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No, don’t think of that. Think of strawberry cupcakes and delicate pastries.
She nibbled on her lip. “Do you think he’d let me? I don’t think he likes me very much.”
Brooke waved a hand. “Pfft. That’s just Tee. He’s growly around everyone. It’s his way. Trust me, it will be no problem at all.”
Megan rested against the headboard. She wanted to believe it. But she couldn’t shake off the shadow that had descended on her. Even when Charles wasn’t here, he managed to ruin her mood.
“Are you okay?” Brooke asked.
“Yes, I am.”
At least, she would be, once she was certain she’d made a clean break. Two and a half days had passed with no sign of him, so maybe he couldn’t find her. Or perhaps she’d misjudged and she wasn’t important enough for him to bother coming after her. He’d said his promotion depended on her—that his boss loved her—but perhaps he’d exaggerated. She clung to that thought and burrowed into the blankets, but she couldn’t quite get warm again.
* * *
Megan was watchingWorld’s Best Cake Makersand scribbling notes when someone knocked on the door. Everything inside her stilled, as it did whenever someone visited.
“Who is it?” she called.
“Sterling.”
Swinging her feet off the bed, she eased her weight onto them. She was healing, but it was slow, and moving hurt. Especially her torso. She unlocked the door and cracked it open.
“Hi.”
“Hi,” he replied, his blue eyes locking on her face, something lurking in them that made her anxious.Knowledge.“Can I come in?”
“Please do.” Politeness was so ingrained in her that she found herself stepping aside and indicating for him to take the seat in front of the desk before she’d even made a conscious decision to do so. Damn it, she needed to work on that. She couldn’t very well invite Charles into her room if he came to collect her.
“What can I do for you?” she asked, untucking the hair from behind her ear so it fell over her face and obscured her features. She’d tried to keep her distance from him over the past few days in the hopes he wouldn’t recognize her, but the way he was looking at her made her think that her grace period had come to an end. Would he spill the beans, or would he keep her secret?
“Megan, I know who you are.”
She squeezed her eyes shut and exhaled between clenched teeth. He’d called her by her real name. There was no point in pretending anymore. Slowly, she backed over to her bed and sunk onto it. “What are you going to do about it?”
“Look at me.”
She forced her eyes open, willing to do whatever he said if he’d keep quiet for a few more days. Another week, maybe. Enough time for her to figure out her next step.
“Mark is my friend,” he said.
She nodded. “I know.”
It was because of her brother’s friendship with Sterling that she’d heard of Sanctuary in the first place.
“He’d be beside himself with worry if he knew what happened to you. How long do you think it will take before your family notices you’re not in Auckland anymore? Do you really want them to wonder where you are, and whether you’re all right?”
“I’ll call them soon,” she said, desperation creeping over her. “I promise. Please, just let me go on being Hope for a while longer.”
His expression didn’t flicker when her voice cracked. Sterling was a cool customer. Always had been. Mark’s total opposite.
“What kind of trouble are you in, Megan?”
“Stop saying my name.” Her throat clogged with unshed tears. “I can’t tell you. Not yet. I just need a little more time. Please don’t mention this to Mark or Kat.”
Slowly, he nodded. “Fine. You’ve got three days to tell your family you’re safe, otherwise I’ll call Mark. Is that fair?”
“Yes, thank you.” She swallowed and the tension ebbed from her shoulders. Three days was more than she would have had if he’d outed her now. “I won’t let you down.”
