having me,” he replied. “I’ll be in touch.”
Chapter 19
Liam
19:02. She waslate.
Perhaps she wasn’t going to come?
No, that was ridiculous. Two minutes late was nothing for most people for dinner. A dinnermeeting. No need to text her just yet. That would make me look desperate, and I wasn’t giving her that satisfaction.
The restaurant was getting busier, and I scanned the menu. The food here was excellent and not at all pretentious. She’d appreciate that. Although I should’ve asked about dietary requirements. What if she was vegan? Or allergic to nuts? Both? Fuck, what a nightmare that would be. Was there something for vegans who didn’t eat nuts?
“Business meeting, sir?” The waiter gestured to my leather folder on the table. “Perhaps I could suggest a private room?”
“No, thank you. A… friend.” The waiter tipped his head and left.Wasit a business meeting? Andrea always managed to derail my focus from business in an instant, no matter how hard I tried to keep my distance.
