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Elisha’s waiting for a response. How long has he been lost in thought? He clears his throat. “I just hadn’t gotten around to it, I guess.”
Maybe out of some long-buried self-preservation instinct? If he had to put it into words, he’d liken it to eyeing the biggest, most exciting-looking box under the tree, but already knowing that what was underneath all the ribbon and sparkle was never meant for him.
She wraps her hands around her cup like she’s seeking heat, even though it can’t possibly be warm anymore. “Another thing you needed time to think about, I guess.”
It’s the knowing way she says it that gets under Ves’s skin. As though she has him all figured out, cobbling together an idea of him based on, what, exactly? His responses to shit that has always been out of his control? But he doesn’t want her to know she’s hit a nerve, so he finishes his coffee in one gulp. Lukewarm, just as he thought.
“Some of us do think twice before leaping into situations,” he says icily.
Her laugh sputters out, stunned and maybe a little hurt. “Right. Yeah, okay.”
Three little words. Three little words—the equivalent of one of those jagged ice spikes dangling from a roof. Three perfect stabs straight into his heart. Why the fuck was he just so mean to her?
“Sorry,” he mutters, trying to look at her so she knows he means it. Instead, she’s staring steadfastly out the window, a purse to her lips he’s never seen before. Another stab. He put that expression there. “I don’t like people making assumptions about me.”
“I get that,” she says softly. She turns her head about thirty degrees as though she’s still deciding whether he’s forgiven or not. “I guess that, um, even though I expected you wouldn’t say yes right away, I still... well, I wanted you to. Didn’t realize how much until just now. After we kissed, I thought...” She looks embarrassed. When he’s about to apologize again, she faces him head-on like she did before. “But you’ve got one thing wrong, Ves.”
He’s so relieved at being forgiven that he doesn’t even care. “What’s that?”
She does a fluttery motion with her hands that seems intended to convey something. “You think that I’m rushing into things, don’t you? Like when we first met and I got the wrong end of the stick—erm, wrong end of the candy cane. And our kiss was pretty impulsive, too, I’ll grant you, but I know what, and who, I want. The truth is, I was attracted to you the first moment I saw you.”
“You mean when I had my back to you and you had a weapon raised?”
She stomps on his foot, enough to show her annoyance but not enough to hurt. “Maybe not the very first moment. But the first time I saw your face, yes.”
Then, deviously, as though she can’t let the compliment stand without evening it out, she adds, “That was before I got to know your personality, obviously.”
And then she gives him the most spectacular smile.
He groans and whisks the napkin off his lap. “Just get the damn bill.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Ves
Ten minutes later, Elisha’s frozen fingers work the key inside the padlock on a gate while Ves looks on, a half frown of concern on his face. It sets in deeper as she leads him up the dirt road to a barn that’s peeling strips of white paint on the outside but will be warm and cozy with hay inside.
“Thanks for agreeing to a quick stop before we head home,” she says over her shoulder. “Damian’s assistant wanted some pics of the stables. Won’t take longer than a few minutes.”
“Working on a weekend? You really love your job.” He huddles behind her while she opens the barn door, wondering if she feels the warm puff of his breath on her neck. He fights the impulse to drop a kiss on her nape, skim his lips all the way up to her ear, suck on the flutter of her pulse. “Are you sure we’re allowed to be here?” he asks instead, fisting his hands against his thighs to keep from reaching for her.
She half turns, close enough that her lips could kiss the slant of his jaw. “My friend Kat Kwon’s family owns the stables and I have a standing okay to visit whenever. You met her at trivia night; she manages the stables while her parents spend the winter in Florida. We used to sneak in all the time when we were younger.”
“Breaking and entering even at such a tender age?” he murmurs.
She doesn’t move away, even though the door is open. “We weren’t all such Boy Scouts.”
Ves can’t help but tease. “Problems with authority and character-building team activities?”
Her answering grin is pure menace. “What can I say, extracurriculars cut into my TV time.”
“Why did I have a feeling you’d say that?” Ves mutters, complaining to the dreary gray sky above.
There’s an unexpected note in her voice that tugs at him when she leans in to whisper in a breathy caress against his cheek, “Don’t think you have me totally figured out.”
But he’d like to.
Before Ves can reply with a zinger of his own, Elisha takes him by surprise. Her soft, cool lips graze the corner of his mouth, just enough to be a barely-there kiss. That side of his face tickles, nostrils flaring as he takes in her sensual scent—sweet mint, woodsy chestnut, and cozy vanilla. He leans into it, goosebumps peppering over his suddenly flushed skin. His pants tighten as his stomach swirls with dizzying pleasure, and Ves has to close his eyes and set his jaw to keep from embarrassing himself with a groan.
