Page 100 of The Gaybor War

"That's because I was showering."

The room settles around us with an awareness that keeps showing up whenever we're alone together. I glance over. He's still sitting ramrod straight, hands clasped loosely between his knees as if he's waiting for an interview to begin.

"Carter."

"What?"

"You look nervous."

His eyebrows lift. "I do not."

"You absolutely do."

"I've spent the last ten years in boardrooms."

"And yet a hotel room is what's taking you down."

His mouth twitches.

I cross the room and lean against the desk instead of crowding him. Close enough to talk, but far enough that he doesn't feel cornered.

"This is the part where we either pretend we’re fine… or we admit this is getting stupid. We're supposed to be having fun, remember?"

He studies me for a second. "I am having fun."

The answer catches me off guard because he's serious. Something warm settles in my chest. "Good."

His expression eases. The tension leaves his shoulders a little at a time. And that’s when I realize what I'm actually looking at.

He’s not panicking. This is anticipation.

Carter Reed doesn't know how to be excited about something without acting like he's preparing for impact.

It's ridiculously endearing.

I smile. "Well, that's adorable."

His eyes narrow. "There he is."

"There who is?"

"The menace."

A grin pulls at my lips. "Now I'm fully unpacked."

I turn to grab pants, letting my towel drop to the floor. There’s no chance he isn’t ogling my bare ass right now. None. I give it a little flex and shimmy for his benefit. Call it an advertisement for later this evening.

Carter makes a sound behind me. Not a word. Not even a real noise. Just—air catching, as if his lungs forgot their job for a second.

I snicker into the open drawer.

"You okay back there?" I ask sweetly, stepping into a navy blue thong and dragging on my jeans at an unhurried pace. I let them sit low on my hips.

"I’m fine," he says too fast.

Which is how I know he absolutely is not.

Turning, I button them slowly, watching him pretend to be very interested in the view out the window. His shoulders are tight. His jaw is clenched. He looks like a man trying not to think about something he is thinking about very hard.