didn’t plan to treat me to a “it was a mistake” talk. It would be no different than a slap across the face.
Deciding to go ahead with my morning ritual, I went straight to the bathroom, did my business, and took a hot shower. A bath would have been better, since I was a little sore from last night, but I didn’t have the time. I’d do it later, when I was back at home. Well, Dane’s home.
I wrapped a plush towel around me, opened the door, and took a step into the bedroom. I stopped dead, tensing. Dane—fully dressed and looking as hot as ever—stood a few feet away.
If this had happened yesterday morning, I’d have ushered him out of my room with a horrified squeak. But after last night, I felt off-balance and unsure of where I stood.
His dark gaze bore into mine, giving away nothing. Literally nothing. There was no heat, no emotion, no gleam of … anything. “The museum opens in an hour,” he said.
I blinked. That was pretty much the last thing I’d expected him to say. “I’m sorry?”
“You said you wanted to go to the Natural History Museum while we’re here.”
“I do.” But our day had been so hectic yesterday that I hadn’t had time to spare, so I hadn’t bothered to bring the subject up.
“If we leave here soon, we can spend a few hours there before we fly home,” he said, not sounding in the least bit enthusiastic about it. But he was willing to go with me anyway. I might have read something into it if he hadn’t agreed to this prior to our trip.
I cleared my throat, still feeling stupidly awkward. “Okay. Great. Thanks.”
Amusement lit his eyes, and one corner of his mouth hiked up.
“What’s funny?”
He pursed his lips and shook his head. “Be fast.” As he turned toward the door, his eyes flicked to the nightstand. “Don’t forget your rings.”
Watching him walk out of the room, I took a steadying breath. Well it was safe to say that, as I’d anticipated, he didn’t feel awkward. It also seemed that we weren’t going to address what happened last night, which suggested that he might well regret it.
Disappointment sat heavy in my stomach. And I realized a tiny part of me had held some pointless hope that last night was the beginning of something. It was the same tiny part of me that had gotten us into this entire freaking situation by making a deal with the devil. So, yeah, that “tiny part” was absolutely fucking stupid—there was no question about it.
He might have been so brazen as to waltz into my room uninvited like it was his right, but there’d been no morning kiss, no eye-fuck, no touching—hell, he hadn’t even wished me a good morning. So it was abundantly clear that nothing between us had changed. I had to accept that they never would.
Shaking off my dull thoughts, I quickly got ready to leave and packed my small suitcase. After placing my luggage near the front door beside his own, I headed to the dining area to grab something from the spread of breakfast foods on the table.
Dane was nowhere to be seen. His empty cup and plate told me he’d already eaten.
I poured myself a coffee, nabbed a few Danish pastries, and took a seat at the table. I was halfway through the last Danish when he appeared. And I immediately felt awkward again.
He lifted a brow. “Ready?”
I pushed away from the table. “Yep,” I replied, going for casual.
That glint of amusement was back in his eyes, as was the odd little curve to his mouth.
I frowned. “Is something funny?”
He shook his head, but that secret smile didn’t dim.
We left our luggage with the concierge on the understanding that we’d collect it in a few hours when we were on our way to the airport.
Walking around the museum with Dane was much like it had been when we strolled around the zoo. At first, he showed little to no interest in his surroundings. But bit by bit, that changed. And, although I suspected he’d rather swallow glass than admit it, he did actually enjoy himself. Well, to an extent anyway.
He didn’t once bring up last night—not even to say that there couldn’t be a repeat of it. He behaved perfectly normally; didn’t touch me any more or less than usual. It was honestly as if nothing had happened between us. I supposed that was because it had been