Page 58 of One Reckless Night

She shook her head. “It’s none of my business, Jared.”

I stood up, my patience wearing thin. “When has that ever stopped you from talking?” I muttered.

“Hey, I’m not a gossip.”

“I didn’t say you were, but when there is something on your mind, you tend to express your opinion. It’s one of the reasons we get along. Clearly, you’ve got something you’re contemplating. I can’t fix it if you don’t tell me.”

“I don’t need you to fix anything,” she frowned. “And I don’t think I appreciate you insinuating I need you to fix anything.”

I rolled my eyes. These verbal sparring matches were lots of fun, but I was not in the mood. “Clair, spill. What do you know?”

She hesitated, then sighed. “I don’t know much. Just that she had to stay in Miami for a few days. Something about her mom.”

I frowned trying to remember her mentioning her mother. I didn’t even know she had family in Miami. I’d always assumed she was alone, like me. I assumed her family was back in England. But clearly, there was more to her story than I’d realized.

And who was to blame for that? Me. I didn’t exactly ask a lot of questions.

“What about her mother?” I asked.

Once again, she looked like she would prefer to chew off her tongue than tell me what I needed to hear. “I can’t.”

“Dammit, Clair, why say anything?”

“Because I think you should talk to her,” she said. “She’s sad.”

“And you think I’m the guy she should talk to?” I asked with a laugh. “I’m not sure we’ve met.”

She rolled her eyes. “Yes, as a matter of fact, we have met. And this new compassionate side of you seems to only show up when her name is involved.” She moved to the door but turned back. “Just for the record, Jared, some people might care about more than their own feelings.” She marched out, leaving me staring after her.

Amelia was back and already in the lab. A hundred scenarios ran through my head. What if she didn’t want to see me? What if she did? Was I just going to barge in and demand answers?

My hand hovered over my phone. Call her? Text her?

The hallways buzzed with activity, people rushing past with files and coffee cups, avoiding eye contact with me. I caught a few curious glances as I walked past. They were probably wondering if they’d need to duck for cover. I supposed that depended on how my conversation with Amelia went.

Each step closer heightened something inside me. A combination of anticipation, dread, and hope all at once. When I reached the lab, I hesitated outside. I watched her through the glass wall for a few seconds.

Amelia stood at a bench in deep concentration, surrounded by equipment and charts that seemed chaotic but made perfect sense to people like us. Her hair was pulled back hastily; she wore no makeup, as usual. It hit me how much I’d missed her presence. My mind was racing, my emotions a tangled mess. I didn’t know what I was going to say to her, but I knew I couldn’t let this go. Not again.

She looked beautiful. And it only made me angrier.

I stormed into her office. She jumped, her eyes widening in surprise as she turned to face me.

“Jared,” she said, her eyes wide with surprise. “What are you⁠—”

Her research assistants were staring at us with wide eyes and curiosity. “Excuse us,” I said, leaving zero room for questions.

They scrambled out of the lab. I shut and locked the door and pushed the button to close all the internal blinds, plunging us into privacy. I didn’t care if the little gossip queens talked.

“What are you doing, Jared?” Amelia asked.

I turned back to look at her. Her hands were on her ample hips. Her expression was colored with frustration, but beyond that, I saw exhaustion. There were dark circles under her eyes, and she looked tired. Like the kind of tired you get after fighting a war for years.

What was she fighting?

“Why did you leave?” I blurted out the question. “Why did you disappear without a word? You checked out early and just… left. Why didn’t you call? Or answer any of my texts or phone calls?”

She blinked, like she was actually surprised I had questions.