Page 6

He shakes his head, and a smile plays across his lips. “Relax, Miss Bennet. I invited you to dinner, not to my bed.”

“Oh.” My cheeks flush, and it doesn’t help that he’s chuckling, which makes his eyes crinkle in the most adorable way. I shouldn’t feel disappointed, but I do. And now I’m wondering what I have to do to get an invitation into his bed.

Axel stands up and wraps two of the pastries in a cloth napkin. “Take these for lunch, and the dinner invitation is open if you want it.”

He offers up the pastries, once again anticipating what I need before I do.

“Thank you. I’ll think about it.”

I take the pastries, and as I do, he leans in so his breath tickles my ear. “Don’t worry, Miss B. You’ll know when I’ve invited you into my bed.”

His warm breath caresses my neck, and heat rushes through my body, making my heart pound. Then he steps away and through the door, and I’m left with a napkin full of pastries and damp panties, wondering why the hell my body is determined to get me into trouble.

4

RUBY

Islam the door to my hotel room shut behind me and tear off my sunhat. I use it to fan my overheated skin, but it does nothing to relieve the agitation from my encounter with Axel. I came here to hide and lick my wounds, and instead I’ve found a man who makes me want to get into more trouble.

I went on the dating show Loved Unseen because I’m ready for love. I want to find my person, and the show offers a way to do it without being judged by looks alone. You date behind a wall, without seeing each other.

For the first time in my life, a man fell for me without my body being in the room. And I let myself believe it counted. Spoiler alert—it didn’t.

Now, a man I barely know looks at me like I’m a tasty snack, and I get hot and tongue-tied and turn into a simpering, lust-struck bundle of nerves.

Axel’s security guard escorted me back to my room, giving the all-clear at the top of the stairs to let me know that the corridor was free. I would rather have that than some asshole on their phone recording me and fueling the internet.

While I’ve managed to snag a free stay, I still have bills at home. I took enough time off while filming the show, and today I have to work.

I get comfy on the bed with the pillows at my back before opening up my laptop. Nasty subject lines jump out at me, and I do a mass delete, then search for emails from my clients. I open one, and it’s instructions for their latest social media campaign, which means opening the very sites where I’m being humiliated. I should shut my laptop and go run another bath. But I need the money. Being a contractor, if I don’t work, I don’t get paid.

I take a deep breath and open their preferred social media platform. Messages ping at me, and I ignore them all. A moment in settings and I have them turned off.

I get on with my work, and it’s okay until I open the next platform, which is video-based. And there I am. I’ve been spliced together with the shocked face of Cameron, the asshole I thought I had a connection with when we couldn’t see each other and were only talking through a screen.

As the video plays, comments scroll up the screen. I shouldn’t read them, but they catch my eye.

Some of them are supportive.

What an asshole.

This is fat-shaming. LU should be ashamed.

Others aren’t so kind.

LMAO!

Bro got duped.

Tears sting my eyes, and I slam the laptop shut. I will not cry any more tears over this. Cameron didn’t deserve me, and whoever leaked this video sure as hell doesn’t.

If Mom were still around, she’d know exactly what to say, but it’s been five years since she passed away, and I’ve been struggling to hear her voice since the video. I’m glad she isn’t here to witness the humiliation of the little girl she raised to be strong, taken down by weak men.

I throw my laptop back in my suitcase. Work will have to wait.

What I need is a distraction. And dinner with Axel might be the perfect one, or it could be more trouble. Axel’s at least ten years older than me, probably more. He’s together, owns a resort, and seems like a decent human. And I desperately need the reminder that not all men are assholes and that there are some decent humans in this world. Besides, I need to know if that tattoo is a snake’s tail or a vine or something else entirely. What harm can dinner do?

5