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“Like pinning me to a wall?” she guessed with a judgmental, arched eyebrow. “Or insulting my father?”
I smiled. “Oh, no. Insulting someone is totally within my wheelhouse. It’s the feeling regretful part I’m not used to.”
She snorted.
The sound was so her that it rippled through me with a craving I had trouble containing. I stepped in toward her, giving her all the time to reject me if she so wished.
Her breathing went choppy, and she eyed me warily, but she didn’t push me away. “What’re you doing?” she asked instead.
Shaking my head, I admitted, “Not entirely sure. I’m trying to figure out what’s going on here, I guess.”
She pulled her head back a fraction of an inch and narrowed her eyes. “You’re acting weird. That’s what’s going on.”
I huffed out a breath of amusement and pressed my forehead to hers before lightly gripping the side of her bicep. Gabby went entirely still, not resisting but not melting into me either. I think she was as confused as I was about the shit that was stirring between us.
When her eyes slid closed and face tilted up as if she wanted me to kiss her, I leaned in to oblige, but she suddenly pulled away, mumbling something incoherent under her breath and shaking her head no.
Cheeks flushed, she blew out a breath and glanced up to warily meet my gaze.
“We should go. To your mother’s.” She cleared her throat. “To Lana’s.”
I nodded, reminding her, “But only because you want to keep your job and not because you like me, right?”
She blinked and didn’t seem as certain as she’d sounded two minutes before when she hesitantly murmured, “R-right.” Clearing her throat yet again, she turned and started down the hall, her strides determined and fast.
I watched her go before smiling softly and shaking my head. Then I fell into step behind her.
Despite how much I pissed her off, the woman might actually be thawing toward me.
And it was scary how much I wanted that.
Chapter 16
Hayden
“You’re early,” Lana accused harshly as she opened the door to us with an unwelcome frown.
So I smiled and shot back, “That’s because we just couldn’t wait for the pleasure of your company.”
While my mother scowled over my obvious sarcasm, I grasped Gabby’s hand in a show of solidarity with her, ignoring the twitch of surprise in her fingers over the contact, and smiled even more tightly to our host as I stepped into her apartment.
She wore all white and nearly blended into the room around her. If it weren’t for the aura of evil emanating off her, I might’ve missed her completely.
Next to me, Gabby shifted uneasily closer, saying nothing.
I gripped her fingers more firmly, hoping to reassure her.
“Well, dinner isn’t ready yet,” Lana announced irritably. “We’re going to have to wait.”
I shrugged. “That’s fine. It’ll give us plenty of opportunity for you to tell us why we were blackmailed into coming tonight.”
Choking out a sound of surprise, Gabby glanced up at me as if I’d lost my mind.
“What?” I asked, completely confused while Lana sniffed and rolled her eyes.
“You are such an insufferable ass,” she grumbled, shaking her head. “And here I am, making you such a lovely dinner. You could at least act—”
“Really?” I quipped back. “You’re making dinner? Since when did you learn to cook?”
