Page 12 of Unburied

Those pretty dark eyes bore into his, filled with curiosity and wariness. “What about him?”

“You’re too smart to play dumb, Virginia.” She glared at him, and he fought the urge to round the desk and crowd her more. “There’s something going on with the two of you?”

She tipped her chin up, effectively looking down her nose at him. “And what if there is? What would it matter to you?”

Every cell in his body flashed hot and cold with pure rage. “Because I’m not about to share a woman with my brother.”

“I’m not yours—or anyone else’s—to share.” He could practically feel the anger vibrating off her tiny body from where he stood. “And you most definitely don’t get to tell me what to do.”

The woman just had a way of getting under his skin and riling him. She just loved to contradict him, do the exact opposite of what he told her. She would push and push until⁠—

Suddenly, something clicked in the back of his brain as he recalled their night together. “Your hair.”

She tossed her head and propped one hand on her hip as she speared him with another exasperated look. “What about it?”

Had she cut her hair because he told her how much he loved it long—because he’d forbidden her to ever cut it? “You cut it because of me, because of what I said.”

She inhaled sharply, her eyes widening slightly. A second later, she blinked, her I don’t care what you think façade firmly back in place. “Wow. Conceited much?” She let out a very unladylike little snort. “I wanted to cut my hair, so I did. That’s all there is to it.”

Yeah, right. He had to fight the smile that tugged at his mouth. His comment from Friday night, coupled with his asinine remark yesterday, had pushed her buttons. He had every intention of apologizing for the latter, but he reveled in the knowledge that he’d affected her on such a deep level. “You look beautiful.”

Her mouth dropped open, and she blinked once. Twice. Finally, she gave a jerky little nod, confusion and surprise still swimming in those pretty dark eyes. “Th-thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” And now it was time to eat crow. “Listen, I need to talk to you about what you overheard yesterday. It⁠—”

She lifted one shoulder. “Doesn’t make a difference to me.”

“It does,” he insisted. He needed to make her understand he hadn’t meant it. “It was a stupid thing to say, and I’m sorry.”

She cocked a brow as she peered up at him. “Then why’d you say it?”

He let out a growl of frustration. “Because I’m an idiot. Because my brother was jumping me about dating, and⁠—”

“Sure.” She rolled her eyes. “Blame it on him instead of taking responsibility. Classic.”

“That’s not... Never mind.” He raked one hand through his hair. “I want to apologize. We work together, Virginia. We⁠—”

“We what?” Her dark eyes blazed with molten anger, but she lowered her voice to barely a hiss. “We hooked up? Yeah, we did. It happened, and now it’s over. I have no intention of repeating it, so you can shelve your guilt or”—she waved one hand in his direction—“whatever it is you’re feeling.”

He blinked, blindsided by her vehement response. He knew he’d hurt her, but she seemed absolutely adamant that it never happen again. But what if that wasn’t what he wanted? He opened his mouth to speak, but he didn’t get a chance.

“No one can ever know about that night at the hotel. Ever.”

Harsh, but he got it. Her eyes implored him to agree, and something settled heavily in his gut. He nodded at her statement, but that didn’t mean he agreed—far from it. “I understand where you’re coming from.”

She nodded a little and straightened, sweeping one hand over her hair. “Okay. Good. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” But she didn’t move, and neither did he. For several seconds, they stared at each other, caught in their momentary truce. He knew she felt the same attraction he did, but she refused to acknowledge it. Because of his stupid statement, or was it something else?

Knox’s voice floated down the hall, breaking the moment. “Vivi, where’s that file on Mickelson?”

She threw one last glare his way before snatching up a manila file folder. “Coming.”

“You said that the other night, too.” He kept his voice low so only she could hear it, and her head snapped his way, her cheeks flaring bright pink, dark eyes snapping with fire.

“Screw you.”

He grinned, thoroughly enjoying the rise he’d gotten out of her. “Looking forward to it, princess.”