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“No is a full sentence,” I shrug instead.
Draven makes a strangled sound deep in his throat before inclining his head toward me. I force myself not to think good boy and simply ignore it.
“Unless you have a problem with it, I’m going to walk you into the locker room,” he says. “There’s no one else here.”
“Why is that?” I ask, curious.
It’s easier to talk to him while I’m relaxed and feeling boneless. I’m starting to wonder what kind of psychological warfare he’s working with, because I may not have been receptive to a conversation otherwise.
I don’t want to be sympathetic, but it has to be hard to be the first person to date me after all the history we have together. I agreed to this for a lot of reasons, and the most poignant one is my son. He’s getting to the age where he’s going to begin having questions about his fathers, since these men are one unit.
I need to know what kind of men they are now, even if I can’t forgive them.
My family isn’t loving this arrangement, for obvious reasons. I ran through security with Theo, and this spa has cameras in all of the public facing areas. It also has them in the pool as well, which is where we’ll be soon. Theo reassured me there’s no audio, and I’ll be able to say whatever I need to.
I don’t know what he assumes is going to happen, but Draven and I are a long way from anything getting hot and steamy.
“Why are you tensing up?” he asks, pulling the key ring off my wrist.
“I asked a question and you haven’t answered it,” I lie.
“Oh. It’s getting harder to get around without being stopped for an autograph or a conversation with a fan,” he explains, his hand on the locker as he asks silently for permission to open it.
I nod as I process that and pull my backpack from the locker once it’s open.
“So I’m not some kind of secret,” I drawl.
“Outside of you being dead and enjoying your privacy, no,” he replies. “I want you all to myself, even if you refuse to speak to me. Did Tamara tell you to drink more water when you’re in the pool?”
“Maybe? I’m so relaxed, my memory is shit,” I mumble. She said a lot when I was waking up and then drinking my water.
“Do you need a glass of water, or is there a bottle in your bag?” he asks, looking amused.
“I have a bottle….”
“Do you have some of that salt stuff?”
“Umm, excuse me?”
Draven blushes as he presses his hand against his thigh, and I think about what an odd tell that is.
“It’s supposed to help your body retain water, which helps with dehydration, right?” he asks, his words tumbling over each other.
“Yes,” I sigh. “I do salt for my water. How do you know about that?” I ask.
“I’ve been reading,” he says. “Ah, can you put some of it in your water? It should help with your dizziness.”
Do I know that? Yes. Do I still forget? Also yes. Sometimes I need reminders, especially when doing new things.
“I’ll do that. Ah, thanks.”
I step into the little bathroom area and take my time as I change. I also quickly check my phone.
Arran
Hey, beautiful. Are you feeling relaxed yet?
Me
